bMS 11166

The Society for Ministerial Relief. Executive Committee Records, 1910-1932

Summary Information:

  • Call Number: bMS 11166
  • Title: The Society for Ministerial Relief. Executive Committee Records, 1910-1932.
  • Repository: Harvard Divinity School Library, Harvard Divinity School, 45 Francis Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138-1911
  • Quantity: One volume

Administrative Information:

  • Acquisition Information: Gift of Unitarian Universalist Association, 2006.
  • Access: There are no restrictions on access to this collection.

Biographical Information/Historical Note:

The Society for Ministerial Relief was: "Formed 1848; incorporated 1850 as the Society for the Relief of Aged and Destitute Clergymen; the name changed to the Society for Ministerial Relief by an Act of the Massachusetts State Legislature, March 9, 1905. This society was organized to afford pecuniary relief to aged Unitarian clergymen who need such help. The interest of the invested fund is distributed semi-annually, in May and November, by the Executive Committee, to such persons as are qualified, according to the requirements of the constitution, to receive aid, as follows: 'All Unitarian clergymen who have been ordained as pastors or evangelists, and who have reached the age of fifty-five years, who have retained an unspotted moral character, and who need pecuniary assistance may be placed on its list of beneficiaries. The claims of each applicant shall be set forth in writing by two of his clerical brethren who are well acquainted with his condition and circumstances.' The names of beneficiaries are never published. The society is also authorized to hold a special fund, the income of which may be used to aid the widows of Unitarian clergymen in necessitous circumstances; but this fund is still small in comparison with the needs which it is expected to meet. Rev. James De Normandie, D.D. Boston, President; Rev. Edward Hale, Chestnut Hill, Secretary; Henry Endicott, Boston, Treasurer." 
American Unitarian Association Yearbook, 1909.

Scope and Content:

These minutes (May 23, 1910, to May 10, 1932) record the deliberations of the Society concerning the appropriation of funds to various Unitarian clergymen and their families. 

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