E&R Library & Archives

The E&R Library & Archives is the official library, archive, and museum of the former Evangelical and Reformed Church and its predecessor denominations that include the (German) Reformed Church in the United States, (German) Evangelical Synod of North America, and the Hungarian Reformed Church. From the Reformed Church, the collection includes minutes of synods, classes, congregations; records of the mission boards; hymnals; liturgies, and such important publications as the Reformed Church Messenger and the Mercersburg Review. Especially noteworthy are original manuscripts of the Mercersburg theologians, John W. Nevin, Philip Schaff, Henry Harbaugh, and Emanuel Gerhart. Also valuable are transcriptions of early German Reformed churches and ministers in America which the organization received from the library of William J. Hinke in 1947. From the Evangelical Synod, the collection includes the records of the Evangelical Synod of North America and its congregations, institutions, and organizations from 1840-1934. At our location at Eden Theological Seminary, special holdings include the James I. Good collection of books and manuscripts pertaining to Reformed Church History, including the Harbaugh Manuscripts documenting the early history of the Reformed Church in the U.S. The ERLA also holds the records of the Evangelical and Reformed Church that include minutes of synods; records of the Board of Foreign Missions; hymnals; liturgies, and other important publications as the Evangelical and Reformed Church Messenger. The ERLA holds biographical information of clergy from the Evangelical and Reformed Church and its predecessor denominations. Additionally, records of baptisms, confirmations, marriages, and deaths can be found in our church record collections. Genealogical lookups can be requested via our website.