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State Archives Finding Aids

The State Archives holds records from more than 70 Connecticut state government departments, commissions, and offices, covering the colonial period to the present. Historical records from the three branches of State government document the evolution of state public policy and its implementation, the rights and claims of citizens, and the history of Connecticut and its people. In addition, there are files from many non-governmental institutions, organizations, and churches, as well as collections of tax lists and other official records from Connecticut towns.

The Connecticut State Archives is undertaking an ongoing project to make finding aids available online. Hard copies of finding aids are available to researchers at the History and Genealogy reference desk if they are not yet online.

Connecticut State Archives Finding Aids: Record Groups

Record Groups

RG 001, Early General Records, 1629-1820.
This group consists of colonial and early statehood records which, because of their nature or arrangement, cannot be attributed to the record groups for individual state agencies. They include some of the most valuable and significant archival materials in the State's custody. Sub-groups of note include:

The Connecticut Archives collection comprises the records of the Connecticut General Assembly to approximately 1820 and is grouped into broad topics.

  • The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut, 1636-1776. Online edition.
  • The Public Records of the State of Connecticut.
    These sets comprise the official record books of the General Court/General Assembly. The original volumes are housed in the State Archives as part of Record Group 1, but those through the early nineteenth century have been published [CSL call number HistRef ConnDoc G25].

RG 002, General Assembly, 1708-2000.
These records, which follow chronologically the "Connecticut Archives", consist of petitions, memorials, remonstrances, affidavits, resolutions, public acts, annual reports, reports of legislative committees, gubernatorial messages, and other official papers that document the activities of the General Assembly, Connecticut municipalities, corporate bodies, and many individuals. Online finding aids:

RG 003, Judicial Department, 1636-1991. (pdf)
This record group consists of all types of legal documents relevant to court action, including, but not limited to, dockets, formal decisions, rules, appointments, judges’ notes and opinions, indexes, case files, record books, executions, reports, and administrative papers, as well as materials from related entities such as the State Bar Examining Committee and Coroners and Medical Examiners. The records date from 1636 to the late 20th century, with the bulk from the 17th through the 19th century. Most extant state court records prior to 1870 are in the State Archives along with a substantial volume of municipal and justice court records. Record Group 003 also includes probate records including wills, inventories, bonds, administration reports, etc. until 1698, when the General Assembly established the separate probate court system. See record group 004 for Records of the Probate Court. The records of the Judicial Department include colony and statewide materials for the Particular Court, 1639-65; Court of Assistants, 1665-1711; Superior Court, 1711-1879; and Supreme Court of Errors, 1784-1901. The bulk of the records, however, are arranged by county and consist of papers of county courts, courts of common pleas, superior courts, supreme courts of errors, and maritime courts.

                Hartford Housing Authority investigation, Hartford Superior Court, One-man grand jury, Judge William Maltbie, circa 1940-195
                In the summer of 1951, State Supreme Justice William Mills Maltbie conducted a one-man grand jury investigation of the Hartford Housing Authority

RG 004, Probate Courts, 1636-1946.
Probate Court records consist primarily of record books (mostly in microfilm form) and estate papers (original and microform). The documentation includes wills, bonds, inventories, and reports of estate administrators. A card index to estate papers is found in the History & Genealogy unit. When probate courts were first established in 1698, one existed for each of the colony’s four counties, but the number of probate districts has continued to increase and the state is now divided into around 150 probate districts. The probate records in the volumes of record books are more or less in chronological order. Most volumes have their own indexes. Estate papers are alphabetically arranged by probate district and surname. Record books and estate papers do not always contain exactly the same information, so sometimes both need to be examined. This record group also contains some late nineteenth and twentieth-century probate records from nine probate districts. Much of this material has been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah and is available for use in the H&G reading room or through LDS Family History Centers.

RG 005, Office of the Governor, 1630-2004.
Executive clerk, 1820-1985;  proclamations, 1630-1993; correspondence, 1811-1933;  bond registers, 1819-1899; applications for appointive office, 1848-1880; miscellaneous reports, 1860-1945; certifications and commitments to state hospitals, 1828-1948; appointment registers, 1871-1978; commissioner of deeds, 1879-1949; lieutenant governor, 1991-1994; requisitions and waivers of extradition, 1905-1993.

RG 006, Office of Secretary of the State, 1789-1984.
The bulk of records for the Secretary of the State’s Office relate to elections and commercial activities. The records of the Elections Division contain votes for state and federal offices, 1819-1912, plus a variety of papers on state, municipal, probate, and justice of the peace elections for much of the 20th century. Records of the Commercial Recording Division include Articles of Incorporation for joint stock companies, chartered companies, and voluntary associations, 1837-1946; Records of Railroad Mortgages, 1849-1980; Certificates of Adoption of Trademarks, 1880-1963; together with annual and biennial reports, certificates, lists of officers, and other similar records for cooperative associations, non-stock corporations, specially chartered corporations, domestic corporations, and foreign corporations, 1834-1979. Also included are records of county commissioners; the 1965 Constitutional Convention; returns on births, marriages, and deaths, 1848, 1853, 1855; and small quantities of papers covering such subjects as letters received, oaths of office, sheriffs’ records, reports on jails, and temperance petitions.

RG 007, Office of the State Treasurer, 1741-1979.
The records of the Treasurer document three major activities: those as agent for receiving, disbursing, and investing state funds; administration of the Connecticut School Fund; and the duties of the Veterans’ Bonus Division. The function to receive, disburse, and invest state funds is documented through a variety of accounts, certificates, daybooks, receipt books, receipt stubs, cash and account books, ledgers, and correspondence, 1743-1960. They also include small quantities of turnpike returns, Insurance Department certificates, and waste books. The records of the Connecticut School Fund, 1793-1948, consist of correspondence, journals, reports, accounting records, and deeds for lands in Ohio, Massachusetts, and New York. Veterans’ Bonus Division files, 1947-1979, consist primarily of bonus application or claim files and card indexes, the bulk of which are only available on microfilm, and a small quantity of death claim files. The World War I Bonus covered those with military service between 1898-1920; World War II Bonus 1941-1946, Korean War Bonus, 1950-1953; and Vietnam War Bonus, 1964-1975.

RG 008, Office of the State Comptroller, 1758-1954.
The Office of the Comptroller is responsible for superintending all matters concerning the finances of the State. A wide variety of financial records are found in Comptroller’s Records, many of them from the Committee of the Pay Table during the Revolutionary War. They include accounts, bills, receipts, reports, vouchers, soldiers’ notes, town accounts for supplies of soldiers’ families, saltpeter certificates and accounts, and other papers. Other financial records covering the period from the 1780s to the early twentieth century include journals, waste books, receipt stubs for payment of soldiers and money loaned to the state, grand lists, Treasurers vouchers, Comptrollers vouchers, Civil War returns for soldiers’ children and returns for family bounties, plus State Pauper Records, 1844-1920, financial records of the School for Imbeciles, 1913-1954, and Military Separation Allowances, 1916-1919.

RG 009, Office of the Attorney General, 1903-1973.
The records consist of Attorney General opinions, case files, subject files and correspondence. The opinions include written requests to the Office of the Attorney General for opinions about state agencies and policies. They include written formal and informal opinions including summaries of verbal opinions issued on a variety of topics as well as arbitrator’s reports. There is also a large collection of attorney general opinions on the Workmen’s Compensation Act (1950-59). Case files include testimony transcripts, consultants’ reports, correspondence, and other supporting documentation concerning cases handled by the Office of the Attorney General. Subject files contain materials pertaining to the official business of the Attorney General’s office and include correspondence, proposed bills, newspaper clippings, tax forms, maps, and blueprints.

RG 010, Department of Education, 1845-1997.
The origins of the Department of Education date from an 1838 bill creating a Board of Education to investigate and report on the condition of all common schools. The current State Board of Education dates from 1865. A commissioner, who serves as secretary of the board, heads the Department. Includes some attendance reports and some passports and birth certificates of work permit applicants, 1870-1930.

RG 011, Insurance Department, 1871-1979.
The mission of the Insurance Department is “to protect the consumer by administering and enforcing the insurance laws in the most responsive and cost effective manner to ensure the financial reliability and responsibility of all regulated entities.” The Department is responsible for administration of the state’s laws regulating the insurance industry. Records in this collection include quadrennial reports from the Exam Division, 1930-1979, annual fire statements, and records from the Insurance Commissioner.

RG 012, Connecticut State Library, 1850-2000.
The State Library provides a variety of library, information, archival, public records, museum, and administrative services to state government, libraries and library organizations, town government officials, students, and the general public. The Library began as two law collections at the two state houses (New Haven and Hartford) and was placed under the oversight of a legislative committee in the 1840s. It was not until 1854, however, that the General Assembly created the post of State Librarian. The most important State Librarian in the agency’s history was George Seymour Godard (1900-1936), who was of critical importance in getting the building at 231 Capitol Avenue constructed and occupied. He also expanded the library’s services into new areas. Records include such formats as letterpress books, paper files, sound recordings, films, discs, photographs, architectural drawings, ledgers and logs, and ephemera. The group also includes materials of the Connecticut Friends of the Library organization, 1979–1984. Records document the work of the State Librarian and division heads, the State Library Board, the Library’s many divisions, and defunct units such as the War Records Department. One of the largest series of this record group documents grants assistance given to public libraries through the Division of Library Development.

