The Records of the Wisconsin Conference of the United Church of Christ contain 60 boxes of Congregational records, 12 boxes of Evangelical and Reformed records, and 2 boxes of records concerning the merger and the early United Church. The records were generated by many different church agencies and include minutes, correspondence, reports, scrapbooks, programs, directories, financial records, constitutions, and other materials, dated 1839-1968.
The Congregational Church records are organized into six main groups:
a historical file, Conference records, and records of women's organizations, of the Laymen's Fellowship, of Green Lake Bible Institute, and of the regional Associations.
The Historical File contains Stephen Peet Papers, H.A. Miner Papers, minutes and financial records of the Wisconsin Home Missionary Society, and a record book of the North Wisconsin Home Missionary Society. Stephen Peet was a Presbyterian pastor in Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Beloit and served as the first Wisconsin agent for the American Home Missionary Society (AHMS), 1841-1848. He was instrumental in the founding of the state Convention and in 1852 published a statistical report on it. His papers contain information used in this report, minutes and members' letters of transfer from the Milwaukee Presbyterian Church when he was pastor, and minutes and miscellaneous lists from the Summit-Oconomowoc Church and others when he was present as AHMS agent. H.A. Miner was a major influence on the Congregational Church in Wisconsin for over fifty years. He was an agent for the American Sunday School Union in 1867 and for the American Home Missionary Society, 1872-1883. Long-time registrar of the Convention he also edited Our Church Work, the first Wisconsin church periodical; served on the Board of Trustees for Beloit, Ripon and Milwaukee-Downer Colleges; was especially active in securing grants of ministerial aid; and helped found and served as longtime secretary to the Wisconsin Federation of Churches and Christian Workers, an interdenominational organization devoted to moral reform. His papers include a minute book of the Federation plus information on Miner's AHMS superintendency and ministerial aid activities, questionnaires giving histories of Wisconsin churches and pastors, and scattered other materials.
The Conference Records comprise the largest portion of the Congregational Church records. They include minutes, programs, and associated documents from annual meetings; minutes from meetings of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee; records of the Home Missionary Department (organized in 1907); various scattered financial records; and subject files from the Superintendent's office. These subject files contain the most varied materials in the collection and date primarily from the superintendency of Theodore Faville. Especially rich sources of information are “Faville's Weekly Activity Reports,” 1923-1941 (in the earliest years, he attached original correspondence to these reports) and “Superintendents' Reports to the Board,” 1919-1956. These reports reflect the several administraey include minutes, programs, and associated documents from annual meetings; minutes from meetings of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee; records of the Home Missionary Department (organized in 1907); various scattered financial records; and subject files from the Superintendent's office. These subject files contain the most varied materials in the collection and date primarily from the superintendency of Theodore Faville. Especially rich sources of information are “Faville's Weekly Activity Reports,” 1923-1941 (in the earliest years, he attached original correspondence to these reports) and “Superintendents' Reports to the Board,” 1919-1956. These reports reflect the several administrative systems employed by the Conference. Names researchers will encounter are F.W. Heberlein, superintendent for the western district, 1918-1927; Charles H. Wicks, field superintendent, 1937-?; and John W. Wilson, superintendent for the eastern district, 1922-1929, then field superintendent, 1929-1936, then pastor-at-large, 1936-?.
Also included in the records of the Superintendent's Office is a local church reference file with a folder for each local church containing sample bulletins, dedication and anniversary programs, announcements, and church histories. Occasionally included is correspondence between the Superintendent and the local church or between the Superintendent and the Congregational Church Building Society concerning funds for the local church. The file dates from the late 1800s to the early 1960s, but the bulk of material dates between 1918 and 1948. Arrangement is alphabetical by city under the heading “Local Church File.”
Women's organizations provide the third segment of Congregational records. Included are minutes of both the Woman's Home Missionary Union and the Woman's Board of Missions of the Interior; minutes and other materials of the World Fellowship Council of Wisconsin Women and its successor, the Wisconsin Fellowship of Congregational Christian Women; and various records of the Eau Claire, Madison, Milwaukee, Superior and Winnebago Associations of women's organizations. The Congregational women in later years held annual meetings in the spring and rallies in the fall. They had committees in charge of discussions and activities in such areas as spiritual life, social action, and benevolences. Their records reflect these activities.
The next two groups of Congregational records total only one box of materials. The Laymen's Fellowship, an organization for adult male church members organized in Wisconsin in 1945, is represented by state minutes, correspondence, clippings, and mailing lists from 1946-1951, plus a history, a survey of activities, and three manuals from 1957-1959. The Green Lake Bible Institute, incorporator of an interdenominational camp at Green Lake, Wisconsin, is represented by general papers, 1925-1951. The Institute was a cooperative venture of the Congregationalists, Baptists, and others with over 50% of the stock owned by the Congregational Conference. It provided permanent facilities for meetings and conferences for adults, families, and young people. John W. Wilson served on the Board for many years, and Theodore Faville was secretary in the late 1940s. These papers include minutes, treasurer's reports, and Faville's correspondence files.
The final group of Congregational records, the Association records, represent the Beloit, Eau Claire, La Crosse, Lemonweir, Madison, Milwaukee, Mineral Point, Northeastern, Northwest, Southwestern, Superior, and Winnebago Associations. The quantity of records for each association varies greatly but most often includes minute books, constitutions, and programs of meetings with occasional additional materials concerning ordinations, certifications, committee work, and other activities. One box of general records dating 1859-1917 is filed at the beginning of the group; these contain ministers' credentials and minutes of their installation councils plus minutes of admission ceremonies and reports on specific churches. Most of these originated with the Winnebago Association but were received as one unit and so were maintained that way in this collection.
The Evangelical and Reformed records in this collection are far more fragmentary than the Congregational records. Dating from 1875 to the merger in 1962, they are organized into four groups: records of the Wisconsin District of the Evangelical Synod of North America, of the two Wisconsin Synods formed after the 1934 merger, of various regional and local groups, and of women's organizations.
The Evangelical Synod of North America records include early minutes and statutes, plus a protocol book from a Ministerial Council, a protocol book from an unidentified judiciary body, and secretary's correspondence for 1929-1935. Many of these records are in German.
By the time of the 1934 merger, English was the common language, as is indicated in the records of the North and South Wisconsin Synods. The North Wisconsin Synod is represented only by minutes and one folder of miscellaneous documents; the South by minutes, annual reports, newsletters, and a subject file with a great deal of information on benevolences among other topics.
The third group contains records of eight regional or local church organizations plus an alphabetical file of miscellaneous local programs, bulletins, etc. The container list indicates the eight organizations included; most are represented by a general record book.
The fourth Evangelical and Reformed group, records of women's organizations, originated with the Woman's Missionary Society of the Northwest Synod, North Wisconsin Synodical Women's Guild, South Wisconsin Synodical Women's Guild, and various regional guilds. They are represented by minutes and other meeting materials, treasurers' reports, historians' scrapbooks, and various other records.
The final series in this collection concerns the merger and events after the establishment of the United Church of Christ. Most of the merger documents were preserved by the Reverend Ralph Ley of the South Wisconsin Synod; they include minutes of the state committees involved in managing the consolidation and various general documents giving information and progress reports or making necessary arrangements. Non-merger documents in this series include forms giving information on sources of ministerial income, 1963 local church yearbook reports, a proposal for a housing project for the elderly in Madison, and tape recordings from the 1965-1968 annual meetings.
