Hall of Records Commission
Minutes

for a Meeting 
at the Maryland State Archives
Electronic Classroom
12 Noon
March 23, 1999

The meeting was called to order by Chairman Bell at 12:20 p.m.

Chairman Bell introduced and welcomed the newest member of the Hall of Records Commission, Peta N. Richkus, Secretary of General Services.

Reports and Minutes of Previous Meetings

• September 1, 1998
On a motion by Dr. Nelson, seconded by Dr. Phillips, the minutes of the previous meeting were approved as submitted.
• Special meetings and Celebratory events
• Opening of exhibit of items from the Peabody Collection at Government House, October 15, 1998
Dr. Papenfuse reported that the Archives provided an exhibit of items from the Peabody Collection at Government House which opened on October 15, 1998.  He took the Commission to the opening page of the on-line version of the exhibit which features a painting by Thomas Dewing from the state owned Peabody Collection.  The Commission extended its special thanks to Mimi Calver and Carol Borchert of the Archives curatorial staff and Elizabeth Schaff at the Peabody Institute for their roles in mounting the exhibit..
• Maryland Judicial Conference, October 30, 1998.  Speech by Edward C. Papenfuse
Dr. Papenfuse was invited to address the Maryland Judicial Conference on October 30, 1998 in Ocean City, Maryland in celebration of their 50th anniversary.  Because it turned out that the Conference was older than 50 years, Dr. Papenfuse talked about the origins of the Conference and the fiftieth anniversary of its annual report.  The remarks are available on the Archives web site.
• George Washington's Birthday Ceremony, Old Senate Chamber, February 22, 1999
Dr. Papenfuse reported that for the first time in several years, George Washington's Birthday was celebrated on his official birthday, February 22, in the Old Senate Chamber.  Each year the Maryland Senate adjourns to have a special meeting in the Old Senate Chamber.  They were addressed by Senator Hoffman who gave a talk about the importance of the day, as well as what we ought to be celebrating generally this year for the 350th anniversary of the passage of the act concerning religion (the Act of Toleration).
• First Citizen Award, Senate Chamber, March 2, 1999.  Remarks by Edward C. Papenfuse
Every year on behalf of the Senate and the President of the Senate, Dr. Papenfuse awards two members chosen by the senate with a special award created in honor of Charles Carroll of Carrollton who is known as the first citizen.  These remarks can be found on the web.
Dr. Nelson moved approval of the minutes of the September 1, 1998 meeting (as amended, if amended), and the special meetings of the Commission as outlined above in accord with the standing resolution; the motion was seconded by Mr. Swann and unanimously approved.

Records Retention and Disposal Schedules

• Retention
• Disposal

Secretary Richkus asked if there are time periods that elapse that we use as our criteria and Dr. Papenfuse answered in the affirmative.
Upon motion by Secretary Richkus, seconded by Mr. Swann, the Records Retention and Disposal Schedules were unanimously approved as presented

Old Business

• report of the subcommittee on newspaper preservation (Dr. Ridgway, Dr. Phillips, Mr. deLorenzo, staffed by Nancy Bramucci).  Defer with Proposed Resolution of an additional charge to investigate the best means of centrally preserving the master negatives of all newspapers, serials, and periodicals published in Maryland and for the Archives to extend its Newspaper guide to include serials and periodicals such as Niles' Register and Benjamin Lundy's Universal Genius of Emancipation.

Archivist's Report & Staff Activities 
     (see the Maryland State Archives Bulldog for additional details)

