LJI Reporter
Tashi Farmilo

This May, the Gatineau Preservation Campus, a crucial protector of Canada’s documentary
heritage, extends a warm invitation to the public for an exclusive behind-the-scenes experience.
This event offers a unique opportunity to explore the intricate world of preservation and
archiving, providing a rare insight into the efforts made to safeguard our national treasures.

Visitors of all ages will have the opportunity to explore the campus’s laboratories and vaults,
discover works by Canadian artists and learn about the daily efforts to preserve history. The
open house promises an insightful look at the meticulous work involved in safeguarding the
nation’s documentary heritage.

For the first time, the public will gain access to the new Preservation Storage Facility, which
opened its doors in 2022. This state-of-the-art building is the world’s largest automated archive
facility and the first net-zero carbon archive facility in North America, boasting LEED Gold
certification. The facility has already received accolades for its architectural excellence and
innovative design.

In addition to the new building, visitors can wander through the renowned Preservation Centre,
an architectural marvel that opened in 1997. The centre is equipped with vaults to protect
historical documents from various threats and laboratories where professionals digitize
documents and carry out restoration treatments.

The open house will feature a variety of activities in collaboration with professionals who work
with the Library and Archives Canada collection. Highlights include exhibits showcasing unusual
objects from the collection, kiosks and laboratories offering insights into Canada’s documentary
heritage, and a glimpse into the construction of the Preservation Storage Facility. Children can
also engage in fun activities such as colouring drawings from the collection and decorating the
windows of the Preservation Centre.

For those interested in the preservation of history and the safeguarding of Canada’s
documentary heritage, the Open House at the Library and Archives Canada Preservation
Campus in Gatineau is an event not to be missed. Scheduled for Friday, May 24, and Saturday,
May 25, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., this will be a free event requiring no registration and will take
place at 625 Du Carrefour Boulevard in Gatineau.

Photo: The Gatineau Preservation Campus houses forty-eight vaults, each approximately 350
square metres in size, containing a diverse array of archival records and publications, all
designed to protect the collection against various dangers, with a sophisticated fire detection
and suppression system in place, and strict control over materials used inside the vaults to
prevent contamination. (TF) Photo courtesy of Library and Archives Canada