Maryland State Archives

Overview

The Maryland State Archives serves as the central depository for Maryland government records of permanent value, with holdings dating from the state's founding in 1634.

History

The Archives' predecessor, the Hall of Records, was created as an independent agency in 1935 (Chapter 18, Acts of 1935), an outgrowth of Maryland's 1934 tercentenary celebrations marking the 300th anniversary of the state's founding. A Memorial Hall of Records had been proposed as early as 1928; the Maryland General Assembly appropriated funds in 1931, and the first Hall of Records building, designed by architect Laurence Hall Fowler, was constructed on the campus of St. John's College in Annapolis from 1934 to 1935. A Hall of Records Commission, created in 1935 to manage the Archives, took on an advisory role in 1984. The current Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse State Archives Building, designed by architect Bruce A. Rich, was constructed in 1986.

Collections, Holdings, and Publications

Holdings include colonial and state executive, legislative, and judicial records; county probate, land, and court records; church records; business records; state publications and reports; and special collections of private papers, maps, photographs, and newspapers. Records from county courthouses created prior to Maryland's April 28, 1788, ratification of the U.S. Constitution are deposited at the Archives.

Access and Usage

The Archives is located at 350 Rowe Boulevard, Annapolis, Maryland, and provides a research room for genealogical and legal research.