Last Updated on 2 years by IMYM Tech Lead

Revised (03/15/16)

The Historian-Archivist conducts the Yearly Meeting census and preserves records and other materials of historical interest.

Appointment

The Historian-Archivist is appointed for a six year term beginning at the rise of an annual session.

Responsibilities of the Historian-Archivist include:

Census:

1. Annually, preparing a census form and return envelope for the Treasurer to include with the January letter posted to all Monthly Meeting Clerks regarding contributions to IMYM.  The census shall include a listing of the number in each Monthly Meeting of:
   1. Adult members in each Meeting on January 1 of the current year, both resident and non‑resident, including sojourners (those carrying a minute of sojourn forwarded from their home Meeting) and members from other Meetings, identifying junior and associate members.
   2. New members admitted to the Society.
   3. Transfers of membership.
   4. Births, including names.
   5. Deaths, including names.
   6. Regular attenders, including separate counts of attenders in Preparative Meeting and Worship Groups under their care.  Where known, the number of members of other Meetings counted as attenders will be helpful if reported. (Note: Preparative Meetings and Worship Groups should not be sent census forms because their attenders either belong to a Monthly Meeting where they will be counted or they are attenders ‑‑ not recorded members of a Monthly Meeting in the Religious Society of Friends.)
2. From the completed census forms, compiling and presenting a report to the annual session and for the record of the annual sessions prepared by the Recording Clerk.

Records (see Notes 1 and 2)

1. Overseeing the collection and preservation of proceedings of the annual sessions and meetings of the Arrangements Committee and Representatives Committee, including all attachments and submitted reports. Attachments to the annual proceedings should include approved financial, nominating and registrar reports and all epistles emanating from the sessions. Current practice is for the Clerks and the webclerks to assemble these materials on imym.org in a timely manner.
2. Providing access to archived proceedings, minutes and reports and assisting Yearly Meeting Friends in researching these materials in the course of conducting the yearly meeting’s business.
3. Maintaining a working relationship with one or more national depositories of yearly meeting records for the purpose of preserving a longitudinal record external to IMYM operations and accessible to researchers. Currently the Haverford Quaker Collection has a complete collection of IMYM annual session proceedings. Guilford College has some IMYM materials archived.
4. Preserving materials relating to the development and history of Intermountain Friends Fellowship and Intermountain Yearly Meeting and making such materials available to IMYM Friends.

Financial Arrangements

Incidental operating expenditures for clerical supplies, communications, etc., may be submitted to the Treasurer for reimbursement.  The Treasurer should be consulted before incurring unusual expenses.

Note 1. The matter of what materials to archive and how to best place them in an appropriate national depository have not been explicitly considered by the Yearly Meeting in some time. Some traditional depositories (e.g., London House of Britain Yearly Meeting, Whittier College) are no longer accepting such materials, and other libraries are making the transition to electronic records.

Note 2. The 2009 IMYM Faith and Practice (p. 201) provides specific recommendations for the permanent collection of IMYM records.