How important are archives for a fandom?

lori wonders about the role of a central archive in the longevity of a fandom. In particular, she wonders if there's a solution to the Star Wars fandom's problem of the lack of a FictionAlley-type all-inclusive archive. The Master-Apprentice archive is one of the only active archives left for prequels-era fic, it seems. What does this mean for our fandom?