RG 013, Military Department, 1776-1986.
The records of the Military Department consist primarily of materials documenting the history of Connecticut’s militia, national guard units, and the service of Connecticut volunteers during the Civil War. The records contain extensive materials documenting the work of the Adjutant General, 1792-1807, including general orders, resignations and discharges, correspondence, militia returns, pensions, and reports and rosters. RG 013 also holds records of Civil War volunteer regiments, courts martial, bounty and pension files, and fragmentary pre-Civil War records of militia regiments. The Civil War regimental records include enlistment papers, muster rolls, monthly returns, and muster out rolls. In addition, records exist for the First Company, Governor’s Foot Guard, and Connecticut’s Civil War “Colored” 29th, 30th, and 31st Regiments. Extensive documentation on various units of the Connecticut National Guard are included, consisting of records on specific regiments, the Connecticut Home Guard, and of artillery, naval, and air units. The bulk of the materials cover the period after 1820, although some records document the War of 1812 period.

RG 014, Department of Banking, 1865-1971, bulk 1918-1963.
A number of Connecticut banks failed during the depression of 1929, and in 1935 the General Assembly assigned to the Banking Commissioner the responsibility for liquidating their affairs. These are the papers from the Liquidation Division. The records are comprised of receivership files and include records of foreclosures, correspondence concerning closed banks, and administrative files. In addition, the collection contains the records taken over from the banks that were in receivership. Included in the bank records are legal papers, income tax returns, real estate files, correspondence, and bank records of accounts.
 
RG 015, Office of Policy and Management, 1907-2004.
The Office of Policy and Management (OPM) is the governor’s staff agency. Its mission is to provide information and analysis that the Governor uses to formulate public policy goals for the State and assist State agencies and municipalities in implementing policy decisions on behalf of the people of Connecticut. Records in this collection include materials from predecessor agencies, the Board of Control, 1897-1927; Board of Finance, 1915-1927; and the Department of Finance and Control, 1927-1977. The record group contains materials from the Office of State Planning, Budget Division, Finance Advisory Committee, Special Bond Committee, State Bond Commission, Comprehensive Planning Division, Management and Justice Planning Division, and the Energy Division. The papers include meeting minutes, working papers, correspondence, financial data, land-use studies, reports, budgets, and scrapbooks. Also found are records pertaining to the abolition of county government, 1960.

RG 015:024, Office of Family Support, 2001-2004, bulk 2001-2002.
The Office of Family Support was established by Governor Rowland after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. It assisted families of the victims in locating financial, legal, and emotional assistance.

RG 016, Department of Public Health, 1799-1991, bulk 1887-1991.
In 1878, the General Assembly established a State Board of Health mandated to “take cognizance of the interests of health and life” of the people of Connecticut. It made sanitary investigations to inquire into and report on the causes of disease and the sources of mortality. It distributed sanitary information to local boards of health and compiled data submitted by these boards. It also had supervision of birth, death, and marriage registrations. Today the Department of Public Health is the State’s lead agency in public health policy and advocacy. Its major program areas include prevention/education, regulation, planning, emergency medical services, and local health administration.

RG 017, Department of Correction, 1800-1974.
The General Assembly established the Department of Correction in 1967. Prior to that year, the state’s major correctional facilities at Somers, Enfield, and Niantic, and the earlier ones at Newgate and Wethersfield, existed as independent state agencies, administered by a board of directors appointed by the governor. The new department brought together all youth and adult correctional institutions and parole into a single agency. Connecticut was the first state to consolidate these services. The materials in this record group pertain mostly to the Wethersfield State Prison (1827-1963) and include correspondence, financial records, commitment warrants, prison discharges, architectural drawings, and inmate records, 1900-53. The collection contains a few records pertaining to Connecticut’s first prison at Newgate.

RG 018, Civil Service Commission, 1913-1921.
Chapter 232 of the Public Acts of 1913 set up the Connecticut Civil Service Commission consisting of three commissioners appointed by the Governor. Legislation divided the State employment system into unclassified service exempt from the bill and classified service that required applicants to take competitive examinations in order to be placed on eligibility lists. The Commission made rules, created classified job titles and tests, administered the tests and prepared eligibility lists, answered correspondence, and sought information about exempted or unclassified employees in State departments. Chapter 26 of the Public Acts 1921 abolished the commission. This record group contains minutes of commission meetings, financial records, correspondence with the public and state departments and institutions, subject files, papers and reports of appointments made, a card file of applicants and their scores (1914), a ledger of applicants and eligible candidates for each classified job, samples of forms and examinations, and manuals issued by the Commission and by other states.

RG 019, Department of Social Services, 1809-1960.
The Department of Social Services provides assistance to families and individuals through programs such as child-care block grants, energy assistance, vocational rehabilitation, refugee assistance, programs for the elderly, temporary assistance for needy families, food stamps, Section 8 housing vouchers, and the state child support enforcement plan. The Department has evolved through several titles that reflect the changes in public policy toward those citizens in need: Board of Charities, 1873-84; State Board of Charities, 1884-1921; Department of Public Welfare, 1921-35; Office of the Commissioner of Public Welfare and the Public Welfare Council, 1935-1953; Department of Welfare, 1953-75; Department of Social Services, 1975-1979; Departments of Human Resources and Income Maintenance, 1979-1993; and, once again, the Department of Social Services, 1993-present.

RG 020, Department of Labor, 1902-1988.
The Department of Labor (DOL) assists workers with income support between jobs, protection on the job, training programs, assistance in searching for jobs and information on the economy, wages, and the workplace. DOL provides employers with workplace data and labor market information, recruitment assistance and programs to help maintain employee skills. The Department started as a “bureau of labor statistics” and it continues to fulfill this function as an arm of the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics by collecting, analyzing and reporting workforce data. The Bureau began in 1873 but disappeared by 1875. The legislature reconstituted it in 1885 and in 1901 added the Factory Inspector. In 1915 legislation combined this post into a Department of Labor and Factory Inspection and in 1950, the agency was first called by its current name, the Department of Labor. This record group contains records of the Commissioner, 1970-1988; records of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, 1923-1987 (some of which are restricted); records of the United States Employment Service, 1917-1919; administrative and meeting records of the various boards under the Minimum Wage Division, 1936-58; and files of the Department’s own Employment Service Division, 1937-1941.

RG 021, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 1866-1994.
The Department began as three mental hospitals: the first at Middletown in 1867, called Connecticut Hospital for the Insane, now known as Connecticut Valley Hospital (CVH); the next, in 1904, Norwich State Hospital; and the third, beginning in 1933, Fairfield Hills State Hospital. Eventually all three were combined into one department. The current agency is the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. This is the “single state agency for providing comprehensive mental health and substance abuse services throughout Connecticut.”

RG 022, Department of Economic and Community Development, 1939-1997.
The Department of Economic and Community Development administers programs and policies to promote business, housing and community development. The agency combines housing, tourism, and economic growth. It began in 1939 as the Development Commission; in 1973 became the Connecticut Development Authority in the Department of Commerce; in 1979 a separate agency known as the Department of Economic Development; and in 1995 the agency as it is today.

RG 023, State Teachers' Retirement Board, 1917-1963.
The State Teachers' Retirement Board administers the Teacher’s Retirement System that provides members, public school teachers and their beneficiaries, with retirement, disability, survivorship, and health benefits.

RG 024, Connecticut Historical Commission, 1776-1987.
The Connecticut Historical Commission performed a variety of functions having to do with the preservation of historic sites and structures and other historical resources.

RG 025, Board of Pardons, 1883-1889.
The Board of Pardons is an autonomous body within the Department of Correction for administrative purposes only. Its five members are appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of either house of the General Assembly. All must be state residents, three must be attorneys, one skilled in one of the social sciences, and one a physician. The Board has jurisdiction over the granting of and authority to grant, commutations of punishment or releases, conditional or absolute, commutations from the penalty of death, and pardons, conditional or absolute. This group consists of one book kept by the Board’s clerk containing minutes and notes.

RG 026, Division of Special Revenue, 1972-1974.
The General Assembly created the Commission on Special Revenue by Pubic Act 865 in 1971. Its first action was to institute a lottery in Connecticut. In the late 1990s, the State transferred administration of the lottery to the Connecticut Lottery Corporation. Today the Commission is a Division and is a part of the Department of Revenue Services for administrative purposes only. The Division supports activities of the Gaming Policy Board and both regulate the conduct of legalized gambling within the state and monitor compliance with Tribal-State Compacts. The only records in this group are sample lottery tickets.

