Hisorical Repositories

Historical repositories are places where historical information and important material/s are put for safe keeping and preservation. This is done for future referencing incases where persons would want to gather information about the past or a previous event. Some of the places these information may be kept are: warehouses, museums, libraries among others

A few types of historical repositories are:
1 Library- is a room or building containing books, CDs or videos that can be looked at or borrowed to read or to aid in future work or entertainment.
2 Museums- a museum is a building where important cultural, historical or scientific artifacts are preserved and shown to the public. This is done so that persons can learn about their past history and culture, the way of life of other ethnicities and how people lived in the past.
3 Archives- is a part where historical records, books are stored

Types of Libraries, Museums and archives in Guyana
Library
The National Library
The Linden Library
Museums
The Guyana National Museum
The Museum of African Heritage
John Campbell Police Museum
The Military Museum
The Guyana Heritage Museum
The Philatelic Museum
The Walter Roth Museum of Anthropology
The Rupununi Weavers Society Museum at Lethem
The Dutch Heritage Museum
Archives
The Walter Rodney Archives

The National Library

The national library was first opened in 1909 after funding was provided by Andrew Carneige. Mr. Carneige was an American philanthropist who in the 1880s set up a fund in open five libraries in the West Indies, one of which was The National Library. The construction and design of the building was done by Mr. L. P. Hodge the assistant director of Public works.
Some of the services offered by the National Library are: A reading centre for children where they can borrow books of a wide variety, Internet access, Lending and Borrowing and referencing of various materials.

A bookmobile service was established in 1976 so that persons that are not able to access the library will still have a chance to red and advance their knowledge. Some of the areas that gained access to the bookmobile service are: Tucville, Peter’s Hall, Agricola, Providence and Soesdyke. The mobile back the n had a capacity to hold 1000 books but a t present it is un operational.
The National Library is opened from Monday to Saturday from around 8:30 am to 4:30 or 5:00 pm. They also have a dress code that persons wishing to access the library must comply with. The mandate of the library is to empower the people as it strives to improve the literacy and numeracy in this information age.

The Guyana National Museum

The Guyana National Museum was first opened in the year 1951 and is located on North Road. The museum was previously called the British Guiana Museum before independence and was housed in the Carnegie building. The first gifts the museum collected was from Sir Robert Schomburgk which was fifty five native woods.

At present some of the items on display at the museum are: Flora and Fauna, Precious stones, Archaeological findings, Amerindian art and craft, botanical Minerals, the giant sloth, amphibians among others.
The museum is opened from Monday to Saturday and is free.

The Museum of African Heritage

The Museum of African Heritage was founded in the year 1985 when Mr., Hubert H. Nicholson and Mrs. Desiree Malik purchase a collection of African Art. The museum that these items were donated to was called the Museum of African Art and Ethnology. After the first donations were made a number of donations began to pour in from areas such as donations from the local community example art and craft and items from the Burrowes School of Art.

In the year 2001, the museum was renamed the Museum of African Heritage in order to attract a wider variety of visitors and fully address the African experience in Guyana. This museum is the only of its kind in the Caribbean.

The John Campbell Police Museum

The John Campbell Police Museum is located in the compound of Eve Leary. On display are police uniforms, photographs, musical instruments, police artifacts and other items dating back colonial times so that persons can see what the military was like back then to present day. It also informs you of the special men and women of the force that have all made significant contributions. The museum was opened in honor of John Campbell a former assistance commissioner of police.

The Guyana Heritage Museum

The Guyana Heritage Museum is located at Kastev, West Coast Demerara. The museum was once a home that was turned into a museum by Cary Serrao whose passion for art and collecting items led to him opening the museum after much persuasion from friends. The museum was officially opened in November 1999.
This museum one of its kind is made up of irons, enamel lunch carriers, three legged iron pots, maps dating back to the 18th and 19th century, coins, stamps and a wide variety of books written by Guyanese. The museum is made up of three floors.
On the first floor of the museum is a collection of coins dating back to queen Victoria’s reign, maps from the 1653, stamps used in 162, over seven hundred volumes of books written by Guyanese authors such as Rodney and Mettlrhozer. On the second floor is a room filled with Amerindian, Africans and Indian items. Some of which are utensils, pictures, books used by the Amerindian tribes back then and masks. There is also a three hundred year old water filter, costume jewelery worn by Indians, quanant stools from the African era, milk cans and a variety of items too numerous to mention.