• State House Trust:  Supplemental Budget Request for State House exhibits and Historic Structures Report
A proposal has been submitted on behalf of the State House Trust for a supplemental budget request to prepare an Historical Structures Report (HSR) for the State House and to refurbish the exhibits in the State House as a new millennium project..  Dr. Papenfuse pointed out that considerable work is underway on the State House without there being adequate historical documentation on the building.  At the same time, the interpretive exhibits in the State House are fifteen years old and in need of attention.  It is expected that some monies would be made available for the exhibits, but none for the HSR.
• Louis L. Goldstein Statue Competition:  Report of Subcommittee for the Louis L. Goldstein Statue to the Maryland Commission on Artistic Property
Dr. Papenfuse was asked by the Board of Public Works to help with the selection of an artist for the Louis L. Goldstein statue to be located between the Treasury and Income Tax Buildings.  A competition was conducted in which there were 23 submittals from Maryland artists.  From five finalists, Jay Hall Carpenter was selected.  The project now awaits final approval of the appropriation.  As soon as the appropriation is passed, the Board of Public Works can award the contract.  Dr. Papenfuse encouraged the Commission to visit the Archives web site to follow progress on this project.
• Audio/video presentations of the Governor's Inaugural, the State of the State, and the State of the Judiciary
Dr. Papenfuse would like to bring into the historical record of the State, visual moments of importance to the history of the State including the Governor's Inaugural Address, the State of the State Address and the State of the Judiciary.  (Dr. Papenfuse took the Commission to the web site where Judge Bell was delivering the State of the Judiciary.)    Placing this aspect of the archival record into a readily accessible and permanently available form helps to reinforces our understanding of what the business of the legislature and government is all about.
• MD Supplemental Retirement Plan (MSRP) agency web site
Dr. Papenfuse introduced Ms. MacAdam, MSA's web master, who works to help agencies get started (especially small agencies) on putting web pages together themselves as part of the Archives' efforts to make Maryland Electronic Capital effectively deliver public services on line.  This sample site is geared to helping state employees better understand the state employee retirement plans (benefits, what employees should be thinking about doing, how to go about doing it, etc.).
• Preserving Oversized Materials:  A Model System for the Courts for Recordation and Access to Survey Records
Dr. Papenfuse said that throughout State Government and the court system, we are faced with a very serious problem regarding the preservation of oversized materials.  Much of what is vital in the public records, particularly that which relates to the property we own, is recorded on oversized materials (condo plats, subdivision plats, planning documents, maps, etc.).  These documents are then poorly stored, often rolled up, placed in drawers and boxes, and subject to enormous stresses of wear and tear every time they are consulted.  They also take up expensive storage space.  To reduce the costs of storage and to alleviate a massive conservation and access problem, the Archives offered to create an on-line publication in the Archives of Maryland series that would be a web-based retrieval system for oversized materials. At there request of the  Administrator of the Courts, the Archives undertook to design the system without impacting on the AOC staff whose immediate priority was attending to Y2K issues.  The Archives took on the responsibility of designing the system, testing it and bringing it to the point where we are ready to deliver, within the next week, a web-based retrieval system for all of the oversized material for Baltimore County, and we are ready to bring on-line every other county in the State in the same way in the next year and a half, moving next, at the request of the AOC, to Montgomery County.

Dr. Papenfuse demonstrated the system for the Commission, introducing Kevin Swanson who chaired the working group charged with implementing a design that was largely the work of himself and Nancy Bramucci who did the programming.  The main objective is to create a dynamic system in which the ultimate goal is to provide high quality images of every recorded and even unrecorded plats that bear on land ownership in Maryland.

Dr. Papenfuse advised the Commission that demonstrations of this system will be given to representatives from Baltimore County on Friday, March 26 and to various clerks from other counties on April 6 and 7.

Secretary Richkus asked what the developmental costs were, and Mr. Allan advised under $100,000 although the final figure has not been reached.  Dr. Nelson asked how much more staff will be needed for this project, and Dr. Papenfuse stated that staffing of the project will be paid for out of the income from providing access to the on-line publication (published in the Archives of Maryland series)  and for the fees charged for maintaining the publication on-line.  Mr. Allan indicated that we estimate there are roughly 275,000 instruments, and that after we get the system fully tested and operational, we will have a short-term need of about eight people for one year.  Dr. Nelson next asked about the long-term needs, and Mr. Allan responded that long-term, we can maintain the system with the equivalent of about four to six people given the projected growth of the recordations and the need to retrospectively improve on the access and in the quality of the imaging of older material.  Dr. Papenfuse further explained that the Archives is a court of record for the subdivision and condominium plats, and has been responsible since the 1960s for a not always complete duplicate set of plats sent from the courts.  Over time, we will be eliminating this duplication and helping to maintain a centralized recording system in partnership with the Judicial Information System.  In that way, for some counties, the Archives' staff involved in the imaging process will also assist in the recording process.

The Commission commended Dr. Papenfuse and the Archives staff for their work on a truly innovative project to create an accessible,  permanent image archives of oversized public records.
 

Recent Acquisitions

• Special Collections sc990323.html
• Government Records  032399t.html
Dr. Papenfuse encouraged the Commission to visit the hyperlink to special collections to take a look at what we have gotten in the way of special collections which are also published in the Bulldog.  He invited the Commission to look at new government records received at the Archives in order to get an idea of the kinds of permanent records we have been taking on.
•  recent gift
Peter Pearre, a noted restoration architect and partner of the late Michael Trostel, has been  instrumental in securing for the Archives a copy of a rare pamphlet on the rape trial of Frederick Calvert, the last Lord Baltimore.   Dr. Papenfuse called the Commission's attention to the state owned portrait of Frederick Calvert which was on display for the meeting.  He pointed out that there are two portraits in Maryland.  The other one is at the Pratt Library.  The state portrait of Frederick was originally acquired when it, the state, confiscated the residence of Governor Eden in 1781 and made it into the Governor's mansion.  It had been sent to Maryland by Frederick, and remained in the Mansion until it was given to the City of Annapolis to hang in City Hall.  In 1867 it was returned to the State House where it has remained ever since, except for temporary removals for restoration and while renovations were underway.  Frederick is infamous for his trial for rape in 1762, the proceedings of which were among the first publications of a complete trial transcript by a court recorder.   He was not convicted, but had to leave England and remained abroad for the rest of his life.  When he died, he had no legitimate heirs and left all of his property to his illegitimate son Henry Harford (after whom Harford County is named).   Dr. Papenfuse then took the Commission to the Archives internal web site to see the 1782 inventory of  Governor Eden's confiscated property which included the portrait hanging in the parlor, then being used by Governor Thomas Sim Lee and his wife.

A motion of appreciation to Peter Pearre in memory of Mike Trostel, and to the Society of Colonial Wars for for the donation of The Trial of Frederick Calvert was made by Dr. Nelson, seconded by Mr. Swann and unanimously approved.

Finding Aids, Reference Services, and Publications

• Archives of Maryland (Documents for the Classroom)
Dr. Papenfuse called the Commission's attention to a A Guide to Six Significant Maryland Appellate Cases in the ongoing electronic publications of the Archives of Maryland, prepared to assist Judge Harrell and Bob Zarnoch in their efforts to produce an historically accurate play for the Maryland Bar Association.  Compiling the CD for use on the web or in the classroom provided the Archives with the opportunity of pulling together materials on important trials that included items it did not have.  For example, in  State vs. Buchanan, Dr. Papenfuse showed the Commission two items on the CD that the Archives initially did not own. One item the Archives purchased as an original, and the other it purchased as a copy from the McKeldin Library.  The latter was a rare transcript of the final resolution of the case in the lower court (Harford County), edited by Robert Goodloe Harper, which even the Court of Appeals did not have.
• Society of Senates Past Biographical Research Project
Dr. Papenfuse was approached by the Secretary of the Senate and the President of Senates Past, and asked to put together biographies of all living members.  The first edition was derived from biographies as they appeared in the Maryland Manual, not from current information.   He encouraged the Commission to visit the Archives web site to see the biographies on-line.  This project was so much appreciated by the Society of Senates Past that they will endeavor to fund a summer intern to work with Emily Squires on biographical research relating to all senators past.
• see Special Presentations below

Education & Outreach

• Teaching in the Age of Internet: web-based courses to be taught by the State Archivist
• Maryland History (Fall 1998, Johns Hopkins University)
• Baltimore and the Bay (Spring 1999, Johns Hopkins University)
• Public History (Spring 1999, University of Maryland, with emphasis on Maryland as a model)
• Dr. Papenfuse has been informed by the State Ethics Commission that his teaching appears to be separate and distinct from his work as State Archivist and that, based upon the information he supplied, is appropriate and within the guidelines of the ethics laws of Maryland for him to be compensated in addition to his salary as State Archivist.
Dr. Nelson asked if this gets the Commission past the audit question of the Federal grant  honorarium, and Dr. Papenfuse answered in the negative.  The monies were returned, the Ethics Commission considers the matter closed and will not rule on the questions raised in a letter to the Director, and the joint audit committee of the House and Senate has indicated that the matter is now closed as far as they are concerned.  Dr. Papenfuse informed the commission that as a matter of policy he will no longer seek Federal grants in which he is required to be the Principal Investigator.  The amount of uncompensated personal time required to fulfill the terms of such grants is simply too great and not worth the effort.  He intends to devote what personal time he has to teaching and writing, and invited the Commission to visit his personal web site http://www.teachers.md
• Summer Internship Program (see the ITF fund grant below)

