Scope and Contents
The Irah Chase Papers, 1814-1864, primarily document the professional work of Chase. The collection is arranged according to the following categories: correspondence, sermons, addresses, lectures, unpublished literary manuscripts, publications, student lecture notes from Andover Theological Seminary, notes on readings, notes on sermons, miscellaneous papers and reports.
Included in the correspondence are several letters which relate to early Baptist educational work in general and to the ministerial training school in Philadelphia and Washington in particular. The sermon notes were transcribed during his student days at Andover, and provide a record of chapel sermons not available elsewhere. The miscellaneous papers primarily relate to Baptist educational work in the early 19th century.
Also included is a small number of items related to Cummings family genealogy, collected by William Leverett Cummings, a descendant of Henry Savage Chase, son of Irah and Harriet Savage, as well as an addendum contain photographs of the Middle East and additional correspondence and writings.
Also included is a small number of items related to Cummings family genealogy, collected by William Leverett Cummings, a descendant of Henry Savage Chase, son of Irah and Harriet Savage, as well as an addendum contain photographs of the Middle East and additional correspondence and writings.
Dates
- 1814 - 1864
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Transferred from Andover Newton Theological School to the Yale Divinity Library in 2017.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into eight series:
Series I. Correspondence
Series II. Sermons
Series III. Addresses and Lectures
Series IV. Unpublished Literary Manuscripts
Series V. Publications
Series VI. Notes
Series VII. Miscellaneous Papers and Reports
Series VIII. Addendum
Series I. Correspondence
Series II. Sermons
Series III. Addresses and Lectures
Series IV. Unpublished Literary Manuscripts
Series V. Publications
Series VI. Notes
Series VII. Miscellaneous Papers and Reports
Series VIII. Addendum
Extent
3 Linear Feet (7 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Overview
The collection documents Chase's theological training and his work at Columbian College and the Newton Theological Institution where he taught Biblical theology (1825-1838) and church history (1838-1845), as well as his later work as an author of tracts and articles for religious periodicals.
Biographical / Historical
Irah Chase was born in Stratton, Vermont, in 1793, and spent his childhood in that state. He graduated from Middlebury College in 1814, and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1817. After a year of service as a missionary in Virginia, Irah Chase co-founded a Baptist theological seminary in Philadelphia, which was relocated to Washington, D.C. and named Columbian College. Columbian College was chartered by Congress in 1821 and eventually was renamed George Washington University in 1904. In 1825 Chase moved to Massachusetts to inaugurate the course of study at Newton Theological Institution. At Newton he taught Biblical theology (1825-1838) and church history (1838-1845). After 1845 he engaged in literary work, and published several tracts and articles for religious periodicals. He died in Newton in 1864 and is buried in Newton Cemetery.
- Title
- Guide to the Irah Chase Papers
- Author
- Andover Newton Theological School and Yale Divinity Library staff
- Date
- 2018
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Yale Divinity Library Repository