In 1973 Dr. Stephen Baier published a short note on the archives in Niger. Since then, the structure, organization and even location of what is now officially called the Archives Nationales du Niger have undergone considerable changes. In fact, at the time Dr. Baier carried out his research in Niger, the Archives Nationales were little more than bundles of mostly unclassified documents and files stored away in a dark room in the Supreme Court building. However, in 1973 a professional archivist (Elhadji-Mahamane Sade) was appointed Director of the Service des Archives, which then came formally into being. One year later the archives were transferred to a newly completed building just a few yards away from that of the Supreme Court (and next to the ‘palais de la Présldence’).