General Government

 
Town Clerk Board of Registrars Election Results

Records and Archives
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Records and Archives

D. Michael Ryan, Chair
Donald Blackmer
Victor Bowen
Freelon Morris, Jr., Emeritus
Polly Peterson
Win Wilbur

The Records and Archives Committee is responsible for working with the Town Clerk to gather, preserve and organize the records of Town government entities under the guidelines of State law.

The Committee continued such work projects as sorting and organizing

  • burial permits from 1939 to 1980

  • files from the Engineering Department from the 1980s and 1990s

  • files and records from several sources from the Town's celebration of the Bicentennial, along with the numerous sub-committee records

The Committee voted to transfer for preservation the documents that accompanied the remains of Sophia and Una Hawthorne to the Concord Free Public Library Special Collections. Although these would normally be filed with routine Cemetery records, they were much more elaborate and ornate than normal burial records. Given the historic nature of the move of the remains and the historical significance of the individuals, it was decided that the accompanying paperwork deserved some additional care. A photocopy was made and filed with the Cemetery records.

Grave of the Hawthornes

At a private ceremony, Sophia and Una Hawthorne are laid to rest in the family plot beside the grave of Nathaniel Hawthorne.

The Committee discussed new procedures for records storage, including the development of pre-printed stickers and updated disposal schedules to be distributed to staff and departments. The Committee is concerned that some department files are being stored in unlabeled boxes, making for extra work when they are uncovered and the contents reviewed. Many items were reviewed by the Committee and discarded during the year, in accordance with the disposal schedules provided by the State. A formal procedure will be developed and distributed to staff and committees in 2007, so that everyone is clear on the requirements for records storage, including the retention and storage of electronic records. The Committee began a review of its charge, last updated in 1971.