About the Center for Legislative Archives

The Center for Legislative Archives, a part of the National Archives and Records Administration, preserves and makes available to researchers the historical records of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Through its public outreach programs, the Center uses these historical records to promote a better understanding of Congress and the history of American representative government.

Our Research Room

Located in the National Archives Building on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, the Center for Legislative Archives provides on-site reference assistance to researchers ranging from Congressional scholars and historians to attorneys looking for legislative intent and genealogists searching for individual petitions and claims.

In the East Search Room, located off the main Research Room, the Center maintains published source material on Congress including the Journals of the House and Senate, the Congressional Record (and its predecessors the Globe and the Annals of Congress), Guide to the U.S. Serial Set, CIS Indexes, as well as other works on the history of Congress.

Our Staff

The Center is staffed by 13 employees including an acting director, a supervisory archives specialist, six professional archivists, one archives technician, one electronic records specialist, one archives specialist for description, one access specialist, and an exhibit specialist.

Jay Wyatt is the Acting Director of the Center for Legislative Archives