About Us

History

Stratford-Perth Archives opened in 1972 as the Perth County Archives. The original collections were the R.T. Orr family papers and archival material from the Perth County Historical Collection. We were originally housed in the basement of the Perth County Court House. In May of 1981 we moved from the Court House to the Registry Office building at 24 St. Andrew Street in Stratford. Two other branches of the archives also opened, one in Listowel in 1975 and another Mitchell in 1984. As time passed all three branches were in need of a larger facility, more suitable for preserving the collections and able to welcome all researchers. In April 2014, we broke ground and in June 2015 Stratford-Perth Archives opened its doors to the public at our current site.  

Facility

Our facility is a 10,000 square foot state of the art, fully accessible building. The  Reading Room offers a large space for researchers who can access free Wi-Fi and use public computers attached to microfilm scanners. Located adjacent to the Reading Room, the  James Anderson Gallery usually has an exhibit of archival materials on display. The Gallery is also where we host speakers and other community events exploring local history.  Check out our Exhibits and Events page for more information. 

We have Digitization and Preservation Labs. We digitize some original records to make electronic copies more easily available to researchers. Fragile documents can be cleaned or repaired by skilled staff in the Preservation Lab. Records in the Collections Room come to us in many formats, such as: animal skin, paper, ink, bound ledgers, plastic disks, film and photographs. Each format reacts differently to changes in temperature and humidity. The  air handling system operates to provide constant, proper levels of humidity, temperature, air movement and filtered air. The Collections Room also has a fire suppression system that can detect when combustion is about to occur. If that happens, a gas is released to put out the fire before it can reach the flame stage. The gas is safe for collections, staff and the environment.

Donating Records to the Stratford-Perth Archives

We welcome donations of archival records like photographs, maps, family papers, community club minutes and business records. Any documents that help researchers understand the history of Stratford and Perth County are potentially of interest to Stratford-Perth Archives. All documents donated to Stratford-Perth Archives are stored in our climate controlled Collections Room for preservation. For more information or to make an appointment to discuss a potential donation, please contact Betty Jo Belton, Archivist at 519-271-0531 ext. 259 or email the Stratford-Perth Archives.