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The Archival Spirit, July 2004
By now, I hope you are planning your trip to Boston for SAA during the first week in August. As it says on the SAA website – It’s No Ordinary Tea Party! The program is full and diverse with myriad topics to choose from. Access, confidentiality, law and ethics are featured in many offerings along with practical “how-to” sessions and information on the latest technological developments. And, of course, we will gather for our Archivists of Religious Collections Section annual meeting, which will be held on Thursday, August 5th at 10:00 a.m.
This year’s section program will focus on a topic that is of concern to many of us. We will consider the ramifications of what happens to our archives when our organizations undergo administrative change such as consolidation, merger, or even closure. What happens to our archives when administrative support wanes, our funding is cut or our program disbanded? What are the alternatives to physical, on-site custody of the materials in our charge when such traditional custody is threatened – or proves impractical? What should our professional stance be in relation to these alternatives? I think you will find this program thought provoking and I refer you to Vice-Chair, Loretta Greene’s article in this issue for more information.
This year we will also be electing a Secretary and Representative-at-Large as current Secretary, Gwynedd Cannan and Representative-at-Large, Wes Wilson, complete their terms. Information about the nominees is contained in this issue. I’d also like to extend a sincere thank you to Gwynedd and Wes for their hard work and willingness to serve.
In addition to the ARCS section annual meeting, you are invited to a light dinner reception for all ARCS members to be held on Wednesday evening, Aug. 4th from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury Street, a short walk from the conference hotel. Information will be posted on the ARCS website at
I’ve left the most difficult part of this column to the last. Some of you may know by now that our colleague and friend, Kinga Perzynska passed away on April 12th. Kinga’s death is not only a great personal tragedy but also a tremendous loss to the archival community. Kinga served as ARCS Chair from 1997-99 and during that time raised the bar of professionalism for all of us. Her intelligence, energy, enthusiasm, humor, creativity and dedication to excellence in her work – whether on a local, national or international level will long be remembered. I feel fortunate to have known Kinga and to have counted her a friend and I think I speak for all of us when I say that she will be truly missed.
In this world of consolidations, mergers, acquisitions and closures, the familiar and traditional become uncertain and organizations are often forced to find creative ways to handle change. Religious organizations are no exception.
As archivists of religious collections, we may be faced with the question of what happens to the archives and cultural heritage of an organization when consolidation, merger, closure or other administrative change confronts it. Will records be relocated and merged into one new repository? How will management support the archival program in the face of budget cuts? Will the major building that has been home to a congregation, and the archives, be sold? Will we part with precious mementoes of our past because there is nowhere for them to go and no one to care for them?
As we grapple with these situations, we look for potential solutions. Is it possible to create a new entity to oversee the administration of collections from several groups? What happens when collections are transferred to outside repositories such as historical societies or university special collections? Who is responsible for custodial care when collections are no longer housed within a congregation? Should contract services be used? Whatever the outcome, administration of the records is essential including rules of access, confidentiality, ownership, copyright, fees, and reproduction rights.
The ARCS program this year will consider these questions and others. We will hear from Margery Sly, Archivist, Presbyterian Archives, Philadelphia, about the potential merger of two repositories and the political, economic, and cultural changes this would entail. Margery's situation will be balanced with information from other members about historical church records, off-site deposit of records of religious institutions, and multi-denominational deposit of records in Canadian provincial archives.
Whether this is something you are facing or you know of someone else who has experienced it, it is a good topic to think about. Be sure to join us for a stimulating ARCS meeting on Thursday, August 5 at 10:00 a.m.
Mark J. Duffy
The following proposal is notice of an amendment to Article VI of the Bylaws. The revision is intended to bring the Section’s governing rules on elections into conformity with recent practice. The nominating and election process is the chief means by which the Section taps emerging leadership within the Section. The Committee is challenged to find willing candidates who, by virtue of their past participation in Committee work or program participation, can carry on the multi-year commitment as a Section officer. The Section is too small a group to pit individuals against each other in contested elections only to alienate the losing candidates who typically withdraw from active involvement in the Section. The Nominating and Elections Committee has in the last three elections presented a single slate of nominees with the possibility for write-in candidates. The revision will also allow for nominations from the floor, even as the amendment regularizes the current election procedure. Current text is in parentheses and proposed changes in italics.
