RESEARCHING THE CONGREGATIONAL STORY
We welcome all researchers, from veterans to those who are just starting out. In that spirit, we offer some general sources introducing Congregational and Christian history as well an orientation to some of our key digital resources. We also offer assistance with research-related questions. Contact us at 617.523.0470 x102 or email us at ref@14beacon.org.
The reference staff is happy to help with any questions, but please keep in mind that we limit staff time to approximately 30 minutes per reference request. If your inquiry requires more then the allotted 30 minutes, we ask that you visit the library or hire an outside researcher. The library is currently open by appointment only.
Exploring Congregational Christian History
The best historical overview remains John Von Rohr's The Shaping of American Congregationalism, 1620-1957 (Pilgrim Press, 1992), a systematic treatment of theology, polity and worship from the landing of the Pilgrims to the forming of the United Church of Christ in 1957. The other standard is Williston Walker's Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, first published in 1893 and most recently reissued by Pilgrim Press in 1991.
The seven-volume Living Theological Heritage Series (Pilgrim Press, 1995-2004) is a collection of original documents tracing the history of the Congregational Christian tradition from its first-century roots to the present. All of the documents are framed by interpretive essays and introductions.
The minutes of the National Council of Congregational Churches, formed in 1871, have been digitized through 1923. These provide diverse information on denominational programs, decisions, personalities, and conflicts.
Our obituary database links researchers to basic biographical information on some 29,000 Congregational Christian ministers and missionaries. The list is strongest for the period after the Civil War to the present—denominational record-keeping was not as efficient before then—and includes information from several of the digital sources listed on this page.
Yearbooks and Periodicals
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Congregational Yearbooks
One of the library's most frequently used reference resources is a succession of denominational yearbooks dating back to 1854. They contain lists of active ministers, necrologies (obituaries) of recently deceased ministers, church statistics, and the denominations' annual reports. This resource is particularly useful to churches preparing for an anniversary, genealogists, and authors researching church histories.
Listed below are links to digitized copies of those yearbooks from its inception through the present (except those published by the UCC) on the Internet Archive.
Please note that the yearbooks for 1854-1914a are dated to reflect the years of their publication but contain statistics for the previous calendar year, while 1914b-1960 contain statistics for the year indicated.
During the early 20th century, American Congregationalism experienced some fairly dramatic reorganization. When the National Council of Congregational Churches and the General Convention of the Christian Church merged in 1929, their respective annual publications — the Congregational Year-Book and the Christian Annual — also merged to form the Yearbook of the Congregational and Christian Churches.
We have also digitized copies of the Christian annuals (see the next tab), and a chart detailing the titles' evolution.
Over the next two decades, groups within the General Council then separated to form the Conservative Congregational Christian Convention in 1948, the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches in 1955, and the remainder eventually merged with the E&R to create the United Church of Christ in 1957.
Each new organization publishes its own yearbooks. The CCCC and NACCC have generously allowed us to make past issues of their respective annual publications available online (see the tabs below).
Yearbook of the American Congregational Union (1854)
1854American Congregational Year-Book (1865-59)
1855 | 1856 | 1857 | 1858 | 1859Congregational Quarterly (1859-78)
1859
1860 | 1861 | 1862 | 1863 | 1864 | 1865 | 1866 | 1867 | 1868 | 1869
1870 | 1871 | 1872 | 1873 | 1874 | 1875 | 1876 | 1877 | 1878Congregational Year-Book (1879-1928)
1879
1880 | 1881 | 1882 | 1883 | 1884 | 1885 | 1886 | 1887 | 1888 | 1889
1890 | 1891 | 1892 | 1893 | 1894 | 1895 | 1896 | 1897 | 1898 | 1899
1900 | 1901 | 1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909
1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 a. | 1914 b. | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919
1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928Yearbook of the Congregational and Christian Churches (1929-1939)
1929
1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939Yearbook of the Congregational Christian Churches (1940-1960)
1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949
1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959
1960 -
Christian Annuals
The Congregational Library has a sizable collection of materials from the Christian Church. Although the Christian denomination only published national statistics sporadically until the late 19th century, the information contained in them provides lists of churches, and annual reports from regional conferences.
