Intro
Photo (L-R): Damian Shepherd (State Archivist), Jennie Carter (President Friends of Battye Library), Margaret Medcalf OAM, Caroline Spencer (Auditor General and Chair of the State Records Commission), Andrew Sly (Deputy Director General at the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport) at the recent celebration for Ms Medcalf.
Ms Medcalf was Western Australia’s second State Archivist, serving in the role for 18 years from 1971 to 1989. During this time, she played a pivotal role in developing and expanding the State archives collection.
An innovator throughout her career, Ms Medcalf established the WA Oral History Project in 1974 to record living history and add “a warmth to the recording of our history.”
Since retiring in early 1989, Ms Medcalf has continued to contribute significantly to the community. She has served as President of the Royal WA Historical Society, was a founding member of the Perth chapter of the Zonta Club and is the Patron of the Friends of Battye Library.
In 1999, Ms Medcalf received the Order of Australia for services to history, and in 2014 was inducted into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame.
Earlier this month, the State Records Office and State Records Commission recently joined the Friends of Battye Library and the State Library of WA (SLWA) to celebrate Ms Metcalf’s milestone birthday and to honour the significant impact she has made in preserving Western Australia’s rich history.
The State Records Commission and State Records Office continue to recognise her extraordinary contribution to preserving and improving access to WA history through the annual Margaret Medcalf Award, which celebrates excellence in research using the State archives.
The 2026 winner of this unique and prestigious award will be announced in October.
Photo: Ms Medcalf joined State Records Office Senior Archivist, Damien Hassan, to discuss the State archives collection and the fascinating records Ms Medcalf helped collect from across Western Australia.
Photos (L-R): Ms Medcalf at work prior to the move to the Alexander Library Building circa1984. Ms Medcalf examining government registers in the 1970s.
Photos (L-R): Margaret Medcalf with former Premier Sir Charles Court and author Paul Buddee, 1985. Chief Justice of Western Australia David Malcolm QC with Margaret Medcalf at the launch of the Order in the Court publication, following the transfer of Supreme Court records to the State Archives collection, 1990.
Photographs courtesy of the State Records Office.
Find out more about the Margaret Medcalf Award