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

(Regional Archives)

The material in archival custody of the cultural institutions (theatres, museums, libraries) and hygienic and social institutions is relatively meagre. The quantity of this group makes 2 844 running metres, 2,63 per cent, of the whole material. The series of archival groups of corporations is made up partly of guild papers of the feudal period, mainly of records of professional corporations of the capitalistic period. The latter comprise the records of the various chambers (commerce and trade, agriculture, engineering chambers and those of lawyers, physicians, public notaries), trade corporations, county and district agricultural commissions, public bodies of economic character (vinegrowing communities, pasture associations, water supply associations), forest communities and commonages, and public bodies of social welfare. The quantity of this group makes 2 229 running metres, 2,06 per cent, of the whole material. Only a fragment of the papers of the several thousands of associations existent in the capitalistic period could be collected. (The sanctioned rules of these associations may be find among the records of the county and city municipalities, as their sending in was prescribed by law.) Hardly anything remained of the papers of political parties and associations. Exceptionally one finds papers of scientific, literary, patronizing (e.g. theatre players, friends of a museum) societies, of associations for public education (reading circles, self-teaching or choral unions), associations of professional and economic character (civil servants, students, animal breeders, paprika growers, etc.), fire-guard and first aid societies, civil defence leagues,welfare,assistance, hygienic, burial societies, health resort and watering-place commissions, clubs, casinoes, bachelors' and women's associations, farmers' circles, tradesmen's unions, sporting associations and the various confessional societies. In our archives of councils the association papers make up 342 running metres, only 0,33 per cent, of the whole material. The series of archival groups of economic organs contains considerable material of both the capitalistic agriculture and the post-1945 state enterprises and cooperatives. Beside the records of industrial enterprises the archives collected those of commercial and transport enterprises, the organs of credit and insurance (savings banks, credit and insurance institutes) and of the agricultural enterprises. The records total 7 459 running metres, 6,91 per cent, of the whole material.