Information that would have been in a 1901 Annual was published in the Herald of Gospel Liberty vol. 92, no. 21 (Dec. 20, 1900), pp. 809-824 as "The Christians' Annual, 1901."
When the General Convention of the Christian Church and the National Council of Congregational Churches merged in 1929, their respective annual publications—the Christian Annual and the Congregational Year-Book—also merged to form the Yearbook of the Congregational and Christian Churches (see the tab above).
We have also digitized copies of the Congregational yearbooks, and a chart detailing the titles' evolution.
Quadrennial Book of the American Christian Convention (1886 and 1891)
1886 | 1891Christians' Annual (1897-1900)
1897 | 1898 | 1899 | 1900Herald of Gospel Liberty (December 20, 1900)
1901Christian Annual (1902-29)
1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909
1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919
1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929 -
CCCC Yearbooks
Formed in 1948, the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference (CCCC) is, as its name suggests, a theologically conservative body with member churches from the Congregational, Christian, and Evangelical & Reformed traditions. It is the oldest of the three Congregational organizations that arose from the dissolution of the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches in the early twentieth century.
Listed below are links to the scanned copies of the CCCC yearbooks from 1960 to 2007 that are available on the Internet Archive.
Conservative Congregational Christian Conference Yearbook
1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965
1971 | 1973 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979
1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989
1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 -
NACCC Yearbooks
Formed in 1955, the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (NACCC) is a fellowship of autonomous churches rather than a governing body. It is one of the three Congregational organizations that arose from the dissolution of the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches in the early 20th century. Listed below are links to scanned copies of the NACCC yearbooks from 1963 to 2005 on the Internet Archive, as well as digital versions of more recent volumes on the Association's own site.
Scanned yearbooks for preceding years and organizations can be found on the "Congregational Yearbooks" tab above.
National Association of Congregational Christian Churches Handbook (1963-72)
1963 | 1964 | 1965-6 | 1966-7 | 1967-8 | 1968-9
1970 | 1971-2National Association of Christian Churches Yearbook (1972-2005)
1972-3 | 1973-4 | 1974-5 | 1975-6 | 1976-7 | 1977-8 | 1978-9 | 1979-80
1980-1 | 1981-2 | 1982-3 | 1983-4 | 1984-5 | 1985-6 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989
1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 -
Canadian Congregational Yearbooks
Since the mid-nineteenth century, the various Congregational organizations across Canada have gathered for annual meetings. The Canadian Congregational Year Books contain church statistics, reports from seminaries and missionary organizations, and obituaries of prominent members.
Listed below are links to digitized copies of those yearbooks from 1873-1923 on Internet Archive.
Canadian Congregational Year Book
1873-74 | 1874-75 | 1875-76 | 1876-77 | 1877-78 | 1878-79 | 1879-80
1880-81 | 1881-82 | 1882-83 | 1883-84 | 1884-85 | 1885-86 | 1886-87 | 1887-88 | 1888-89 | 1889-90
1890-91 | 1891-92 | 1892-93 | 1893-94 | 1894-95 | 1895-96 | 1896-97 | 1897-98 | 1898-99 | 1899-1900
1900-01 | 1901-02 | 1902-03 | 1903-04 | 1904-05 | 1905-06 | 1906-07 | 1907-08 | 1909-10
1910-11 | 1911-12 | 1912-13 | 1913-14 | 1914-15 | 1915-16 | 1916-17 | 1917-18 | 1918-19 | 1919-20
1920-21 | 1921-22 | 1922 | 1923 -
The Panoplist
In the early 19th century, missionaries from across the United States travelled to mission fields around the world. Many of their letters and reports were collected and republished for the edification of those back home. One such publication in New England was the Panoplist, which later merged with the Massachusetts Missionary Magazine and eventually became the Missionary Herald. Listed below are links to scanned copies of these titles on the Internet Archive
For a look at how these titles fit into the larger succession of Congregational periodicals, take a look at this genealogical title map.
