A collection of artefacts from his African expeditions are at Fort Frederick (Kingston) and some his diaries are preserved in the Public Archives of Nova Scotia; others are lost.
The department itself was formerly known as the Public Archives of Nova Scotia and was renamed Nova Scotia Archives & Records Management in 1997 after it assumed responsibility of government record-keeping.
Messer died in Halifax and his library and papers are held by the Public Archives of Nova Scotia.
Piers also served as librarian of the Provincial Science Library from 1900 and as Deputy Keeper of Public Records of Nova Scotia from 1899 until 1931, when the Public Archives of Nova Scotia opened.
He encouraged the creation of archives by the provincial governments and served on the Board of the Public Archives of Nova Scotia when it was reconstituted in 1929.
In 1945, she became a research assistant at the Public Archives of Nova Scotia.
To keep this unique collection secure and available for study, a permanent home was needed, so the Public Archives of Nova Scotia was approached.
A few of the casualties are listed in the Halifax Explosion Remembrance Book at the Public Archives of Nova Scotia.
A Directory of the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758-1958, Public Archives of Nova Scotia (1958)