"Dollars for Documents"
Genealogists may have noticed in recent
years a fund drive to collect money for
microfilming National Archives records,
called the Genealogical Coordinating
Committee (GCC)-NARA Gift Fund.
The gift fund has been renamed the Malcolm
H. Stern NARA Gift Fund, in memory of the
prime mover in establishing the GCC. The
fund drive is known as "Dollars for
Documents."
Rabbi Malcolm H. Stern (1915-1994) was
the founder and first president of the GCC,
and the creator of the Gift Fund. Rabbi
Stern's contributions to genealogy over a
44-year period are monumental. He wrote many
articles for genealogical and historical
publications. He was best known for
Americans of Jewish Descent: 600 Genealogies
(1654-1838), which documents the genealogies
of Jewish families that arrived during the
American colonial and federal periods. He
held Fellowships in the National
Genealogical Society, the New York
Genealogical and Biographical Society, and
the American Society of Genealogists. He was
the 1988 recipient of the Federation of
Genealogical Societies (FGS) George Williams
Award "for outstanding contributions to
the FGS and to the genealogical
community."
A Million Dollar
Project
A dramatic goal
Raise $1.25 million to microfilm
two major collections of the National
Archives:
 | War of 1812 pension and
bounty-land warrant records |
| United States Colored Troops (USCT)
compiled service records |
The Federation invites the
genealogical community, private
donors, corporate sponsors, lineage
societies and other interested parties
to help make it happen!
Mark checks "War 1812" or
"USCT" and send to: FGS
Business Office P.O. Box 200940
Austin, TX 78720-0940 |
|
The GCC, formed in 1980 to create an
umbrella organization for the growing number
of national genealogical groups, was
disbanded at the genealogical society
conference in San Diego in May 1995. The
primary aims of the organization were to
coordinate conferences, to develop standards
for genealogical research, to assist records
preservation efforts, and to allow for
better communication among genealogists. The
consensus reached at the meeting of the
group in San Diego was that these aims have
been achieved and the group had served its
purpose. However, one of the most important
efforts of the GCC has been the GCC-NARA
Gift Fund, which would continue as the
Malcolm H. Stern NARA Gift Fund.
The Gift
Fund, established in 1983 by GCC, is a
nationally supported program to finance the
creation of finding aids and the
microfilming of valuable research materials
now preserved in the National Archives and
Records Administration in Washington, D.C.
These microform copies, produced without
government funding, are then distributed to
the 13 National Archives Regional Archives
for use by researchers.
The contributions of genealogists
throughout the country have assisted in the
preservation of the following records since
the founding of the Gift Fund:
1983
| Microfiche of Street Indexes to the 39
larger cities for the 1910 census. M1283: Cross Index to Selected City
Street and Enumeration Districts, 1910 census. Microfiche (Record Group 29: Records
of the Bureau of the Census).
|
1986
| Galveston Passenger Arrival Records,
1896-1948. M1359: Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Galveston,
Texas, 1896-1948 (Record Group 85: Records of the Immigration and
Naturalization Service, 1891-1957).
|
1988
| Canadian Border Crossings (1895-1954)
indexes allocated to the 6 northern NARA regional archives. (Record
Group 85: Records of the Immigration and Naturalizations Service,
1891-1957. Note: $14,000 allocated to 5
regional archives, with residual funds applied to
"wish list" of southern tier regional archives).
|
1991
| T1224: 1920 Census Enumeration
Districts, 1830-1950. The Gift Fund provided the rolls for the 1920
Census Enumeration Districts for placement in the 12
regional archives.
|
1992
| M1747: Index to Records Relating to War of 1812, Prisoners of War,
1812 (Record Group 94: Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s
to 1917).
|
1994
| M2019: Records Relating to War of 1812 Prisoners of War. The
Prisoner of War lists are indexed by M1747. (Record Group 94: Records
of the Adjutant General's Office).
| M2014: Burial Registers for Posts, Camps and Stations, 1768-1921.
(Record Group 92: Records of the Quartermaster General).
| M1845: Card Records of Headstones Provided for Deceased Union Civil
War Veterans, ca 1879-ca1903. (Record Group 92: Records of the
Quartermaster General).
| M2025: Registers of Applications for the Release of Impressed
Seaman, 1793-1802, and Related Indexes. (Record Group 59: Records of
the Department of State).
| | | |
1996
| M2075: Record of Appointment of Substitute Clerks in First-and
Second-Class Post Offices, 1899-1905. (Record Group 28: Records of the
Post Office).
| M2076: Index and Registers of Substitute Mail Carriers in First-and
Second-Class Post Offices, 1885-1903. (Record Group 28: Records of the
Post Office).
| M1846: Record Cards of Carriers Separated from the Postal Service,
1863-1899.
| M1826: Proofs of Citizenship Used to Apply for Seamen's Protection
Certificates for the Port of New Orleans, Louisiana, 1800, 1802,
1804-07, 1809-12, 1814-16, 1818-19, 1850-51, 1855-57. (Record Group
36: Records of the U.S. Customs Office).
| | | |
2002
| M1085: Investigative Case Files of the Bureau of Investigation,
1908-1922. (Records Group 65, Records of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation) [2002] |
Access to this information is through any
of the regional National Archives, but also
through any LDS (Mormon) Family History
Center in the world.
The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) administers the Malcolm H. Stern
NARA Gift Fund. FGS uses 10% of contributions to offset the cost of
administering the Fund. Additionally, the FGS NARA
Filming Committee will continue to take
suggestions for items to be microfilmed.
Ideas are solicited from anyone interested
in genealogy. The aim is to find material at
the National Archives, or its branches, of
major interest to genealogists.
Related Website
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