Centre for Public History

History is omnipresent. Whether it is celebrated, conserved, or rejected, history is central to all understanding of humankind and society, being concerned with the totality of humanity's past experience. The Centre for Public History (CPH) was established to assist people in coming to grips with the past. In order to plan your organisation's future and assess present issues and concerns you need to know about the past. CPH can research historical information from annual reports, minutes of meetings, and promotional campaigns. These reports can facilitate your understanding of your organisation's culture and management traditions. Are you celebrating an anniversary or other significant event in your organisation's history? CPH can produce a corporate or institutional history of any length written in a lively and readable style to commemorate the occasion, a history you can share with employees, clients, shareholders and colleagues. The Centre can even preserve on audio or video-tape people's memories which provide that special personal insight into your organisation's history. CPH aims to provide high quality historical and related services to a broad range of organisations and groups.

Services and Activities

CPH will devise, undertake and administer history projects for a wide variety of clients. Its services include:

• Professional advice on any issue involving historical research

• Engaging professionals to undertake projects or project components

• Project budgeting, development and management

• Historical research on any subject

• Policy analysis

• Specialised projects relevant to social and cultural heritage, including Historic Places

• Supervision for any historical project to ensure completion on time and within budget

• Genealogical research using public and private records held in Otago

• Litigation research services

• Residential house histories

CPH will provide professional advice on how to plan history, heritage, publication and other projects; it will also bring together a range of professionals including historians, heritage consultants, archaeologists, architects, planners, editors, artists, designers and publishers, to meet special project needs.

Potential clients include local government bodies, corporations and businesses, organisations and clubs, professional associations and trade unions, and university faculties.

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Contact Details

Centre for Public History
Department of History
University of Otago
Te Whare Wananga o Otago
PO Box 56,
Dunedin
New Zealand

Tel 64 3 479 8606
Fax 64 3 479 8429
Email cph@otago.ac.nz