The Hall of Records Commission, an ex offi-
cio body originally created by Chapter 18, Acts
of 1935, had its membership altered by Chapter
97, Acts of 1970. The Commission supervises
and controls the Hall of Records, which
consists of two main divisions—the Archives Di-
vision and the Records Management Division.
All papers, records, relics, and other memorials
connected with the early history of Maryland
not required for the necessary operation of any
other office are under the supervision of and be-
long to the Hall of Records Commission (Code
1957, Art. 54).

Archives Division
Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse, State Archivist

Hall of Records
P.O. Box 828

College Ave. and St. Johns St.
Annapolis 21404 Telephone: 269-3915

Public Searchroom Open Mon.-Sat., 8:30-4:30

State agencies, counties, cities, and towns in
Maryland are authorized to offer for deposit at
the Hall of Records all files, documents, and
records not in current use.

State agencies are required by law to have
their records placed on retention and disposal
schedules. No records of State agencies can be
destroyed without scheduling and the prior ap-
proval of the Hall of Records Commission.

All records that are in the courthouses of the
State and that were created prior to April 28,
1788, the date of ratification of the U. S. Con-
stitution by Maryland, must be deposited at the
Hall of Records. The Records of all State agen-
cies, boards, and commissions that are abolished
or otherwise cease to function must also be
transferred to the custody of the Hall of
Records Commission.

All current deeds, mortgages, and releases re-
corded in the courthouses of the State are microfi-
lmed and preserved at the Hall of Records for se-
curity purposes. Limited facilities are available for
the filming of records of State agencies.

By several Acts of Assembly, the Hall of
Records has been designated as an official deposi-
tory for the publications of State agencies (Code
1957, Art. 40, sec. 53) and for all codes published
by local governments, both county and municipal
(Code 1957, Art. 25, sec. 32A, Art. 25A, sees. 7
and 9A; Art. 25B, sees. 7, 12). Since 1967, the

Hall of Records has been a depository for charter
amendments and annexations of municipal
corporations (Code 1957, Art. 23A, sees. 9, 17,
17A and 19).

"The Archives Division compiles, edits, pub-
lishes, and distributes the MARYLAND MAN-
UAL (Code 1957, Art. 41, sees. 104-106).

Chapter 488, Acts of 1966, transferred the
functions, records, responsibilities, and employ-
ees of the Commissioner of the Land Office to
the Hall of Records Commission. Under the
provisions of Chapter 355 of the Acts of 1967,
the Archivist was designated as the Commis-
sioner of Land Patents and assigned the respon-
sibility of issuing land patents and conducting
court hearings. In performing these duties, he
acts independently of the duties imposed on him
as Archivist (Real Property Art., sees. 13-101 to
13-504). The Hall of Records Commission serves
as the official depository for the duplicate copies
of subdivision plats formerly sent to the Land
Office as insurance against the loss of the
originals.

Records Management Division
Philip Schneider, Records Administrator

Treasury Building
Annapolis 21401 Telephone: 269-3023

The Records Management Division develops
programs and policies for the efficient manage-
ment of the records of all departments and agen-
cies of the Maryland State government and
provides assistance in the preparation of records
retention and disposal schedules.

The Division operates four low-cost warehouses
for the storage of inactive State records, which
must be retained for specified periods of time to
meet the State's legal and administrative needs.
These record centers are located in Baltimore,
Annapolis, Waterloo, and Cheltenham.

Chapter 981, Acts of 1978, makes the
Records Management Division responsible for
coordinating the State's Forms Management
Program and the forms management plans of
each agency for the purpose of simplifying or
eliminating unnecessary or duplicate State
forms.

The Division also offers cost reimbursable mi-
crofilm services to all State agencies, including
both source document and computer output
microfilming.