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Recent News & Highlights
Four more Hidden Histories collections available
Monday, May 20, 2013It's been a few months, but we're pleased to announce at last that four more of the collections in our New England's Hidden Histories program are now available for use. You can access them through the NEHH collections list, or go directly to each collection page:
- Georgetown, Mass. First Congregational Church (1736-1886)
founded as Second/West Parish in Rowley - Mattapoisett, Mass. Congregational Church (1736-1886)
founded as Second Precinct in Rochester - Rowley, Mass. First Congregational Church (1728-1835)
- Wenham, Mass. First Congregational Church (1643-1847)
There are more collections at various stages in the process, and we will let you know as soon as they are ready for use, as well.
New archival collection - Southern Rhodesia Mission
Monday, May 13, 2013We recently processed a missionary collection from Zimbabwe. Before the 1980s, Zimbawe was known as Rhodesia, or even earlier as Southern Rhodesia. The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) had a station in Southern Rhodesia starting in 1893 at Mt. Silinda and a sub-station at Chikore. One of the mid-20th century missionaries who served there was Charles Lord, who donated a 9-folder collection, primarily of reports from the field dating to the mid 1950s. There are also a few histories, some correspondence and photographs. The collection originally came with a number of pamphlets about the mission or the region, which will be added to our missionary pamphlet collection. A rare but not unusual feature in the collection is a history written in a blend of two local dialects, chiShona and chiNdau.
This collection is available to all researchers and the finding guide is up on our website. Please contact us if you plan to visit.
New archival collection - First Congregational Church of Waverley
Monday, May 6, 2013Our latest addition to our collection is from the First Congregational Church of Waverley. Normally churches derive their name from the town in which they reside. However, Waverley is a neighborhood/village within the town of Belmont, Massachusetts. The church was established in 1865, although the start date for the earliest records goes back to 1861. That is when our star of the collection, the Society ledger book, begins. Another interesting feature is a page-a-day calendar from 1866. The unknown author didn't write every day, but did fill in entries steadily throughout the year. We hope a future researcher will crack the code and find out who authored it. The church closed last year. We are grateful to their last minister for saving the material he sent to us. The collection is now available for researchers to study.
New archival collection - Henry Martyn Goodwin
Friday, May 3, 2013We are continuing to use the "MPLP" standard to process our backlog of archival collections. The latest is the Henry Martyn Goodwin papers donated to the Congregational Library from the Chicago Theological Seminary. Henry Martyn Goodwin was born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1820 and died in 1893. He was a minister in Illinois and Michigan and a professor at Olivet College. This collection includes Goodwin's sermons (published and unpublished), lectures, published writings, poems and notes. Note: This collection has been minimally processed for access and is available for researcher access.
Take a look at the finding guide for more details.
New archival collection - Edward Franklin Williams papers
Monday, April 29, 2013Edward Franklin Williams was a Congregational minister in the mid-to-late 19th century. Records in this collection document a portion of Williams's life as a student, minister, and writer. The material focuses primarily on Williams's career as a minister and lecturer. The collection includes sermons, notes, writings, and lectures given at various institutions. Of particular note are his sermons, most of which are handwritten. Williams was also a lecturer for a portion of his life. The collection contains the lectures that he gave at various educational institutions.
Take a look through the collection's finding guide for more details.
CLOSED TODAY
Friday, April 19, 2013The library is closed today in compliance with the governor's shelter-in-place order. We hope all of our neighbors are safe and well.
We've joined the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium
Friday, April 5, 2013The Congregational Library is now a member of the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium, a group of seventeen premiere libraries and archives. Other members include Harvard's Business School, Medical School and Houghton Libraries, as well as the Boston Athenaeum, all of New England's state historical societies, Mystic Seaport, and Historic Deerfield. NERFC provides scholarship aid to researchers needing to consult at least three of these collections. For more information, please consult the NRFC page on the MHS website or contact Peggy Bendroth.
New archival collection - Pawtucket (RI) Congregational Church
Tuesday, March 26, 2013We are continuing to use the "MPLP" standard to process our backlog of archival collections. The latest is from Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
Pawtucket Congregational Church was founded in 1828. Records in this collection document the founding, life, and merger of Pawtucket Congregational Church. This collection contains records pertaining to the formation of the church, bylaws, fellowship and history of the church as well as financial records, annual reports, and records of the clerk, treasurer, pastors, and various committees. Also included are membership listings, 19th-century relations, and records pertaining to the church's merger with Sayles Memorial Church in 2012. Additionally, there are two boxes of materials from Central Falls Congregational Church included in this collection.
Take a look through the collection's finding guide for more details.
Job opportunity - Administrative and Development Assistant
Thursday, March 7, 2013We are looking for a strategic thinker with annual fund experience who can interact comfortably with members, donors, Board members and co-workers. This position focuses on development and includes administrative support to the Executive Director and Director of Development. As part of a team-oriented office, you will play an active role in planning and implementing all fundraising activities, institutional events and communications.
For more information, see the full job description.
New archival collection - First Congregational Church of Jamestown, NY
Tuesday, February 26, 2013We recently mentioned the process of using the "MPLP" standard to make our collections available more quickly. One of our most recently processed collections is from the First Congregational Church in Jamestown, New York. This was my first foray into the MPLP methodology, which employs a different philosophy from traditional archive training.
Types of material found in this collection include records of the church's auxiliary organizations, committees, clerk's reports, membership information (including deaths and baptisms), and finances. Researchers are welcome to review the guide to the collection; it is entirely open for public use.