AustLit

'Based on a keynote address to the 2018 International Society for First World War Studies conference, the author’s survey of a centenary of archival endeavour comprises four time periods and two themes. It highlights the unique role of the Australian War Memorial and its initial documentation priorities favouring Dr C.E.W. Bean’s official war history, the battlefront and the war dead. A post-centenary open-ended aftermath is also discussed covering processing backlogs, the prospective idea of ‘digital breakthrough’ and the archival implications of ever-widening understandings of the war and its endless aftermaths. The paper ends with an appeal for new voices in researching the documentation of Australia’s Great War experience.' (Publication summary)

'Bob Sharman died peacefully in Hobart on 28 August 2018, just short of 90 years old. Providing an account of his life and achievements is, for us, a sad and important task. We knew him as a friend and professional colleague. As well, one of us shared his strong interest in Tasmanian history and the challenges of leading an archival organisation, while the other was one of his students when he lectured at the Canberra College of Advanced Education in 1971 and was on the ASA Council in the early 1990s when he was its Treasurer.' (Introduction)