Title: Edmon D. Upson Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1890-1949

Creator:

• Upson, Edmon D., 1865-1950

Call Number: Mss 216; PH 2386; PH 2387; PH 2388; PH 2389; PH 2390; PH 2392; PH 2425

Quantity: 0.6 c.f. (2 archives boxes) and 164 lantern slides

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Papers of Edmon D. Upson, an itinerant Methodist minister who was an evangelist in lumber camps, and later served as a pastor in Hebron, Peshtigo, Verona, Middleton, Waupun, Whitehall, and Madison, Wisconsin. Included are diaries; church record books from Waupun, 1897-1898, and Whitehall, 1915-1916; a daily expenditures and receipts book, 1894-1897; scrapbooks of clippings relating primarily to his ministerial career; and lantern slides used for religious lectures.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00216

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In 1890 Edmon D. Upson began fifty years in the Methodist ministry. He was first an evangelist in lumber camps, and later served at churches in Hebron, Peshtigo, Verona, Middleton, and Madison, Wisconsin. An advocate of temperance, he not only preached but also lectured on the topic throughout his career.

In addition to his ministry, Upson was a gun instructor; an amateur photographer; a Boy Scout scoutmaster; and a prominent conservationist, even serving as a game warden from 1918 to 1923.

Upson was married and had two sons: Raymond, who was killed in World War I, and Richard, who was killed in World War II.

The Edmon D. Upson Papers, 1890-1949, include diaries, church record books, a journal, and scrapbooks. In his diaries Upson chronicled the routine occurrences of his life such as preaching, reading, and travelling and occasionally mentioned events of historic importance such as the bombing of Pearl Harbor. In church record books, 1897-1898, from Waupun, and 1915-1916, from Whitehall, are lists of parishoners, summaries of his sermons, statistics maintained for quarterly reports on parish activities, and his salary schedule. The journal, 1894-1897, contains the record of his daily expenditures and receipts. The scrapbooks contain clippings mainly relating to his early career in the ministry, but include a few on his later career and on the wartime activities of his son Richard, a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy Air Corps.

Also included are sets of lantern slides used by Upson for religious lectures:

PH 2386: Incomplete sets of transparencies copied from drawings illustrating the evils of drink, used for temperance lectures by Upson, Methodist pastor in Wisconsin, circa 1900. Drawings include illustrations of “Father, Dear Father, Come Home,” “The Drunkard's Reform,” “Where Is My Wandering Boy”; family life before and after the husband takes to drink, delirium tremens, murders and other crimes caused by drink.

PH 2387: Incomplete set of transparencies illustrating John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, an allegory of Christian life, used for religious lectures by Upson, circa 1900. The illustrations include scenes acted by models in costume against studio props and painted backgrounds; copies from published illustrations and pen drawings.

PH 2388: Transparencies copied from photographs of the funeral of President William McKinley and execution of his assassin, 1901. The transparencies, including portraits of McKinley, the assassin Leon Czolgosz, Auburn Prison, New York, death cell, electric chair, home and tomb of McKinley, were used for lectures by Upson.

PH 2389: Projection transparencies, circa 1900, hand-colored, illustrating the Holy City, with drawings of a dream of the New Jerusalem, choirs of angels, and a crowd putting palm leaves before Christ entering the city. The predominant color is gold, with blues and pinks.

PH 2390: Projection transparencies, circa 1900, illustrating the hymn “Throw Out the Life-Line,” with copies of drawings of men aboard a sinking schooner, using a lifeline shot to ship from shore.

PH 2392: Projection transparencies, 1905, copies of drawings illustrating the story of “Paddy and His Pig,” produced by C.W. Briggs Company, depicting a man who buys a pig at market. While Paddy stops to have a drop at the tavern the pig escapes to break into a house. The transparencies were used by Upson.

