American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions records
Scope and Contents
The bulk of the collection consists of typescript copies of journal extracts, reports, correspondence, and financial documents of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions concerning its missionary operations in the Oregon Territory. Many of the typescripts are based on originals held in the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions archives in the Houghton Library at Harvard University, and are referred to by the sequential numbers that the Houghton Library assigned. The collection includes the reports of Jonathan S. Green (a missionary based in Hawaii) on his exploration of the northwest coast of North America, and correspondence and records relating to discussions on whether establishing a mission in the Pacific Northwest would be worthwhile. Missionaries to the Pacific Northwest who are represented in this collection are William H. Gray, Henry H. Spalding, Cushing Eells, Elkanah Walker, and Marcus Whitman, as well as Board secretary David Greene. There are a few original items and photostatic copies of documents in the collection in addition to the typescripts.
Dates
- Creation: 1821-1871
Creator
- American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Administrative history
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was organized in 1810 and was the first missionary society in the United States. Headquartered in Boston, it served as the missionary arm of several major Protestant church denominations, particularly the Congregational, Presbyterian, and Dutch Reformed Churches. The Board established missions all over the world, including the Whitman mission in what would become the Oregon Territory, and later Washington state. The Board was absorbed into the United Church Board of World Ministries in 1961.
Extent
0.7 Cubic Feet (1 legal document case; 1 slim legal document case; 1 shared reel of microfilm)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Journal extracts, reports, correspondence, and financial documents of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (A.B.C.F.M.) concerning its missionary operations in the Oregon Territory. Includes materials relating to discussion by Hawaii missionary Jonathan S. Green and others on the feasibility of having a mission in the Pacific Northwest; and correspondence of missionaries Marcus Whitman, Henry H. Spalding, Cushing Eells, Elkanah Walker, William H. Gray, and A.B.C.F.M. secretaries David Greene and S. B. Treat. Almost all materials are typescript copies, many of them made from originals in the A.F.B.C.M. archives at the Houghton Library of Harvard University.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in two series: Series 1. Copies of records from A.B.C.F.M. Archives; Series 2. Other A.B.C.F.M. records.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquired prior to 1971, most likely in the early 20th century (RL2021-016-RETRO). Microfilmed materials most likely acquired in 1964 (RL2021-037-RETRO).
Existence and Location of Originals
Originals of most the materials are housed at the Houghton Library, Harvard University, American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions Archives, ABC 1-91. Original of January 14, 1851, letter from Henry H. Spalding to S. B. Treat is housed in the Whitman College and Northwest Archives, Walla Walla, Washington. Originals of microfilmed materials are held in the Hawaiian Mission Children's Society Library, Honolulu, Hawaii.
General
Unless otherwise noted, all materials are typescript copies.
Subject
- American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (Organization)
- Spalding, Henry Harmon, 1803-1874 (Person)
- Greene, David, active 1838-1847 (Person)
- Whitman, Marcus, 1802-1847 (Person)
- Gray, W. H. (William Henry), 1810-1889 (Person)
- Eells, Cushing, 1810-1893 (Person)
- Walker, Elkanah, 1805-1877 (Person)
- Green, Jonathan S. (Jonathan Smith), 1796-1878 (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the American Board of Commissioners For Foreign Missions Records
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Geoffrey B. Wexler; revised by Jeffrey A. Hayes
- Date
- 2006; revised 2021
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid is written in English.
Revision Statements
- 2021: Revised to conform to current standards and to more accurately describe the collection's contents.
Repository Details
Part of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library Repository
1200 SW Park Ave.
Portland OR 97205 United States
5033065204
5033065240
libreference@ohs.org