The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) facility in San Bruno, home to more than 100,000 cubic feet of irreplaceable historical records, is facing an imminent closure that could begin as early as August 2026. These holdings include extensive Chinese Exclusion Act case files, immigration and naturalization records, internment documents, Native American and Native Hawaiian materials, and other vital sources of community history.

Save Our National Archives (SONA), which has advocated for public access since 1998, warns that relocating these materials out of the Bay Area would severely limit access for families, researchers, students, and community organizations. The C.A.C.A. Portland Lodge submitted its letter to the Acting Archivist on July 16, joining the growing number of organizations urging NARA to halt the closure and preserve public access to these essential records.

Many of the documents housed in San Bruno are fragile, oversized, or unique artifacts that cannot be digitized without damage. Moving them to distant storage sites, such as the Missouri underground facility, which lacks public research rooms, would effectively cut communities off from their own history. These records include personal photographs, letters, maps, certificates, and cultural materials that hold deep significance for families and communities across the country.

Access to original records is foundational to understanding American history and essential to preserving the stories of the communities documented in these archives.