RG 027, Board of Capitol Commissioners, 1871-1880.
In July 1871, the General Assembly created the Board of Capitol Commissioners to issue bonds and expend funds to construct a new state capitol building in Hartford. The legislature accepted plans of architect Richard M. Upjohn of New York and awarded the construction contract to James G. Batterson. In 1873, dissatisfied with the original plans that called for a German style clock tower, the General Assembly appointed a new commission to direct changes and improvements in the design and specifications. For instance, a dome replaced the tower. The legislature occupied the new capitol in 1879, and the Commission turned over its files to the Comptroller on November 30, 1880. The record group contains minutes of meetings and secretary’s notes, financial records such as receipts, materials lists, account books, vouchers and bank books, incoming and outgoing letters, time books and payroll, contracts, proposals, specifications and estimates, a record book, and diaries of activities. Also included are Upjohn plans, drawings, and descriptions, plans of competing architects, and applications for employment.

RG 028, Commissions to Study Government Efficiency and/or Reorganization.
RG 028:001, Commission to Investigate the Advisability of Consolidating Certain State Boards and Commissions and to Investigate the Public Health Laws, 1915.

RG 029, Military Census, 1917-1920.
On February 6, 1917, Governor Marcus Holcomb addressed the General Assembly requesting that a law be passed directing him to undertake a state military census of materials and manpower “available for use in event of war.” The census required that all men 16 years and older fill out a questionnaire. Unofficially, the state intended to use the census in order to identify enemy aliens. On February 7, the initial machinery of the manpower census was set up. This separate bureau was transferred to the State Library, which functioned as a Historical Records Department of the Council of Defense. Eventually the Library oversaw an agricultural census and others of nurses, automobiles, and industry. This record group contains administrative files, schedules, questionnaires and forms, punched Hollereith cards, index card files, scrapbooks, tabulations of summaries, numerous photostated lists, clippings, and reference files.

RG 030, Council of Defense, 1917-1919.
In April 1917, Governor Marcus Holcomb appointed an eleven-member council under an Emergency Act (Chapter 43, P. A. 1917) passed after the United States declared war on Germany and the Axis powers. The first meeting was held on May 8, 1917. Over time, the Council formed committees to deal with areas such as publicity, Americanization, fuel conservation, food supply, transportation, and military and naval affairs. The Council also formed a Woman’s Division whose members sat on the council’s committees. The Council coordinated, supported, and publicized the work of other war agencies at the state and federal levels. Gradually the committees acquired staffs of their own and an Executive Department headed by a director was formed. The Council was discontinued in March 1919. This large group contains records including administrative files, financial records, correspondence, subject files, and reference files of the council’s executive department and several committees. Formats and types vary but include photographs, posters, newspapers, artifacts, lists, card files, lantern slides, copper and lead cuts and printing plates, sheet music, bulletins, mimeographed circulars, telegrams, and other paper materials.

RG 031, Connecticut Unemployment Commission, 1931-1933.
In December 1930, Governor John Trumbull and Governor-elect Wilbur Cross formed the Connecticut State Emergency Committee on Employment. The committee was charged with cooperating with state and federal agencies in investigating and mitigating the effects of serious unemployment and with encouraging employers to gather statistics and other information, so that a solution to unemployment could be devised. The Committee reported its findings in February 1931, and later in July, it went out of business. Its successor was the Connecticut Unemployment Commission authorized by the General Assembly under Special Acts, 1931, Ch. 468. It continued the work of its predecessor, working with local groups providing relief and served as a point of contact for federal relief activities such as the distribution of Army blankets and clothing, sale of wheat and cotton, and the Civilian Conservation Corps employment program. The Commission reported its findings in a report in December 1932 and went out of existence at the end of June 1933, succeeded by the new Connecticut Emergency Relief Commission. RG 031 contains minutes of meetings, financial records, general subject files consisting of correspondence, newspaper clippings and other publications, and reports, together with files of town surveys of relief organizations, construction projects, and payroll and man hours. In addition, the collection contains a scrapbook of newspaper clippings and files of the New Haven office.

RG 032, Emergency Relief Commission, 1933-1937.
The General Assembly created the Emergency Relief Commission in 1933 (1933 Public Acts, Chapter 276). It was the successor to the Connecticut State Emergency Committee on Employment and the Connecticut Unemployment Commission. The ERC had two functions: approval of local municipal bonds for relief purposes and supervision of emergency unemployment relief projects. Records include files pertaining to projects funded under the Federal Emergency Relief Act and its successor, the Civil Works Administration, both in 1933. In 1935, funding for relief projects was transferred to the new Works Progress Administration. The Commission went out of business on February 1, 1937.

RG 033, Connecticut Work Projects Administration, 1935-1944.
In 1935, the Federal government established the Works Progress Administration as the central agency in control of relief projects for the unemployed in the nation. When the Federal Emergency Relief Administration closed in late 1935, the WPA replaced it. In 1939, the agency’s name changed to Work Projects Administration. In Connecticut, main offices for the WPA were in New Haven and district offices were in major cities. It was abolished on June 30, 1943 and liquidated a year later. This group primarily documents the Writers’ Project and associated “white collar” projects. It contains correspondence, working papers, research reference materials, directives, circulars, manuals, completed survey forms, contracts, maps, photographs, clippings and scrapbooks, drafts of interviews and reports, field notes, scripts of radio programs, administrative and financial records, and manuscripts of unpublished works. Areas of activity include Connecticut: A Guide, ethnic histories, town and city histories, histories of city parks, Historic Buildings Survey, Church Records Survey, Manuscripts Inventory, the Federal Art Project, American Imprints Inventory, history of the Hartford Flood of 1936, and a variety of guides.

RG 034, State Salvage Committee, 1941-1945.
The State Salvage Committee was organized in December 1941 as part of the State Defense Council (later known as the War Council). It also served as the Connecticut agent of the General Salvage Section of the Conservation Bureau of the U. S. Office of Production Management. The Committee informed the public of the need for conserving scarce materials and assisted in collecting and utilizing salvage. It worked with local town salvage committees and with scrap and waste dealers on an Advisory Salvage Board. It went out of business in early 1945. The record group contains minutes and agendas of meetings, drafts and copies of speeches and reports, lists of local and industry committee members, incoming and outgoing correspondence, town production cards, publicity materials such as newsletters and photographs, administrative subject files, and town correspondence and memoranda files.

RG 035, Connecticut Office of Price Administration, 1942-1949.
In August 1941, the Federal government set up the Office of Price Administration in order to stabilize prices, obtain optimum production of essential war materials and prevent a post-war price collapse. The agency set up nine regional offices, one of which was the New England office located in Boston. The Boston office set up the Connecticut branch office in December 1941, and in May 1942, Chester Bowles, future Connecticut Governor, became its director. The Connecticut office ran a rationing program, established price and rent ceilings, and engaged in various public information activities. This record group contains a rent survey chart (no date), correspondence, memoranda, press releases, bulletins, speeches and radio scripts, subject files, records of the local Goshen office, and ration card applications for New Milford and New London.

RG 037, Liquor Control Commission, 1932-1934.
In 1932, Congress amended the Volstead Act to allow the sale of beverages with up to 3.2% alcoholic content. The nation expected that the 18th Amendment to the Constitution would be repealed. Under Chapter 15 of the Special Acts of 1933, the Connecticut General Assembly set up a Liquor Control Commission to recommend legislation to regulate the sale of beverages allowed under the Volstead Act and the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages outlawed by the 18th Amendment. Lawmakers gave the seven commissioners until April 14, 1933 to make their report. On March 30, 1933, they submitted the draft statute that set up a Liquor Control Board. This record group contains working papers of the Commission, including minutes of meetings, copies of previous Connecticut statutes dealing with alcoholic beverages dating back to 1918, and proposals for a statute. Also included are copies of statutes from other states and Canada, some correspondence, articles, and a carbon copy of the bill submitted and kept by the chair, John Buckley.

RG 038, Election Laws Commission, 1939-1941.
Set up under Special Act No. 1 (HB 74) at the 1939 session of the General Assembly, the Election Laws Commission was a seven-member, bi-partisan body charged with studying election laws and proposing revisions. The Commission held its first meeting on February 6, 1939 and submitted its first report to the Governor on April 14, 1939. Lawmakers extended the Commission to May 1, 1941, and it submitted its second and final report on January 31, 1941. This record group contains the two reports, minutes of meetings and transcripts of public hearings, correspondence concerning Attorney General’s opinions, drafts of reports and proposed legislation, and reference materials.

RG 039, Flood Recovery Committee, 1955-1956.
In response to the flood of August 1955, Governor Abraham Ribicoff appointed a twenty-member committee to study emergency needs and immediate recovery problems and recommend a program of rehabilitation. The Committee, its Coordinating Group, and five subcommittees held numerous meetings. It issued its final report to the governor on November 3, 1955. This group contains subject files pertaining to the work of the Committee, other State committees working on the same problem, a coordinating committee and five subcommittees, publicity, and the final report. Files contain minutes, correspondence, lists of commercial businesses damaged, reports, newspaper clippings, and other reference materials.

