| Level | Sub-sub-sub-fonds |
| Finding Number (Click this to view full catalogue structure) | CMS/B/OMS/I8 |
| Title | Central Provinces mission |
| Extent | 5 volumes, 6 boxes |
| Date | 1904-1934 |
| Description | Records compiled by the committees of the CMS Overseas (Foreign) Division, London, up to 1934.
Comprising papers under the West Asia (Group 2) Committee. Including incoming correspondence from the mission to CMS in London 1904-1934, outgoing correspondence from the CMS in London to the mission 1904-1934, and office summaries (précis) of the incoming correspondence 1904-1934.
Papers under the West Asia and Asia committees for the years 1935-1959 are catalogued separately. Details are given below under ‘Finding Aids’. |
| Notes | 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Work is underway to address outdated, discriminatory, and offensive language in finding aids used by the Cadbury Research Library, and to improve accessibility of the online catalogue in line with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 | The papers are arranged as:
L: Letter-books 1904-1934 (outgoing)
O: Original papers 1904-1934 (incoming)
P: Précis books 1904-1934 (incoming: summaries) |
| 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 Central Provinces mission. Alternatively, the original paper catalogues for the mission series can be consulted in the Cadbury Research Library and CMS (Oxford). The Central Provinces mission series 1904-1934 are listed in the ‘West Asia (Group 2) Missions’ catalogue, volume two: North India.
The ‘Catalogue to the Papers of the Overseas Division’, which includes a listing of the 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 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 I8/1905/4. 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 I8/O 1905/4. |
| Administrative History | CMS work in North India began in Kolkata (at the time named 'Calcutta') in 1816. The 'North India mission' covered the whole of North India until 1878 and included work in the Himalaya area. Between 1878 and 1904 autonomous missions were set up for the Punjab, United Provinces, North-West Provinces and Central Provinces (see CMS/B/OMS/I India General). The area remaining comprised Bengal with Nadia district and Bihar with 'Santalia'.
In 1903, a new diocese was formed in India: the Diocese of Nagpur (part of the present day province of the Church of North India). The diocese was formed from the Central Provinces of 'Oudh' [Ayodhya] and Agra together with 'Rajputana' [Rajasthan] and 'Berar'. CMS had begun working in the area of the Central Provinces in 1854 and in [Rajasthan] in 1880. In December 1903, CMS separated this work from the CMS 'United Provinces mission' and in January 1904 set up a new Corresponding Committee for work in the new Nagpur Diocese.
Principle areas of work, in present-day Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, are listed below by area, thereunder by start date, with present-day place names in square brackets.
Work among people of Hindu and Muslim faith in the Central Provinces:
1854 Jabalpur
1899 Katni Murwara
Principle areas of work in 'Rajputana' [Rajasthan]:
1902 Bharatpur
Main stations for CMS work amongst the Gond Indigenous tribal peoples:
1879 'Manla'
1892 'Marpha'
1897 Patpara
1909 'Deori'
Stations for CMS work among the Bhil Indigenous tribal peoples:
1901 'Biladia'
1901 'Lusadia'
Work amongst the Bhil peoples was transferred to the CMS 'Western India Mission' in April 1915. |
| Archival Note | Catalogued by Rosemary A. Keen, 1962-1963. Handlist revised and expanded by Rosemary Keen, 1984-1985. 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); North India (Bengal) mission series (CMS/B/OMS/I1); Western India ('Bombay') mission series (CMS/B/OMS/I3); United Provinces mission series (CMS/B/OMS/G2 I7); Central Provinces mission series 1935-1958 (CMS/B/AS35-59/G2 I8). |