Taking the reins: a proposal for managing the previously unmanaged Royal Agricultural Winter Fair Archive

The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (The Royal) has been a renowned national event in Toronto’s history since its debut in 1922. The annual fair is held for 10 days each November, and is the largest combined indoor horse show and agricultural fair in the world. As The Royal approaches its centenary year, the timing was perfect to deeply examine the previously-unmanaged collection of over 180,000 photographic objects and ephemera, and nearly seven metres of textual material, that has accumulated over the span of its rich history. Through a thorough review of the collections content and advice for both physical storage of the collection and collections management software options including digital storage, this thesis presents a list of recommendations for creating an accessible archive of this material, a resource that will enable this wonderful collection of important local, provincial, and national history to be preserved and made available to the public.