In 1702, during the time of the Kingdom of Ireland, the State Paper Office was established to requisition and begin collecting these government documents.

The State Paper Office collected a range of government records, but primarily carried those relating to security, finances, trading, land ownership, and military and ecclesiastical matters.

In 1867, under the reign of Queen Victoria, the British Parliament passed the Public Records (Ireland) Act 1867 (30 & 31 Vict.

In 1922, during the Battle of Dublin in the Irish Civil War, the Four Courts complex was seized and occupied by Anti-Treaty forces.

O'Malley wrote of the explosion later in his book The Singing Flame: "A thick black cloud floated up about the buildings and drifted away slowly.

"[7] The cause of the explosion was argued over until a study of the battle showed that Anti-Treaty forces had decided to use the Public Records Office as their munition block.

As the battle progressed, the Free State army began shelling the Four Courts, which caused multiple fires to erupt over the complex.

It was one of these fires that reached the munition stored by the Anti-Treaty forces and caused the explosion that destroyed numerous records that dated from the 13th to 19th centuries.

To make sure each record is stored properly and can be easily found later, they also create and maintain databases to map out the collections.

To encourage the preservation of materials, this division not only responds to the daily demands of the public for physical copied and digital material, but also works on long-term projects to create copies of original documents that can be used as surrogates in place of the original as hardcopy, digital, or microfilm formats.

This process prevents constant handling, and potential damaging, of the original document, allowing it to be preserved longer for future generations.

In their role of accommodation, this division keeps a close eye on the integrity of the buildings and environments the records of the archives are stored in.

To continue the ensured safety of their collections, the Archives Storage and Preservation Division also carefully considers disaster prevention and planning.

As one of their more daily duties, this division provides services to the public and the archival staff by removing documents from storage and returning them after use.

They also handle publicity materials, create online exhibits, and publish social media posts relating to the archives.

"[12] To continue their goal of preserving important documents, the archives will also accept material "in instances where there is no official place of custody in order to secure it from destruction.

If the patron wishes to view something offsite, they must make a request and come back on a later date when the item has been delivered to the Reading Room.