National Archives of Australia’s Discovering Anzacs website has been decommissioned after almost 10 years of service. 

The Discovering Anzacs website was developed for the Centenary of Anzac commemorations and was formally launched in October 2014 by then Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove. The website was a partnership between National Archives of Australia and Archives New Zealand, and included digitised service records of Australian and New Zealanders who served in the First World War and the Boer War. 

Director-General Simon Froude said the decision to decommission was difficult, but essential to improving users’ digital engagement with the national archival collection. 

‘I understand many of our users will be disappointed, however the Discovering Anzacs platform is no longer supported, restricting our ability to ensure security and up-to-date user functionality.  

‘The website has been taken down, with a view to developing another offering that meets the digital standards and provides the public with the best digital experience possible,’ Mr Froude said.  

‘We are committed to making the transition as seamless as possible, and will be providing further information and support to help our users over the coming months.’ 

First World War records and Boer War records continue to be available through other digital platforms, including National Archives’ defence and war service records page.  

Long term, National Archives is exploring other ways to provide a more contemporary digital experience, with the goal of connecting more Australians with National Archives’ war service records and the broader collection. This work will take some time before being publicly available.   

‘Developing new digital experiences takes time. To ensure our services meet the needs of the public, there needs to be significant consultation and research, which requires an investment of funds, resources and time,’ said Mr Froude.   

‘As with most cultural institutions, we have significant funding restraints that restrict our ability to do work like this quickly. In the meantime, I urge the public to use National Archives’ website resources, including the RecordSearch platform.’ 

The national archival collection contains records about key events and decisions that have shaped Australia’s history. With more than 40 million items, the collection includes records from Federation in 1901 to now.

For more information:

Defence and war service records

An archived version of Discovering Anzacs is available on Trove