From the Chair
Diane Wells
Creative Archival Administration: The ARCS Program ’04
Loretta Greene
Notice of a Proposed Amendment to the ARCS Bylaws: Election of Officers
two or more a slate of nominees for each position to be filled for those positions which are open at the time of the Annual Meeting.Voting at the annual meeting shall be by secret ballot In the case of a contested election, a vote shall be taken by secret ballot at the Annual Meeting. Any members of the Section who will not be able to attend the annual meeting may request an absentee ballot from the Chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee six weeks before the annual meeting. All such ballots must be returned to the Chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee one week prior to the annual meeting. A majority of votes cast shall be required for election as a Section officer.
Marcia Stein, Archivist, announces the presence of a new web site for the Chicago Province Archives, Techny, Ill. at
Chicago Province Archives of the Society of the Divine Word Web site
Candidates for Open Positions for ARCS
Secretary
Suni K. Johnson
Since 2001 Suni has been Director of Archives and History, Baltimore-Washington Conference, United Methodist Church, Lovely Lane Museum, Baltimore, Maryland, overseeing preservation of museum, manuscript and archival collections. Prior to this position she worked at the Department of Archives, Manuscripts, and Museum Collections, The Catholic University of America. She holds degrees from California State University and Catholic University of America.
Member-at- Large
Nancy J. Taylor
Nancy has been the Records Archivist at the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia since June 1999. She has served on various committees for SAA, MARAC, and the Delaware Valley Archivists Group, and is a certified archivist. She holds degrees from the University of Texas and the University of Wisconsin and previously worked at the Center for American History in Austin and the State Historical Society of Wisconsin in Madison.
Write-in candidates will be accepted at the annual meeting.
The Archivists of Religious Institutions (ARI) celebrated its 25th Anniversary at its Fall Workshop held on October 29, 2003. Religious archivists from around the New York Metropolitan Area gathered at Maryknoll, N.Y. to celebrate the big occasion. Founding members Russell Gasero, Judith Johnson and Peter Wosh were on hand to put the event in perspective. Current board members Sr. Judith Campbell, Joseph Coen (Chair), Karen Franklin, Patrice Kane, Fr. Frederick O’Brien, and Ellen Pierce participated in the celebration.
February 3-5, 2005, the Birmingham Public Library and the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama will host Opening New Doors: A Symposium on the History of Alabama’s Episcopal Church. This three-day event in Birmingham, Alabama, will include presentations of scholarly papers, a workshop on the preservation of church archives, a panel discussion on the writing of parish histories, and an architectural tour of Birmingham-area Episcopal churches.
Interested scholars and students are invited to submit proposals for papers relating to any aspect of the history of the Episcopal Church in Alabama or proposals that look at Alabama’s church in a broad context.
The Birmingham Public Library serves as the archives for the Alabama diocese, and there is a substantial body of research material yet to be tapped. Persons interested in presenting a paper, but who have not selected a topic, may contact the library’s archivist, Jim Baggett, for suggestions.
A modest travel stipend is available for out-of-town presenters.
For more information or to submit a paper proposal, contact Jim Baggett, Department of Archives and Manuscripts, Birmingham Public Library, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-226-3631, jbaggett@bham.lib.al.us.
The LGBT Religous Archives Network is a relatively new organization loosely affiliated with the Chicago Theological Seminary. Its purpose is to encourage the preservation of the LGBT religious movement which has been one of the most controversial issues facing religious institutions of all denominations over the last thirty years. LBTRAN was originally formed to open an archives to house LGBT religious movement collections, but changed this objective when it realized that electronic technology now makes it possible to create a virtual collection. With grant support, LGBTRAN has launched a website at http://lgbtran.org that acts as an information clearinghouse and resource center.
