Works commence on ambitious re-development of National Archives
-
From: Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media; Office of Public Works
- Published on: 22 May 2024
- Last updated on: 27 September 2024
Today marks the start of a major investment of over €37 million in re-developing the archive repository at the National Archives on Bishop Street, Dublin 8. The project, which will be completed over 65 weeks, will future-proof the records of the State over the coming decades in a purpose-built, modern archive building.
This re-development is a significant project under the National Cultural Institutions investment programme as part of Project Ireland 2040. The project is funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and is being delivered in partnership with the Office of Public Works.
The National Archives holds the official records of the State, as well as private collections. The collections held in the National Archives total over 50 million records dating from the 16th century to records relating to the modern Irish state. The National Archives also holds early Census records including the 1901 and 1911 censuses that are publicly available. The National Archives team is currently working on the public release of the 1926 Census, the first census of the Irish Free State, which will be released on 18 April 2026.
The main collections of the National Archives are kept securely at buildings on Bishop Street, Dublin 8 where there are also public reading rooms, office accommodation and archival storage. However, despite its very large footprint, the Bishop Street building (former Jacobs biscuit factory) has been unable to take records at volume since 2013. The re-development will accommodate over 300,000 archive boxes in a purpose-built, dedicated archival repository, designed with ground works, foundations and services that offer the potential to develop future archival storage vaults on top of the new archival storage vaults if required over time.
Speaking at the National Archives today Minister Martin said:
“I am delighted to be here today as work begins on transforming the archive repository at the National Archives. We saw, during the Decade of Centenaries, the vital role the National Archives plays in preserving the precious records of the State. The expansion and conversion of the Bishop St building to a modern, state of the art, secure and environmentally-controlled repository, complying with internationally accepted archival storage standards, will provide an increase of two-thirds in the total storage capacity of the National Archives. This is significant project for one of our Cultural Institutions and ensures the National Archives can meet its evolving needs in a sustainable and future-proofed manner.”
Also speaking today, Kieran O’Donnell, Minister of State for the Office of Public Works said:
“The commencement of works at the National Archives Building on Bishop Street marks a significant milestone in protecting the States physical records and collections of our past. The re-development of the building will provide the necessary space required to accommodate not only our current volume of records but will also provide opportunities to develop additional archival storage as required into the future.
"I am delighted that this project is progressing to the next stage, bringing us closer to a modern, fit for purpose repository for State records that will meet current and future demands."
The project is funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and delivered in partnership with the Office of Public Works. This development is a project under the National Development Plan, Project Ireland 2040, which will see many of our much-loved National Cultural Institutions, restored and renewed for generations to come.
Notes
The National Archives Act 1986 established the National Archives and transferred to it the papers of the Public Record Office and the State Paper Office both of which were abolished. In 1992, the National Archives headquarters moved from the Four Courts to the former Jacob's biscuit factory in Bishop Street, Dublin 8.
The National Archives preserves the memory of the State in the form of its written records. It acquires and protects Ireland’s public records, thereby ensuring their availability as a resource for all. These records relate to the social, cultural, economic and political history of the island of Ireland from the Middle Ages through to the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922 and into the modern era.
Under the Act, records of government departments and agencies are transferred to the National Archives when they are thirty/twenty years old. Currently hard copy records still transfer to the National Archives.
The Bishop Street premises consist of a five-storey building fronting the street and a large archive repository extending back to Peter Street and west to Bride Street. The current repository is a 30-foot high single story building of 260 square metres (28,000 square feet). The National Archives also has storage vaults at the Four Courts, which were built in 1867 as part of the Public Record Office of Ireland.
The National Archives repository has been full since 2013. The overflow is stored in commercial off-site storage. To mitigate this cost, the National Archives accepts less than half of the annual transfer of 30-year old records and mainly those, which have a significant public interest such as documents relating to government decisions and 20-year Anglo-Irish matters. This intake is approximately 5,000 boxes out of an estimated 12,000 annual boxes resulting in a backlog in departments, which is also increasing each year.
The new repository will increase the capacity of the National Archives by two-thirds by inserting a second floor within the existing repository structure and providing for state of the art racking and shelving systems.
The re-development will also strengthen the existing foundations to support the present works, as well as allowing for future upward expansion.
The new repository will provide climate control and fire protection for the National Archives collections.
The new archive repository will enable all back-logs currently in government departments and bodies to transfer to the National Archives.
The National Archives is also in the process of developing a Digital Repository to enable the transfer of born-digital records.