Guide to the Papers of C. A. Burmester, 1934-1990

 

Collection context

Summary

Collection number:
MS 2321
Creator:
C. A. Burmester
Extent:
2.25 metres and (15 boxes)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of C. A. Burmester, National Library of Australia, MS 2321, [box number and series and/or file number]'.
Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:
The papers relate mainly to the work of C.A. Burmester as a senior member of the staff of the National Library of Australia and to his scholarly and bibliographical activities in the years after his retirement in 1971. They include reports, minutes, and other internal documents of the Library, correspondence, speeches and talks, draft bibliographies, and copies of his unpublished memoirs. There are papers relating to the Conference on Source Materials for Australian Studies (1961), the National Book Resources Development Committee, and the Humanities Research Centre of the Australian National University. The papers were received in a highly disorganised state and to a large extent the existing order has been imposed by Library staff. They have been arranged into ten series, six of which relate to phases of his career as a librarian and three of which document his retirement activities. The correspondents include Rex Nan Kivell, John La Nauze, L.F. Fitzhardinge, Dan Sprod and Allan Fleming.
Biographical Note:

Clifford Amandus Burmester was born on 16 June 1910 in Boulder City, Western Australia, the son of Henry and Ethel Burmester. His father was an engine-driver in the Water Supply Department and his early years were spent in small towns on the goldfields. In 1922 the family moved to Perth and he attended the Claremont Central School and later Perth Modern School. He was appointed a trainee teacher in the Education Department and in 1933 graduated as a Bachelor of Arts with Honours at the University of Western Australia. For a time he was a correspondence tutor in the Department of History.

In 1934 Burmester applied for a position in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library, but the job was given to L.F. Fitzhardinge. He was successful the following year, being appointed a Legislative Research Clerk. He enlisted in the AIF in 1941, serving mostly in the Northern Territory. He returned to the Library after the War and in 1947 was appointed the second Liaison Officer in London. Among his many achievements in this post were the successful negotiations to secure the Nan Kivell Collection, the purchase of the Kashnor Collection, and the inauguration of the Australian Joint Copying Project.

On his return to Canberra in 1951, Burmester was appointed Chief Reference Officer and held this position for 15 years, initially in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library and after 1960 in the National Library of Australia. As well as being responsible for reading room and reference services, he played a major role in book selection and had oversight of the Australian Section, headed by Pauline Fanning. In the 1960s he was heavily involved in the planning of the new building. He formulated the Library's acquisition policies at a time of enormous growth of the collections and in 1966 became Principal Librarian, Development Services. Following the sudden death of Athol Johnson in 1967, Burmester became Assistant National Librarian, serving under Harold White and briefly under Allan Fleming. He was a key figure in organising the move into the new building in 1968. He retired in January 1971. He was awarded the Imperial Service Order in 1970.

In his retirement, Burmester undertook a number of bibliographical and scholarly projects. The most important was National Library of Australia: guide to the collections, published in four volumes between 1974 and 1982, which drew on his enormous knowledge of both the formed and the general collections of the Library.

Burmester's first marriage to Winifred Lamb ended in divorce. He married Ruth Southcott in London on 1 January 1948. They had three sons. Burmester died in Canberra on 18 August 1991.

Immediate Source of Acquisition:

The papers were donated by C.A. Burmester in many instalments between 1976 and 1989.

Indexed terms

Names:
C. A. Burmester

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn120350).
Conditions Governing Use:
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of C. A. Burmester, National Library of Australia, MS 2321, [box number and series and/or file number]'.
Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact: