ELCA Archives Move to New Location

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Archives and Records Center of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) recently moved to a new location in suburban Elk Grove Village, Ill., according to Elisabeth C. Wittman,director for archives of the ELCA. The move began May 26 and was completed June 11.
     The archives were located formerly in the Village of Rosemont, also a suburb of Chicago. The Rev. Lowell G. Almen, secretary of the ELCA, said the village sought the property for development and purchased it from the ELCA last fall.
     "The decision of the Village of Rosemont required that a new location be found," Almen said. "A building formerly used by a printing company was located that had adequate space for archival offices, research facilities and climate-controlled storage."
     The move made it possible to create a more suitable space for a denominational archive, Wittman said. The new facility is better equipped with security and temperature control, she said.
     "The archives are much more secure as well as accessible to researchers in the church and beyond," said Wittman.
     Other new features of the new building include a room for researchers to use, space for volunteer workers and an audiovisual viewing area.
     "Computer equipment was upgraded to provide connections between the churchwide office and the archives building as well as to serve a growing need for online communication and access to records," Almen said.
     The archives contain documents for the ELCA as well as predecessor church bodies, said Wittman. The Helen M. Knubel Archives of Cooperative Lutheranism are housed there. This collection includes records of=20 inter-Lutheran agencies and organizations such as Lutheran World Relief = and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said Wittman.
     "The archives document a record of a journey of faith," said Almen.
     The mission of the archives is to keep records for historical and legal purposes, said Wittman. "The new building makes it possible for us to carry out that mission," said Wittman.

[*Lisa Smith is a senior at Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa.  This =
summer,=20
she is an intern with ELCA News and Information.]

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html