What is in the BSL Archives?
The archives collection contains an extensive set of primary sources including papers, photographs and audio-visual materials spanning from the early 20th Century to today. These records offer insight into the history of the Brotherhood of St Laurence and the many varied social welfare and poverty programs and activities that the Brotherhood has been engaged in.
The archives are organised chronologically and discoverable in the Library catalogue.
The archive has been arranged into 3 categories (Series):
• Series 1: Tapes, Reels, CDs, and DVDs, 1940s-2011
• Series 2: Papers, 1875-2019
This Series contains a large set of published and unpublished materials including books, reports, correspondence, and other assorted papers.
• Series 3: Photographs, 1905-2017
This Series contains a large set of historic and contemporary photographs, negatives, and slides, including black & white photographs of BSL activities and staff, photo albums (eg. Father Tucker’s from WWI), and donated collections of photographs and photo albums.
David Scott Collection. David Scott was a director of the Brotherhood, a socially progressive community icon, and a key figure in the history of community organisations and social advocacy in Australia. The David Scott collection contains records spanning from 1930 to 2011. Assembled by Scott when preparing his biography, it offers crucial insights into Scott’s early life and his role in various Australian and international organisations, government agencies and political movements. .
This collection is arranged into 5 categories (Series):
• Series 1: The Early Years
• Series 2: Social Work & Community Development
• Series 3: East Timor
• Series 4: Post-Brotherhood Life, Professional Work and Activism
• Series 5: Scott’s Biography & General Topics
For further information and access to the Archives collection, contact the BSL Social Policy Library at library@bsl.org.au.