PH 2425: Incomplete sets of projection transparencies, circa 1900, some hand-colored, illustrating hymns and bible stories with drawings of choirs of angels, dying peasants, Christ rescuing the drowning, healing the sick, and raising the dead. Many of the drawings are literal interpretations of hymns.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Mrs. Harvey Charles Peterson, Waunakee, Wisconsin, June 20, 1961. Accession Number: M61-141

Processing Information

Processed by T. Kent Gulley, December 11, 1972.

Mss 216	Diaries
Box   1 Folder   1	No. 1, 1890 December 6-1891 November 2
Box   1 Folder   2	No. 2, 1891 November 2-1892 September 8
Box   1 Folder   3	No. 3, 1892 September 9-1893 September 13
Box   1 Folder   4	No. 4, 1893 September 14-1894 August 25
Box   1 Folder   5	No. 5, 1894 August 26-1896 March 7
Box   1 Folder   6	No. 6, 1896 March 8-1897 August 28
Box   1 Folder   7	No. 7, 1897 August 29-1899 June 2
Box   1 Folder   8	No. 8, 1899 June 3-1900 March 30
Box   1 Folder   9	No. 9, 1900 April 1-1903 November 30
Box   1 Folder   10	No. 10, 1903 December 1-1906 February 28
Box   1 Folder   11	No. 11, 1906 March 1-1908 August 15
Box   1 Folder   12	No. 12, 1908 August 16-1911 March 9
Box   1 Folder   13	No. 13, 1911 March 10-1913 December 7
Box   1 Folder   14	No. 14, 1913 December 8-1916 July 9
Box   1 Folder   15	No. 15, 1916 July 10-1917 August 10
Box   1 Folder   16	No. 16, 1917 August 11-1919 May 16
Box   1 Folder   17	No. 17, 1919 May 17-1920 December 4
Box   1 Folder   18	No. 18, 1920 December 5-1922 July 1
Box   1 Folder   19	No. 19, 1922 July-1924 January 25
Box   1 Folder   20	No. 20, 1924 January 27-1925 June 30
Box   1 Folder   21	No. 21, 1925 July 1-1926 November 30
Box   1 Folder   22	No. 22, 1926 December 1-1928 October 7
Box   1 Folder   23	No. 23, 1928 October 8-1930 May 6
Box   1 Folder   24	No. 24, 1930 May 7-1932 January 12
Box   1 Folder   25	No. 25, 1932 January 13-1933 September 30
Box   1 Folder   26	No. 26, 1933 October 1-1935 September 20
Box   1 Folder   27	No. 27, 1935 September 21-1937 November 6
Box   2 Folder   1	No. 28, 1937 November 7-1939 July 14
Box   2 Folder   2	No. 29, 1939 July 15-1941 February 17
Box   2 Folder   3	No. 30, 1941 February 17-1942 December 14
Box   2 Folder   4	No. 31, 1942 December 15-1944 April 20
Box   2 Folder   5	No. 32, 1944 April 21-1945 July 8
Box   2 Folder   6	No. 33, 1945 July 9-1946 August 2
	No. 34 Note: Missing.
Box   2 Folder   7	No. 35, 1948 May 25-1949 November 27
	Church record books
Box   2 Folder   8	1897-1898
Box   2 Folder   9	1915-1916
Box   2 Folder   10	Journal, 1894 January 1-1897 November 14
Box   2 Folder   11	Scrapbook
Box   2 Folder   12	Scrapbook
	Lantern slides for lectures
PH 2386	Illustrating the evils of drink Physical Description: 47 lantern slides
PH 2387	Illustrating John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress Physical Description: 39 lantern slides
PH 2388	President William McKinley's funeral and execution of assassin Physical Description: 25 lantern slides
PH 2389	Illustrating the Holy City Physical Description: 12 lantern slides
PH 2390	Illustrating the hymn “Throw Out the Life-Line” Physical Description: 5 lantern slides
PH 2392	Illustrating the story “Paddy and His Pig” Physical Description: 11 lantern slides
PH 2425	Miscellaneous slides illustrating hymns and Bible stories Physical Description: 25 lantern slides