# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1969_S434 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 434 SPECIAL MINISTRIES AND SUNDRY MATTERS found in most major libraries. Circulation continues to hover around 1,500 annually. In addition, our two mimeographed “Rundschreiben,” Historical Footnotes and The Regional Archivist, sup- ply interested groups with news of the historical field and notes and comments on archival-historical tech- niques and procedures. Our “How To” bulletins, con- tinuing in popularity, now number 24. The last one shares data and information on District convention Pro- ceedings, a complex and confused problem. This bulle- tin lists District convention reports issued, the form in which they have been produced, their language and size. A list of all bulletins currently available will be supplied on request. We are most grateful to the Aid Association for Lu- therans, which has continued to support the tedious and difficult work of transcribing the almost illegible Gothic script used exclusively by the fathers of the Missouri Synod. Many a “would-be historian” has unceremoni- ously abandoned his research because he was incapable of deciphering such manuscripts. Excellent progress has been made, particularly in transcribing the letters of Dr. C. F. W. Walther. We have confined the work to transcribing because the number of individuals who still can read the German typewritten text is vastly larger than those who can decipher the script. Ulti- mately, we hope, most of the Gothic manuscripts in our collection will be transcribed and translated. Additional demands are made on our staff when researchers re- quire both transcription and translation services. A debt of gratitude is due the Lutheran Laymen’s League, which since 1954 has annually made significant grants available so that our acquisitions could be un- usually extended through microfilm and photoduplica- tion. Our collections have been augmented by approxi- mately one million pages through this support. The very fact that so much material has now become avail- able in one location for the benefit of researchers is highly significant. The savings to the church at large, therefore, in terms of time and money are unbelievably large. We are deeply grateful to the Lutheran Laymen’s League for this continuing support. The production of catalogs, indexes, manuscript in- ventories, and a host of other retrieval tools, all of which make the collections more accessible, has been con- tinued without interruption. Of course, such finding aids become increasingly important and patently neces- sary as the collections increase in number and volume. The latest tool we have prepared is the 160-page cumu- lative index to the 40 volumes of the Concordia Histori- cal Institute Quarterly, produced in the spring of 1968 and containing some 13,000 entries. The Saxon Lutheran Memorial at Frohna, Mo., con- tinues to demonstrate progress in rehabilitation, restora- tion, and visitor interest. Rev. and Mrs. Waldemar T. Goehring have continued to serve as resident curators. This entire project has been supported exclusively by voluntary contributions from agencies, individuals, and groups and represents an investment of some $15,000. Still on the drawing board is the construction of a build- ing to be used as a visitor center and outdoor farm museum. Visitors have been heavy, especially during the tourist season, and last year exceeded 4,000, Our “clearinghouse for used books” continues to fill a need in the Synod. When the old “auction” facilities were discontinued on the campus of the St. Louis semi- nary. we finally established a program by which Lu- theran literature could be disposed of by the families of deceased and retired workers and made available to interested people at a nominal cost. We would request anyone having “book wants” to register author, title, and publisher with us so we might serve him. Board of Governors and Staff The members of the Board of Governors, five ap- pointed by the synodical President, five elected by the Institute membership, and one serving as a representa- tive of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches, are Dr. Arthur C. Repp, president, Mr. Gerhardt Kramer, vice-president, Mr. Fred Nohl, secretary, and Mr. Harry L. Smith, treasurer. Members at large are Dr. Otto A. Dorn, Mr. Paul W. Kluge, Dr. John Kovac, Dr. Carl S. Meyer, Mr. Lester P. Roth, and Mr. George Thomas. The board sustained a severe loss in the death of one of its members on Aug. 4, 1968, namely Dr. Franklin W. Ritthamel. Dr. August R. Suelflow has continued to serve as director. The full-time staff in addition consists of two office secretaries, a reference and research assistant, a bookkeeper, a half-time graduate assistant, and several part-time seminarians working in professional special- ties. In spite of this “working force” the demands made on the staff constantly continue to exceed the time avail- able. Couple the large work load with the extremely overcrowded conditions in the offices and working space of the building, and it will be easy to detect feelings of frustration. The long-sought-after relief in augmenting the stack and working areas of the Institute in building additions has become imperative. Director Suelflow concluded his second 2-year term as president of the Lutheran Historical Conference last October. The conference, consisting of Lutheran archiv- ists, librarians, and historians in North America, has served as an excellent working arm in coordinating ar- chival-historical work among America’s Lutherans. The director continues to serve as a trustee of the American Microform Academy, an organization concerned with documentation and reporting of photoduplicated re- sources throughout the country. He also has continued to serve as chairman of the Church Archives Commit- tee of the Society of American Archivists, the only pro- fessional archival organization in our country. For the past 2 years he has been conducting courses at Wash- ington University, St. Louis, on Archives Administration, one of 10 to 12 such courses offered in the entire coun- try. In 1968 the board took cognizance of Director Suel- flow’s 20th anniversary in the office.