St. Gallen State Archive
The St. Gallen State Archive is the archive for the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Since the canton was founded in 1803, it has preserved the records relating to the cantonal authorities, the cantonal administration and the institutions of the state. It also contains records from the legal predecessors of today's canton. Organisationally, the State Archive is part of the Department of the Interior, located in the Office of Culture.
Responsibilities
The Gesetz über Aktenführung und Archivierung of 19 April 2011 defines the State Archive as the highest specialised cantonal body for filing and archiving. It decides on the archival value of documents offered and guarantees permanent storage and access to the records. The archive ensures the traceability of the actions of public bodies and contributes to the provision of ongoing legal certainty. In addition, it ensures the preservation of records relating to private institutions, organisations, families and individuals, in as far as these are relevant to the history of the canton and its population, and have been provided to it. It takes an independent role in carrying out its responsibilities. Further details of its legal basis and responsibilities can be found in the Verordnung über Aktenführung und Archivierung of 19 March 2019.History
Like the canton itself, the State Archive was created in 1803. Initially, the focus of its archival activity was on legal documents from the early years of the Swiss Confederation and the subsequent transitional period from 1798 to the foundation of the canton. The change in legal structure during this time led to the transfer of archival records to other cantons. Archival records, such as those from the bailiwicks of Rheintal or Sax, were finally able to be incorporated into the St. Gallen State Archive. However, some of the proposed acquisitions were difficult and some failed.In recent years, the State Archive was able to acquire other valuable archives belonging to public bodies from the period before the canton was founded, such as the Rheineck Town Archive and the Lichtensteig Town Archive.
The fact that the canton consisted of twelve independent ‘states’ prior to 1798 is reflected in the archival landscape. For example, not all the written records from these regions are held in the State Archive. Important archival records from the period before the founding of the canton can be found in the Abbey Archive and in the St. Gallen Local Authority City Archive, in various other cantonal archives and in communal archives in the canton. There is currently no overview of all the archival records relating to St. Gallen in other Swiss archives from before 1798. However, the cantonal records since 1803 have been secured, although there are gaps in certain periods. Important privately owned records have been acquired in recent years and the State Archive has developed a consistent process for overseeing and evaluating records, which has been in place since 2003. In addition, the State Archive plays a significant role in digital preservation. In this and other areas, it collaborates with other archives both nationally and internationally.
| Term of office | Name |
| 1803–1805 | Franz Josef Büeler |
| 1805–1811 | Konrad Meyer |
| 1812–1819 | Vacant |
| 1820–1826 | Gallus Jakob Baumgartner |
| 1826–1833 | Josef Anton Henne |
| 1834–1847 | Peter Ehrenzeller |
| 1847–1848 | Karl Wegelin |
| 1848–1852 | Johann Theodor Gsell |
| 1852–1858 | Johann Joseph Weder |
| 1859–1872 | Otto Henne am Rhyn |
| 1872–1885 | Joseph Anton Hardegger |
| 1886–1912 | Otto Henne am Rhyn |
| 1913–1943 | Josef Anton Müller |
| 1943–1957 | Karl Schönenberger |
| 1958–1968 | Franz Perret |
| 1968–1993 | Walter Lendi |
| 1993–2001 | Silvio Bucher |
| Since 2002 | Stefan Gemperli |
Records
The records are divided into state and non-state archival records. They are further divided into the following sections:;State archival records
- Old Archive : Documents, files and books from the bailiwicks of Rheintal, Sax-Forstegg, Werdenberg, Sargans, Gaster, Uznach and the city of Rapperswil. Individual files and books on the history of Toggenburg and the historical territory of Fürstenland.
- Helvetic Archive : Files and books from the canton of Säntis and the St. Gallen parts of the canton of Linth.
- Archive of the Cantonal Parliament and Government : Minutes and files on parliamentary and governmental decisions.
- Cantonal Archive : Files, books and official publications of the cantonal administration, archived based on a classification system using the pertinence principle.
- New Archive : Records from the cantonal administration, archived in the order in which they were received and by place of delivery using the provenance principle.
- Court Archive : Rulings and acts from the regional and cantonal courts.
- St. Gallen official publications : Publications from state authorities.
- Independent institutions of the state and companies with significant public involvement : Archives from the Building Insurance Institute, the Bodensee-Toggenburg-Bahn, the St. Gallen-Appenzell power plants and the University of St. Gallen.
- Corporation Archive : Archival records from public or private corporations.
- Private Archive : Estate and archival records of parties, organisations, companies, families and individuals.
- Archival collections from the State Archive : Items including photographs, maps, plans, coins and medals.
In 2022, the State Archive records would cover more than 10 kilometres. Every year, the archive grows by another 100 to 200 metres.
Research
The Digital Reading Room offers numerous search options. Individual archival records or collections are digitalised and can be viewed online. Recently, digital archival material has been transferred from the public authorities.In addition to the archival records, the State Archive also offers a publicly accessible research library. The media are included in the old catalogue of the SGBN or in the new SGBN catalogue and can be found in the reference library of the St. Gallen State Archive.