Church Missionary Society Archive|Section IV: Africa Missions

The Church Missionary Society (CMS) archive includes letter books, mission books, original (incoming) papers and other records from their overseas missions during the 19th and 20th century. The mission papers are a rich source for Church and mission history. The papers include, for example, the detailed journals and annual letters which the society's missionaries were required to provide as an account of their activities. As the work of the missions embraced not just evangelism but also education, medical work, language study and translations, and development of local agriculture and industry, these detailed records are a valuable resource for study in a wide range of other research interests including anthropology, politics, slavery, geography and travel, and women's studies.

The archives and special collections are available for consultation by special appointment only. To arrange an appointment please email specialcollections@hope.ac.uk. Allow at least 24 hours notice. Please note that, in line with other archives and special collections, we require personal identification, and may, in some circumstances, ask you to provide references from your research supervisor or other suitable person or body. Please refer to the Access the Collections webpage for detailed information.

The overseas mission work of the CMS began in Sierra Leone in 1804 but spread rapidly to India, Canada, New Zealand and the area around the Mediterranean. Its main areas of work in Africa have been in Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Sudan. The contents of the CMS archive in A&SC mainly covers West Africa.