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Office of the Secretary >
Records Management > Advice for Congregations
> Disposition of Records
© You may copy this document for congregational use providing copyright is
acknowledged.
Revised 2005.
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Preserve Your History!
Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are the sole
owners of their records and, therefore, the preservation of these records
must be addressed properly when a congregation ceases to exist. Records of disbanded
congregations are important for documenting the life of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America and shall be incorporated into the archives of
this church.
Procedure for transferring records to the
Archives:
-
After synodical officials
have had the opportunity to close the affairs of the congregation, the
records of the congregation shall be transferred to the appropriate
synodical or regional archives.
-
Before you dispose of
anything, contact your synodical or
regional archivist
for guidance regarding how to proceed with transferring your materials.
-
A portion of the
congregation's remaining assets should be given to the archives to cover
the cost of processing, cataloging, maintaining, and giving access to the
legal and historical records, photographs, and other materials that
represent the congregation's history.
Records of archival
value that exist only in digital formats should be printed out for
transfer to the appropriate archives.
If the synod has not
established an archive, disbanded congregation records should be sent to
the churchwide archives in Chicago, after consultation with the director
for archives.
Whenever and wherever records of
disbanded congregations are discovered, every
effort should be made to place such records in the archives of this
church
It is presumed that any ELCA congregation formed by merger or
consolidation will receive ownership of the records of each of its
predecessor congregations and will be responsible for maintaining them.
All of the archives of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are open for those who wish to
research the records of disbanded congregations.
These are the permanent records of your
congregation’s history.
The history of your congregation will be preserved in records that have
been maintained with care.
-
Parish Register
(membership records, baptisms, confirmations, marriages, funerals, etc.) [i]
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Charter, Articles of
Incorporation, and Constitutions
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Minutes and reports of
regular and special congregational meetings
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Minutes of the
Congregation Council and its Executive Committee
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Minutes and other
records of committees and auxiliary organizations for men, women, and
youth
-
Correspondence of
historical significance
-
Parish newsletters
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Other significant
publications, such as directories and anniversary history booklets
-
Worship and music
materials, including Sunday bulletins
-
Annual audit reports
and year end general ledger reports
-
Property related
documents such as deeds, titles, surveys, mortgages, easements, and
blueprints [ii]
-
Documentation of
endowments, bequests and restricted gifts
-
All insurance policies
-
Statistical
information such as parochial reports
-
Photographs and
negatives, films, DVD and videotapes, sound recordings, all properly
marked identifying persons, dates, and events.
- “Snapshots”
of the congregation’s World Wide Web site
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Notes
[i]
See the document Maintaining the Parish Register: Advice for
Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
[ii]
(The ELCA Churchwide Constitution
(9.71.) and the Model Constitution for Congregations
(*C7.01)
address property issues regarding congregations that are no longer a
part of this church. This policy relates only the
disposition of records.)
For further information, please contact:
ELCA Archives
Office of the Secretary
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
321 Bonnie Lane
Elk Grove Village, Illinois 60007
Telephone: 800/638-3522, ext. 2818
or contact the archivist for your synod.
Directory of Regional Archives
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