Sidney R. Anderson Papers

Collection

Call Number: RG 200

Scope and Contents

The Sidney R. Anderson Papers consist of correspondence, writings, photographs, slides, printed material, and personal papers documenting the life and work of Methodist missionaries Sidney and Olive Anderson. The collection spans the years 1914 to 2005, with the bulk of the collection dating from the 1950s to the 1970s. Correspondence and printed material document the Andersons' work at Moore Memorial Church in Shanghai, but the majority of the collection relates to their work in Hong Kong and with Chinese students and acquaintances whom they assisted in various ways, particularly the Luk family. Biographical information and a book written by the Andersons' son, Sidney R. Anderson, Jr., provide context for documentation of their work.

The Addendum of Series VIII contains material that was received after the bulk of the collection had already been processed. It includes the majority of the documentation of their years of service in China.

Dates

1914-2005
Majority of material found within 1955 - 1978

Creator

Anderson, Sidney Raymond, 1889-1978

Conditions Governing Access

The materials are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Sidney R. Anderson, Jr., 2006-2008

Arrangement

I. Correspondence, 1955-1978
II. Writings, 1945-2005
III. Documentation of Work in Hong Kong, 1951-1967
IV. Collected Material, 1935-1976
V. Personal Items and Memorabilia, 1962-1978
VI. Photographs, 1914-1970
VII. Slides, 1955-1969
VIII. Addendum, 1915-1980

Extent

6 Linear Feet (12 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Catalog Record

A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog

Persistent URL

https://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/divinity.200

Additional Description

Overview

Correspondence, writings, photographs, slides, and collected material document the life and work of Sidney and Olive Anderson, who were Methodist missionaries in China and Hong Kong from 1915 to 1963. They were instrumental in the development of the Moore Memorial Church in Shanghai and spent twelve years in Hong Kong after 1951 working with refugees from mainland China and at the North Point Methodist Church.

Biographical / Historical

Chronology of Sidney Anderson

1889 December 7: Sidney Raymond Anderson born in Rising Star, Texas
1911: Graduated from Polytechnic College (later Southern Methodist University)
1914: Graduated from Vanderbilt Divinity School
1914: Went to China under the Board of Missions, Methodist Episcopal Church, South
1915: Ordained at the East China Conference, Suzhou (Soochow); worked in cities and villages in Jiangsu (Kiangsu) and Zhejiang (Chekiang)
1920: Returned to U.S. on furlough, married Olive Lipscomb (1890-1978), who had also served in China. Studied at Columbia University and Union Seminary in New York. Olive's mother, Bessie Lipscomb was a Secretary in the Board of Missions and lived in Nashville.
1921-1949: Returned to China and worked primarily at Moore Memorial Church in Shanghai. Developed an active program at the church and built a new building. Instrumental in developing conferences for young people, adult education programs, and village welfare schools.
1922: Sidney R. Anderson, Jr. born in Shanghai
1951-1963: Following a furlough in the U.S. began work in Hong Kong primarily among refugees from mainland China and at North Point Methodist Church.
1964: Retired to San Francisco and worked among the Chinese there.
1971: Moved to the Wesley Woods Retirement Center in Atlanta, Georgia
1978: Sidney and Olive Anderson died.

Processing Information

Place names were modernized in the description, with the name originally used in the collection material or in an older version of the finding aid in parenthesis: e.g. “Beijing (Peking)” or “Benin (Dahomey)”.