Administrative & Fiscal Matters

• A grant to the Archives from the Information Technology Fund to place hard to find and imperiled Constitutional, Legal and Administrative records on the Archives web site as images and as searchable text in the Archives of Maryland series.
• an overview of the project and an example of the work in progress
The Archives has received a $100,000 grant from the Information Technology Fund to bring every printed document relating to the administrative and legal  history of the State of Maryland through 1820 on-line as publications in the Archives of Maryland series..  An example of what we intend to do (called The Archives of Maryland Legal History On-Line), is to bring all of the Archives of Maryland series fully into an electronic format.  Images will be on-line first, followed by carefully edited  transcripts.  Not all of the searchable text is encompassed by the $100,000 (the original grant proposal was for $700,000).  As an example of the work in progress, Dr. Papenfuse turned to the images of  Bacon's Laws of Maryland,  the first systematic compilation of the laws of Maryland published in 1765.  This rare, hard to find volume (92 megabytes) is accessible by password which currently is available free on request.  In the future, in order to help fund the continuation of the publication, the Archives will have to charge for access unless an annual appropriation can be secured to support it..
 

The first phase of the grant (funded by the ITF) will be to encompass the printed Archives of Maryland (73 volumes) and images of the Early State Records for Maryland microfilmed in the 1950s by William Sumner Jenkins.
 

• The impact of the year 2000 on Archives' databases and programs and making the Archives Y2K compliant
• brief discussion of the issues, steps taken by the Archives, and status of our pending request for assistance from the Y2K Office of the Department of Budget and Management

There was a motion by Mr. Swann, seconded by Secretary Richkus and unanimously approved that the plan for resolving Y2K compliance issues at the Archives is critical to the future management of permanently valuable records of Maryland, as well as to the ability of the State Archives to continue to manage and increase the non-general fund component of its operational costs (currently 35% of its total operating budget).  It encompasses only work that is currently conducted through the use of non-2YK compliant dBASE IV programs and databases, all of which must be converted to compliant and functioning programs and databases by January 1, 2000 in order for the Archives to function at its current level of management and service to the public.
 
Dr. Papenfuse advised the Commission that the consultant has sent her report to the Compliance Officer recommending that the Archives needs an estimated $2.4 million to move it into a y2k compliant world.  The Archives is the heart of the electronic management world for the State of Maryland.  If that money is not invested in our care and preservation, it is not going to be useful to anybody else who has electronic records that are considered permanent.  It is the responsibility of the Archives to see that anything maintained in any State agency, when it constitutes a permanent electronic record, is properly preserved, cared for and maintained in a permanent environment at the Archives.  The Archives has received preliminary approval for going ahead with this contract and hopes it will be signed in the next couple of days.  It will mean that every State agency will benefit from this.

Dr. Nelson asked if this is solving most of the y2k problem for the State of Maryland, and Dr. Papenfuse said that he did not know about all State agencies, but that it would definitely solve the problem for the Archives.  The Archives has analyzed the y2k issue in the context of its total operation and has identified several thousand databases and dBASE automated procedures that need 'remediation.'  To further put this in context, Secretary Richkus indicated that DBM has about $50 million in this year's budget for y2k phases such as this, with approximately $40 million in next year's budget for y2k issues.  It is a lot of money but, in anticipating these kinds of needs, DBM is out in front making resources, not only money but consultants, available to all State agencies.  Dr. Nelson asked if it is expected that $90 million in the next two years will be sufficient, and Secretary Richkus answered in the affirmative.  Mr. Swann said the $90 million is outside of individual State agency budgets. The Comptroller's office started working on this problem in 1996, and its real cost is probably going to be around $5 million.  However, they had the capability to do much of their work in-house.  Mr. Nelson asked how long it will take to complete this piece if the Archives gets a signed contract, and Dr. Papenfuse said that everything critical to the financial operation should be y2k compatible by December 31, 1999, although the complexity of the process may require phasing in of less critical transfers of data into the following year.  Mr. Ports asked if this money is in the Archives FY 99 or 2000 budget, and Dr. Papenfuse explained that this money is coming out of the y2k budget.  Mr. Allan further explained that the Program Management Office (PMO)  brought someone on board in October, and their report was delivered at the end of January.  The decision has been made by the PMO to issue another task force.  Another $50,000-$60,000 will be spent.  Finally, Mr. Allan emphasized that this is a time and materials bid not to exceed $2.4 million.
 

