Mr Miller, the Dunedin Regional Archivist for Archives New Zealand, has been made an honorary life member of the Archives and Records Association of New Zealand (Aranz).
He is the ninth person to receive the award in the organisation's 33-year history, and the second Dunedin person.
Born and bred in Otago, he has worked an as archivist for more than 30 years including long stints at the Hocken Library and Archives New Zealand.
He was the first New Zealander to obtain a postgraduate Diploma in Information Management, training under Peter Orlovich at the University of New South Wales in 1975, and returned to New Zealand armed with the latest knowledge about how to store and access historical information.
Mr Miller was a foundation member of Aranz - he still has the receipt for his first subscription payment as member No 3.
Since then he has held many positions, including national president.
The award citation, read at the Aranz's 2008 annual meeting in Dunedin on Thursday, said Mr Miller's interest in record keeping and the preservation of documents had never been "a congenial bread-winning weekdays occupation" but rather a life-long passion.
That was true, he said after the presentation.
"I've always had a passion for history and its preservation, and for making sure people are able to use information. It is not just a nine-to-five job."
Mr Miller said he successfully nominated former Hocken Librarian Stuart Strachan for the same award 20 years ago but never anticipated receiving one himself.
