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Records and official papers of the legislative sessions in joint gathering, including the legislative and special committee records (minutes, documents and other papers, including sanctioned audio, video, and electronic recordings of the proceedings.

These records contain memorials and petitions that were submitted to the General Convention, via either the House of Bishops or the House of Deputies, between 1853 and 1949. Memorials and petitions urge the Church to commend or commemorate a person, event, or other matter, or to take a stance on an issue that could result in official legislative action.

Session Records document the planning, coordination and activities that took place before, during and immediately following the General Convention triennial legislative meetings for the 61st General Convention (1964) through the 70th General Convention (1991).

This series documents the work of the Legislative Committees of the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops. Records include membership rosters, hearing documentation, information for referred resolutions.

Materials include printed material made available on-site at Convention as well as official publications of the General Convention office.

Records of official canonical standing committees and commissions, boards, joint house committees, task groups, and similar authorized ad hoc bodies acting in the interim and at the direction of the General Convention; may include records either generated directly by the interim body or collected as part of the central files of the Secretariat. The category does not include the separate category of Executive Council, which also acts as the board of directors for the DFMS and may act in the place of (rather at the direction of) the General Convention.

The records of the Joint Commission on Renewal consist primarily of meeting minutes, correspondence, reports drafted by the Commission, and printed materials about renewal written by members of the Commission. There is also a small amount of correspondence and records about financial matters.

This collection consists of the Committee’s records as kept by Dr. Charles Taylor, the director of the study, and includes official minutes and reports, correspondence, data on seminaries, and planning and working documents of the Committee. Of note are copies of Nathan M. Pusey’s 1966 Report of the Special Committee titled “Ministry for Tomorrow,” which helped inform the study of theological education undertaken by the Committee and directed by Charles Taylor. Taylor’s work from 1957 to 1967 is well documented and there is correspondence from his time as the director of the American Association of Theological Schools from 1957. Correspondence and reports were generated and collected before, during, and after visits to a number of seminary and theological schools, including Berkeley Divinity School, Episcopal Theological Seminary, and Sewanee.

The Board for Theological Education records span from the Board’s creation in 1967 through 1976. The records include official minutes of the Board and its committees, studies and reports, correspondence, financial records, and materials regarding the work of the Board. Program records are further organized around continuing education and vocational development, grants given to seminaries, experimental and specialized programs, recruitment, selection and evaluation of students, studies and task forces, overseas theological education, and implementation and enhancement of theological education. Of particular note are the records for the Bishops Advisory Council on Applications for the Ministry (BACAM) and the General Board of Examining Chaplains (GBEC), as well as the correspondence of the Rev. Alden D. Kelley regarding the Board's work in the continuing education of clergy, and records discussing the ordination of women.

The committee’s records reflect the work done to create a vehicle for crafting projects and resources for parishes to celebrate the role of religion in marking the country’s bicentennial of independence. Records were also generated by two subcommittees of the Bicentennial Committee: Budget and “Forward Look”, to define future directions for the Church, especially in relation to the Bicentennial theme, "liberty and justice for all.” The latter committee met in 1975 and was chaired by Hodding Carter III. The committee’s records show their full engagement in a planning agenda. Emphasis was given to a special issue Anglican Theological Review (55:1) and the plans for the General Convention program and exhibit. Other publications relating to the Bicentennial are present, including writings on the topic by Presiding Bishop John Allin.

The Records of the Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop document the selection of members of the House of Bishops to be considered by General Convention for the position of Presiding Bishop. Included in the collection are meeting minutes, correspondence, and documentation on the prospective nominees.

These official bodies of General Convention are established and defined in Canon I.1.2(n), Canon I.5.1, Canon I.8.1, and Canon III.15.1, and meet throughout the triennium to facilitate the programmatic mission of the General Convention. Records in this series include minutes, correspondence, memos, reports, and administrative files.

The records document the revision of the Hymnal 1940 and the subsequent companion handbook that was published in 1949. Earlier history is covered by documents gathered on the previous Hymnal 1916. The archive includes correspondence to and from chair person Winfred Douglas and other members of the Commission (including Arthur Farlander, who succeeded Douglas), notes on hymn revisions and changes, a copy of the Commission's report to the 1940 General Convention, reports from the Tunes Committee, and essays and reflections on The Hymnal 1940 after its publication.

The records include detailed meeting minutes, budgets, and other administrative files, many of which document the preparation and publishing of The Hymnal 1982. Commission projects, research, and liturgical resources illustrate influences on the Commission’s decision making. Bland Tucker and Massey Shepherd figure largely among a number of interesting papers, statements, and Commission publications and publicity files. The Chilton Powell Institute program on the preparation of services in the Proposed Book of Common Prayer are documented. General correspondence is found throughout the files, giving evidence of the diverse associations of the Commission to commentators, contributors, and musicians.