RG 040, Post-War Planning Board, 1943-1945.
Authorized by an act of the General Assembly in June 1943, the Post–War Planning Board’s charge was “to study and formulate plans for the readjustment and reconversion of agriculture, manufacturing, business and mercantile activities within the state from a wartime to a peacetime basis.” The Board issued Interim and Final Reports, and ceased to exist on July 1, 1945. The record group consists of minutes of meetings, September 22, 1943-June 19, 1945; correspondence, working papers and drafts of reports; newspaper clippings and other reference materials; photographs; completed confidential employment and planning surveys; and subcommittee records.

RG 041, Public Utilities Control Authority, 1851-1992.
The records of the Public Utilities Control Authority contain correspondence, accident reports, investigation reports, hearings, petitions, and related materials from the Railroad Commissioners, 1857-1911; Asylum Bridge Commission, 1884-1891; Public Utilities Commission, 1911-1946; Public Utilities Control Authority Reorganization Task Force, 1975; and hearing transcripts of the Connecticut Siting Council, 1975-1992.

RG 042, Commission on the Prevention and Care of Sickness, 1939-1940.
In 1939, the General Assembly enacted House Bill 1650 that established a five-member commission appointed by the Governor to study the problems associated with physical and mental diseases in Connecticut, delivery of services by state facilities and expenditures made by them and those that the state should make. Originally called the Commission on the Treatment and Care of People Afflicted with Physical or Mental Disabilities, the group was better known as the Commission on the Prevention and Care of Sickness. HB 1650 required that the commission report its findings and recommendations, including draft legislation, to the Governor on or before January 1, 1941. In 1939, the Commission first held an investigation of charges against personnel of Norwich State Hospital for the Insane. Then it conducted studies and surveys of state agencies and institutions. Noteworthy is a report on the incidence of cancer. This record group contains correspondence, supplementary studies, survey reports, articles and newspaper clippings, transcripts of testimony and public hearings, draft recommendations, and the final report, published in 1940.

RG 043, Board of Parole, 1933-1991.
The 1903 Indeterminate Sentencing Law allowed each of the state prisions to authorize their own paroles. In 1957, a three member Board of Parole was created to replace the State Prison Board of Directors as the paroling authority. On July 1, 1968, the Department of Correction was established with an autonomous, single State Board of Parole, to replace the former three separate boards of parole. On July 1, 2001, the State Board of Parole was replaced by Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles. This record group contains minutes of meetings, public information release logs, and "A Report to the Legislature of the State of Connecticut on Capital Punishment and the Administration of Homicide Laws".

RG 044, Health Care Access, Office of, 1973-1998.
The Office of Health Care Access was established in 1994 to ensure that the citizens of Connecticut have access to a quality health care delivery system. It was restructured in 1995 as a sucessor to the Commission on Hospitals and Health Care. This record group includes declaratory rulings and meeting packets. Declaratory rulings consist of chronological, budget, and rate order final decisions. Meeting packets consist of agendas, minutes, and calendars.

RG 045, State Revenue Task Force, 1969-1971.
In 1969, the General Assembly created the State Revenue Task Force to prepare recommendations for a revised Connecticut tax structure. It met first at the State Capitol on September 9, 1969 and adopted its report at a final meeting on January 21, 1971. The Task Force commissioned outside reports, received recommendations and heard testimony from government, community and business leaders. Hearings were held in several major cities in addition to the regular meetings in the Capitol, most of which were open to the public. The group contains minutes of commission meetings, summary of recommendations, the final report, unpublished studies and memoranda, statements at public hearings, sound recordings of public hearings, a general subject file, and administrative files.

RG 046, Connecticut River Bridge and Highway District, 1879-1949.
In 1895, the General Assembly passed Special Act 343 establishing the commission and charging it to build a new bridge over the Connecticut River. The previous structure was made of wood and had recently burned. The first chair was Morgan C. Bulkeley, under whose direction the bridge was completed and dedicated in October 1908. In May 1927, the Commission renamed the bridge after Bulkeley. Until the 1930s, the Commission maintained the bridge, but gradually its duties and title to properties became the responsibility of the State and adjacent municipalities. On July 13, 1949, final liquidation of its accounts took place. The record group contains minutes of meetings of the Commission, 1905-1949; bridge dedication materials, 1909-1927; the builder’s bid and payment papers, 1903-1907; treasurers’ reports and financial statements, 1895-1949; treasurer’s financial registers, 1911-1949; deeds and other legal instruments, 1879-1949; and plans, drawings and maps, 1903-1949.

RG 047, Special Tax Commission, 1932-1935.
Special Act 474, approved by the General Assembly in 1933, established a “Temporary Commission to Study the Tax Laws of the State and Make Recommendations concerning their Revision,” which took the name Special Tax Commission. The Commission held six public hearings and obtained the assistance of private citizens and state government officials. It submitted a report to Governor Wilbur Cross in November 1934. At first a 94-page summary was available to the public, but a full report of 642 pages appeared later. Commission records include minutes of meetings, correspondence of the research director and staff and commission members, correspondence between the chair and research director, commission administrative files, files pertaining to a study of the impact of a proposed change in the beginning of the fiscal year, publicity material, and a general file consisting of working files, reference materials, working papers, drafts, notes, and correspondence.

RG 048, Teenage Alcoholic Use Study Commission, 1961-1967.
In 1965 by Special Act 257, the General Assembly created this commission to continue the study of the problem of teenage alcohol use and to implement recommendations of the earlier (1961) Teenage Liquor Law Coordination Commission. On December 6, 1966, the Commission held a conference on the problem at the Capitol. This group contains minutes of meetings, a transcript of the conference, meeting notices and agendas, background papers, reference files, newspaper clippings, correspondence, and Soundscriber discs.

RG 049, Veterans Advisory Commission, 1943-1949.
In the summer of 1943, Governor Raymond E. Baldwin appointed a volunteer Connecticut Reemployment Commission to plan for the orderly reentry of veterans into the workforce, reemployment of displaced war workers, and the coordination work of all relevant State, local and private agencies. In 1945, the General Assembly made the Commission a statutory agency under the new name, Veterans Reemployment and Advisory Commission. At the end of the fiscal year of 1947, the Commission’s name became the Veterans Advisory Commission and it went out of existence on June 30, 1949. The group consists of meeting minutes, special memoranda, lists of members of the commission and local committees, interviews and reports of the “Town Planning Survey,” administrative, financial, and personnel files, subject files, field representatives’ files, and files pertaining to on the job training and apprenticeship programs.

RG 050, War Council, 1940-1945.
After war broke out in Europe in 1939, the State created the State Defense Council, similar to the one during the First World War. It coordinated domestic mobilization through advisory committees of leading citizens, local councils and public officials, and agencies of the U.S. government. By 1943, this body was known as the War Council. It went out of business on October 1, 1945. Records include minutes, directives and circulars, general files, surveys, publications, and files (correspondence, memoranda, reports, subject files, and lists) documenting the work of sections dealing with protection services, an air raid network, air raid wardens, blackouts, bomb reconnaissance, communications, fire and plant protection, training, fuel, food, manpower, radio, film and statewide evacuation.

RG 051, Philadelphia Sesquicentennial Committee, 1926-1927.
Governor John Trumbull and the State Board of Control authorized Connecticut’s participation in the “Philadelphia Sesqui-Centennial International Exposition” celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Thirty-five thousand dollars were allocated, and a committee consisting of George S. Godard, State Librarian and Chair, former Governor Frank B. Weeks, and State Treasurer Ernest E. Rogers was appointed. The Committee built, furnished, and operated a Connecticut building, modeled after the old state capitol, and equipped it with exhibits of Connecticut life and industry. At the end of the Exposition, the Committee sold the building, and it held its last meeting on July 28, 1927. This record group contains minutes of meetings, an account book, pay receipts, registers of visitors, official town seals, blueprints of construction drawings and the contract for construction, ceremony programs and dinner menus, speeches and press releases, and photographs of ceremonies, construction of the Connecticut building, and other sites at the Exposition.

RG 052, Civil War Centennial Commission, 1959-1965.
In 1959, the General Assembly created this Commission to promote and publicize the history of Connecticut’s participation in the Civil War. The Commission consisted of twenty-five appointed members and had an office in the State Library. It held about twenty meetings between November 1959 and March 1965. It encouraged the formation of local groups to organize pageants, celebrations, and commemorative events, provided speakers, promoted publication of pamphlets about Civil War leaders from Connecticut, and distributed publications. John Niven wrote his book, Connecticut for the Union: the Role of the State in the Civil War, for the Commission. The group contains administrative files, minutes of meetings, general correspondence, correspondence with towns and other states, newsletters, drafts of unpublished works, publications and related materials of the Commission, and publications from other state Centennial organizations.

RG 053, Commission on a Civil Administration Code, 1915-1921.
In 1919, the General Assembly created this Commission “to investigate and report on a civil administration code.” Five members were appointed, and the first meeting was held in June 1919. The Commission collected data on state government organization and expenditures, took testimony from government officials and others, held public hearings between April and May 1920, and drafted its final report. The Assembly received the report in the 1921 session and formed a new joint committee on the matter. Legislators recommitted the bill reported out in May 1921, and the legislation died. The record group contains minutes of meetings, reports and bills from the legislature, printed reports of state agencies and administration codes of other states, working papers and drafts, organizational charts, drafts of the final report, and the report itself.

