Central Gulf Coast Archives;
Out of destruction comes a source of pride
Adapted from
The Coastline and reprinted in
The Historiographer, Christmas 2007
By The Rev. S. Albert Kennington
Pensacola, Fl
The records that tell our story as a diocese are receiving special care and attention these days in the Duvall Center in Pensacola, and registrar-historiographer Kit Caffey is taking full advantage of new opportunities. When Hurricane Ivan did major destruction in the Pensacola area in 2004, it included our diocesan office in its violent path. Our leader wisely decided to make improvements to the building whle the repairs were bring made. As a result, we have a room dedicated to our archives, a room that has been furnished with archival-safe steel shelving and fire-safe filing cabinets.
Archives are of such importance that our diocesan canons make their custodian an officer of the diocesan corporation and define the office of registrar-historiographer with impressive language: "The Registrar-Historiographer shall gather, receive, and safeguard all materials of historical significance in the Diocese and the several Parishes and MIssions, and shall present to each Convention a report of all such events as may be deemed to be of permanent interest and importance." (Canon 8)
With the help of Paula Ross, long-time administrative assistant of the diocese (now retired), Kit is organizaing our archives into a place of accessible safe-keeping. Included in the collection so far are the Jornal of the Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast for every year since the primary convention, the Journal of the Diocese of Alabama for almost all years up to 1970, when our diocese was formed, and the Journal of the Diocese of Florida from about 1920 until 1970. Also included are bound copies of The Coastline and its predecessor newspaper, The Green Sheet, and other documents. Fire-safe filing cabinets house a file on each congregation in the diocese and on some of the now defunct congregations of our diocese and of the Dioceses of Alabama and Florida that now fall in our jurisdiction.
Displayed in the diocesan office are beautifully framed photographs of all the bishops of jurisdiction in the present diocese and its predecessors in Alabama and Florida as well as photographs of all the churches and agencies of the diocese. The newest projects Kit and her team have undertaken include recording and transcribing oral history interviews with diocesan leaders and conducting workshops to encourage volunteer parish archivists in their vital work of caring for local records.
Persons researching our diocesan history are invited to use the archives by appointment, which is easily arranged. Although the new archives room has a work table and chair, no computer or typewriter is provided. No materials may be taken from the archives room. The diocesan staff, however, will assist researchers to copy materials they need.
Much remains to be done to complete the organizing of this new archives room. Additional furnishings are needed, such as an additional legal-width fire-safe filing cabinet, for which no funds are presently available. And there are documents yet to be studied and sorted. Kit and Paula continue to go through piles of papers, seeking to retain the one of most value for the historical record, and to organize them so they are easily accessible.
Kit invites members of the diocese to consider contributing to the needs of the archives room as well as to submitting archival materials. She welcomes local church histories in any form (from published book to hand-written sheet), records of special events, and especially photographs of parish and diocesan events. And she extends a hearty invitation for members of the dioces to visit the archival collection.
________________________
Back to The Coastline page
coastline@diocgc.org