• Audit Report:

major issues -

1) the auditors argue that honorariums cannot be paid to management staff from Federal grants, even though the work is done on personal time and at personal expense with the approval of the Federal granting agency.  The issue for this audit was resolved (but not to the satisfaction of the employee or the Archives) by the employee returning the honorarium to a holding account pending directions from the Federal Granting Agency with regard to its final disposition.  (update)

Dr. Papenfuse reported that the National Endowment for the Humanities replied, indicating that from their perspective the payment ($2400) was appropriate as an honorarium for the contribution described, or that that it can be expended by the project in any way at the Archives as long as it is for educational purposes.  The $2,400 has been returned and deposited in the Endowment Fund, where any interest derived from it will be for educational purposes.
2) the auditors dispute the Commission's definition of the Archives of Maryland series and contend that approximately $40,000 in interest should have been earned by the General Fund instead of by the Archives Fund. The Archives has requested an opinion on this matter from the Attorney General - a copy of the letter of request is attached.
Dr. Papenfuse reported that he has asked for an Attorney General's opinion.  A response is not expected until after the Legislative Session.  In his letter, Dr. Papenfuse asked the Attorney General to address the issue who determines the content of the series, especially with regard to publications in electronic form.

• Budget Issues, Present and Future:
FY 2000 budget proposals
• The Archival Challenge:  ensuring quality, reliability and permanence for all forms of the historical record
• The Archival Challenge:  space for existing collections and future acquisitions- beyond the year 2000
• The Archival Challenge:  providing a spatial context for interpretation and education
Dr. Papenfuse reported that the Archives has survived everything except one potential cut, i.e., Network Administrator.  This position is needed for our Electronic Archives.  After appeal to the House committee, the position was restored.  It is going into conference with the Senate and the hope is that the conference committee will put the money back into our budget.  If not, we will agree with the House's terms.

Forthcoming special meetings of the Commission & events of interest

• Maryland Day, March 25, 1999, events
• Boys' Latin students and Author Ann Jensen with the Governor at the State House
Dr. Papenfuse advised that at 9:00 a.m. on March 25, he, Mimi Calver, Carol Borchert, 31 students from Boys' Latin and the author of the children's book will be meeting with the Governor to discuss the life of the first Governor, Leonard Calvert.
• Lt. Governor Townsend presents the Annual Colonial Society Essay Contest award (judged by the State Archivist) in Baltimore
• Maryland House and Senate recognize the 350th Anniversary of the passage of An Act Concerning Religion
At around 10:00 a.m. on March 25, Dr. Papenfuse will be addressing the House and then the Senate regarding Maryland Day and the 350th Anniversary of the passage of an act concerning religion.  Dr. Papenfuse referred the Commission to a booklet in their packet created by the Archives which will also be given to the legislature in honor of the 350th Anniversary of the passage of the act.  He will also present to every member of the legislature a copy of the second edition of Maryland:  A New Guide to the Old Line State.

Dr. Papenfuse first began work on this book in 1973 and sees this edition as a significant milestone in his nearly 25 years as State Archivist.  He never thought the first edition would be published, given the shortage of staff and woefully inadequate funding, and to see a second edition in his lifetime comes close to being a near miracle.

The second edition is dedicated to the late Comptroller Goldstein, with these words in Dr. Papenfuse's preface:
 

Hoping that this New Guide will prove both readable and infomative--an introduction to Maryland that will benefit visitor and resident alike, and lead to a full appreciation of the state's rich history--we dedicate this work to the late comptroller of Maryland, Louis L. Goldstein.  In his nearly 60 years of public service, Louis visited every corner of Maryland and incorporated his unsurpassed knowledge of its past into just about every speech he gave.  He understood the blessings that come with being able to place what we see in historical context.  He understood why the enthusiasm of Father White proved so contagious; he also asked all of us--even those who are just passing through--to help preserve those historical things that delight us and will inform those who come after.
 
• Reception at the Archives for Pulitzer Prize winner William Warner's new book "Into the Porcupine Cave...," proceeds from which will benefit the Archives and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation

Special Presentations

Dr. Papenfuse distributed copies of An Act Concerning Religion and circulated a copy of the New Guide to the Old Line State which will be given to members at the next meeting:

• An Act Concerning Religion, April 21, 1649
• A New Guide to the Old Line State (second edition)

Next meeting

The next meeting will be held in September 1999.
 
 

Adjournment

There being no further business to discuss, on a motion by Mr. Swann, seconded by Dr. Phillips, the meeting was adjourned at 1:24 p.m.
 
 

           Approved by the Hall of Records Commission, September 22, 1999

            _________________________________________________
           The Honorable Robert Mack Bell, Chairman

            _________________________________________________
           Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse, Jr., Secretary

Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse
State Archivist

Email: If you have an Email account linked to your WEB browser, click here to activate your mail program to send an inquiry or message to me at archives@mdarchives.state.md.us or contact me at (410) 260-6403.

© Copyright 1999 Maryland State Archives