The Archive
The Archive is the home of over four thousand publications and documents. There are original publications, transcripts, record books and photographs.
The Archive contents tell the many stories of the discovery and subsequent development of an understanding of electrical technology – from the mysterious phenomena that it was many years ago to the all-pervasive servant that electricity is now.
The Archive contents includes:
- Text books and other publications tracing the history of the discovery and development of electricity generation, distribution and utilisation
- Documents and records concerning local and regional electrical industries
- Text books and documents relating to the electric telegraph, radio/wireless telegraphy, radio (both for two way communication and general broadcasting), and television
- Catalogues and Advertising material for technical and domestic items
The archive has reference material relating to the application of electrical energy in the home ranging from the first incandescent lamp to the heating and “doing” appliances that followed electric light.
It also has some references relating to non-electrical matters:
- Steam – boilers, engines and turbines
- General science, mathematics and engineering
- The history of Tamworth and the surrounding district
While the archives’ content does tend to concentrate on Tamworth’s proud history as an ‘electrical town’, it has reference material relating to the electricity supply industry in NSW, in Australia, and to a lesser extent, the rest of the world. The archive has letters and other documents relating to the roles played by the electrical engineers responsible for guiding Tamworth’s electricity undertaking from the very beginning in 1888 up to and beyond 1956 when generation and transmission came under the control of the Electricity Commission of NSW.
To search for items in the catalogue tick ‘References’ in the Online Catalogue.