RG 054, State Fiscal Study Commission, 1956-1957.
The Commission was appointed by Governor Abraham Ribicoff in 1956 “to consider general economy in State government, distribution of State financial aid to cities and towns, limitation of State debt, and matters relating to these subjects.” Seventeen members sat on the Commission and a staff supported its work. The Commission submitted its report to the Governor on February 11, 1957. The records consist of correspondence, minutes of commission and subcommittee meetings, an outside consultant’s report, newspaper clippings, working papers and drafts, drafts of subcommittee reports, and the final report, as submitted to the governor.

RG 055, George Washington Bicentennial Commission, 1931-1933.
In 1931, Governor Wilbur L. Cross appointed a five-person commission to direct Connecticut’s participation in the national celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of the birth of George Washington. The Lieutenant Governor served as chair, and State Librarian George S. Godard was the secretary. Between September 28, 1931 and June 27, 1932, the Commission held regular meetings and planned, sponsored, or encouraged a variety of activities. The record group contains minutes of meetings, general files of correspondence, memoranda, clippings, scrapbooks, paintings and drawings of children’s contest entries, and a photostat copy of a history of Connecticut’s participation arranged by town. The Commission gave the original volume to the United States Bicentennial Commission.

RG 056, Connecticut Tercentenary Commission, 1928-1959, bulk 1929-1936.
The General Assembly created this commission in 1929 to plan for the commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Connecticut’s settlement. The Commission expanded from seven members to eleven, supported by an executive secretary and staff. It created several subcommittees to conduct work. Its program included publications, exhibits, public ceremonies, musical events, pageants, parades, school activities, an industrial exhibit, religious observances, and the sale of medals, plates, and auto tags. The record group contains minutes of meetings of the Commission, its executive committee, and sub–committees, administrative, personnel, and financial records, scrapbooks, photographs, postcards and files about local celebrations, reports of public libraries, music, local history material, much of which was assembled by Connecticut school children, and visitors’ registers.

RG 057, Governor's Metropolitan Traffic Commission, 1953-1955.
This Committee was appointed by Governor Lodge to study traffic problems affecting the Hartford area. The Committee held meetings and conferences with town, business and railroad officials, and technical experts. Its report was submitted to Governor Ribicoff in 1955. The records include meeting minutes, correspondence, background materials, newspaper clippings, and drafts of the committee’s final report.

RG 058, Research Commission, 1964-1971.
The Commission was established by the General Assembly in June 1965. Its principal function was to support and encourage research and related activities “relevant to the interests and welfare or economic betterment of the citizens of Connecticut.” The Commission met monthly to determine policy and agree on priorities for the allocation of funds. Projects covered many fields including research development and the environment. Governor Meskill ended the Commission’s funding and it dissolved in 1971. The Commission’s residual responsibilities were taken over by the Development Commission (see RG 022). Records include project applications (proposals), research support award files, contract files, meeting minutes, correspondence, press releases, background materials, and financial records.

RG 059, Advisory Committee on Fuel, 1947-1948.
In November 1947, members of the petroleum industry in Connecticut believed there was a danger of a severe fuel oil shortage during the coming winter. Per their request, Governor McConaughy appointed ten industry representatives to an Advisory Committee on Fuel. The Committee met frequently and worked to establish cooperative agreements between members to facilitate supply and transportation of oil into the state, assist small and unequipped dealers whose supply was threatened, and organize local committees to deal with emergency situations. In the spring, the crisis appeared to be over and the Committee concluded its work in March 1948. Records include the Committee’s report to the Governor, correspondence, workbooks, and subject files.

RG 060, Commission to Make Repairs to Capitol and to Procure Site for New Building for State Officials, 1904-1914.
The Commission was established by the General Assembly in 1903 to make repairs to the State Capitol and to “investigate and ascertain the necessity of erecting an additional building.” In 1905, the Commission was asked to purchase land, to procure plans and specifications for a new State Library and Supreme Court building, and obtain bids for its construction. The new building was opened in November 1910. Records include correspondence, meeting minutes, arbitration agreements and contracts, financial records, and photographs documenting the construction of the new State Library and Supreme Court Building (see Picture Group 220).

RG 061, County Governments, 1792-1961.
The Connecticut General Assembly abolished county government effective October 1, 1960. Various units of State and town government took over many of the functions performed at the county level. The Budget Division of the Department of Finance and Control liquidated any records not transferred to successor agencies and turned the remainder over to the State Library. As a result, the collection contains a variety of documents from a wide range of dates. Includes commissioner, jail, temporary home, and treasurer records from the eight Connecticut counties.

RG 062, Town and Borough Governments.
Includes town meeting records, tax lists, grand lists, assessment books, deeds and land records, accounting records, school records, vital records, election returns, lists of electors, indentures, roads and highway records, justice court papers, and other materials. See Local Government A-Z

RG 063, Maps, 1650-1979.
The collection includes maps pertaining primarily to Connecticut and adjacent states. Materials range from manuscript maps to published atlases. Included are maps of cities, highways, railroads, rivers and the Connecticut coastline, together with geological maps, property maps, and some municipal plans (parks, dams, etc.). Large portions of this collection have been catalogued.

RG 064, Pictorial Archives, 1770-1996.
The pictorial archives focus on Connecticut government, history, people and places. This artificial record group is comprised of numerous individual collections or picture groups that were transferred to the State Library prior to the establishment of archival record groups. At that time, photographs were often removed from manuscript collections and housed separately in their own picture group. This record group also includes the photographic subject files created by the State Library for easy reference. Therefore, this collection contains all types of graphic materials, including photographs, negatives, lantern slides, glass plate negatives, original artwork, illustrations, and reprints from a variety of sources. See Pictorial Collections A-Z

RG 065, Not in use.

RG 066, Not in use.

RG 067, Architectural and Engineering Drawings, 1901-1975.
This is an artificial group for plans, drawings, and blueprints mostly of local and state government buildings, highways, and bridges whose provenance is unknown. Researchers should note that plans and drawings and related files also exist in several record groups.

RG 068, Film and Video, 1933-1972.
This small group contains film about the State Bureau of Aeronautics, 1933; film in which Governors Cross, Baldwin, and Lodge speak; a SNET film on the need for telephones during World War II; a film about the tobacco industry sponsored by a now defunct growers’ association; and unedited television footage of the death and funeral of Governor Ella T. Grasso. All of these have been transferred from their 16mm medium to BETA SP masters and VHS cassettes. Other films include videos on Connecticut history subjects.

RG 069, Manuscript Collections, circa 1631-2000.
The Manuscript Collections consist primarily of collections of personal and family papers, although some contain official records. See Manuscript Collections A-Z

RG 070, Church Records.
The State Library houses originals or copies of early records of several hundred Connecticut churches and ecclesiastical societies. These contain minutes; membership lists; vital records; financial records; correspondence; and papers of missions, conferences, committees, and clubs. About a quarter of the church vital records have been indexed and included in the library's Church Records Index, and much of the material has been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah and is available for use in the H&G reading room or through LDS Family History Centers.

               RG 070:081, Second Church of Christ, Scientist (Hartford), 1912-2002.   

RG 071, Department of Housing, 1943-1994.
In 1979, the General Assembly created a Department of Housing and transferred to it housing programs of the defunct Department of Community Affairs. DOH was to be the “lead agency in all matters relating to housing and community development, including policy, development, redevelopment, preservation, maintenance and improvement of housing and neighborhoods.” It inherited housing files dating from the old Connecticut Housing Authority, the Housing Division of the Department of Public Works, and the Department of Community Affairs.In addition, it also contains records from the Department of Community Affairs and its predecessors including correspondence and quarterly reports files from the Bureau of Housing Development, Division of Rental Housing Management, 1958-1966; and maintenance and miscellaneous files pertaining to Elderly Low Income Housing, 1945-1975. The Department of Housing became part of the Department of Economic and Community Development in 1994.

RG 071:003, Department of Housing Planning Maps, circa 1943-1980.
Town planning maps created through HUD's 701 Planning and Management Assistance Program.

RG 072, Vital Records.
Birth, death, marriage information on Connecticut residents, mostly pre-1900. Reports, files from town clerks; indexes, abstracts (including the Barbour Collection); cemetery records, headstone inscriptions (including the Hale Collection); and abstracts of newspaper marriage and death notices.

RG 073, Department of Veterans' Affairs, 1866-1990.
The General Assembly created the Department of Veterans’ Affairs in 1987 to assist the State’s nearly 400,000 veterans in obtaining benefits or privileges entitled to them under state and federal law. The Veterans Home and Hospital in Rocky Hill merged with the Department in 1988 and its new mission is to provide comprehensive health, social and rehabilitative services to all resident veterans in Connecticut. Records in this collection include those from Fitch’s Home for Soldiers and Orphans (1866-1940) and Veterans Home and Hospital (1940-present). Materials include patient records, deceased veterans discharge files, death records, administrative records, and historic subject files.

