Office of Diocesan Archives
Connecting The Past With The Present
Overview
The Office of the Archivist, also known as the Diocesan Archives, is the custodian of the historical records of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and its auxiliary organizations. Our mission is to collect, preserve, and make available these records for a diverse audience, ranging from diocesan and parish staff to genealogy researchers and the general public.
Our Services
Record Preservation and Access: We maintain extensive records, including ledgers, correspondence, official documents, parish histories, anniversary journals, financial records, and more, dating mainly from 1853 to 1994.
Sacramental and School Records: While sacramental records are primarily held by individual parishes, the Archives has custody of records from approximately 140 closed Catholic elementary schools and 26 high schools, plus sacramental registers of closed parishes, hospitals, and orphanages.
Genealogical Research: We assist individuals seeking genealogical information, particularly regarding marriage dispensations and other sacramental records.
Visual Collections: Our visual materials document churches, buildings, schools, clergy, religious ceremonies, and ethnic celebrations through photographs, negatives, slides, microfilm, and blueprints.
Our Archived Material
The Diocesan Archives contains nearly 8,000 cubic feet of records. Among the types of records found in the Archives are ledgers, correspondence, official documents of appointment of bishops, pastors, and other officials, parish histories, parish anniversary journals, parish boundaries, diocesan directories, reports, promotional literature, marriage dispensation records, records of closed schools and parishes, deceased priest personnel files, financial records. Of particular note are histories of Catholic parishes in Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties, dating mainly from the 1880s to 1990s.
The bulk of the Archival material dates from 1853 to 1994. From 1853 to 1957 the Brooklyn Diocese encompassed all of Long Island (Kings, Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties.) Since 1957 with the creation of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, it has consisted only of Brooklyn (Kings County) and Queens.
Largely paper-based, the collections are strongest on parish, local history, and closed school records. The Archives has custody of records of 25 closed diocesan or parish high schools and 150 closed parish elementary schools.
Requests
To find the custodian of parish records, please check this list.
To find a list of schools retained at the diocesan archives, please check this list.
Our Team
Joseph Coen Archivist
(718) 399-5955 / (718) 965-7300 ext. 1001
William Pinkava
Assistant Archivist
Charlie Donahue
Records Retention and Retrieval Specialist
(718) 399-5954 / (718) 965-7300 ext. 1003
Email: archives@diobrook.org
To request records or information retained at the Diocesan Archives, please use the request form below.
Contact Us
310 Prospect Park West
Brooklyn, NY
11215
