National Archives of Canada

The National Archives of Canada, a Canadian government institution, originated from the Dominion Archives founded in 1872 within the Department of Agriculture to acquire and transcribe historical documents. Renamed Public Archives of Canada in 1912 and National Archives of Canada in 1987 via the National Archives of Canada Act, it managed government records across all media, established federal records centres starting in 1956 for cost-effective storage, and promoted Canadian historiography through publications like Union Lists of manuscripts. In the context of UAP/UFO research, it holds federal government records potentially including related programs, alongside vast collections: 21.2 million photographs, 3 million megabytes of electronic documents, 341,500 works of art, and 2.3 million maps. In 2004, it merged with the National Library of Canada to form Library and Archives Canada (LAC) under the Library and Archives of Canada Act, now serving as the national memory institution preserving and providing access to documentary heritage.