Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is the federal institution responsible for managing the records of the Government of Canada, and for acquiring historical collections of national significance from private individuals. LAC’s roots can be traced back to the foundation of the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec (LHSQ) in 1824, which was responsible for acquiring and preserving documents relating to the history of Quebec. After Confederation in 1867, groups such as the LHSQ began to lobby the federal government for the creation of a national archive. This led to the creation of the Archives Branch of the Department of Agriculture in 1872. A year later, the Records Branch of the Secretary of State of Canada was created to manage the records of the federal government. These two departments merged in 1903 as part of the Department of Agriculture and the resulting department was headed by the Dominion Archivist and Records Keeper. In 1912, the Public Archives Act created the Public Archives of Canada. In 1987, the archives’ name was changed to the National Archives of Canada. When the Library and Archives Act was passed in 2004, the National Archives of Canada and the National Library of Canada merged to form Library and Archives Canada.