Public Record Office

Institutional History

The earliest attempts at preservation of New Jersey's records can be found in the laws of the royal colony of New Jersey. In 1760, the colonial assembly ordered that two fire resistant buildings be erected for records in Perth Amboy and Burlington.

The first state building in Trenton to house records was built in 1795. Records were removed from Burlington and Perth Amboy and housed in this building and placed in the care of the Secretary of State. It was not until 1877 that the State Library was officially recognized as the possessor of historical manuscripts. Thus, by the turn of the twentieth century both the Secretary of State and the State Librarian had records responsibilities. The Secretary of State cared for the administrative records of the state, while the State Librarian had responsibility for historical manuscripts.

In 1897, the Public Record Commission was created to investigate the conditions under which state, county and municipal records were kept. A report of the commission was printed in 1898, but the commission was disbanded shortly thereafter.

In 1913, a short-lived Department of Public Records and Archives was created and Colonel Lewis was chosen as its director and secretary. This department was phased-out the next year.

As a result of a Report on the Condition of the Public Records of the State of New Jersey by a Committee of Citizens, followed by several years of lobbying, the Public Record Office was created in 1920. Dr. Carlos E. Godfrey served as the agency's director from 1920 until 1941. The Public Record Office took responsibility for historical as well as current records. Godfrey worked closely with county and municipal governments in the care and preservation of records.

After Dr. Godfrey's death in 1941, the Public Record Office was placed under the management of the State Library. George J. Miller was appointed Assistant Director of the Public Record Office, a capacity in which he served until approximately 1943.

In 1945, the Public Record Office officially became part of the State Library and its name was changed to the Bureau of Archives and History. Sidney Goldmann served as acting bureau head until 1949.

225 West State Street
P.O. Box 307
Trenton, NJ 08625-0307
609.292.6260 (general information)
609.633.8334 (administrative office)
609.292.9105 (fax)