What We Collect
PHS is committed to building an inclusive archive by confronting the gaps in our collecting and storytelling practices and diversifying the scope of our collections through intentional collecting practices. Many of the historic documents in our holdings have been donated by individuals and families who lived the history in those records, or by their descendants. In this section, learn about our current collecting initiatives, the types of materials we accept from individuals and families, and how to donate historic materials to the society. The PHS Collecting Policy provides a detailed description of our collecting scope.
Collecting Initiatives
African American Leaders and Congregations
African American perspectives and experiences remain under-represented in the annals of Presbyterian history. This collecting initiative redoubles PHS's efforts to document Black lives, work, and witness in an increasingly multicultural Church—from the organization of the First African Presbyterian Church in 1807 to the election of the first African American stated clerk of the PC(USA) in 2016.
Pam Byers Memorial Collection
The forty-year movement for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the PC(USA) and its two predecessor denominations comprises a vital recent chapter of American history. In honor of Pam McLucas Byers, the first executive director of the Covenant Network of Presbyterians, the Pam Byers Memorial Collection documents the history of this movement across the theological spectrum as well as the lives of LGBTQIA+ Presbyterians and their allies.
Donating Personal and Family Papers
Our collections of personal papers document the works and ministries of individual servants of the church and society. Among these are mission coworkers, ecumenical and interfaith workers, community organizers and activists, sanctuary workers, and advocates for the imprisoned and impoverished. Learn more about donating materials in this section.
LOCATION AND HOURS
425 Lombard St
Philadelphia, PA 19147
Tues, Wed, Thur, Fri: 9 am to 4 pm
CONTACT US
Phone: (215) 627-1852
Email: refdesk@history.pcusa.org