| Level | Sub-series |
| Finding Number (Click this to view full catalogue structure) | CMS/B/OMS/C/I3 |
| Title | 'Western India mission' later 'Bombay [Mumbai] mission' |
| Extent | 31 volumes, 19 boxes, 2690 items |
| Date | 1820-1935 |
| Description | Records compiled by the committees of the CMS Overseas (Foreign) Division, London, up to 1934. The Western India mission series include information on CMS work in Ethiopia ('Abyssinia') and East Africa.
Comprising papers under the Committee of Correspondence 1820-1880, and under the West Asia (initially 'Group 2') Committee 1880-1935. Including incoming correspondence from the mission to the CMS in London 1820-1934, outgoing correspondence from the CMS in London to the mission 1820-1935, office copies of the incoming correspondence 1820-1880, and office summaries (précis) of the incoming correspondence 1890-1934.
Papers of 'Bombay mission' under the West Asia and Asia committees for the years 1935-1959 are catalogued separately. Details are given below under ‘Finding Aids’. |
| Notes | Former Tree Number reference: XCMS/B/OMS/I3 |
When the catalogue was created names of mission stations were standardised but there was no attempt to give present-day place names where these differ from place names in the records. The bulk of names in the sub-number references are the spellings used in the documents.
Work is underway to address outdated, discriminatory, and offensive language in finding aids used by the Cadbury Research Library, and to improve accessibility of the online catalogue in line with current standards including adding present-day place names standardised according to 'The Times Atlas of the World', comprehensive edition, 2023. Copies of the original catalogues have been retained as a record. |
| Arrangement | Papers under the Committee of Correspondence are arranged as:
I: Individual letter-books 1852-1880 (outgoing)
L: Letter-books 1820-1888 (outgoing)
M: Mission books 1820-1880 (incoming: copies)
O: Original papers 1820-1880 (incoming)
Papers under the West Asia (initially Group 2) Committee are arranged as:
L: Letter-books 1889-1935 (outgoing)
O: Original papers 1880-1934 (incoming)
P: Précis books 1890-1934 (incoming: summaries)
The letter-books started under the Committee of Correspondence continued to be used after the day-to-day administration of the mission passed from the Committee of Correspondence to the Group Committee. Researchers interested in outgoing correspondence dating from 1881 to 1888 will need to use the letter-book held under finding number CMS/B/OMS/C I3 L5. |
| Finding Aids | Click on the Finding Number to display the full online catalogue of the Overseas Division mission series up to 1934, including the lower level entries for Western India ('Bombay') mission series. Alternatively, the original paper catalogues for the mission series can be consulted in the Cadbury Research Library and CMS (Oxford). The papers 1820-c 1934 are listed in the ‘West Asia (Group 2) Missions’ catalogue, volume four: Western India.
The ‘Catalogue to the Papers of the Overseas Division’, which includes a listing of the 'Bombay' [Mumbai] mission series 1935-1959, is not available online. A paper copy of the catalogue is available to view in the Cadbury Research Library and CMS (Oxford). Copies can also be supplied on request (email: special-collections@contacts.bham.ac.uk). |
| Access Status | Open |
| Physical Description | The papers under the West Asia (Group 2) Committee are missing hundreds of items [CMS/B/OMS G2 I3].
The archive reference numbers for the pre-1880 incoming papers are marked in pencil on the back of each individual item, for example, C I3/O2/9. The post-1880 incoming papers are each individually marked in red ink, and this number, plus the year, comprised the original archive reference for each item, for example, G2 I3/1901/146. When the records were transferred to the University of Birmingham and the online copy of the catalogue was created the archive finding numbers for the records of the Overseas Division were extended: the letters CMS/B/OMS were added at the beginning of the original filing numbers (denoting records of the Church Mission Society Archive: Overseas Division: Overseas Mission Series). In addition, for the papers under the West Asia (Group 2) Committee, a letter denoting the type of record (O for Original papers or L for Letter-book, etc) was added after the mission reference, for example, CMS/B/OMS/G2 I3/O 1901/146. |
| Administrative History | The work of the CMS Western India mission began with the establishment of a Corresponding Committee for CMS work in Mumbai (at the time named 'Bombay') in June 1818. The first missionary arrived from England in 1820. Over time some of the work was transferred to new autonomous missions and CMS Western India mission was renamed 'Bombay' mission. From 1943 it became the 'Bombay and Nasik' mission.
Early work spread from Mumbai to 'Nasik' (from 1832), 'Junir' (from 1843), 'Malegaon' (from 1848), 'Aurangabad' (from 1860) and 'Poona' (from 1882). There was special work amongst Muslim peoples and Parsee [Parsi] communties. The mission was also active amongst Bhil ('Bheel') Indigenous peoples in 'Kherwara' (from 1880), in 'Lusadia' and 'Biladia' (from 1901). The latter stations were transferred to the control of the Western India mission in 1915 having originally been under CMS Central Provinces mission.
Work in Sindh ('Sind') centered on Karachi (from 1850), Hyderabad (from 1856) and 'Sukkar' (from 1859). When the diocese of Lahore was established in 1877, the Sindh mission was amalgamated with the Punjab mission (formerly part of the North India mission) thus establishing 'Punjab and Sindh' as an independent mission in 1878.
The Western India Mission series includes information on CMS work in Ethiopia ('Abyssinia') and East Africa because administration of finance and supplies was run from Mumbai ('Bombay') by the mission secretary from 1828 onwards and German missionaries in Mumbai corresponded with their fellow-countrymen in East Africa. |
| Archival Note | Papers catalogued by Rosemary A. Keen 1983. Copied to the University of Birmingham online archive catalogue, 2000. Updates underway, 2024. |
| Related Material | Records of the CMS Overseas Division: 'India General' series (CMS/B/OMS/I); Central Provinces mission series (CMS/B/OMS/G2 I8); Punjab and Sindh mission series (CMS/B/OMS/I4); 'Bombay' mission series 1935-1943 and Bombay and Nasik missions 1943-1959 series (CMS/B/AS35-59/G2 I3). Records relating to Ethiopia are held in the Mediterranean mission series (CMS/B/OMS/C M) and East Africa mission series (CMS/B/OMS/C A5). |