WRITING YOUR CHURCH HISTORY



Getting Started
Gather Information
Survey Your Records
Create Your Outline
Writing Your History
Illustrating Your History
Publishing Your History
Ways to Use Your History
How to Submit Your History to the Conference Office
Resources for Preparing the History of Your Church

Your local church has just asked you to write the history of your church for the homecoming because they feel that you know more about the church than anyone else, or because you are the writer in the congregation. Sarah, the church secretary, has given you a stack of records that include church bulletins, old minutes, some photos and newspaper clippings. You look through the pile and ask, “Where do I start? What do I do all of with this stuff?”
 
This brief guide will walk you through the process of researching and writing a brief history of your local church. 

Getting Started

Preparing the history of your church will require the skills and knowledge of a number of people in your congregation – typist, photographer, graphic designer, writer, individuals with an interest in history, the pastor and church clerk. These persons should be organized into a committee to assist in planning and preparing the history.

Some of the tasks of this committee are to plan how the history will be published, determine a budget to cover the expenses of the project (mileage, photo copies, photography, etc.), develop a timeline for the project, and monitor the progress of the project.

>TOP

Gather Information
The first step in the research is to gather as much information about your church as possible. Records that you will want to obtain may be divided into several categories: internal records, denominational records and public records.

Internal records include clerk’s reports, board meeting minutes, correspondence, photos, church bulletins, funeral and wedding programs, church newsletters, council minutes, blueprints, video and audio recordings, etc. Denominational records would include: articles in the Adventist Review and Union paper, constituency reports, obituaries, other items that may be in your church files at the conference office.

Public records include: property deeds, building permits, city directory listings, newspaper articles, news clips, plat plans, census records, etc. These and much more are available from your local courthouse, library, city or state archives and news offices.
>TOP

Oral History Interviews – You will need to do oral history interviews with knowledgeable members. They will have stories to tell, that can help interpret some of your findings, and give personal insights that add context and warmth to your written history. These interviews will also provide leads to other persons that can help you. These interviews should include not only old members, but church leaders such as choir directors, youth leaders, pastors and others who can provide historical information about various organizations in the church.

Before the interview, prepare a written list of questions that you want to ask the person. Discuss these questions with them ahead of time so that they can be prepared. Also make a checklist of items that you need to carry: a video camera or tape recorder with fresh batteries or power cord, cassette tapes, camera, two writing pens, a notepad and your list of questions.

When you arrive, choose a quiet location, set up your equipment and start the interview. Ask questions at a comfortable pace and allow time for breaks. Limit your total interview to two hours. If you need more time schedule it for another time.

After you complete the interview do not leave the house until you listen to the tape to be sure that the recording worked. Once you are home check all dates, places and the spelling of names to be certain that they are correct.

“I Remember When . . . Day” – Another way to gather information from members is to sponsor an “I Remember When . . . Day” when the members are asked to bring scrapbooks, photos and other items related to the church’s history to church to be placed on display. It is also good to create an inventory of the items brought so that you know who has what even though they must be returned to the owners. Some members may even donate or loan their items to the church archives.

In addition to the display, you will want to have some of the older members share their memories. These memories should be recorded with video cameras and audio recording devices for preservation and use with your history.

Site Visits – Often a congregation has worshiped in several locations. You will want to visit each of these sites. Carry a camera with you to photograph the buildings and even lots where your congregation once worshipped. Note the construction of the buildings. Was it brick or wood? Was it a church or storefront? Was it located in the city or the country? Much can be learned about your congregation as your follow its pilgrimage to its present location. 

Survey Your Records
Survey your records so that you can have a good intellectual control of your records. The survey will also reveal gaps in information, raise questions that need to be answered and provide leads to other areas that need to be researched.
 
Organization is of utmost importance as you gather the records. Keep your records in a portable filing system. Also keep a journal where you can write notes as well as plan and track the progress of your research.
>TOP


Create Your Outline
The first outline that you will want to make is a timeline. Your timeline will give you a grasp of the chronology of your church and serve as the skeleton for your written history. It may be based on the succession of pastors that have served your congregation but should include as many other major events in the history of your church as practical. Your timeline should focus on your church but include also important denominational, local and world events that may have impacted the congregation such as wars, natural disasters, social movements such as woman’s suffrage, the civil rights movement, etc. These will provide an understanding of the historical and social context in which your congregation lived.  
>TOP

Writing Your History
Now you are ready to write the narrative history of your church. Start by trying to find a theme that conveys the story of your church. Some common themes include “We’ve Come this Far by Faith,” and “Reviewing the Past While Moving toward the Future.” However search deep into the stories you have heard for a theme.
 
