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Preservation of Permanent Synod and Presbytery Minutes at the Presbyterian Historical Society The Book of Order requires that certain records be preserved by the creating governing bodies and their officers. Records identified as permanent include synod and presbytery minutes, newspapers/newsletters, PJC records, standing committee records, and selected records of dissolved local churches: minutes, registers, charters, articles of incorporation, and property records. These records are a vital part of the Church's history. As one of its services, the Presbyterian Historical Society houses these permanent records for any PC(USA) synod or presbytery. The PHS accepts the records on deposit (that is, ownership of the records remains with the governing body) and provides secure and environmentally sound storage for them. The PHS will store records only in formats that are considered archivally permanent: hard copy (acid-free paper) or microfilm. At present there is no electronic medium that is considered permanent by archival standards. The PHS urges synods and presbyteries to transfer the official record copies of their minutes to us (Montreat or Philadelphia depending on the governing body's region) for deposit in the archives. These paper copies must include the original signatures of the appropriate officers (stated clerk, recording clerk, etc.) as well as the approval signature of the stated clerk at the next higher level. We will accept unsigned copies (printed, photocopied or microfilmed), but these will be kept for library reference uses as the property of the PHS and are not considered official archival copies. The PHS recommends that middle-governing bodies have their records microfilmed and will microfilm records at cost. Microfilming is the most archivally viable and cost-effective method currently available for the long-term preservation of the information in church records. For legal and technical filming reasons, the PHS will microfilm only the originals. When the PHS films records, archival master negatives (security copies) and a positive copy are stored in Philadelphia and a positive copy is retained in Montreat when appropriate. A positive copy is provided to the governing body whose records are filmed.

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