What Churches Should Keep (and Not Keep) in Their Congregational Archives

 A question we get asked frequently while helping churches maintain their congregational archives, or prepare their records to be transferred to us is "what should we keep?" In this post we'll be diving into the specifics of what types of records and objects are of historical value and should be preserved.

Records in from St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Catasauqua, PA in their permanent home in the archives vault.

Think of your entire collection as a hierarchy with different categories that reflect different types of records that tell your story and history as a church. We've broken this hierarchy into eight categories or series.

1. Founding Documents

• Charter 
• Articles of Incorporation
• Constitution and By-Laws
• Correspondence or meeting minutes that document the organization or beginnings of your 

Charter for Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Roxborough, Philadelphia

2. Pastoral Records

• Parish registers (original and copies)
• Correspondence
• Sermons (preferably of significance)
• Annual pastoral reports to church councils

Parish records from New Jerusalem (Dunkel's) Lutheran and Reformed Union Church, Greenwich Township, Berks county, PA.

3. Administrative Records

Administrative records reflect the day-to-day operation of the church.

• All legal and property related documents
• Personnel records
• Financial records
• Insurance policies

*NOTE: It is quite common for financial reports to be listed in council minutes or annual reports.  If this is the case for your congregation, please keep the financial reports with the minutes or annual reports.

4. Council, Committee and Organization Records

Think of your church council, committees, and organizations as distinct departments of your church. Each of these "departments" have a story to tell and records that should be kept organized together.

Executive Committee

• Secretary’s records
• Council minutes
• Congregational minutes
• Correspondence

*NOTE: Some congregations differentiate between congregational meeting minutes and council minutes. If you have both records, please separate them or be consistent in labeling.

1763-1779 Council Minute book for St. Michael's-Zion Lutheran Church, Philadelphia, PA

Treasurer’s Records

Treasurer’s records are all of the financial records of a congregation and include:

• General ledger
• Budget reports
• Annual financial reports
• Annual audits
• Banking records
• Correspondence

*NOTE: Only annual financial statements need to be kept long-term. The ELCA's Records Retention Schedule for Congregations guide is a great resource to establish your own records retention schedule.

Building/Property Committee

• Meeting minutes
• Correspondence
• Sunday School
• Meeting minutes
• Attendance rolls
• Financial records

Choir

• Meeting minutes
• Correspondence
• Call Committee
• Meeting minutes
• Correspondence

Photograph of 1929 Confirmation Class at St. Luke's Lutheran Church, Reading, PA

Men’s/Women’s Organizations

• Meeting minutes
• Attendance rolls
• Financial records
• Youth Group Records
• Meeting minutes
• Attendance rolls
• Financial records

5. Publications

• Sunday Service bulletins (ideally only for holidays and special services)
• Newsletters
• History or anniversary booklets
• Promotional materials
• Membership directories

Photo collage of Sunday School picnic from St. Michael's, Germantown, Philadelphia

6. Audio Visual Records

• Photographs and negatives
• VHS recordings
• DVD recordings
• Audio recordings
• Any other media

*NOTE: Please label these with names, dates, and other context, otherwise they will be virtually useless for future congregational members.

7. Electronic Records

We now live in a digital age and it is crucial to save your electronic records! We recommend keeping multiple backups of your records on flash drives, external hard drives, CD-ROMs, or cloud storage.

Examples of Electronic Records you may have:

• Parish register
• Email correspondence
• Newsletters
• Email blasts/email newsletters
• Publications
• Any promotional materials or graphics
• Digital photos, video, or audio recordings
• Website

8. Other

Other material may be retained as long as they are significant and if you have the space:

• Guest registers
• Inscribed bibles
• Special communion sets
• Seals
• Paintings
• Cornerstone artifacts

Resources

We hope this is helpful and have created an infographic below we encourage you to download. Remember that this is not an exhaustive list as every congregation may have heir own special circumstances. We always suggest contacting your regional archivist who can help answer any questions. (That's us if you are an ELCA Region 7 congregation) Additionally, the ELCA has great resources on their website you can find here.

If you have a question leave a comment down below and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and check out our official website.