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REVIEWS
KEEPERS OF THE RECORD: THE HISTORY OF THE HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY ARCHIVES
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by Deidre Simmons
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| McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal and Kingston, Canada, 2007. 384 pages. $80.00 cloth. |
| Over the past several decades, Canadian and American scholars have mined the trove of documents at the Hudson's Bay Company Archives (HBCA) to produce a series of path-breaking studies. In Keepers of the Record, Deidre Simmons presents the first formal history of this singular resource and thereby provides scholars with the history behind the history. By documenting the corporate logic behind the creation and preservation of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) records, the author makes valuable contributions to the fields of historical research and archival studies. |
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A research and archives consultant, Simmons employs a chronological framework to chart the history of the HBCA, beginning with the formal establishment of the HBC in 1670 and concluding with the physical transfer of the HBCA to the Provincial Archives of Manitoba in the 1970s (the HBC legally donated its corporate archives to Manitoba in 1993). Simmons separates her study into eight chapters, each corresponding to noteworthy historical periods that affected the company's record-keeping practices. In the process, the author provides a general historical overview of the HBC, crafts a useful outline of the historical development of the archives, and also relates instructive mini-biographies of individuals who were influential in the long-term development of the HBCA. |
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In following a chronological structure, Simmons presents a persuasive thesis as to the development of the archives. Beginning in the late 1600s, the HBC established a clear record-keeping policy in order to meet the needs of business operations, to protect itself against litigation by business competitors and political opponents, and to make requisite reports to the British government. Simmons stresses that the ongoing success and existence of the HBC was also a major factor in the survival of the company's historical records. During the nineteenth century, key historical developments — industrialization, the diversification of HBC business activities, the adoption of new accounting techniques, and additional government legislation and regulation — resulted in major changes in the volume and types of records collected and preserved by the HBC. Although there were no formal archival standards for record-keeping during this period, company policies and procedures continued to conform to the corporate culture of preserving records for business operations and government reporting. By the early 1900s, HBC officials had become aware of the importance of the company archives for historians and for the company's own public relations and publicity needs. These developments led to the establishment of the Archives Department in the 1930s, the gradual expansion of access to the archives for outside researchers, and finally to the transfer of the records to the Provincial Archives of Manitoba. |
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With this study, Simmons presents a detailed, well-documented history of the HBCA through the 1970s. The author's training as archivist is noteworthy here because she effectively documents the long-term corporate culture of the HBC that fostered the creation and retention of the company's valuable records. In the second chapter, for example, she presents a fascinating case study of recording-keeping at Fort Albany on Hudson's Bay during the 1700s. Simmons details the scarcity of ink in the subarctic region and the various solutions devised by the fort staff for making homemade ink from tannic acid, oak trees, and carbon. This attention to detail, combined with an appreciation of historical context, provides readers with a unique insight into the thinking — the corporate culture — of HBC company officials and personnel throughout its long history. |
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On a more critical note, Simmons's narrative is more descriptive than analytical, sometimes leaving readers with unanswered questions. This may be because the author has generally approached her task from the perspective of an archivist rather than from that of a historian. Although, for example, Keepers of the Record clearly demonstrates that women were excluded from major roles within the company — including record-keeping responsibilities — until the mid-1900s, the narrative contains little analysis of the intriguing topic of gender in the history of the HBCA. Additionally, this volume is less informative about professional archival practices in the late 1900s. A cursory examination of the bibliography and the endnotes reveals a limited engagement with the historiography on archival practice and the emergence of the archival profession in the late 1900s. One wonders how the major changes in archival practice, including technological developments, have affected the HBCA in recent decades. The HBCA does have a well-known website; however, there is discussion of neither electronic records management nor whether the HBCA has a digitization project in the works. |
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In spite of these shortcomings, Keepers of the Record makes a noteworthy contribution to the literature on the HBC. Simmons has clearly charted the long-term corporate culture of the HBC, and for this reason, Keepers of the Record is a useful monograph for courses in archival studies, public history, and historical methods. Indeed, this volume should be required reading for all researchers using the materials in the HBCA. |
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| Melinda Marie Jetté
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| Franklin Pierce University, New Hampshire |
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