The Nova Scotia Provincial Heritage Fair was held at Pier 21 on 31 May 2013 and, for the fourth year, the CNSA presented a prize for the best use of primary sources for a history project. This year’s recipient was Sarah Kittilsen for her project “She was There and She Survived” which focused on her great-grandmother’s experiences during the Holocaust. Sarah used a number of primary sources to complete her project inlcuding interviews with family members, a letter written by her great-grandmother about her experiences, family photographs, and an entry record related to her great-grandmother’s arrival in Canada. Sarah, a…

The winner of the 2013 Dr. Phyllis R. Blakeley Award was the Highland Village Museum for their project An Drochaid Eadarainn / The Bridge Between Us. The Bridge Between Us was a collaborative project initiated by the Nova Scotia Highland Village Society in collaboration with a number of community partners, including the Muncipality of Victoria County, NSCAD University, the Provincial Office of Gaelic Affairs, and St. Francis Xavier University. Officially launched in May 2012, the project saw the creation of an interactive website designed to increase accessibility to Gaelic culture and heritage. The site is essentially divided into two prats.…

The 2013 Anna Hamilton Award was presented to Ken Dodsworth from the Fort Sackville Foundation. Ken has volunteered with the Foundation for the last 18 years during which time he’s managed their large photographic collections, worked on their website, helped to develop promotional material, served in various positions on the Foundation’s board, and attended Council of Nova Scotia Archives workshops and conferences. Described as capable, reliable, generous with his time, and always willing to help out with a new project, Ken has certainly served the archival community with dedication in an exemplary fashion. In the attached photo, Fort Sackville Foundation…

The winner of the 2013 Carman V. Carroll Award was the St. John’s Anglican Church Archive for a holdings maintenance project which involved training for archive volunteers (on preservation supplies and techniques as well as arrangement and description) who then re-housed, arranged, and described material according to archival standards. The project was funded through the Provincial Archival Development Program (PADP) and completed by a group of volunteers with an average age of 75. The project saw the re-housing of textual material (dating from ca. 1752-1946), photographs, prints, negatives, slides, and architectural plans. In addition to preserving the church’s archival holdings,…

Catherine presenting the winner of the Anna Hamilton Outstanding Volunteer Award, Susan Hill of Cumberland County Genealogical Society, with her certificate. This year’s Anna Hamilton Memorial Award for outstanding volunteer was presented to Susan Hill of the Cumberland County Genealogical Society (CCGS). Susan is an energetic and enthusiastic volunteer who helped establish the society in 2000. She is a great role model who has volunteered for a number of projects including, but not limited to, serving on the board of the society, helping with workshops and conferences hosted by the CCGS, acquiring and accessioning archival material, preparing resource materials for…

Peter Crowell, Argyle Township Court House and Archives, and Bill Greenlaw, NS Dept. of Communities, Culture & Heritage, being presented with their wall plaque by Catherine Arseneau, President of CNSA. Left to right: Bill Greenlaw, Peter Crowell and Catherine Arseneau The 2012 Phyllis R. Blakeley Award was presented to the Argyle Township Court House and Archives for their project “An Acadian Parish Reborn. Post-Deportation Argyle – First 50 Years of Catholic Parish Records 1799-1849.” This was a partnered project with the Nova Scotia Archives who provided the technical support to host the project online. The project involved the creation of…

Cassie Cameron receives her Award from CNSA representatives in front of her display at NS Heritage Fair 2012 held at Pier 21 Canada’s Immigration Museum, Halifax, NS From left: Cassie Cameron and Patti Bannister. The 2012 Nova Scotia Provincial Heritage Fair was held at Pier 21 on 24 May 2012 and, for the third year, the CNSA presented a prize for the best use of primary sources for a history project. The Fair brings together students from around the province in grades 4 to 9. This year’s recipient was Cassie Cameron for her project “My ‘Unwritten’ Hero” which focused on…

Laurena presenting the winner of the Anna Hamilton Outstanding Volunteer Award, Madeleine McNeil of VG Nurses Alumni Archives, with her certificate and prize. The Anna Hamilton Memorial Award for outstanding volunteer was presented this year to Madeleine McNeil of the Victoria General Hospital Nurses Alumni Archives in Halifax. Madeleine, a long-time volunteer at the VG Archives, helped to develop many of the archives’ policies, attended CNSA workshops and training programs, and served on the CNSA executive committee from 1996-1998. Her work in the archives has involved arranging and describing much of the archival material in their holdings, providing reference services…