Skip to main content

Amherst College Church and Chapel Records

 Collection
Identifier: MA.00252

Scope and Contents

This collection consists of records of the Church of Christ in Amherst College and other Christian religious activity on campus from the founding of the college to the mid-twentieth century. Included in the collection are records of Amherst student involvement in Zion Chapel/Hope Church, an African-American church in the town of Amherst. The collection includes manuscript records, correspondence, printed material, and books.

Dates

  • Creation: 1825-1968
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1865 - 1920

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Attendance records, 1965-1968 are restricted under FERPA regulations. Particularly fragile items may be restricted for preservation purposes.

Conditions Governing Use

Requests for permission to publish material from the collection should be directed to the Archives and Special Collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights.

Biographical / Historical

The Church of Christ in Amherst College was organized March 7, 1826. It was a non-sectarian Christian congregation and the church of the College. It did acknowledge, however, strong ties to the Congregational Church. It dissolved in the 1920s. Chapel attendence at Amherst College was mandatory from the College’s beginnings until the 1960s. Other religious organizations on campus are also represented in the collection. One project of the religious community at the College was the establishment of Zion Chapel, an African-American congregation in the Town of Amherst that became known as Hope Community Church.

Extent

6 Linear feet (5 records boxes, 1 archives box, 1 flat box)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Records of the Church of Christ in Amherst College and other Christian religious activity on campus, including Amherst student involvement in Zion Chapel/Hope Church, from the founding of the college to the mid-twentieth century. Includes manuscript records, correspondence, printed material, and books.

Status
Completed
Author
Mariah Leavitt
Date
2014 November
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Amherst College Archives and Special Collections Repository

Contact:
Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
Robert Frost Library
61 Quadrangle Drive
Amherst MA 01002-5000
(413) 542-2299