| OCR Text |
Show records of the various Church organizations. The l i b r a r y and archives of the Church Historical Department have been given the r e s p o n s i b i l i t y to acquire and preserve the records created as a r e s u l t of carrying on the functions and operations of the members, o f f i c e r s , and organizations of the Church. In addition to the manuscript and printed matter that accumulates within the Church, the writings of non-members, whether favorable or unfavorable, are also collected as a part of this library-archives program. There are three classes of materials collected and made accessible through the card catalogs maintained by the library-archives: (1) Printed materials that pertain to the Church, whether produced by the Church and i t s members or by non-members, and reference materials helpful to the understanding and use of the library-archives collections; (2) Manuscript materials, such as j o u r n a l s , d i a r i e s , biographical sketches, manuscript h i s t o r i e s, l e t t e r s , documents, and pictures that are indexed by author and subject, and filed by code l e t t e r and number; and (3) Written records such as minute books, financial records, and missionary records that are kept by local church organizations, and then sent to the library-archives where they are filed in a numerical sequence. Some of the e a r l i e s t and best reference tools developed for use in research on the history of the Mormons and the areas where branches, missions, wards, and stakes of the Church have been organized are these card catalogs and a variety of specialized card indexes: (1) A chronology of important Church events; (2) Records iv |
