Malta Archival Resources
This is a bit off-topic.
Earlier this week I had the opportunity to visit the Malta National Archives in historic Rabat. It is housed in what was initially a “hospital” which had a foundling wheel, or “ruota degli esposti” where newborns could be left to the care of the church. Some were given the last name Esposito.
We were shown a display of some of their records of genealogical interest, including passport applications. A treasure is a bound copy volume of notaries records of birth marriages and deaths back to the 16th century. Ancestry has filmed and is currently processing it. The passport records are at the archivesportaleurope.net site. It hosts records from many countries. A search for Canada surfaced 36,639 records from various European countries.
As historic as the building is, it is not up to modern archival standards. With a total Maltese population less than that of Ottawa, it operates under severe constraints of funding while striving to preserve the much more extensive historical collection.
LAC Co-Lab Update
There are currently 4,324 items identified as Co-Lab only contributions in the collection. That’s up from 4,196 last month. The new ones include scattered cabinet conclusions from the 1940s to 1970s, and diary entries by William Lyon Mackenzie King.
Sounds like a cool building to visit, but yes, scary to think of all that history not stored to archival standards.