RG 074, Genealogical Materials, 1746-1996.
Working papers, drafts, and collected reference materials pertaining to genealogical research, principally on Connecticut families. For the most part these materials have been donated to the State Library by patrons.

                Frisbie-Frisbee Family Association of America, Inc. Collection, 1713-2006

RG 075, Boundary Commissions, 1821-1962
This record group includes materials created or collected by persons who served as Connecticut’s agents on the bi-state commissions that established and maintained the boundary lines between Connecticut and neighboring states. Henry R. Buck, Henry W. Buck, and W. Robinson Buck, who served on the commission for an extended period of time, collected the bulk of the material while conducting research on Connecticut’s boundaries. The collection includes bi-state agreements, field notes, commission reports, maps, photographs, plans, sketches showing the location of boundary markers and a history of Connecticut’s State Boundaries. Many of the materials in this collection have been published.

RG 076, Department of Revenue Services, 1933-1985.
In 1901, the General Assembly created the Office of the Tax Commissioner. It charged the Commissioner with inquiring into the assessment and collection of state and local taxes. It also granted the Commissioner power to summon and take testimony as part of an inquiry. The General Assembly also charged the Tax Department, over the years, with collecting various state taxes. By the 1950s, the office had expanded to include overseeing the inheritance, estate, and estate penalty taxes. In 1979 the Department became the Department of Revenue Services. Materials in this collection include administrative files, tax collections, legislative files, war contract renegotiations (1942-1944), personnel and payroll records, sales tax permits, and airline taxes. Various units including the Sales and Use Tax Division, Excise Division, Municipal Division, Inheritance Tax Division, as well as the Office of the Commissioner, created these records.

RG 077, Bipartisan Commission on State Tax Revenue and Related Fiscal Policy, 1982-1983.
In 1981, the General Assembly created a bipartisan commission to “conduct a study and undertake an analysis of state tax revenue, state tax laws, administration of state tax laws, and state fiscal policy in relation to tax revenue.” The twenty-seven member Commission began holding meetings in early 1982 and issued preliminary findings, recommendations, and opinions. The committee also invited public comment by mail and at five public hearings. The commission’s final report was submitted to Governor William O’Neill in January 1983. This collection documents the committee’s activities and includes transcripts of meetings (including sound recordings), written comments from the public, background information, administrative files and correspondence. Also included is an annotated copy of the final report.

RG 078, Not in use.

RG 079, Department of Environmental Protection, 1908-2006.
The Department of Environmental Protection was created in 1971 to address “the profound impact on the life-sustaining natural environment” by “the growing population and expanding economy of the state.” The new Department consolidated powers and duties of a number of small state boards and parts of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources. These included the Park and Forest Commission, the Commission on Forests and Wild Life, the State Board of Fisheries and Game, the Water Resources Commission, the Boating Commission, the Shell-Fish Commission, Marine Resources Council, State Soil Conservation Advisory Committee, the State Board of Pesticide Control, the State Geological and Natural History Survey Commission, and the Clean Air Commission.

RG 080, Connecticut Commission for Jamestown Tercentennial Exposition, 1905-1908.
The Jamestown Tercentennial Exposition was held in Hampton Roads, Virginia, April 29 to November 30, 1907, to celebrate the three hundredth anniversary of the first English-speaking colony. A Connecticut General Assembly resolution provided for representation and authorized the appointment of a three-member commission. The Commission oversaw the construction and furnishing of the Connecticut building and the State’s exhibit hall at the Exposition. The records consist of correspondence, shipping costs, scrapbooks, and the register of visitors from the Exposition Hall.

RG 081, Department of Connecticut United Spanish War Veterans, 1898-1973
The United Spanish War Veterans was organized in 1904 by the amalgamation of a number of veterans’ organizations including the National Army and Navy Spanish War Veterans, the National Association of Spanish-American War Veterans, and the Service Men of the Spanish War. It was composed of men and women who “served at any time during the war between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, or at any time during the war for the suppression of the insurrection in the Philippine Islands, including the China Relief Expedition.” The objectives of this organization were to unite veterans who served during the war, to honor the dead, to assist veterans and their families, to perpetuate the memories of the war, and to collect and preserve the records of service of the individual members of the organization. Materials include administrative files, financial records, rosters, records relating to individual camps, documents relating to various encampments and social events, photographs and memorabilia, including a diary written by Catharine Pilgard, a nurse who served during the Spanish-American War.

RG 082, State Planning Board, 1933-1937.
In the summer of 1933, President Roosevelt created the National Planning Board, later to become the National Resources Board. That same year, Governor Cross appointed a Connecticut State Planning Board. The Board “could render a valuable service by undertaking such activities as the making of an air map, adding to our information on the pollution of streams, and assembling other useful data.” In 1935, the General Assembly passed legislation officially creating the State Planning Board (which superseded the so-called Governor’s Board created under executive authority). The collection includes reports and summary of work.

RG 083, Committee on Library Improvement, 1963-1965.
Governor John Dempsey appointed a nine-member committee in December 1963 to recommend action to improve library services to the state. The Committee adopted a report with recommendations for action. Recommended legislation, which was passed in June 1965 (Public Act 490), provided for reconstituting and expanding the State Library Committee and combining the Bureau of Library Services (then in the Department of Education) with the State Library. The collection includes correspondence, meeting minutes, notes, newspaper clippings, and reference materials pertaining to the work of the committee and the preparation of its report.

RG 084, Commission on Preservation and Restoration of Connecticut State Capitol, 1972-1973.
The Commission, formed in March 1972 under the chairmanship of the Public Works Commissioner, was set up to arrange and obtain funding for a restoration of the State Capitol. A major portion of the project was the cleaning, strengthening, and restoration of the plaster figure, the Genius of Connecticut, a bronze version of Randolph Rogers which stood for some years on the dome. The collection includes the final report on the restoration.

RG 085, Connecticut Commission for Louisiana Purchase Exposition, 1904.
The Commission was appointed to plan and direct Connecticut’s participation in the Louisiana Purchase Exposition held in St. Louis, Missouri in 1904. Records documenting the commission’s activities are not included. This collection only contains visitor registers from both the Connecticut Headquarters at the Exposition and the Connecticut Farm Products Exhibit and a sketch of the Connecticut Building.

RG 086, Governor's Commission on Tax Reform, 1972.
Appointed by Governor Meskill, this nine-member Commission was created to analyze existing and potential revenue sources, review the State revenue structure, particularly with reference to its impact on various segments of society and on the climate for business and industry, examine the state of the property tax system, and recommend steps to be taken toward the complete reform of Connecticut’s existing tax structure. Records include meeting minutes, correspondence, administrative files, newspaper clippings, press releases, and drafts of its final report.

RG 087, Connecticut Tax Study Commission, 1966-1967.
This nine-member Commission was created by the General Assembly in 1965 to study the property tax laws with respect to personal property of businesses. Records include correspondence, working papers, drafts and the final version of the Commission’s report to the General Assembly.

RG 088, Metropolitan District Commission (Hartford County), 1929.
The Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) is a non-profit municipal corporation chartered by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1929 to provide potable water and sewage services on a regional basis. Member municipalities include Bloomfield, East Hartford, Hartford, Newington, Rocky Hill, West Hartford, Wethersfield and Windsor and portions of other towns in the region. The collection includes a draft of the proposed statute, correspondence, and related materials.

RG 089, Transportation, Department of, 1895-1994.
The genesis of the Transportation Department dates back to 1895 with the establishment of the State Highway Commission. The modern Department was formed in 1969. This record group primarily contains records of the Highway Department, Public Utilities Control Authority, Connecticut Transportation Authority, and Railroad Commissioners, and the Transportation Accountability Board, 1986-1987. Included are railroad architectural drawings, blueprints, and maps; turnpike and bridge construction photographs; bridge construction minutes; reports of transportation studies; aerial survey photos of Connecticut, 1934, 1951, 1970, 1980; and boundary perambulation records, 1975, 1986.

RG 090, Not in use.

RG 091, Board of Examiners of Embalmers and Funeral Directors, 1903-1929.
The Connecticut Board of Examiners of Embalmers was established in 1903. Its function is to examine and license embalmers and to make and enforce regulations for the practice of that profession. In 1941 the act was amended to include provisions for licensing funeral directors. Now known as the Connecticut Board of Examiners of Embalmers and Funeral Directors, the Board works closely with the Department of Public Health. Records include meeting minutes, cashbook, and a ledger listing individuals from whom licenses fees were collected.
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RG 092, Dental Commission, 1893-1950.
Established in 1893, the Connecticut Dental Commission regulates the practice of dentistry and dental hygiene including examining and licensing of dentists and dental hygienists. Originally an independent entity, the Commission became part of the Department of Public Health in 1979. The collection consists of applications for licenses, lists of dentists in Connecticut, meeting minutes, and photographs. The collection also includes the license of Dr. Evangeline Roberts Jones, the first woman in the United States to practice dentistry full-time to support herself and her family.

