This past week our Galt Archives donated copies of photographs to a fund-raiser silent auction. Money was being raised to send a class on an educational exchange trip.

As this was a small, local community we chose a few photos from the community. The photos were a huge hit and earned the most money of all of the silent auction items.

Why? One photo turned out to be a picture of the Grandfather of several of the people present that evening. It was a photograph that none of them had ever seen. It's a fabulous photo showing the Grandfather and another relative standing in front of a sod house.

And this is not the only picture of this man we have in the Archives. Indeed, the family has already been in to get more copies of this picture and others from the Archives. They have also provided information about the family and have added to the Archives' knowledge.

There are currently over 300,000 photographs in the Galt Archives and they represent many of the communities around southern Alberta. Are there pictures of you, your family or your community in the Archives? If you want to know what's there, you can visit the Archives on weekdays between 10 am and 4:30 pm or check out the database on the Archives page at http://www.galtmuseum.com/. You will also find on the database thumbnails of over 60,000 of the photographs (and more are being put up ever year).

The vast majority of the Archives' photographs and documents have been donated. Think about what you have at home (or in your business or your organization). Should it (or a copy of it) be in the Archives so that our shared history is preserved?

For more information on what's available or if you have questions about donating photos and documents, don't hesitate to contact the Archives at 403-329-7302 or click on the Request Form on the Archives web-page.