Archives and Recordkeeping

People must know the past to understand the present and face the future. ...

Nellie McClung

So wrote Nellie McClung earlier this century. But to know the past requires an enduring and reliable memory. In bearing witness to the acts and decisions of institutions and individuals, archival records serve as the memory of an organization.

The church has long recognized the importance of an archives program for preserving the record of the church's achievements and for meeting its administrative needs.

The records documenting the proud history of the United Church and its antecedent denominations are preserved in the network of United Church archives across the country. By preparing lists and indexes for these records (with the increasing use of modern technology), the church's archivists provide access to that memory so they can assist both church workers and researchers from around the world with their inquiries.

In a time of scarce resources, many question the value of maintaining archives. It is not seen to be relevant to the fast-paced information age. Not relevant? Just ask these people:

• The senior citizen needing her baptismal record to prove her age in order to qualify for a pension.
• The presbytery secretary seeking proof that a property was sold and when.
• The editors of Voices United wishing to verify that copyrights for a particular hymn were properly acquired.
• The academic historian writing a book on the church's involvement in residential schools.
• The film producer needing photos of missionaries for a documentary on Christian missions in Japan.
• The genealogist overjoyed to find her Methodist great-grandmother's marriage record.

These records are not merely ink on a page, or solemn faces in an old photograph. They represent events, great or small, in the life of the organization and in the lives of individual members. The records preserved in the various archives of The United Church of Canada—the memory of the organization—are a priceless treasure for those interested in learning more about the history of the denomination and its significant role in the history of Canada and the world.