Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1851-1880 (Creation)
Extent
0.18 cubic feet
Name of creator
Biographical history
David Edwards (1816-1876) was a United Brethren bishop and editor. He was born in Denbighshire, North Wales. His family moved to Ohio when he was five. When he was eighteen, Edwards experienced a religious conversion and became a member of the United Brethren Church. In 1836 he was ordained in the Scioto Conference. In 1845, he was elected editor of the Religious Telescope. He held that position for four years and refused reelection in 1849. Instead, the General Conference elected him bishop, a position he held for six successive terms. Edwards was instrumental in founding Otterbein University and in establishing the foreign mission work of the church.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
This collection contains a small assortment of papers related to David Edwards. There are three diaries: 1861, 1862, and 1864. These describe daily events. Two articles from the Religious Telescope are included -- one by Edwards in 1851, and a response to the article. Two certificates permitting Edwards to perform marriages are included in this collection -- one is from Ohio (1860), and one from West Virginia (1873). The collection also includes a statement against secret societies, a small ledger recording donations for the Edwards Monument Fund, a wallet belonging to Edwards, and an 1860 account book. In the Biographical folder there are two portraits and short history on the bishop's life.
System of arrangement
The collection is arranged by record type and topic.
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
There are no restrictions regarding this collection.
Physical access
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
Detailed use restrictions relating to our collections can be requested from the office of the archivist at the General Commission on Archives and History. Photocopying is handled by the staff and may be limited in certain instances. Before using any material for publication from this collection a formal request for permission to publish is expected and required.
Languages of the material
- English
Scripts of the material
Language and script notes
Finding aids
Acquisition and appraisal elements
Custodial history
Immediate source of acquisition
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information
Accruals
Related materials elements
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related archival materials
A charcoal portrait of Bishop Edwards is located at 1644-6-2:03.
Lewis Davis Papers contain a biographical manuscript on the life of Edwards (see Accession 1978-108).
Related descriptions
Notes element
General note
The statment on secret societies and the articles from the "Religious Telescope" have been photocopied from the originals.
The purpose of this finding aid is to help you understand the nature of this collection and to assist you in the retrieval of material from this collection. The following pages contain a brief biographical history of the person, or persons, who created or collected these papers, followed by a general description of the collection in the scope and content note. If more detailed information is warranted then series descriptions also appear. The container listing appears last and is the listing of material in each box, or container, of this collection.
To request material you need to turn to the container listing section. It is essentially a listing of file folders, or artifact items, in the collection. Each folder, or item, has a call number associated with it. Each folder also lists the inclusive dates of the material in the folder. On the material request form list both the call number and the folder, or item, title. Use a different line for each folder, or item, requested. When your request sheet is complete, or full, bring it to the archivist and the material will be retrieved.
General note
When citing material from this collection please use the following format: Direct reference to the item or its file folder, David Edwards Papers, United Methodist Church Archives - GCAH, Madison, New Jersey. Do not make use of the item's call number as that is not a stable descriptor.
Specialized notes
Alternative identifier(s)
Description control element
Rules or conventions
Sources used
Archivist's note
Prepared by Kristen Turner and Mark C. Shenise, Associate Archivists
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Church of the United Brethren in Christ (New constitution) (Subject)
- Edwards, Lucretia (Subject)