The website features an initial collection catalog section, but later this year will create an online, fully MARC-(Machine-Readable Catalog) searchable catalog. LGBTRAN Archivist Jim Carlson is currently evaluating software by Minaret, Past Perfect, and Re:discovery. He is evaluating the software for MARC compatibility and the ability to customize the webpage interface and catalog fields. Archivist Doris Malkmus is identifying LGBT religious collections in archives in the United States and internationally for inclusion in this catalog. Anyone who has comments about the software or can suggest leads for LGBT religious collections can reach LGBTRAN through the website.
From July 1 to September 25, 2004, visitors to Concordia Historical Institute (CHI) will have the opportunity to travel back to the age of Martin Luther when more than 100 books, manuscripts, illustrations, paintings and other documents recording the life and work of Luther will be shown in a special exhibit titled "Martin Luther: The Reformer."
Among the items on display (each piece a meticulously copied replica or facsimile of the original) are a Gutenberg Bible, paintings and illustrations by Albrecht Dürer and Lucas Cranach, manuscripts by Luther, a letter by his wife Katie von Bora and everyday items from the Luther household.
While plans are still incomplete and some dates and times are being finalized, the exhibit is expected to open at CHI July 1, 2004, with a special ceremony including dignitaries from Germany and Washington, D.C. The exhibit is making a 12-city tour through North America and is jointly sponsored and organized by the Stiftung Luthergedenkstätten Sachsen-Anhalt [Foundation for Luther Memorial Sites] and Luther-Zentrum Wittenberg.
On Wednesday, September 15, 2004, noted Luther scholar Eric W. Gritsch will deliver two addresses. “Luther and Catechesis As It Impacts Daily Life” and “Luther’s Theology as a Catalyst, Guide and Norm for Social Change.” CHI will offer time for viewing the exhibition on the evening of Tuesday, September 21, in connection Concordia Seminary’s 2004 Theological Symposium. That evening the
American Kantorei will feature music of Heinrich Schuetz and J.S. Bach.
CHI plans to extend its operating hours to possibly include a weekend day and a weekday evening in order to make the exhibit more accessible. The exhibit will be open during CHI’s normal weekday operating hours for visitors.
Groups and others desiring a guided tour of the exhibit are asked to call CHI (314-505-7900) for appointment information.
Concordia Historical Institute is the Department of Archives and History of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. It is located on the campus of Concordia Seminary in Clayton, Missouri, a suburb of Saint Louis. The mailing address is 801 DeMun Ave., Saint Louis, MO 63105. Further information about the services and resources of the institute is available on its web site:
The Council of General Synod has appointed Nancy J. Hurn General Synod Archivist. Council made the appointment at its regular fall meeting in Mississauga, Ont.
Ms. Hurn, a member of St. Matthew's Anglican Church, Islington, has 15 years experience in archives work in Toronto, as Senior archivist with the former Metropolitan Toronto Archives and most recently as Archivist with Finance and Corporate Services portfolio responsibilities at the amalgamated City of Toronto Archives. Her work also included 10 years as archivist and records administrator for the Canadian National Exhibition Association and Board of Governors of Exhibition Place. She has served as chair of the Diocese of Toronto Archives Committee and was a member of the former General Synod Archives Committee.
Ms. Hurn succeeds Terry Thompson who served as General Synod Archivist from 1979 to 2003. Ms Hurn will assumed her new duties January 2004.
The General Synod Archives includes an extensive collection of historic materials relating to the Anglican Church of Canada, and has
responsibility for records management at the Church's national office. In recent years, litigation on claims filed by former students at Indian Residential Schools has required significant and helpful research with the archives historical records.
