Crusade Evangelism · Audio, Video & Film

The Billy Graham Sermon Archives: Complete Guide

Billy Graham preached the gospel in person to more than 200 million people in over 185 countries and territories — and because his ministry recorded nearly everything, most of that preaching still exists. This guide explains what the Billy Graham sermons archives contain, who maintains them, where to hear the audio archives today, and what his team's obsessive record-keeping can teach a church that wants its own preaching to outlive a single generation.

Maintained by

Billy Graham Evangelistic Association

Span

1940s–2018

Scale

70+ years of crusades

Formats

Audio · Video · Text

What Is the Billy Graham Sermon Archives?

Billy Graham (1918–2018) organized his work under the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), founded in 1950 and headquartered today in Charlotte, North Carolina. From the famous 1949 Los Angeles tent meetings that made him a national figure, through the sixteen-week Madison Square Garden crusade of 1957, to stadium events on every inhabited continent, BGEA treated recording as part of the ministry itself. Crusade sermons were captured on audio and film, the Hour of Decision radio program carried his preaching weekly beginning in 1950, and televised crusades brought his messages into living rooms from 1957 onward.

The result is one of the largest bodies of recorded preaching from any single evangelist in history. BGEA remains the steward of that legacy. The Billy Graham Archive & Research Center in Charlotte, which opened in 2022, consolidates the ministry's historical records, recordings, and papers in one purpose-built facility. Wheaton College's Billy Graham Center Archives historically housed many BGEA materials as well, and much of that collection has since been transferred to Charlotte, though Wheaton continues to hold significant evangelism-related collections.

What's Inside the Archive

Because the archive spans radio, film, television, and print, it is unusually rich in formats. No public figure of the mid-twentieth century was recorded preaching more consistently, and BGEA continues to restore and republish classic material rather than letting it sit in storage.

Crusade sermon recordings — hundreds of complete messages on audio and film, from tent revivals to stadium crusades
Hour of Decision radio broadcasts, the weekly program launched in 1950
Televised crusades and specials, many rebroadcast today as Billy Graham Classics
Print material: Decision magazine, the syndicated 'My Answer' newspaper column, and published sermon collections
Historical records, photographs, and correspondence held at the Archive & Research Center in Charlotte

How to Access the Billy Graham Archive

You do not need to visit a physical archive to hear Billy Graham preach. BGEA publishes classic sermons across its own channels, and the historical collections are available to researchers.

billygraham.org

The BGEA's official site, with sermons, devotional content, and ministry history.

BGEA television & YouTube

Classic crusade messages are rebroadcast as Billy Graham Classics and published on the association's official video channels.

The Billy Graham Library, Charlotte

A public experience telling the story of his life and ministry; the nearby Archive & Research Center serves researchers and scholars.

Official site: billygraham.org · Rights: © BGEA — free to watch and hear on official channels

Want a Transcript of a Sermon from This Archive?

Most of the Billy Graham archive is audio and video, not text. If you are studying a classic crusade message — quoting it accurately in a paper, preparing a teaching illustration, or capturing notes from a broadcast you have legitimate access to — a transcript turns an hour of audio into a page you can search, highlight, and cite.

Upload the audio you have rights to use to our free transcription tool and you will get time-stamped, searchable text in minutes. Remember that Billy Graham's sermons remain the property of BGEA: transcripts you make are for your own personal study, not for republishing.

Transcribe sermon audio free

How Billy Graham's Approach Can Inspire Your Church's Archive

BGEA's archive did not happen by accident. It reflects decisions made in the 1940s and 1950s that any church can copy today at a fraction of the cost.

1.Record everything from day one

The 1949 Los Angeles meetings were captured before anyone knew Graham would become Billy Graham. Your church's 'ordinary' Sunday recording may be the most valuable file you ever keep — hit record every week, not just on special occasions.

2.One sermon, many channels

A single crusade message became a radio episode, a TV broadcast, a magazine article, and a newspaper column. A transcript is what makes that multiplication cheap: once a sermon is text, it can become a blog post, devotional, and social content in an afternoon.

3.Consolidate before things get lost

BGEA eventually gathered scattered materials into one purpose-built center in Charlotte. Churches should do the digital equivalent: one organized, backed-up library of sermon files with consistent names and dates, not recordings scattered across old laptops and USB drives.

For the full step-by-step playbook, read our guides on building searchable sermon archives and publishing a searchable sermon archive in 30 days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I find the Billy Graham sermons archives?

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association maintains the official archives. Classic sermons are available on billygraham.org and BGEA's official video channels, televised as Billy Graham Classics, and preserved physically at the Billy Graham Archive & Research Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Are there Billy Graham audio archives I can listen to for free?

Yes. BGEA publishes classic crusade audio and video on its official website and channels at no cost, and Hour of Decision material has been rebroadcast in various forms. Availability of specific messages varies, so the official BGEA site is the best starting point.

Are Billy Graham's sermons public domain?

No. Billy Graham died in 2018, and his sermons remain under copyright held by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. You can freely watch and listen through official channels, but republishing recordings or full transcripts requires BGEA's permission.

Can I get a transcript of a Billy Graham sermon?

BGEA has published some sermons in print, but most of the archive is audio and video. For personal study, you can transcribe audio you legitimately have access to using an AI transcription tool — our free transcriber produces searchable, time-stamped text in minutes.

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Your church is building an archive too

Every Sunday recording is a future archive entry. Transcribe it in about five minutes, publish it as searchable text, and your congregation's preaching starts compounding the way these collections did.

Try Free Transcription How to build your archive