Director, Washington County Museum of Fine
Arts
FXHIBITS
Muni Calver, Director (410) 974 3914
SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
Nancy M Bramucci, Director
(410) 974 3914
STATE & LOCAL GOVERNMENT RECORDS
Kevin J Swanson, Director (410) 974 3862

APPRAISAL & SCHEDULING
Kevin J Swanson (410) 974 3862

GEOGRAPHIC SERVICES
Anan D Ravanbakhsh (410) 974 3914
fax (410) 974 2525
toll free (Maryland) 1 800 235 4045

MARYLAND DEPOSIT INSURANCE FUND
COLLECTION
Dons A Byrne (410) 974 3914
PROCESSING
(410) 974 3914
TRANSFER & DESCRIPTION
Constance R Neale (410) 974 3914

As the historical agency for Maryland, the State
Archives is the central depository for government
rcturds ufpcimancnt value Rccoids date from the
founding of the Maryland colony in 1634 to the
1990s They include colonial and State executive,
legislative and judicial records, county probate,
land and court records, business records, publica
tions and reports of the State, county and municipal
governments, records of religious bodies, and spe
cial collections of maps, newspapers, photographs,
and private papers
Origins of the State Archives trace to the State's
tercentenary celebrations in 1934 As the 300th
anniversary of Maryland's founding approached,
the Maryland Tercentenary Commission made a
modern, centralized archives a key feature of the
State commemoration A "Memorial Hall of Re-
cords" was proposed as early as 1928 and in 1931
the General Assembly appropriated funds to erect
an archives building Construction began in 1934,
and it opened to the public in 1935 There, the
records remained until 1986 when the State at
chives moved to the new Hall of Records on Rowe
Boulevard across from the Robert C Murphy
Courts of Appeal Building
The General Assembly provided for the manage
ment of the public records when it created the Hall
of Records Commission and provided for the col
lection, custody, and preservation of the official
records, documents, and publications of the State
(Chapter 18, Acts of 1935) The Hall of Records
was formed in 1935 as an independent agency of
State government and remained so until its incorpora
non into the Department of General Services in 1970
(Chapter 97, Acts of 1970) In 1984, the Hall of
Records was reformed as the State Archives, an inde-
pendent agency within the office of the Governor
(Chapter 286, Acts of 1984) The 1984 law defined
an advisory role tor the Hall of Records Commission

and placed the Commission on Artistic Property
under the State Archives (Code State Government
Article, sees 2 1513(b), 3 404(b), 7 213(a), 9
1001 through 9-1027, 10-604 through 10608,
10 631 through 10 634, 10-637 through 10-642,
10-701, 10702)
The State Archives produces guides to records,
finding aids, historical monographs, essays, and
directories Every two years, the State Archives
compiles, edits, publishes, and distributes the
MARYLAND MANUAL In addition, the State
Archives prepares, edits, and publishes volumes of
the new series of the Archives of Maryland Exam
pies of publications currently available are

Within the State Archives are the Commission
on Artistic Property, and a number of units, includ
ing Computer Services, Education and Outreach,
Exhibits, Government Information Services, Land
Patents, Photographic Services, Preservation and
Conservation, Reference Services, Special Collec
tions, and State and Local Government Records
The State Archives is aided by the Hall of Records
Commission

HALL OF RECORDS COMMISSION
Chair Robert C Murphy, Chief Judge,
Court of Appeals
Secretary Edward C Papenfuse, Ph D , State
Archivist
(410) 974 3867

Created in 1935, the Hall of Records Con-inns
sion is an advisory body to the State Archives
(Chapter 18, Acts of 1935) The Commission re
views and comments upon policies of the Archives
that concern proposed budgets, publications, and
public access to records
The Commission is composed of eleven mem
bers Nine serve ex officio The Chief Judge of the
Court of Appeals serves as chair (Code State Gov
ernment Article, sees 9 1001 through 9 1006)