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Sermons and biographical material document the life and work of a New England Congregational minister during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Edward Stevens Sanborn (1866-1945) was a Yale Divinity School graduate who served various Congregational parishes in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.

The papers consist of manuscript sermons by Fitch. Eleazar T. Fitch (1791-1871) was Livingston Professor of Divinity at Yale from 1817 to 1852, in which his main duty was the supply of the College pulpit. He was Lecturer on Homiletics at the Yale Divinity School from1824 to 1861.

Letters, journals, and writings in this record group document Eli Smith's missionary work in the Middle East. Letters of his third wife, Mehitable Simpkins Butler Smith, provide valuable documentation of her ten years in the Middle East. Research materials gathered by Margaret Leavy complement the original holdings. Eli Smith, an early missionary to the Middle East serving under the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, is best known for his translation of the Bible into Arabic.

The papers provide valuable documentation of the work of the American Baptist South China Mission, complementing the Foster Family papers and Campbell Family papers also located at Yale Divinity School Library. The Hildreths' experiences are representative of many American missionaries to China in the early part of this century. Substantive correspondence with family members and fellow missionaries documents their striving to reach the mission field, their initial impressions of China, family life in China, daily educational and evangelistic work, and the political unrest rampant in South China during their tenure. The intense anti-Christian movement in the mid 1920s is well documented. Ellison Hildreth served as a Baptist home missionary from 1910 until 1913. From 1913-1927, the Hildreths were American Baptist missionaries in South China. During a furlough from 1918-1919, Ellison Hildreth served with the YMCA in Siberia. From 1928-1949, he served as pastor of Federated Churches in Vermont and Connecticut.

The collection consists primarily of published books, pamphlets and articles collected by Ellsworth Eliot Sr. The annotated collected documents reflect Eliot's varied research interests, particularly the life and work of his ancestor, John Eliot, "Apostle to the Indians."

Detailed correspondence, diaries, photographs, and collected material document the life and work of a young, single woman missionary in China. Elsie Clark Krug was an American Methodist missionary in Fuzhou (Foochow) from 1912 to 1918. She taught at Hwa Nan College, then in its preliminary stages a mission-supported college for women.

Correspondence, writings, and collected material document the work of Emery W. Carlson and Elvera Teed Carlson, Lutheran missionaries serving in China from 1940 to 1949. Emery Carlson was a medical doctor who worked at the Lutheran Hospital in Xuchang, Henan (Hsuchang, Honan) province from 1941 to 1944. He was active in famine relief work 1942-1944 and in 1945 became an intelligence officer working for the Office of Strategic Services behind Japanese lines in Henan. After the war Carlson returned to the mission hospital but the family was forced to leave China in 1949 due to the Communist takeover.

Correspondence relates to Hale's roles as minister, father, educator, Secretary of the General Association of Congregational Churches and Ministers of Massachusetts, and Secretary of the Hampshire Missionary Society. Diaries contain brief daily entries describing the weather, notable activities and events, sermons written and preached, town meetings attended, marriages performed, visitors received, journeys taken and chores performed. Also included is information regarding births and deaths in Westhampton. The diaries provide fifty years of consistent and valuable documentation of the daily activities of a Congregational minister in a small New England town. Notes and memoranda reflect Hale's interest in politics, his administrative and ministerial duties, and Biblical studies. Over 1200 sermons with indexes are included. Enoch Hale, born in Coventry, Connecticut on October 28, 1753, was the brother of the famed Nathan Hale. He graduated from Yale College in 1773 and served as a Congregational clergyman in Westhampton, Massachusetts from 1778-1828. He also served as Secretary of the General Association of the Congregational Churches and Ministers of Massachusetts from 1804-1824, and was Secretary of the Hampshire Missionary Society for many years. He was involved in the educational and public interests of his community and represented Westhampton in the State Constitutional Convention of 1820. He died on January 19, 1837.

The records in this collection primarily document the ECFSA's work in relation to Namibia. The ECFSA has served as a link between Anglicans in Southern Africa and people in the United States by publishing a newsletter, issuing news releases, sponsoring public meetings, preparing and publishing special reports, sponsoring speaking and study tours for Southern Africans, raising funds to support education and provide relief in Southern Africa, and providing aid and counsel to visiting Southern Africans. The organization has encouraged its supporters to contact U.S. political leaders regarding crucial issues.

Correspondence, writings, and collected material document the Ikenberrys' work in China and the U.S. Ernest and Olivia Ikenberry were American missionaries in China from 1922-1951, serving under the Church of the Brethren. Following their return from China they served at a Church of the Brethren mission among the Navajo Indians in Lybrook, New Mexico.