When I was interviewing, Mrs. Frazier, a charter member of the Pell City Church she told me her husband had found a tract in a cotton seed bag and brought it to her to read. When she read it she found out that the seventh day is the Sabbath and began looking for a Church that keeps the Sabbath.

One day she was in Birmingham and met Elder C. Sampson Myles who baptized her at the Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church. She later donated the property for the First Seventh-day Adventist Church of Pell City. Interestingly, when a woman and her husband donated the pews for the church, we learned that as a girl it was her job to place tracts in the bags of cotton seed her family sold. For my theme I used “From a Cotton Seed Bag.” Once a theme has been selected, writing becomes easier.
 
Your narrative should include stories that show God’s work for and through your church. After all it is God’s church. You will also want to include the contributions of each pastor and list some of the members who joined during his ministry. Be sure to list all of the charter members by name.

Your history can be organized in a chronological or a topical format. The chronological format will work well in most cases. However, if you are doing a comprehensive history of your church the topical approach may be better.

The topical approach will have chapters or sub-chapters that deal with the pastors, the buildings and their architecture, the worship style and how it has changed over the years, evangelistic outreach, the church school and its teachers and alumni, etc.

How do you deal with deaths? It is appropriate to include a memorial page that lists all deceased members. This information can be gathered from the clerk’s records.
 
After you have finished writing it is wise to submit your manuscript to knowledgeable persons for review. You will want to have it edited for grammar and historical accuracy. This will require patience and the willingness to accept constructive criticism.
>TOP

Illustrating Your History
Photographs – People love to look at pictures. Choose good quality photos that will help tell your story. Photos provide many clues to the past such as what former churches looked like and how people dressed.  Photos also help your readers remember and highlight special events and people. 

Statistical Charts and Graphs – An interesting way to handle statistics is to present them in graphs or charts that can be used in the appropriate places in your history. Some statistics that you might choose to include would be membership and tithe growth.
>TOP

Publishing Your History
You are now ready to publish your manuscript so that it can be shared with your church, community, historians and other interested persons. There are several options available to you – a book, the history section in a souvenir book, a brochure, as a history page on your church website, a PowerPoint slideshow or a DVD presentation. Select one or two formats that will meet the desires of your church and its budget.

If you publish your history in a book or pamphlet be sure to distribute complimentary copies to your local libraries, historical society and the state and local archives.
>TOP

Ways to Use Your History
Publish a Timeline – You may decide to publish your timeline. If so, select photos to illustrate it and have a sign company that does digital signs design and print it on a large banner for display at your church anniversary or homecoming. The timeline can also be published in book form. 

Church Family History Scrapbook – Purchase a scrapbook with acid-free pages and give each family in the congregation a page. On the front of the page they should place a photo of their family and write the story of how their family became members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. On the back of the page they should draw their family tree and indicate all members who are members of the church.
 
When the scrapbook is completed place it on a stand near the pulpit. Each week you will invite a family to invite their relatives to church. During the service take a moment to tell how they joined the church, invite the family to come up to the altar and pray for them. 

You will also find it beneficial to share bits of your history in the church bulletin or newsletter such as history quizzes, brief articles, dramatic presentations, etc.
>TOP

How to Submit Your History to the Conference Office
The South Central Conference Archives is requesting copies of the history of each church to be submitted by June 30, 2006. Manuscripts and photos should be submitted in the following ways.

Manuscript – The manuscript should typewritten and be submitted in Microsoft Word or WordPerfect format along with a hardcopy printed on white acid-free paper.

Photos and Scans – Photos that are submitted should be printed at a photo lab so that they can be used for publication. If digital photos or scans are submitted they should be shot with a camera set at 3 mega-pixels or higher or scanned at 300 dpi and submitted on a CD.

Mailing – Everything should then be placed between cardboard, placed in a 9x12 envelope and mailed to:
South Central Conference Archives
South Central Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
P. O. Box 78767
Nashville, TN 37207-4825
>TOP

Resources for Preparing the History of Your Church
Form for Gathering Your Church’s History
Sample Narrative History
Sample Timeline History

>TOP

>Download The Above Information<