| Level | Sub-sub-sub-fonds |
| Finding Number (Click this to view full catalogue structure) | CMS/B/OMS/PE |
| Title | 'Persia mission' later 'Iran mission' |
| Extent | 12 volumes, 11 boxes, 110 items |
| Date | 1875-1934 |
| Description | Records compiled by the committees of the CMS Overseas (Foreign) Division, London, up to 1934.
Comprising papers under the Committee of Correspondence 1875-1880 and under the West Asia (initially Group 2) Commitee 1880-1934. Including incoming correspondence from the mission to CMS, London 1875-1934, outgoing correspondence from the CMS in London to the mission 1876-1934, office copies of incoming correspondence 1876-1880, and office summaries of the incoming correspondence 1881-1934.
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Work is underway to address outdated, discriminatory, and offensive language in finding aids used by the Cadbury Research Library, and to improve accessibility of the online catalogue in line with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 | Papers under the Committee of Correspondence are arranged as:
L: Letter-books 1876-1893 (outgoing)
M: Mission books 1876-1880 (incoming: copies)
O: Original papers 1875-1880 (incoming)
Papers under the West Asia (initially Group 2) Committee are arranged as:
L: Letter-books 1893-1934 (outgoing)
O: Original papers 1880-1934 (incoming)
P: Précis books 1881-1934 (incoming: summaries)
The letter-book of outgoing correspondence started under the Committee of Correspondence continued to be used for the first years under the Group Committee. Researchers looking for outgoing correspondence from the Secretaries in London for 1881-1893 should consult the letter-book under finding number CMS/B/OMS/C PE L1. |
| 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 'Persia' [Iran]. Alternatively, the original paper catalogues for the mission series can be consulted in the Cadbury Research Library and CMS (Oxford). The 'Persia mission' series 1875-1934 are listed in the ‘West Asia (Group 2) Missions’ catalogue, volume six: 'Persia and Turkish Arabia'.
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 'Persia mission' papers under the West Asia (Group 2) Committee are missing hundreds of items of incoming correspondence (CMS/B/OMS/G2 PE). The missing numbers are listed in the typescript handlist held in the Cadbury Research Library reading room and CMS (Oxford).
The archive reference numbers for the pre-1880 incoming papers have been marked in pencil on the back of each individual item, for example, C PE/O 1/22. The post-1880 incoming papers are each individually marked in red ink, and this number, plus the year, comprised the archive reference for each item, for example, G2 PE/1900/47. 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 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 PE/O 1900/47. |
| Administrative History | In 1869 Rev Robert Bruce, CMS missionary in North India, visited Isfahan in present-day Iran (at the time 'Persia'), on his way back to India from England. He stayed at Julfa, and in 1875 CMS took over his work. Bruce was superintending missionary until his retirement in 1893; his remit included work begun in 1883 in Baghdad.
Mission stations (listed by start date):
1875 Julfa, Isfahan
1897 Kerman
1898 Yazd
1900 Shiraz |
| Archival Note | Papers catalogued by Rosemary A. Keen, CMS 1967-1968. Handlist revised and expanded by Rosemary Keen, 1982. Copied to the online catalogue, 2000. Updates underway, 2024. |
| Related Material | Records of the CMS Overseas Division: North India mission series (CMS/B/OMS/C I1/O 61); 'Turkish Arabia mission' series (CMS/B/OMS/TA); Persia (Iran) mission series 1935-1959 (CMS/B/AS35-59/G2 PE). |