Archivist of the United States

Background and role

The archivist is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate and is responsible for safeguarding and making available for study all the permanently valuable records of the federal government, including the original Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights, which are displayed in the Archives' main building in Washington, D.C.

Under , the archivist also must maintain custody of state ratifications of amendments to the Constitution. It is the archivist's duty to issue a certificate proclaiming a particular amendment duly ratified and part of the Constitution if the legislatures of at least three-quarters of the states approve the proposed amendment. The Amendment and its certificate of ratification are then published in the Federal Register and the amendment is included in the United States Statutes at Large. Before the enactment of that statute in 1984, that duty was vested in the General Services Administration, and, before the establishment of that agency in 1949, it formed part of the duties of the United States Secretary of State.

In accordance with of the United States Code, the archivist of the United States also receives the original version of all statutes of the United States, once enacted. Joint resolutions and acts of Congress signed into law by the president are delivered by the Office of the President to the National Archives. The same happens if a bill becomes law because the president fails to approve or veto it. If the president vetoes a bill but the presidential veto is overridden, the new law is transmitted to the National Archives not by the office of the president, but by Congress: in this case, the presiding officer of the last house to consider the bill certifies that the presidential objection was overridden, and sends the new law to the archivist. In all cases, the National Archives maintains custody of the original document and (by means of the Office of the Federal Register, a division of the National Archives), assigns the new Act of Congress a public law number, provides for its publication as a slip law and for the inclusion of the new statute in the United States Statutes at Large. The actual printing and circulation of the slip law and of the volumes of the United States Statutes at Large is the responsibility of the Government Publishing Office, headed by the director of the U.S. Government Publishing Office.

By means of the Office of the Federal Register, the National Archives also publishes documents of the Executive Branch, such as presidential proclamations and executive orders, retaining custody of the original signed documents. The National Archives also has many duties regarding the preservation of presidential papers and materials.

In all United States presidential elections, the archivist also has duties concerning the custody of Electoral College documents, such as certificates of ascertainment declaring the names of the presidential electors chosen in each state, and of the certificates of vote produced by the electors of each state. In practice, these administrative responsibilities are delegated to the Director of the Federal Register.

Archivists of the United States

The following persons served as the Archivist of the United States:

Notes

References

References

1. {{USC. 44. 2102
2. (August 3, 2022). "PN2457 - Nomination of Colleen Joy Shogan for National Archives and Records Administration, 117th Congress (2021-2022)".
3. (2023-05-09). "Shogan Confirmed by U.S. Senate as 11th Archivist of the United States".
4. (2023-05-17). "Shogan Assumes Office as 11th Archivist of the United States". National Archives and Records Administration.
5. (January 6, 2025). "Trump Says He'll Replace the National Archives Leader". The New York Times.
6. Watson, Kathryn. (2025-02-07). "Trump fires archivist of the United States, official who oversees government records - CBS News".
7. Gangel, Donald Judd, Betsy Klein, Jamie. (2025-02-08). "Trump administration dismisses national archivist {{!}} CNN Politics".
8. {{USPL. 98. 497
9. {{USC. 1. 106a
10. {{usc. 3. 6. 13
11. [https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/roles.html#ofr U. S. Electoral College: Roles and Responsibilities]
12. "Archivists of the United States 1934 - Present". U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
13. (August 15, 2016). "Robert D.W. Connor, First Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1934–1941)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
14. (August 15, 2016). "Solon Justus Buck, Second Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1941–1948)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
15. (August 15, 2016). "Wayne Grover, Third Archivist of the United States (1948–1965)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
16. (August 15, 2016). "Robert H. Bahmer, Fourth Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1965–1968)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
17. (August 15, 2016). "Robert H. Bahmer, Fourth Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1965–1968)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
18. (August 15, 2016). "James E. O'Neill, Acting Archivist of the United States (1979-1980)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
19. (August 15, 2016). "Robert M. Warner, Sixth Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1980-1985)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
20. (August 15, 2016). "Frank G. Burke, Acting Archivist of the United States (1985-1987)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
21. (August 15, 2016). "Don W. Wilson, Seventh Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1987–1993)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
22. (August 15, 2016). "Trudy Huskamp Peterson, Acting Archivist of the United States (1993-1995)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
23. (August 15, 2016). "John Carlin, Eighth Archivist of the United States (Archivist: 1995-2005)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
24. (August 15, 2016). "Allen Weinstein, Ninth Archivist of the United States (2005-2008)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
25. (August 15, 2016). "Adrienne Thomas, Acting Archivist of the United States (2008-2009)". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
26. (August 15, 2016). "David S. Ferriero, Tenth Archivist of the United States". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
27. (March 4, 2022). "Acting Archivist of the United States". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
28. (May 10, 2023). "Shogan Confirmed by U.S. Senate as 11th Archivist of the United States". [[National Archives and Records Administration]].
29. (2025-02-07). "Trump fires National Archives chief".
30. Vazquez, Maegan. (2025-02-16). "Acting archivist, inspector general for National Archives forced out". [[The Washington Post]].
31. Trump, Donald. (2025-02-16). "'I am pleased to announce that Jim Byron will be serving as Senior Advisor to our Acting Archivist, United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Jim will manage the National Archives on a day-to-day basis, while we continue our search for a full-time Archivist. Jim has worked with the National Archives for many years, and understands the great responsibility and duty we have to preserve the History of our Great Country.'".