RG 093, Selective Service System, 1940-1975
President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, which created the country’s first peacetime draft and formally established the Selective Service System as an independent Federal agency. That same year, the first local Selective Service boards were appointed in Connecticut. From 1948 until 1973, during both peacetime and periods of conflict, men were drafted to fill vacancies in the armed forces that could not be filled through voluntary means. In 1973, the draft ended and the United States converted to an all-volunteer military. The registration requirement was suspended in April 1975. It was resumed again in 1980 by President Carter and continues today. The records of Connecticut’s Headquarters of the Selective Service System documents the various activities of the local boards and such committees as the Youth Advisory Committee, State Medical Advisory Committee, Advisory Committee on Scientific, Engineering, and Specialized Personnel, and the Industry Advisory Committee. Records include manuals, procedural directives, statistical reports, requests for draft deferments, newspaper clippings, publications, meeting minutes, and correspondence.

RG 094, Not in use.

RG 095, Council on Human Services, 1973-1977
In 1973, the General Assembly created the Council on Human Services to coordinate planning and carrying out programs involving two or more agencies, to plan for increased private sector participation, and to provide direction to and coordination with federally funded programs. The Council took over administrative responsibility for some existing programs and developed some new ones including Project Triage (home-care for the elderly), the Wilderness School, the Parent Child Resource System, and the Information and Referral Service. In 1976, the General Assembly abolished the Council as an administrative agency, changing its status to that of an advisory body to the Governor. In 1977, the Council was replaced by a human services reorganization commission. Materials include correspondence, meeting minutes and audiotapes, reports, subject files, and reference materials.

RG 096, Not in use.

RG 097, Connecticut Commission on the Arts, 1962-1978.
This collection contains materials documenting the administration of such Commission on the Arts activities as the exhibit, “300 Years of Connecticut Architecture,” the American Revolution Bicentennial, Project Create, and Artists-in-Schools, plus programs on art, dance, environmental awareness and music. It includes correspondence, newspaper clippings, and press releases.

RG 098, Department of Agriculture, 1866-1978.
The Connecticut State Board of Agriculture was established in 1866 under Chapter 65 of the Connecticut Public Acts. The board helped establish the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and the Connecticut State College, later the University of Connecticut. It was the forerunner of the present Department of Agriculture, organized in 1925. The department’s mission is to foster a healthy economic, environmental and social climate for agriculture by developing, promoting and regulating agricultural businesses; protecting agricultural; enforcing laws pertaining to domestic animals; and promoting an understanding among the state's citizens of the diversity of Connecticut agriculture, its cultural heritage and its contribution to the state's economy. Records in this collection were created by both the State Board of Agriculture and the Department of Agriculture and include meeting minutes, financial records, newspaper clippings, and scrapbooks.

RG 099, Not in use.

RG 100, United States Census Records for Connecticut, 1790-1930.
Following the Revolutionary War, there was a need for a census of the entire Nation. The first census was taken in 1790. Over the years, the Nation’s needs and interests became more complex and the content of the decennial census changed accordingly. The 1810 census included the first inquiry on manufacturers, quantity and value of products was conducted. In 1840, questions on fisheries were added. In 1850, the census included inquires on social issues, such as taxation, churches, pauperism, and crime. The sole purpose of the censuses and surveys is to secure general statistical information. Personal census information is closed for seventy-two years after the date of the census. The collection contains official manuscript copies, photostats, and microfilm copies of the United States census schedules for Connecticut, with a few schedules for neighboring states.

RG 101, Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association, 1869-1921.
The Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association was organized at a meeting in Roberts’ Opera House, Hartford, October 28-29, 1869. The meeting, called by a group of community leaders including Isabella B. Hooker, John Hooker, Frances E. Burr, Catharine E. Beecher and Harriet B. Stowe, was addressed by such eminent people as Henry Ward Beecher, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Julia Ward Howe, and William Lloyd Garrison. The Association carried on a spirited and energetic campaign to obtain the vote for women, first in school and local elections and then on a state and national level, working in collaboration with many other equal rights, equal franchise, and constitutional union groups. Its primary aim having been achieved with the ratification by Connecticut of the 19th Amendment on September 14, 1920, the Association voted to dissolve itself on June 3, 1921, offering its records to the State Archives. The collection includes records of meetings, membership and attendance registers, correspondence, reports, publications, and political and legislative campaign materials.

RG 102, Connecticut Branch League of Nations Association, 1923-1944.
The national organization of the League of Nations [Non-Partisan] Association was formed in October 1922 to promote world peace, educate the public about the League, and mobilize support for U.S. entrance into the League. The Connecticut Branch of the Association first met in New Haven in December 1924. It organized World Court committees, ran a Speakers' Bureau, planned meetings for anniversaries of the League and annual meetings of the Branch, many of which were held on the Yale University campus. It also promoted Model Assemblies, sponsored a competitive exam contest in high schools, worked with the Connecticut Council on International Relations and the National Peace Conference, and distributed publications of these and other organizations, including the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the National Committee for the International Labor Organization. The collection includes administrative files, petitions, and public relations and educational materials.

RG 103, Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company, 1810-1980.
The records of Colt’s Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company document gun manufacturing at the armory and the company’s subsidiaries, together with outside contracting activities.

RG 104, Hartford Colony of the National Society of New England Women, 1934-1979.
Mrs. Clarence F.R. Jenne, who also served as the organization’s first president, organized the Hartford Colony of the National Society of New England Women January 1, 1921. The object of the Society was to bring together in social relations, women of New England ancestry to engage in educational, patriotic, civic, and philanthropic work. Materials include annual reports, meeting minutes, history of the Hartford Colony, scrapbooks, addresses and pamphlets.

RG 105, Windham County Historical Society, 1818-1940, bulk 1935-1940.
The Windham County Historical Society was founded in 1935 to encourage the study and collection of all types of material and information of historical value to Windham County. The collection contains materials that document the early formation of the Historical Society, including meeting minutes, correspondence, membership lists, newspaper clippings, publications, photographs and descriptions of old houses in Windham County, and copies of Green’s Connecticut Annual Register and United States Calendar.

RG 106, Connecticut League of Women Voters, 1925-1955.
The League of Women Voters is an outgrowth of the suffragist movement. The organization was founded in 1920 only six months before the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, giving women the right to vote. The League began as a “mighty political experiment” designed to help 20 million women carry out their new responsibilities as voters. It encouraged them to use their new power to participate in shaping public policy. The national organization soon stimulated the formation of state Leagues (Connecticut in 1921) that in turn developed local ones. Materials in the collection were created by the Connecticut League and include series of newspaper clipping scrapbooks, lists of activities, correspondence to senators and representatives, financial records, and reports from local Leagues.

RG 107, Hartford Woman's Club, 1896-1923.
The Motherhood Club of Hartford was organized in 1896 by a group of young mothers “so burdened with the responsibilities of their lot that they chose to give their Club life to child problems rather than literary or social pleasures.” The Club engaged in various philanthropic, educational, and fund-raising activities and had a membership of 200. In was incorporated in 1917 and in 1921 the name was changed to the Hartford Woman’s Club. A majority of the records document the history of the Motherhood Club and include meeting minutes, annual reports, historical sketches, financial reports, publications, newspaper clippings, and photographs.

RG 108, Arts and Crafts Club of Hartford, 1909-1951.
The Club was organized with the purpose “to associate those actively or otherwise interested in the various branches of the arts and crafts for mutual benefit; to foster and promote interest in the handicrafts. . . and to encourage and stimulate. . . wider participation in and appreciation of good craftwork in all its branches.” The Club maintained a workshop and sponsored and organized exhibits, demonstrations, lectures, and study courses. When the interest of the members waned, the Club was legally terminated in 1951, with its material assets divided among the Children’s Museum, the West Hartford Art League, and the Society of Connecticut Craftsmen.

RG 109, Military Order of Foreign Wars, 1901-1921.
The Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States is the oldest veterans’ and hereditary association in the nation, with a membership that includes officers and their hereditary descendants from all of the Armed Services. It began as the Military and Naval Order of the United States, organized in December 1894 in New York City. Membership in the Order was originally limited to veterans (and their descendants) of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Mexican War. In April 1895, the name of the Order was officially changed to its present name. In 1969, membership was extended to veterans and their descendants who served during a foreign war or expedition and to those who served in an enlisted status and were later commissioned. The Connecticut Commandery was formed in February 1896. Records include financial records, membership certificates, campaign ribbons, and photographs.

RG 110, Monday Afternoon [History] Club, 1887-1938.
The Monday Afternoon Club was organized on January 4, 1886. The main objective of the society was “the study of history-not general nor in consecutive course, but the selection of certain periods determined by vote of members.” Records include meeting minutes, correspondence, memorials to deceased members, and a short history of the group’s 50th anniversary (1936).

RG 111, International Order of the King's Daughters and Sons, Connecticut Branch, 1892-1968.
An “international, interdenominational, inter-racial [sic] organization for development of spiritual life and stimulation of Christian activities,” the Connecticut Branch is composed of a number of local “circles” which met periodically. These circles conducted various social services including visiting the homebound and aged, reading to the blind, and fundraising for the needy. The organization also supervised various youth groups who engaged in similar social activities. The records in this collection were created by the state organization and include meeting minutes, membership rolls, scrapbooks, financial records, reports, and correspondence.