Catholic Archives at San Antonio has been quite busy writing rather than with the normal archival work. Each year the Kenedy or the Official Catholic Directory is published with the help of each diocese. In San Antonio the work falls to the archivist who puts aside almost everything for two months while he compiles the information. This year the challenge was to acquire the Employer Identification Number for each entry. At the same time a short history of the archdiocese was being requested for use in a coffee table style book on the history of Bexar County. A third concurrent project was in supplying a section from 1930 to 1965 for the text book Catholic Texans, A Catholic Family Album, authored by Steve Landregan, archivist of the diocese of Dallas. There is also plan to update the book, Mariachi Bishop, originally published in 1987, in time for the retirement of the archbishop in mid-July.
In honor of the inauguration of Dr. Thomas Powell, Mount Saint Mary’s 24th president, the university’s archivist, Rebecca Fitzgerald, has designed and mounted an exhibit entitled, “In the Footsteps of Presidents and Founders.” Spread over three locations, the exhibit highlights and celebrates the lives and times of some of the men who founded and shepherded the now-venerable institution through nearly two hundred years of faith, leadership, and service to the community. The exhibit begins in the entrance of Patriot Hall as founders Father John Dubois and Simon Bruté carve a school out of the wilderness and guide it through its first tentative steps. The journey continues to unfold just outside the bookstore in the recently renovated McGowan Center, as strong-willed men of faith encounter and survive the twin crises of the Civil War and the financial ruin it brought. Finally, in the second floor entrance to Bradley Hall, a financially sound and reinvigorated institution enters a new century of growth and change while remaining faithful to the spirit and vision of its founders. Brochures are available in Bradley Hall and the McGowan Center.
Portions of the exhibit will remain in place through November. The Mount’s webmaster, Trevor James, will be mounting the exhibit online on the Mount’s website. Mount Saint Mary’s University is located in Emmitsburg, Md.
The Board of Directors of the Archivists of Religious Institutions (ARI) is pleased to announce the first recipient of the Brother Denis Sennett, S.A. Memorial Award. This monetary award, created to encourage professional development for religious archivists, supports attendance at archival conferences and workshops. It was awarded to Fr. Robert Carbonneau, C.P., Province Historian and Archives Director of the Province of St. Paul of the Cross (Eastern USA).
Brother Denis Sennett, S.A. was archivist of the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement at Graymoor, as well as archivist of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. He was consultant to over 200 religious institutions’ archival programs, designed numerous physical facilities, conducted national and international archival workshops, and served on several international government and social projects. He was the author of A Divine Legacy-Record Keeping for Religious Congregations/Orders in 1995. He was well known for his outreach and support to religious archives throughout the country, and he was a founder of ARI.
Diana Sanderson left her position with the Presbyterian Historical Society in Montreat, NC in January for a job as archivist for a private school in Asheville, NC. As a result, she will be leaving ARCS and the chairmanship of the models committee, but says that she looks forward to seeing her ARCS friends at SAA meetings.
Christine Rivers was appointed Chancellor of the (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Shreveport, La. last July. Previously she had held the position of vice chancellor for archives and records.
As some of you may already know, fellow archivist and dear friend of many, Kinga Perzynska, passed away on April 12, 2004, at age 54, in Houston, after several months' struggle with cancer. Kinga was a very active member of the archival community from the local to the international level, and mentor to students and professionals alike.
Born in Poznan, Poland, she received her masters at the Adam Mickiewicz University in 1976, and accepted a position there teaching library science. She moved to the United States in 1984. Soon thereafter she began work at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, and in 1988 moved to Austin and joined the University of Texas' Harry Ransom Center staff. She was Director of the Catholic Archives of Texas, 1990-2001, where she implemented an automation and archival description network system and was involved in creative outreach and fund-raising activities for the Catholic Archives. In 1993, Kinga taught a course in family history at St. Edward's University in Austin, and from 2001-03 taught a graduate course in the management of archival records at Texas State University in San Marcos, shepherding many students through archival internships and providing invaluable guidance and advice on careers in archives. In early 2002, Kinga became Head of Special Collections, Fondren Library, Rice University, where she made great progress on providing improved access to collections via EAD finding aids and planning complex digital archives projects. She also lobbied strongly for enforcing records practices at the university, and even during this short time, brought in many valuable research collections and developed positive donor and community relationships.
