Order of nuns that staffed B.C.'s residential schools to pass records to B.C. museum

The order of nuns that staffed numerous residential schools and 10 hospitals in British Columbia over more than 160 years is handing over ownership of its archives to the Royal B.C. Museum.

The museum and Sisters of Saint Ann announced in a joint statement Wednesday that the transfer will be expedited and allow for the records to be digitized.

Alicia Dubois, the museum’s CEO, says the transparent access to the comprehensive residential school records is essential to truth and reconciliation efforts.

Members of the nuns' order worked at the Kamloops Indian Residential School, where the local First Nation has asked for more documents in its quest to identify the remains of hundreds of children believed to be buried near the former school.

The statement says the sisters will fund an archivist to help in the management of the process, while the museum will be responsible for allowing access to residential school survivors, their families and Indigenous communities.

Sister Marie Zarowny, president of the Sisters of Saint Ann, says they recognize access to the archives is just a single step toward reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.