The University of Chicago Library > The Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center > Finding Aids > Guide to the Baptist Divinity House Records 1938-1961
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| Title: | Baptist Divinity House. Records |
|---|---|
| Dates: | 1938-1961 |
| Size: | 1.25 linear feet (3 boxes) |
| Repository: |
Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center |
| Abstract: | The Baptist Divinity House assisted with funding, housing, career placement and other means of support for students pursing Baptist ministry at the University of Chicago Divinity School. The collection contains correspondence, student directories, ledger books, financial statements, reports, minutes, and publications. |
Series III contains student evaluative material restricted until 2031. The remainder of the collection is open for research.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Baptist Divinity House. Records, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
The Baptist Divinity House assisted with funding, housing, career placement and other means of support for students at the University of Chicago Divinity School who intended to pursue a career in Baptist ministry. The two stated purposes for the creation of the Baptist Divinity House were to prepare men for Baptist ministry and to serve as a center of fellowship and interest for all Baptist students in the Divinity School. The Baptist Divinity House offices were located in Swift Hall and it was overseen by an advisory council composed of Baptist denominational officers and ministers, along with University of Chicago faculty and Baptist members of the Federated Theological Faculty such as Bernard Loomer, Sidney Mead, and Allen Wikgren.
According to a Baptist Divinity House pamphlet, President William Rainey Harper first proposed the idea of the Divinity Houses in order to both provide specific denominational support to Divinity School students and to strengthen the relationship between the Divinity School and the churches the students might one day serve. “Thus intelligent denominational loyalties might be cultivated, roots sunk deep in the soil of organized religion, instructions given in the history, polity, organization, and program of each particular communion, while at the same time the most scholarly teaching in the various fields of divinity study would be provided on an interdenominational basis. Denominational loyalty and responsibility and an ecumenical spirit might thus walk hand in hand.” Some of the weekly activities at the Baptist Divinity House included: courses of instruction in Baptist History and Polity, a weekly luncheon in which denominational or University representatives discussed issues of importance, various activities to support local area Baptist churches and ministries, the publication of a quarterly newsletter for members of the House, alumni, and denominational officials, and the recruitment of potential candidates for Baptist ministry.
The Baptist Divinity House was established in approximately 1942. It no longer exists today.
The Baptist Divinity House records are organized into three series: Series I: Baptist Divinity House; Series II: Related Organizations and Events; and Series III: Restricted. The collection contains correspondence, student directories, ledger books, financial statements, reports, minutes, and publications. Materials date between 1938 and 1961, with the bulk of the material dating between 1940 and 1950.
Series I, Baptist Divinity House, contains administrative documents pertaining to the Baptist Divinity House of the University of Chicago Divinity School and its funding, housing, career placement, and other means of support for students intending to enter Baptist ministry. The series contains financial records, notes, student directories, and correspondence with students, benefactors, and churches.
Series II, Related Organizations and Events, contains documents from events and organizations with which the Baptist Divinity House associated, including the Interchurch Council, the Baptist Fellowship and Council, the Illinois State Baptist Convention, and American Baptist Assemblies. The series contains reports, minutes, publications, correspondence, and other administrative material.
Series III, Restricted, consists of one folder that contains confidential student recommendation letters that pertain to student job placement in churches following graduation. Records in this series are restricted until 2031.
Series I: Baptist Divinity House |
| Box 1 Folder 1 | Baptist Divinity House, Scholarship Investment Solicitation, 1941-1946 |
| Box 1 Folder 2 | Baptist Divinity House, Founding, 1942 |
| Box 1 Folder 3 | Baptist Divinity House, Correspondence and Administrative Materials, 1942-1948 |
| Box 1 Folder 4 | Baptist Divinity House, Student Correspondence, 1943-1950 |
| Box 1 Folder 5 | Baptist Divinity House, Hudson, 1944-1946 |
| Box 1 Folder 6 | Baptist Divinity House, Quarterly Reports, 1944-1947 |
| Box 1 Folder 7 | Baptist Divinity House, Denominational, 1944-1950 |
| Box 1 Folder 8 | Baptist Divinity House, Student Directories, 1944-1950 |
| Box 1 Folder 9 | Baptist Divinity House, Ledger Book, 1945 |
| Box 1 Folder 10 | Baptist Divinity House, Ledger Book and Receipts, 1947-1948 |
| Box 1 Folder 11 | Baptist Divinity House, Student Pastors Placement, Correspondence, 1947-1949 |
| Box 1 Folder 12 | Baptist Divinity House, Churches, Pastorates, Correspondence and Notes, 1947-1951 |
| Box 1 Folder 13 | Baptist Divinity House, Correspondence and Draft Materials, 1949-1958 |
| Box 1 Folder 14 | Baptist Divinity House, Summer Quarter Directory and Menu, 1950 |
Series II: Related Organizations and Events |
| Box 2 Folder 1 | Fountain Street Baptist Church, Publications, 1938-1944 |
| Box 2 Folder 2 | Illinois Baptist State Convention, Correspondence and Minutes, 1941-1954 |
| Box 2 Folder 3 | Interchurch Council and Chapel House, Reports and Minutes, 1942-1950 |
| Box 2 Folder 4 | Baptist Fellowship and Council, Correspondence, 1942-1961 |
| Box 2 Folder 5 | Fellowship of Baptist Theological Students, Eleventh Session, Publication, 1956 |
| Box 2 Folder 6 | American Baptist Assembly, Green Lake, WI, 1947-1951 |
Series III: Restricted |
| Box 3 Folder 1 | Baptist Divinity House, Student Recommendations, 1945-1951 |