 Concern about the destruction of valuable records prompted the formation of the Public Records Committee (chaired by Dr Battye) in 1923, which was later revived as the State Archives Board in 1929, functioning until 1943.In March 1945, Mollie Lukis was appointed as the first archivist overseeing the development of the state's archival collections and, in 1956, the state archives collection became part of the J. S. Battye Library of West Australian History.In 1988 the State Archives became a separate directorate within the Library and Information Service of Western Australia (LISWA) and in 1990 a Records Management Branch, (now called Recordkeeping Services), was established to enable more active engagement in records management matters at both state and local government levels.