Thank you Rev.Durbin for your comments. It's something I hadn't thought of before now. Thanks for sharing! Sincerely, Pam Drake [email protected] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ed Durbin" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2002 2:08 PM Subject: [OHHARRIS] Pastors' Record Books > I often see questions regarding where one might find church records > and/or clergy Pastoral Records. Having been a clergyman all of my life, > I thought I might shed some light on the subject and make some > suggestions. > > I have a Pastoral Record Book of my own ministry containing primarily > Records of Marriages, Baptisms and Deaths that occurred in each of the > churches I have served. They are listed chronologically and are grouped > as such for each church I have served. Most clergy keep the same time of > records for their own reference or to provide information should those > for whom a service was performed request dates and other details. > > Usually, my records contain the full name, address at the time of the > the service, age -- if not birth date -- of the person(s) involved, and, > where appropriate, the name of the parents, place where the event took > place, etc. There is space in these record books for sermon titles and > other details that I found not necessary to keep. Sometimes, I write a > personal note for some events to help me remember something important > that was related to the service. > > I often wonder where such records end up after a minister is deceased > and after the family feels they have no need to keep them. I've never > seen such books on "E-Bay" and I don't believe I've ever seen record > books in a public library or historical society unless the minister was > a "famous" person. > > Currently, I have not only my own record book but also those of my > wife's late husband who was also a minister, and her late father's > records. > > Wouldn't it be great if we clergy persons were to leave them to a > local genealogical center in the area where we have spend most of our > lives and ministries? How might this suggestion become circulated? Could > individuals like yourself who know the family of a deceased minister's > suggest that the information in his/her record could be valuable to > those doing genealogical work given to a historical society or > genealogical library of their choice? > > Personally, I know that some of the parts of my records are missing > either because I didn't get them promptly recorded after the event or > else my Church Secretary may not have recorded them for me. This I now > deeply regret but that before genealogical research existed in the form > it now is and usually consisted of the family's information being > recorded in the "Family Bible." > > Needless to say, the minister's records do not take the place of > his/her church's records and might vary slightly in content since not > all the information in the Pastor's Records are applicable to the church > he is serving either to protect the individuals' right to privacy -- > such as a wedding performed years after a couple's children are raised > -- to formalize what had been a "common law" marriage. > > Regarding LOCAL CHURCH RECORDS of churches that no longer exist, the > denomination's headquarters should be contacted to see if they are > archived by that denomination's historian. > > Unfortunately, like some courthouse records, fires and flood, sometime > destroy records and since they generally are not kept under lock and key > or in a safe or vault, they are sometimes borrowed and not returned. > This is especially true of the older records in books which were filled > when a new record book is started. > > Tragically, I have some old family diaries that were written in ink > which appears to have been "homemade" and has faded so badly that the > entire book shows only the "flourishes" in the handwriting -- since the > quill would have spread at these places and more ink put on the page. > I've tried using ultraviolet light to bring out the missing part of > words, but the ink did not cooperate with a faint glow where parts of > the words were faded. > > I hope this information is of help to someone. > > Ed > > ______________________________