Kentucky Council of Churches Records, 1884-1973
Held by The Filson Historical Society
Creator: Kentucky Council of Churches
Title: Records, 1884-1973
Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these papers, contact the Curator of Special Collections.
Size of Collection: 3 cubic feet
Location Number: Mss./BA/K37
Scope and Content Note
Contains the records of the Kentucky Council of Churches, an ecumenical organization based in Lexington, Kentucky, with connections to the broader National (and World) Council of Churches. The records include meeting minutes, reports, newsletters, and correspondence related to the council’s activities during the post-World War II era, as well as similar records of related organizations including the Kentucky Sunday School Association (from 1884-1950) and the Lexington Ministerial Association (from 1940-1959).
Several books related to the development of the Sunday School movement in America were transferred to the library.
Historical Note
The Kentucky Council of Churches was established in 1947 as a new manifestation of the Kentucky Sunday School Association, which had been active since 1865. Both organizations were part of the broader trend of religious benevolent and reform societies, aimed at improving society through religious education, outreach, and ministry. By the mid-1950s, the KCC had developed into a rather progressive institution. Previously primarily consisting of white congregations, the KCC began to readily accept African-American churches such as the African Methodist Episcopal into ecumenical efforts across the state. Over the course of the 1950s and 1960s, the council repeatedly denounced segregation and racism, worked to aid migrant agricultural workers, argued for the end of capitol punishment, and participated in soil conservation efforts, among other activities. The council continued into the early twenty-first century, and remained an independent organization, although several of the member communions were also members of the National and World Councils of Churches.
Folder List
Folder 1: Lexington Ministerial Association, 1940-1945
Folder 2: Lexington Ministerial Association, 1945-1947
Folder 3: Lexington Ministerial Association, 1947-1948
Folder 4: Lexington Ministerial Association, 1951
Folder 5: Lexington Ministerial Association, 1952-1959
Folder 6: Kentucky Council of Churches, 1947-1966
Folder 7: Kentucky Council of Churches, 1948-1953
Folder 8: Kentucky Council of Churches, 1948-1970
Folder 9: Kentucky Council of Churches, 1951-1955
Folder 10: Kentucky Council of Churches, Annual Assembly, 1956-1962
Folder 11: Kentucky Council of Churches, Annual Assembly, 1963-1967
Folder 12: Kentucky Council of Churches, Annual Assembly, 1968-1973
Folder 13: Kentucky Council of Churches, Baptists, 1950
Folder 14: Kentucky Council of Churches, The Courier, 1949-1965
Folder 15: Kentucky Council of Churches, The Courier , 1966-1973
Folder 16: Kentucky Council of Churches, Ecumenical Institute Reports, 1957-1962
Folder 17: Kentucky Council of Churches, Endowment
Folder 18: Kentucky Council of Churches, History
Folder 19: Kentucky Council of Churches, Institutions, 1956-1960
Folder 20: Kentucky Council of Churches, Property
Folder 21: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1884-1887
Folder 22: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1887-1890
Folder 23: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1891-1893
Folder 24: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1893-1896
Folder 25: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1896-1901
Folder 26: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1899-1907
Folder 27: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1901-1908
Folder 28: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1910-1914
Folder 29: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1925-1949
Folder 30: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1940-1950
Folder 31: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, 1922-1960
Folder 32: Kentucky Sunday-School Association, Conventions, 1871-1888 & 1883-1887
Folder 33: Kentucky Sunday School Association, Conventions, 1888-1893
Folder 34: Kentucky Sunday School Association, Conventions, 1894-1897
Folder 35: Kentucky Sunday School Association, Conventions, 1897-1900
Folder 36: Kentucky Sunday School Association, History
Folder 37: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1900-1903
Folder 38: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter, 1904-1906
Folder 39: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter, 1907-1911
Folder 40: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1912-1917
Folder 41: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1918-1927
Folder 42: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1928-1937
Folder 43: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1938-1948
Folder 44: Kentucky Sunday School Reporter , 1940-1950
Folder 45: Miscellaneous Records, 1923-1967
Subject Headings
Childhood
Communism – United States
Ecumenical movement
Environmentalism – Religious aspects
Juvenile delinquency – Kentucky
Kentucky Council of Churches
Migrant agricultural laborers
Race relations
Religion
Religious broadcasting
Religious education
Sunday school conventions – Kentucky