RG 112, Plainfield Historical Society, 1820-1932.
The Plainfield Historical Society was established in January 1916 in the Town Clerk’s Office, Central Village. Materials transferred to the State Library include records generated by the Society as well as historical materials collected by the Society. Records created by the Society include correspondence, financial records, reports, scrapbooks, historical sketch of the town of Plainfield, essays submitted for an essay contest, and materials documenting the Society’s reorganization in 1916-1917. Materials collected by the Society include records of North Meeting House School District (1821-31), the Moosup School District (1831-78), the Central School District (1829-73), the Plainfield School Society Treasurer’s records (1833-71), and some anonymous account books.

RG 113, Grand Army of the Republic, 1866-1956.
The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was established in 1866 by a former Army surgeon and held its first national meeting that same year. Its membership consisted of Union veterans of the Civil War. The GAR evolved from local veteran groups. The Connecticut GAR began with the United Service Club. In 1867, this Club was initiated into the Grand Army of the Republic, and Post #1, located in Norwich, was formed in February 1867. The GAR was concerned with veteran benefits and was actively involved in establishing soldiers’ homes, making provisions for soldiers’ graves, and lobbying for pension benefits. It proved to be an effective pressure group and exerted significant influence in the political arena. Membership in the organization reached its highest point in 1890, when its numbers reached over 400,000. In 1949, however, with almost all its members deceased, the GAR held its last national meeting. The decision was made to disband the organization after its last member died in 1956. Records of the Department of Connecticut include general orders and circulars, correspondence, financial records, annual reports, post lists, membership lists, music, records relating to courts martial of GAR members, and scrapbooks. In addition, the collection includes records created by various GAR posts throughout Connecticut.

RG 114, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, 1909-1915.
This organization is composed of male descendants of veterans of the Union Army in the Civil War. The organization was involved in marking the graves of Civil War veterans, ensuring proper observance of national holidays, and the care and upkeep of Civil War Memorials. Records created by the Griffin A. Stedman, Camp #6 Connecticut Division, include correspondence, financial records and pamphlets.

RG 115, Northwest Child Welfare Club, 1914-1959.
Originally organized as the Mothers Neighborhood Circle, it became the Northwest Child Welfare Club in 1936. The Club attempted to “promote child welfare in home, school, church and community . . . raise standards of home life. . . secure adequate laws for the care and protection of women and children.” In 1959, they agreed to disband, feeling their work had been successfully taken over by private organizations such as the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), and the state in the form of aid to dependent children and workmen’s compensation. Records include meeting minutes, financial records, directories and programs, and a card file of member names and addresses.

RG 116, Society of Descendants of the Founders of Hartford, 1832, 1900, 1924-1936.
The preamble to the Constitution of the Society of Descendants of the Founders of Hartford gives the following description of the objectives of the organization: “We, descendants of the Founders of Hartford, do hereby constitute ourselves the Society of the Descendants of the Founders of Hartford, in order to further the worthy celebration of the three hundredth anniversary of the founding of the city. . . that original documents and historical works of merit relating to the founders and the early history of the city may be published; and to see to it that relics of the founders and of the early history of the city may be preserved.” Records include scrapbooks, guest books, pamphlets, maps, genealogical charts, and photographs.

RG 117, Department of Motor Vehicles, 1903-1972.
The Motor Vehicle Department was established by legislative act in 1917 to protect life and property by the administration of motor vehicle laws, to regulate, discipline, and educate motor vehicle operators, and to provide revenue through licensing for the construction and maintenance of state highways. The collection includes account books, early vehicle registration records, administrative files, and scrapbooks created by the Connecticut Highway Safety Commission.

RG 118, Hartford City Guard Veteran Association, 1861-1925.
The Veteran Association of the Hartford City Guard was organized on November 26, 1867. It was composed of those persons who were active or honorary members of the Hartford City Guard prior to July 5, 1865. The Association’s main objective was social with the intention “to keep alive old and pleasant memories and perpetuation of recollections of the old Company.” Each year they held a reunion on the second Wednesday of January. The first reunion was held on January 8, 1868. At their 50th reunion held in 1917, it was agreed that it should be the last reunion, and the records of the organization were deposited in the State Library. The records consist of a constitution and by-laws, membership rolls, historical sketches, reports of reunions, correspondence, financial records, photographs, and ephemera. For records related to the Company, see Hartford City Guard Records (RG 124).

RG 119, Army-Navy Club of Connecticut, 1892-1936.
Founded in 1879 and disbanded in 1936, the Army and Navy Club of Connecticut was composed of honorably discharged Civil War soldiers and sailors. Annual dinner meetings were held, usually in Hartford. The Club was disbanded in 1936 and the records were deposited in the State Library. The collection consists of biographical sketches and obituaries, minutes of annual dinner meetings, membership lists, financial records, programs, Secretary’s reports, and correspondence.

RG 120, National Society of United States Daughters of 1812, 1905-1963.
The Society was organized on January 8, 1892. To become eligible for membership, a prospective member was required to trace her genealogy directly to an ancestor who had served in the United States military or civil service between 1784 and 1815. Chief among the Society’s purposes was the dissemination of knowledge of American history. Ways in which this objective was pursued were “preserving documents and relics, marking historic spots, recording family histories and traditions, and urging Congress to compile and publish authentic records of men in civil, military and naval service.” The National Society is still active. The Connecticut Society of United States Daughters of 1812 was organized March 2, 1906. The Connecticut branch participated actively in the national society, becoming particularly prominent when a Hartford woman, Mrs. Clarence F. R. Jenne, became the national president in 1918. The records contain newsletters, proceedings, scrapbooks, histories, reports, and publications.

RG 121, The Connecticut Magazine, 1896-1910.
The Connecticut Magazine, described itself in its company letterhead as “Incorporated under the laws of Connecticut for the purpose of collecting in permanent form the various phases of history, literature, art, science, genius, industry and all that pertains to the maintenance of the honorable record which this state has attained.” The Connecticut Magazine was the successor to Connecticut Quarterly (1895-1898). In its day, the Connecticut Quarterly described itself as dedicated to “showing the manner of life and the attainment thereof in the commonwealth of a diligent people.” Both magazines included photographs, drawings, poems, reminiscences, stories, and historical articles. The Connecticut Magazine appears to have ceased publication after volume 12, number 3, in 1908. The collection contains correspondence, manuscripts submitted for publication, and photographs.

RG 122, Owen Machine Gun Veterans Association, 1920-1970.
The Association was organized in 1919, composed of men who had served in the Machine Gun Company of the First Connecticut Infantry, the first American machine gun company. It operated under various names until 1926 when it was named in honor of Michael and John Owens, both members of the company. The association decorated the graves of deceased members on Memorial Day and held annual meetings until it disbanded in 1970. In 1942, a Machine Gun Company monument was erected in Soldiers Field, in Wilson (a section of Windsor), Connecticut. The records include by-laws, minutes of meetings, obituaries, photographs, and printed materials.

RG 123, Daughters of the American Revolution, Connecticut Chapters, 1892-1989.
The records consist primarily of material documenting the Ruth Wyllys Chapter of Hartford, formed in 1892, and the Penelope Terry Ashby Chapter of Enfield, founded in 1922. Included in the papers are annual reports, applications for membership, historical papers, minutes of meetings, scrapbooks, and treasurer’s records.

RG 124, Hartford City Guard, 1861-1917.
The Hartford City Guard was an Independent Company from January 8 to September 11, 1861. It then became Artillery Company A, 1st Regiment, Connecticut Militia, organizing under the captaincy of Charles H. Prentice. In 1863 it became an infantry company. Some Hartford City Guard officers joined the volunteer forces in the Civil War. The company was designated Company A, 4th Regiment, Connecticut Volunteers on May 16, 1861. Afterwards, it changed to First Connecticut Heavy Artillery. On August 18, 1865, it became Battery D, Light Artillery, Connecticut National Guard, attached to the 1st Regiment. It was then attached to the 3rd Regiment from August 8 1867 to August 1, 1871. In 1871, it became Company F of the 1st Regiment, and it remains so today. The records consist of applications for membership, constitution and by-laws, contracts and agreements, financial records, minutes of meetings, special orders, and other similar materials.

RG 125, Connecticut Peace Society, 1910-1921.
The Connecticut Peace Society appears to have been established in 1910, “to foster the spirit of amity and concord among the nations, and to create a public sentiment which will lead to the abandonment of war as a means of settling international disputes.” It functioned as a division of the American Peace Society, holding annual meetings, sponsoring peace essay contests, distributing pamphlets and other printed materials, and expressing its views through the press and by communications with government officials. On April 1, 1921, it ceased independent existence, though the American Peace Society continued. The collection includes a constitution, contest essays, correspondence, financial records, and publications.

RG 126, United Nations Association of Connecticut, 1967-1969.
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