Kinga published and presented on many topics related to religious archives and archives in general; she wrote and directed many successful grant-funded projects, such as an NHPRC grant to provide automated access to the Spanish and Mexican Manuscript Collection, 1519-1890, at the Catholic Archives of Texas. She was active in the International Council on Archives (ICA), Society of American Archivists (SAA), Society of Southwest Archivists (SSA), and most recently, the Archivists of the Houston Area (AHA!). In SAA, Kinga was chair of ARCS, 1997-99. During her tenure, she raised the visibility of ARCS by expanding the Archival Spirit, encouraging the ARCS website and directory, and establishing the communications and models and resources committees. Two sessions proposed by ARCS were accepted for SAA programs during her term.
Kinga was also the first woman named to the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, Vatican City, where she visited in 2003 and was granted an audience with Pope John Paul II. Kinga was recognized by her peers on many occasions, including the Carlos Eduardo Castaneda Award from the Texas Catholic Historical Society (1996), Certificates of Recognition of Dedication to the Archival Profession from SAA (1998 and 1999), and the Sister M. Claude Lane Award (2001) from the Society of Southwest Archivists and Society of American Archivists in recognition of her significant contributions to the field of religious archives. Anyone who knew Kinga also knew the great pride she took in her Polish heritage, as evidenced by her strong ties to the Polish communities here in the U.S., and by her service as a Board member for the Texas Chapter of the Kosciuszko Foundation, dedicated to promoting educational and cultural exchanges between the United States and Poland, and increasing American understanding of Polish culture and history. Kinga could always be counted on to bring a Polish dish to a potluck event, and share a lively story or two about her homeland.
Kinga is survived by her daughter, Ruta, and husband, Bogdan; her brother Daniel and his wife Heidrun; parents Ryszard and Genowefa, and many other loving relatives and friends. She will be missed by all of us who have worked with her or had the privilege of spending time with her on committees or at conferences. Kinga will be remembered for the many ways she touched our personal and professional lives, and for her sharp mind, her kindness, her tireless passion and energy, and her particular and delightful wit. Services were held in Houston, Saturday, April 17, at Our Lady of Czestochowa Catholic Church, 1731 Blalock Rd. Memorial gifts in honor of Kinga may be made to the Multiple Myeloma Foundation:
The Archival Spirit is published three times a year by the Archivists of Religious Collections Section of the Society of American Archivists. Feature pieces as well as announcements of acquisitions and projects are welcome. Send submissions to: Wesley W. Wilson at wwwilson@depauw.edu. For membership information, contact: Society of American Archivists, 527 S. Wells, 5th Floor, Chicago, IL 60607, 312-922-0140, fax 312-347-1452, info@archivists.org Archivists of Religious Collections Section Officers
[End of document. HTML document version prepared July 19, 2004.]
Archivists of Religious Institutions
Alabama Episcopal Symposium
LGBT Religious Archives Builds Catalog
Concordia Historical Institute Exhibit
Hurn New Archivist for General Synod
Catholic Archives of San Antonio
Mount Saint Mary’s Exhibit
ARI Award to Carbonneau
Sanderson Takes New Job - Leaves ARCS
Rivers Receives New Appointment
In Memory of Kinga Perzynska
Chair
Diane
Wells
Episcopal
Diocese of Olympia
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect
Loretta
Zwolak Greene
Sisters
of Providence Archives
Secretary
Gwynedd
Cannan
Trinity
Church, New York
Past
Chair/Nominating Committee
L.
Dale Patterson
General
Commission on Archives and History, United Methodist Church
Representatives-at-Large
Joan
S. Clemens
Pitts
Theology Library, Emory University
Wesley
W. Wilson
Archives
of DePauw University and Indiana United Methodism
Newsletter
Editor
Wesley W.
Wilson
Web
Coordinator
Mark
J. Duffy
The
Archives of the Episcopal Church
Models
& Resources Committee
vacant