Panoplist, or the Christian's Armory (1805-8)
1805-6 | 1806-7 | 1807-8 (version 1) | 1807-8 (version 2)Panoplist and Missionary Magazine United (1808-12)
1808-9 | 1809-10 | 1910-1 | 1811-2 (version 1) | 1811-2 (version 2)Panoplist and Missionary Magazine (1812-7)
1812-3 | Jun-Dec 1813 (version 1) | Jun-Dec 1813 (version 2) | Jun-Dec 1813 (version 3) | 1814
1815 (version 1) | 1815 (version 2) | 1816 | 1817The Panoplist, and Missionary Herald (1818-20)
1818 (version 1) | 1818 (version 2) | 1819 | 1820continued by The Missionary Herald (1821-1934)
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Massachusetts Conference Minutes
Although the organization has changed names many times over the years, there has been at least one conference or association of Congregational churches in Massachusetts for more than two hundred years. Like many organizations, they have held annual meetings and published the minutes of those meeting for their constituents. They also include annual statistics for member congregations and clergy. Listed here are links to scanned copies of the minutes of annual meetings from 1807 to 2003.
The General Association of Massachusetts and the General Conference of the Congregational Churches of Massachusetts merged in 1868 to form the General Association of the Congregational Churches of Massachusetts.
Please note that the bound volumes from which these records were scanned often span multiple years and organizational name changes. You may have to page through or do a search within the volume to find your desired year.
Minutes of the General Association of Massachusetts (1807-67)
1807-30 | 1831-40 | 1841-50 | 1851-60 | 1861-7Minutes of the General Conference of the Congregational Churches of Massachusetts (1860-67)
1860-7Minutes of the General Association of the Congregational Churches of Massachusetts (1861-1909)
1861-70 | 1871-5 | 1876-80 | 1881-5 | 1886-90 | 1891-5 | 1896-1900
1901-5 | 1906-9Minutes of the Massachusetts Congregational Conference (1906-30)
1906-10 | 1911-5 | 1916-20 | 1921-5 | 1926-30Minutes of the Massachusetts Congregational Conference and Missionary Society (1926-52)
1926-30 | 1931-5 | 1936-42 | 1943-9 | 1950-2Minutes of the Massachusetts Congregational Christian Conference (1953-66)
1953-6 | 1957-63 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966Minutes of the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ (1967-2003)
1967 | 1968 | 1969
1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979
1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989
1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 -
National Council Minutes
From its first official meeting in 1865 until the merger with the Christians in 1931, the National Council of Congregational Churches held triennial meetings and published the resulting minutes. They contain reports from various committees, lists of members, papers presented during the meetings, memorials, and much more.
Listed below are links to digitized copies of those minutes up to 1923 on Internet Archive.
Minutes of the National Council of Congregational Churches in the United States
1865
1871 | 1874 | 1877
1880 | 1883 | 1886 | 1889
1892 | 1895 | 1898
1901 | 1904 | 1907
1910 | 1913 | 1915 | 1917 | 1919
1921 | 1923
Books and Historical Collections
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The Vinton Books
During the 19th century, many Congregational missionaries traveled the world under the auspices of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). In 1869, Rev. John A. Vinton compiled brief biographies for those missionaries who had served in the field until that date. The collection was updated several times in the decades following Vinton's death, and transcribed copies exist at several institutions, but it has never been published.
Because it is such a rare and valuable resource for our researchers, particularly religious historians and genealogists, we have made it available online through the Internet Archive. Simply click on the volume title to view the full text.
Volume I: Africa, Asia, and the Papal lands (Austria, Italy, Spain, and Mexico)
Volume II: North American Indians, the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii), Micronesia, East Indian Islands (Borneo, Java, Sumatra), Patagonia, and the exploring mission to South America
Volume III: The Near East (Armenia, Persia, Syria, and Turkey)
Volume IV: Addenda, 1885-1910
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Biographical Sketches of the Congregational Pastors of New England
The original manuscript of these biographies was compiled by Dr. Emerson Davis in the mid-nineteenth century. It was presented to the Congregational Library by his widow in 1869, and proved so useful that it eventually began to deteriorate. In 1926, the board of directors commissioned two typewritten copies from Miss C. C. Noyes that were bound and have been in use by our researchers ever since.
