Collections : [Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary]

This series contains materials compiled by the Missionary Research Library that document foreign mission work in the Near/Middle East during the early 20th century, including reports, pamphlets, minutes, clippings and publications, and educational records pertaining to the Near East School of Theology (transcribed by the Syria-Palestine Translation Service) and Robert College in Constantinople.

This series contains the manuscript originally entitled "Biblical Researches in Palestine and the Countries in the South," as well as appendices of English-Arabic lists and language exercises, travel itineraries, a guide to Arabic pronunciation and supplementary materials relating to travel. Included are all bound sections of Biblical Researches in Palestine and the Countries in the South; most of the text is in English, while annotations, notes, and the Arabic index and related notebooks include text in English, German, Hebrew, and Arabic. Pagination is contiguous with sections titled by place-name or subject. Folder titles delineate sections and breaks, which correspond to the following themes: Section I – Introduction. Greece and Egypt, pp.1-78 Section II – Cairo to Suez, pp.79-123 Section III – Suez to Mount Sinai pp.124-271 Section IV – Mount Sinai to 'Akabah pp.279-320 Section V – 'Akabah to Jerusalem, pp.321-406 Section VI – Jerusalem – Incidents and first impressions, pp.407-460 Section VII.I – Jerusalem topography and antiquities, pp.461-550 VII.II – Tower of Hippicus [sic] and other towers, pp.551-649 Section VIII – Jerusalem – History, statistics, etc., pp.650-764 Section IX – Excursion from Jerusalem to Bethel, etc., pp.765-820 Section X.I – Excursion to 'Ain Jidy, the Dead Sea, Jordan, etc., pp.821-924 X.II – [Untitled], pp.925-1021 Section XI – From Jerusalem to Gaza and Hebron, pp.1022-1190 Section XII.I – From Hebron to Wady Mûsa and back, pp.1191-1329 XII.II – [Untitled], pp.1330-1396 Section XIII – From Hebron to Ramleh and Jerusalem, pp.1397-1470 Section XIV – From Jerusalem to Nazareth and Mount Tabor, pp.1471-1650 Section XV – From Mount Tabor by the Lake of Tiberias to Safed, pp.1651-1790 Section XVI – From Safed by Tyre and Sidon to Beirut, pp.1791-1884 Section XVII – Religious Sects in Syria and Palestine, pp.1885-1904

This series contains records (largely collected by Talcott Williams) which show the expanded mission of the organization, including bulletins, cablegrams and other correspondence, newspaper clippings, press releases and fundraising materials, Executive Committee dockets, and minutes from other committees as well as reports on topics such as education in orphanages and religious education. Notable members of the organization, such as Cleveland Dodge and Charles Vernon Vickrey, Executive Secretary of Near East Relief, are represented, as is the plight of many displaced groups, such as Assyrians, Greeks and Armenians. These records show aid extended to Armenia, Syria, Persia, Beirut, Greece and other locations in Asia Minor. The series concludes with information from the Golden Rule Society, also collected and owned by Williams.

This series contains correspondence, notes, articles, pamphlets, reports and source files related to the beginning of the organization and the specific needs and conditions of Armenia and Syria. The correspondence documents the experiences of those in war-torn areas and the need for aid. The bulk of William Walker Rockwell's extensive correspondence is from 1911-1917. The letters go into detail regarding conditions in Armenia, such as deportations and poor treatment of individuals. Correspondence is from individuals and locations throughout the world, such as Germany and Switzerland. Rockwell also wrote to Ambassadors Henry Morgenthau and Abram I. Elkus, US Ambassadors to Turkey. Many of the documents contain copies of other material not directly related to the ACASR, such as other committees with related goals. Rockwell's materials also include his own writings, such as for the pamphlet, The Pitiful Plight of the Assyrian Christians, 1916. The remainder of the series offers source files, also collected by Rockwell, on ACASR work and what other organizations, such as the Federal Council of Churches and the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, were doing to help.