Missionary Research Library collection on ecumenical and world-wide mission work, 1792 -- 1990
Collection context
- Creator:
- Missionary Research Library (New York, N.Y.)
- Abstract:
- This collection contains material related to ecumenical and world-wide mission work and committees and conferences, education, churches and religion, and missionaries, as well as photographs and maps and subject and topic files, including some on geographic locations, as well as the earliest records in the collection (1792) which pertain to Presbyterian Moderators of the General Assembly. Formats include reports, minutes, papers, photographs, negatives and maps.
- Extent:
- 14 linear feet 14 linear feet; 30 boxes
- Language:
- English .
- Scope and content:
-
This collection contains material related to ecumenical and world-wide mission work and committees and conferences, education, churches and religion, and missionaries, as well as photographs and maps and subject and topic files, including some on geographic locations, as well as the earliest records in the collection (1792) which pertain to Presbyterian Moderators of the General Assembly. Formats include reports, minutes, papers, photographs, negatives and maps.
- Biographical / historical:
-
The Missionary Research Library was created by John R. Mott in 1914 after the World Missionary Conference, held in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1910. It was created to be a resource for missionaries and to document the missionary movement, and was initially funded by John D. Rockefeller. It was located at the Madison Avenue headquarters of the Foreign Missionary Conference of North America. By the 1920s, funding was becoming scarcer; therefore it was moved to the Brown Tower of the Union Theological Seminary, New York City in 1929. The Library was an important center of information and research. Active missionaries would consult the material of the Missionary Research Library while on furlough. Much of the Library's success was due to the director and librarian, Charles H. Fahs. Upon his retirement in 1948, the MRL's financial difficulties continued until it was finally integrated as one with the Burke Library's collections in 1967. In 2004, the Burke Library was fully integrated with the Columbia University Library System.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
This collection is open for research.
The following boxes are located offsite: Box 1-30 (entire collection). Please note that requests for use of boxes held in offsite storage must be made three business days in advance.
- Terms of access:
-
Some material in this collection may be protected by copyright and other rights. Information concerning copyright, fair use, and reproduction requests can be consulted at Columbia's Copyright Advisory Office.
- Preferred citation:
-
Item description, MRL12: Missionary Research Library collection on ecumenical and world-wide mission work, series #, box #, folder #, The Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary, Columbia University in the City of New York.
- Location of this collection:
- Before you visit:
- Researchers must book an appointment at least 5 business days in advance to view special collections material in the reading room. To make the most of your visit, be sure to request your desired materials before booking your appointment, as researchers are limited to one item per hour of appointment time.
- Contact:
- burke@library.columbia.edu