Because it is such a rare and valuable resource for our researchers, particularly religious historians and genealogists, we have made it available online through the Internet Archive. Simply click on the volume title to view the full text.
Volume 1: Abbot, ME–Chester, CT
Volume 2: Chester, NH–Hanover, MA
Volume 3: Hanson, MA–Naples, ME
Volume 4: Nashua, NH–Sandisfield, MA
Volume 5: Sandown, NH–York, ME
Volume 6: Surname Index
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Builders of a Commonwealth (Iowa)
Truman Douglass, a pastor of the Congregational Church in Osage, IA from 1868-82 and Superintendent of the Congregational Home Missionary Society from 1882-1907, compiled a record of biographical information for Congregational ministers in Iowa up to 1900. This typed manuscript in the Grinnell College Archives collection was used as a source for his published work, Pilgrims of Iowa, but was never published itself. The biographies contained in these volumes are much more detailed than Douglass could possibly fit into the published versions, containing many personal anecdotes and extensive chronicles of the ministers' careers.
To find an individual minister within the collection by name, search our obituary database, then use the citation to find them in the corresponding volume on Internet Archive.
Volume 1: The Patriarchs and their Associates
Volume 2: The Iowa Band
Volume 3: Other Men of the Forties
Volume 4: Men of the Third Decade
Volume 5: Pilgrim Preachers of the Late Fifties
Volume 6: Men of the Early Sixties
Volume 7: 1865-1869
Volume 8: 1870-1874
Volume 9: 1875-1879
Volume 10: 1880-1884
Volume 11: 1885-1889
Volume 12: 1890-1894
Volume 13: 1895-1900
Researching Individual Churches
Because Congregational and Christian churches had no central denominational office until the early twentieth century, records of individual congregations can be a challenge to locate. Many have been destroyed or simply lost, a situation the Congregational Library & Archives is working to rectify through our Hidden Histories project.
Our Hidden Histories collection contains a growing list of rare and previously inaccessible New England colonial-era church records, and our online catalog includes many individual histories of local churches, towns, and counties. In addition, denominational yearbooks provide data on membership, location, and names of pastors.
In many cases, however, local churches disbanded, federated, or merged, and changed their names accordingly. Researchers trying to locate these records will want to begin by consulting one of the sources below:
An Inventory of the Records of the Particular (Congregational) Churches in Massachusetts, Gathered 1620-1805, by Harold Field Worthley
In the 1980s, for his Harvard doctoral dissertation, former Congregational Library & Archives Director Harold Worthley visited every Congregational and Unitarian church in Massachusetts that had been organized before 1805. His immensely useful book provides a brief history of each church, as well as lists of the colonial-era records he found, and their locations at the time.
Regional Indexes
Researchers trying to locate records of an old church, or of one no longer in existence, will find this series immensely helpful. Richard H. Taylor's collection provides a well-researched and informative introduction for six different regions of the United States, and a detailed index of mergers, closings, and name changes for every known Congregational Church and post-merger Congregational Christian Church, from the colonial period to the present.
Titles include:
The Churches of Christ of the Congregational Way in New England (1989), available in digital form
(We have transcribed Taylor's abbreviation keys for this book for easy reference.)
Southern Congregational Churches (1994)
Congregational Churches of the West (1992)
Plan of Union and Congregational Churches of Christ in the Middle Atlantic States (2005)
Congregational and Plan of Union Churches in the Great Lake States (2009)
Congregational Churches on the Plains (2012)
American Congregationalism's Partner Churches: Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Pacific (2021)
Historical Directory of the Christian Denomination and Afro-Christian Churches (2023)
You can purchase all of these volumes through RHT Publishing here. The library has copies of the New England and West editions for sale, and you can find out more by contacting us at ref@14beacon.org.