Dr. Péter Balázs: Guide to the archives of Hungary (Budapest, 1976)

Pest Megyei Levéltár (Pest County Archives)

We have only a few medieval documents, totalling 124 pieces. The sixteenth century is represented by a box of records only. The oldest volume of the journals of county assemblies dates from 1638. The archival material is not continuous but from 1690. The most valuable sources are the conscriptions of the eighteenth century, the socage (urbarial) law-suits of the nineteenth century and several hundreds of manuscript maps. The archives of Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun county (1876-1949) totals almost 5250 running metres. It contains the archival material of the central and districtual administration of the county, enlarged by the region Kiskunság in 1876, in 390 archival groups. It is arranged and inventorized, well accessible to research. The county material of the 1919 Councils' Republic and the collection of records of the National Commissions formed in 1945 belong to the treasures of this series. The archives of our towns (Cegléd, Nagykőrös, Szentendre and Vác) comprise 99 archival groups, totalling 1100 running metres, being indispensable sources of city history. The most valuable is the almost unhurt material of Nagykőrös, with its letters in Turkish, the papers of the public school named after our famous poet, János ARANY, and the manifold sources of the development of borough society. The village archives range from the eighteenth century to 1950, comprising 750 running metres of 167 communities. The feudal period is well represented in three villages only (Kiskunlacháza, Ráckeve, Tök); most of the village records date from the twentieth century. Among the regional organs of specialized state administration the archival group of the Budapest Region Inland Revenue Office (1884-1944), those of the economic inspectors (1922-1944) and the records of the Budapest Region Chief School Inspectorate (1884-1944) deserve mention. Unfortunately only fragments have remained of the judicial records, mainly those touching land registers from the Pest Region Royal Tribunal (1872-1944). The records of the Vác Penal Institute (1863-1944) represent a considerable historical source value as regards political prisoners. Among the 82 archival groups of the schools that of the Nagykőrös Public School is outstanding (1846-1947). Of the corporations we should mention the fragmentary collection of the Vác and Nagykőrös guild papers and the records of the 41 regional trade corporations from 1873 to 1944, valuable for the legitimation of the duration of service of industrial workers. The 212 archival groups of the economic organs give 260 running metres, among which extraordinary importance is attached to the reports and balance sheets of the enterprises and cooperative societies of the socialist period,