For Immediate Release Thursday, October 25, 2007
The United Church Archives Finds a New Home
Toronto: In a statement released today, The United Church of Canada is
pleased to announce a new location for its archives that are housed in
Toronto.
In early 2008, The United Church Archives (Toronto) will be moving from
the Victoria University campus at the University of Toronto to The
United Church of Canada’s General Council Office at 3250 Bloor St. West
in west-end Toronto.
Currently The United Church of Canada supports a regional network of
archives situated in 10 different locations throughout Canada. In
Ontario, the United Church Archives (Toronto) manages the records of the
General Council, the antecedent denominations, and the records of Bay of
Quinte, London, Hamilton, Manitou, and Toronto Conferences and their
respective presbyteries and pastoral charges.
In announcing the decision regarding the new location for the United
Church Archives (Toronto), Nora Sanders, General Secretary of the
General Council, said, “As General Secretary, I want to assure all those
who value the rich heritage of the United Church’s archives of my
personal commitment, along with that of the General Council, to the
careful stewardship of this unique archival collection.”
Public access at this new location will be facilitated by its proximity
to major transportation routes, the Islington subway station, and
on-site parking. The new location will also allow for more immediate
access and integration of the archives collection into the life and work
of the church’s national office and the church’s governing body, the
General Council.
The archives will be housed in space vacated by The United Church of
Canada’s television and audiovisual production facility, Berkeley
Studio. The studio space becomes available as a result of the decision
in June 2007 to cease in-house, on-site audiovisual production effective
December 31, 2007. The Berkeley Studio audiovisual collection will also
be preserved as part of the General Council’s archives.
Bernard Granka is the project manager for the archives transition. He
and Sharon Larade, The United Church of Canada’s General Council
Archivist, will oversee the monumental task of moving close to 20,000
boxes of records to the new site of the United Church Archives
(Toronto). He explains that the church will be contracting specialized
movers for the relocation of the archives collection.
Granka says that the studio space has great potential for storing
archival records. The studio is self-contained, with a separate,
existing heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) unit,
allowing precise control of the environmental conditions of the storage
vault. Immediately adjacent to the archives’ new vault are offices that
will become the new reading room and staff workstations. Compact
shelving will be installed to maximize archival storage capacity in the
available floor space in a single vault.
Granka explains that the new location for the United Church Archives
(Toronto) will meet the institutional standards set by the Canadian
Council of Archives and all the records of the General Council and the
Ontario Conferences will be administered by professional staff. He says
that while there is much work to be done, the General Council Office and
the five Ontario Conferences are confident that the new location will
serve the purposes of both the General Council Office and the five
Ontario Conferences.
Granka adds that while planning and preparations are underway to move
the collection from its current location at Victoria University, the
collection will be temporarily unavailable for research after December
21, 2007. The United Church anticipates reopening its reading room to
the public by Monday, May 5, 2008 at the 3250 Bloor St. West location.
Granka emphasizes that throughout the United Church Archives (Toronto)
transition, the church remains committed to providing continued access
to all archival records related to residential schools, and will offer
full co-operation with all aspects of the Indian Residential Schools
Settlement Agreement. This includes uninterrupted, open access to its
archival records for the purposes of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission.
The Conference archives outside of Ontario are not affected by this
transition at the United Church Archives (Toronto). For up-to-date
information about their programs, see www.united-church.ca/archives.
Additional information with regard to the move of the United Church
Archives (Toronto) will be posted to the archives website at
www.unitedchurcharchives.ca.
Questions and concerns about the transition should be directed to the
United Church’s General Council Archivist, Sharon Larade, at
[log in to unmask] or to the project manager, Bernard Granka, at
[log in to unmask]
Media enquiries should be directed to:
Mary-Frances Denis
Communications Officer
The United Church of Canada
416-231-7680 ext. 2016 (office)
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