Church History Library
Encyclopedia
The Church History Library in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah
houses materials chronicling the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). This new building opened to the public on June 22, 2009.
. The need for such large facilities diminished due to advances in modern document preservation, as well as with the 1963 completion of the Granite Mountain Vault, which had vast storage for genealogical materials. Since the completion of the Church Office Building in 1972, the Church Historian's Office and Church History Library have resided in the four floors of the east wing.
In April 2005, plans were announced to construct a new Church History Library to be completed in late 2007. The site was then a Temple Square parking lot, and was the same site as in the 1960 plan, northeast of the intersection of Main and North Temple. This new facility houses the Church History Department (the modern name of the Church Historian's Office) and the church's historical archives. The building was dedicated on June 20, 2009 and became open to the public on June 22 with extended hours, improved technology, assistance staff and additional educational and training programs.
, to the current day with more than 13 million members around the world. Since 1972, these historical collections have been stored in the LDS Church Office Building in Salt Lake City, but that facility closed in April 2009 to prepare for the move to the Church History Library.
The historical materials of the LDS Church contain rich information about both Mormon history and the development of the western United States
. These collections include:
The building has areas for conservation, collections development, and research. The Church’s conservation efforts involve 300 to 500 books and documents and 3,000 to 4,000 audiovisual recordings every year. Collections development staff acquire and catalog 500 to 700 new collections annually, including 6,000 publications. Other staff members housed in the new building will be responsible for publications, historic sites, and web content.
In 2005, the Church History Library applied to be certified through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) rating system, the national standard for the design, construction, and operation of environmentally-friendly buildings. After construction, the project will be eligible for certification.
In September 2010 the Church History Library began posting some of their digital collections online in partnership with the Internet Archive
. Currently the library is working on getting many of their pre-1923 (Public domain
) collections digitized and available to a world-wide audience on the Internet Archive and through Brigham Young University
's digital collections.
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
houses materials chronicling the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). This new building opened to the public on June 22, 2009.
History
A new archives building was originally planned in 1960, as an 11-story home for the offices and libraries of the Church Historian and the Genealogical Society of UtahGenealogical Society of Utah
The Genealogical Society of Utah , established in 1894, does business as FamilySearch International, which is the genealogical arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
. The need for such large facilities diminished due to advances in modern document preservation, as well as with the 1963 completion of the Granite Mountain Vault, which had vast storage for genealogical materials. Since the completion of the Church Office Building in 1972, the Church Historian's Office and Church History Library have resided in the four floors of the east wing.
In April 2005, plans were announced to construct a new Church History Library to be completed in late 2007. The site was then a Temple Square parking lot, and was the same site as in the 1960 plan, northeast of the intersection of Main and North Temple. This new facility houses the Church History Department (the modern name of the Church Historian's Office) and the church's historical archives. The building was dedicated on June 20, 2009 and became open to the public on June 22 with extended hours, improved technology, assistance staff and additional educational and training programs.
Collections
The LDS Church History Library preserves materials related to its history, from the 1820s in upstate New YorkUpstate New York
Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...
, to the current day with more than 13 million members around the world. Since 1972, these historical collections have been stored in the LDS Church Office Building in Salt Lake City, but that facility closed in April 2009 to prepare for the move to the Church History Library.
The historical materials of the LDS Church contain rich information about both Mormon history and the development of the western United States
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
. These collections include:
- 270,000 books, pamphlets, magazines, manuals
- 500,000 historic photographs, posters, maps
- 23,000 audio and video recordings
- 120,000 local histories for LDS Church units
- 150,000 journals, diaries, papers, and manuscripts
- 20,000 rolls of microfilm
- 3.5 million patriarchal blessings for LDS Church members
Facilities
The new 230000 square feet (21,367.7 m²) building provides temperature, humidity, and air quality control for the Church’s historical collections. Materials are stored in two types of archival storage rooms. The 10 main storage rooms are kept at 55 °F (12.8 °C) with 35 percent relative humidity. There are also two special rooms that will be kept at minus four degrees Fahrenheit for color motion picture films, photographs, and records of special significance.The building has areas for conservation, collections development, and research. The Church’s conservation efforts involve 300 to 500 books and documents and 3,000 to 4,000 audiovisual recordings every year. Collections development staff acquire and catalog 500 to 700 new collections annually, including 6,000 publications. Other staff members housed in the new building will be responsible for publications, historic sites, and web content.
In 2005, the Church History Library applied to be certified through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
(LEED) rating system, the national standard for the design, construction, and operation of environmentally-friendly buildings. After construction, the project will be eligible for certification.
Public services
All research facilities opened to the public on June 22. Some resources are also available online, including the Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel database. This database is the most complete listing of LDS pioneer emigrants and companies who traveled to Utah from 1847 through 1868.In September 2010 the Church History Library began posting some of their digital collections online in partnership with the Internet Archive
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
. Currently the library is working on getting many of their pre-1923 (Public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
) collections digitized and available to a world-wide audience on the Internet Archive and through Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
's digital collections.
External links
- Church History Library
- Church History Library (FamilySearch Research Wiki)
- LDS Church History Department
- LDS Church History resources
- Online Archive (Internet Archive)