Special Collections and Archives
Merrill Department of Rare Books and Special Collections
The following types of material are in the Department of Special Collections: rare books, school archives, manuscript collections, and church records.
Hours of service are Monday - Friday, 8:45 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Appointments are recommended for Andover Newton students and faculty.
Appointments are required for researchers not affiliated with the
School.
Rare Books
Andover Newton Archives
Manuscripts
Church Records
Rare Books The Rare Books section includes the following categories:
- books with early publication dates; generally pre-1776 for British and Continental imprints and pre-1826 for North American imprints,
- books with association value to the School,
- Bible collection of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions,
- pamphlets, primarily 18th and 19th century sermons,
- ABC/USA and UCC and Congregational yearbooks and annual association and conference minutes of these denominations for New England states.
The majority of these titles are listed in the public catalog.
School Archives
The School
Archives section includes the permanent records of Andover Theological Seminary
(1808-1965), the Newton Theological Institution (1825-1965), and Andover Newton
Theological School (1965- ). Theses and faculty publications are part of this collection.
Finding aids for individual record groups are in the Special Collections office.
Manuscripts
The Manuscripts section includes personal papers of 65 Baptist and Congregational clergy and family, records of the Backus Historical Society and the New England Baptist Library. Finding aids are in the Special Collections office. Click here for a listing of these papers.
Church Records
The Church
Records section includes 17th-20th century New England Baptist and Congregational
records. Three collections predate 1700. Collections include records of 26 state and
regional Baptist and Congregational organizations as well as records of 48 Baptist and
Congregational churches. In addition, the Library is the repository for archives of The American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts (TABCOM) and for the records of all disbanded American Baptist churches
in the state. Finding aids are in the Special Collections office.