The Rupununi Weavers Society

The Rupununi Weavers Society Museum is located in Lethem and is a branch of the Walter Roth Museum. The purpose of the museum is to promote and enhance awareness of Guyana’s indigenous cultures. The museum houses Amerindian artifacts, archival materials, and intellectual resources among other items.

The Walter Roth Museum of Anthropology is the first anthropology museum in the English speaking Caribbean and is located at 61 Main Street, North Cummingsburg. The museum was first opened in 1974 and was named in honor of the late Walter Edmund Roth who was an anthropologist administrator and surgeon.
It is said that the architectural work done on the building was done by John Sharps in 1890 and was then bought by Duncan McRae Hutson a Guyanese barrister-at-law and legislator in 1891. But after his wife passed in 1942 the property was bought by the British Guiana government. When it was bought the building was used as a Teacher’s Training College and later The Attorney General’s Chambers.
In 1976 the National Trust declared the building as a national historic monument and in 1978 was taken over by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Social Development. When it was acquired it was decided that the building be used as a museum and was officially opened to the public in 1982.
The first collection of items ever donated to the museum was by Dr. Dennis Williams a Archaeologist.Some of the items on display include wai wai collections, excavated artifacts from the ten administrative regions, burial urns, petrolyps among others. The museum is opened from Monday to Saturday.

The Dutch Heritage Museum

In February of 2007, a Dutch heritage museum was established by the national trust on fort island, Essequibo River. This museum is housed in the oldest non military structure in Guyana. It provides visitors with a social and historical reflection of the presence of the Dutch in Guyana. It is currently the only such institution in the region.
Many items used and /or created by the Dutch are displayed in this museum. Detailed info on various events that occurred in the past during the time of slavery can be found there and also info about the building in which this museum is housed in can be found there as well; due to the fact that the building is of great significance since it was used by the Dutch for multiply purposes for example it was used as a court where slaves who attempted to escape where tried and punished by being put to death by hanging.

The Walter Rodney Archives

The nation archive of Guyana was organized in 1958. It holds a vast quantity of historical data; this collection dates back to the period of Dutch occupation when documents were stored in the dome of Parliament buildings.
In the year of 1982, the national archives of Guyana act was passed, establishing the national archives as a department. This act provides for an advisory committee hence, these members of this committee are usually appointed by the minister. The main role of this committee is to advise the minister on matters of general archival policy and to review the work and progress of the department.

The national archive contains approximately 700 meters of textual material, 10,000 printed items and 55 meters of newspaper (32 titles). Of the collection, 5% dates from the 18th century, 55% from the 19th century and 40% from the 20th century. However the Dutch collection is the oldest group these date back to 1735.

The Archive is opened to students wanting to do research from Monday to Saturday.

The Cheddi Jagan Research Centre

The Cheddi Jagan Research Centre is located on High Street between Barrack Streets. The establishment is also called the Red House or Kamana Court. The house before becoming a research centre was acquired in 1925 and Sir Eustace Woolford a legislature speaker was one of the first owners of the establishment. After Sir Eustace the house had numerous of owners including Dr. Cheddi Jagan from 1961-1964.

The Cheddi Jagan Research Centre was officially opened on March 22, 2000 to celebrate the 82nd anniversary of Dr. Jagan. At present the centre is operated by the family of Dr. Jagan and his close and dear friends. The family’s aim and objective is to promote research into and publish materials to the public on the life, words and ideas of the late president according to his family. The family also offers to the public Dr. Jagan’s philosophy, aspirations, struggles and accomplishments.

The centre has three floors. These are: The Museum on the (top Floor), The Archives (middle Floor) and Conference Centre. It is also opened to the public free of charge from Monday to Saturday.

Conclsion

In conclusion as we have been discussing over the last few pages historical repositories are very important to countries. This is because it informs the citizens of that country and visitors of where they can go and gather information about the country’s history, their people and important places.

Everyone of these institutions or building all play a significant role and part in Guyana’s history. Without them persons wouldn’t know their history, who they are and visitors wouldn’t know where to go or which significant place to visit.