Church Federation of Greater Chicago records

Descriptive Summary

Title: Church Federation of Greater Chicago records
Dates: 1908-1985,
Predominant Dates: bulk 1950-1969
Creator: Church Federation of Greater Chicago
Creator: Chicago Conference on Religion and Race, Chicago Cooperative Council of City Missions, Chicago Council of Religious Education, Church Women United in Greater Chicago, Protestant Women's Protectorate (Chicago, Ill.), Woman's Church Federation (Chicago, Ill.), World Council of Churches.Assembly(2nd :1954 :Evanston, Ill.)
Size: 90.5 linear ft.
Language: Material is in English unless otherwise noted.

Scope and Content

Correspondence, minutes, reports, and financial records on ecumenical activities of the Church Federation of Greater Chicago, chiefly involving Protestant churches and agencies in Chicago and suburbs, and records of related organizations, including the Chicago Cooperative Council of City Missions; the Protestant Women's Protectorate minutes and scrapbooks, 1917-40s; the Chicago Council of Religious Education, 1920s-30s; and the Chicago Conference on Religion and Race. Includes material on social and political issues, urban renewal, crime, race relations, Native Americans, the Vietnam War, and the Hall of Religion at the Century of Progress Exposition, 1933-34. In later decades, the Church Federation also worked with Catholics and helped to sponsor charitable programs for people in need. From 1919 to 1972, Church Women United in Greater Chicago was affiliated with the Church Federation.

Conditions for Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Contact the archives for more information on licensing and permissions for use and reproduction.

Preferred Citation

A common citation for archives is as follows: Item, Folder number and/or title, Box number, Collection title, ID number, Repository name, location.

Acquisition Information

Episcopal Church Center Archives1996/04/051996.0123GiftEpiscopal Diocese of Chicago files re the Federation, 1959-91, 3 folders. Jesuit-Kraus-McCormick Library1993/101994.0001GiftCorrespondence, reports, and financial records connected with the Second General Assembly of the World Council of Churches, which met in Evanston, August 15-31, 1954. Most materials are either carbon copies of materials produced by the Rev. Ralph G. Schell, Executive Director of the Chicago-area festivities connected with the General Assembly (and an officer of the Church Federation of Greater Chicago), or the original copies of materials received by Schell in connection with those festivities. Church Federation of Greater Chicago1989.0777GiftCorrespondence, minutes, reports, financial records, and other working files of The Church Federation of Greater Chicago, 1933-1984, including similar working files of the Chicago Conference on Religion and Race, 120 linear ft. Church Federation of Greater ChicagoM1975.0003Gift.

Custodial History

Gift of the Church Federation of Greater Chicago (M1975.0003; 1989.0777), the Jesuit-Kraus-McCormick Library (1994.0001), and the Episcopal Church Center Archives (1996.0123).

Biography or History

The Church Federation of Greater Chicago, an interdenominational organization, was founded in 1907. It was known as the Chicago Church Federation Council, 1919-1920, and as the Chicago Church Federation, 1921-May 1944.

Related Material

Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the Church Federation of Greater Chicago photograph collection, Part 1 (1985.0410) and Church Federation of Greater Chicago photograph collection, Part 2 (1982.0145); the Church Women United in Greater Chicago records; the Church Women United in Greater Chicago photograph collection (1985.0409); as well as publications of the Church Federation of Greater Chicago, cataloged separately.

Descriptive inventory available for a portion of the collection.

Contents

Collection Access