Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1861-1982 (Creation)
Extent
17.5 cubic feet
Name of creator
Biographical history
George Amos Miller (1868-1961) and Margaret Ross Miller (1870-1955) spent nearly three decades as missionaries and administrators for the Methodist Episcopal Church in Central and South America. Both attended Stanford University in California, and they were married in 1894.
After George Miller's ordination in 1896, they served churches in California until 1904, during which time they had their two daughters, Marian and Evelyn. In 1905 the Millers took their first overseas assignment when George Miller became pastor of Central Church in Manila. IN 1907, the Millers returned to the United States, where George Miller worked for the American Bible Society. He returned to local church work in 1908, and served churches in California until the Millers took their first assignment as missionaries in 1917. George Miller served as mission superintendent (1917-1919), and began pioneering Methodist work in Costa Rica.
George Miller was appointed executive secretary of mission work in South America for the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1920, and served this post from Santiago, Chile. While in Chile, Margaret Miller began her effort to organize women's groups on the mission fields. These groups were later organized into the Federation of Women's Societies, for which she wrote several study books. She also wrote and published Women Under the Southern Cross for the sixteen denominations in the U.S. that combined their missionary study courses. Conference. Miller was elected bishop in 1924 served one quadrennium each from headquarters in Mexico City, Buenos Aires, and Santiago. He retired in 1934, served a local church in Lafayette, California, and continued his interest in Latin American missions. Margaret Miller served as president of the Pacific branch of the former Women's Foreign Missionary Society, serving also in that capacity in the Women's Society of Christian Service.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
The majority of this collection covers the years the Millers spent in Mexico and Central and South America, and extends to their retirement in California. Correspondence from both of the Millers to their daughter Evelyn ranges from 1915 to the late 1940s. There is also correspondence between George Miller and friends and supporters in the U.S., as well as limited administrative correspondence with church leaders in Panama, Costa Rica, Chile, Argentina, and Board of Missions personnel in the U.S. Photographs from the different mission fields make up another large portion of the collection. There also are photographs of the Miller family from the late nineteenth century. The Millers made films and audio tapes of mission work for use in their lectures and presentations in the U.S. These are preserved in collection. The audio tapes are in seven inch reel format. The films are both in original 16mm format and have been copied onto VHS and Beta tapes for viewing. The remainder of the collection is made up of copies of the Miller's various publications, including books and articles, short essays and drafts of published work, as well as collected articles, clippings, newsletters, and essays by other authors on the topic of missions.
System of arrangement
This collection is arranged by series and subseries.
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
There are no restrictions on 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
Related descriptions
Notes element
General note
When citing material from this collection please use the following format: Direct reference to the item or its file folder, George Amos and Margaret Ross Miller Papers, United Methodist Church Archives - GCAH, Madison, New Jersey. Do not make use of the items' 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 Morris L. Davis, Jr., Manuscripts Processor, and Myeongho Cha, Student Assistant.
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Berger, Evelyn Miller (Subject)