Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1912-1963 (Creation)
Extent
1.0 cubic feet
Name of creator
Biographical history
John Samuel Stamm (1878-1956) was born in Elida, Kansas in 1878. After only five grades in public school, at the age of twenty he applied to the Evangelical College and Seminary. Not qualifying for advanced academic work, he took sub-academy courses, and twelve years later graduated from both the college and the seminary. After several parish appointments, he served the Glasgow Evangelical Mission in Missouri.
Stamm married Priscilla Wahl on March 19, 1912. He was elected to teach systematic theology at the Evangelical Seminary in Naperville, Illinois, and remained in this post until he was elected bishop in 1922. During his first eight years as bishop, Stamm served as General Secretary of Evangelism. Following his episcopal assignment he was President of the School of Theology in Reading, Pennsylvania until 1941. After this assignment , he served as President of the Pennsylvania Council of Churches 1945-1949, and then the Federal Council of Churches from 1948-1950. Stamm retired in 1950. He then moved back to Kansas City, Missouri, where he continued to preach. Bishop Stamm died on March 5, 1956.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
The John Samuel Stamm Collection is comprised of two series. In the first series there are three typed manucript volumes which include lectures, Bible studies, and orientation messages delivered to Evangelical Seminary students in 1955. Other bound manuscript volumes include a commentary on I Thessalonians; an autobiobraphy; two volumes of sermons; letters of appreciation on the occasion of Stamm's retirement as well as a volume of Remembrances; and a history of the proceedings in the union of the Church of the United Brethren and the Evangelical Church. The second series is comprised of two scrapbooks containing clippings, articles, and expressions of appreciation at the time of his death.
System of arrangement
Arrangement Series: Manuscripts Series: Scrap Books
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
Priscilla Marie Wahl Stamm Papers
Related descriptions
Notes element
General note
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, John Samuel Stamm Collection, 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 Mark Shenise, Associate Archivist
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Evangelical Church (Subject)
- Evangelical United Brethren Church (Subject)