Members of the Archives Committee:
Joan Read, Town Clerk
Pat Putnam, Town Treasurer
Ellen Mason, Tax Collector
Arlene Dicorsia
Ed Saleski
Alan Rumrill
Richard Betz
The Stoddard Board of Selectmen constituted and appointed members to an Archives Committee during 2009. The Town Archives Committee is comprised of the Town Clerk, Tax Collector, Treasurer, and four appointed members listed below in accordance with the N.H. Municipal Records Board and governed by N.H. RSA 33-A. The purpose of the committee is to preserve the integrity of the Town’s history (its records and vital statistics) for the present and for future generations.
There are a number of issues associated with town records in Stoddard. These are:
1. The municipal and historic records of the Town of Stoddard are dispersed throughout the town in various town offices, private homes, the Historical Society, and the Davis Public Library. No one in Town knows the full extent and nature of the archival material that are housed in these various locations, nor the condition of this material.
2. As the Town of Stoddard does not have a central repository for all municipal and historic records, there is risk to the integrity and safety of these records in their current locations.
3. Stoddard is one of the few towns in the southwestern part of the State not to have a systematic plan to inventory and to archive all town records, nor a secure, central repository for these records.
A scope of work for the Archives Committee has been developed, and preliminary inventorying of records has started. This involves identifying the locations of town records, determining the types and extent of records in existence, and assessing their condition. As time permits, the Archives Committee will also work with interested private organizations in Stoddard such as the Historical Society to assist in the inventorying of their records.