EPISCOPAL CHURCH. DIOCESE OF MINNESOTA:

The papers of Stephen Edwards Keeler comprise personal and semi-official correspondence, scrapbook/diaries, and subject files documenting his activities and interests as bishop coadjutor (1931-1943) and bishop (1943-1956) of the Diocese of Minnesota and, to a lesser extent, his administration of the diocese and the affairs of individual parishes. They include letters, memorabilia, clippings, pamphlets, programs, post cards, photographs, minutes, reports, financial records, and Keeler's official diocesan scrapbook/diaries. Some letters and memorabilia document early diocesan history, as well as Keeler's life and career before he came to Minnesota.

There is an extensive file on the Anglican Congress that was held in Minneapolis in 1954, and considerable material on Keeler's supervision of the American Episcopal Church in Europe (1953-1956). Other papers concern such matters as Episcopal doctrine, the Anglican Church, Anglo-Catholicism, and Protestant unity; the Wellesly Conference for Church Work, of which Keeler was director in 1933-1948; missionary work among Indians and overseas; the Missionary District of Honolulu, of which Keeler was bishop in charge in 1942-1943; and Seabury Divinity School.

Keeler's correspondence is especially voluminous during the 1950s, particularly 1953-1955, with Bishop Keeler's replies being included with most letters. Correspondence for the 1930s and 1940s is less extensive, and fewer replies are present. Most of the letters are from other clergymen and bishops, parishioners, and former parishioners, including many from his former parishes in Ohio, Illinois, and Massachusetts.

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These records are divided into the following five sections:

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A set of data sheets (P1035 - Box A) contains additional details on the contents of some of the files. They include a selected list of correspondents for each folder of Keeler's correspondence.

See the inventory for the Episcopal Church Diocese of Minnesota for information on other diocesan records in the Minnesota Historical Society manuscript collections.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Episcopal Church. Diocese of Minnesota. Bishop Stephen E. Keeler Files. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 17,416. See accession file 1773B for additional accession numbers

Processing Information:

Processed by: Lydia Lucas, ca. 1981

Box numbering is not uniform.

Catalog ID number: 001734954

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Keeler's correspondence has been retained as he kept it: organized into groups of three or four years each, with the papers in each group being arranged alphabetically by the correspondent's surname. The container list that follows gives the inclusive dates of each group.

Much of the correspondence consists of greetings and friendly letters; family letters; requests for services and assistance; invitations to visit and preach; and expressions of appreciation for letters, sermons, favors, and other services. There is considerable correspondence on the Diocese of Minnesota's administration, organization, finances, schools, clergy, and church services; parish work and conditions in individual parishes and missions; diocesan conventions and conferences; Keeler's pastoral activities, travels, and engagements; affairs of other Episcopal dioceses; Episcopal doctrine and Anglo-Catholicism; Protestant unity; the Wellesly Conference for Church Work, of which Keeler was director in 1933-1948; the Episcopal Church's missionary work among Indians and overseas; and Keeler's work in training lay persons to assist in clerical tasks.

Letters for the 1930s also mention Keeler's service as rector of St. Chrysostem's Church in Chicago (1929-1931); his election as bishop coadjutor of Minnesota (1931); his work as acting bishop of North Dakota (1937); the Oxford Group (1935-1937); and the centennial of the Diocese of Minnesota (Oct. 1935). Letters from J. V. Blake discuss economic conditions and the tire and rubber industry in Akron, Ohio.

Several letters during the 1940s discuss Keeler's elevation to diocesan bishop (1944); consideration of a suffragan bishop for Minnesota (1946-1952); administrative affairs of the national church; the General Convention of 1946; and the merger of the Diocese of Minnesota and the Diocese of Duluth. Others mention the Diocese of Hawaii, of which Keeler was Bishop in Charge (1943); military chaplains (1940-1945 and 1953-1955); St. Barnabas Hospital (1940-1942); and the consecration of St. Mark's Cathedral (1941). Most letters from Keeler's friends in Ohio, Chicago, and Massachusetts cease after the early 1940s.

Many of the letters from 1953 to 1956 pertain to Keeler's supervision of the American Episcopal Church in Europe, to the Anglican Congress of 1954, and to the General Convention of 1955. There is also information on the English Speaking Union, the Anglican Society, Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, excavations of Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset, England, a processional cross for the Diocese of Minnesota, Keeler's 25th anniversary, and his death. The files include the correspondence of his secretary, Elmira Montague, following his death.

Some of Keeler's principal correspondents are listed below. The dates given are those of the inclusive year groups in which letters from these people can be found, and may not correspond exactly to the actual dates of the letters.

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Two folders of materials (1892, 1900-1951) collected by Wilfred Crowther, a parishioner of St. John's Episcopal Church, St. Paul, precede Keeler's scrapbooks. These materials, consisting mainly of newspaper and magazine clippings, primarily cover diocesan activities in the 1890s and early 1900s, particularly the death of Bishop Gilbert and election of Bishop Edsall (1900-1901). They also include many clippings and photographs of various Minneapolis and St. Paul area churches and clergy, and miscellaneous copies of "The St. John's Evangelist," the church's newsletter.

Bishop Keeler's scrapbooks are a semi-personal, semi-official collection of memorabilia and notes. They include newspaper clippings, letters, invitations, pamphlets and leaflets, photographs, post cards, and programs for commemorative celebrations, consecrations, commencements, church services, and conferences.

Keeler's personal scrapbooks (1878, 1905-1930) include a few items from his high school years at Stamford, Connecticut, and college years at Yale. Mainly, however, the items pertain to his rectorships at St. Stephen's Church, Pittsfield, Massachusetts (1915-1923), St. Paul's Church, Akron, Ohio (1923-1929), and St. Chrysostem's Church, Chicago (1929-1931).

His diocesan scrapbooks (1931-1956) contain materials relating mainly to his activities and interests as bishop of Minnesota; to diocesan administration; and to individual parishes, churches, clergymen, and schools within the Diocese of Minnesota.

Included in the diocesan scrapbooks are materials pertaining to Keeler's 1931 consecration as bishop coadjutor of Minnesota; his appointment as acting bishop of North Dakota (1935); the dedications of Birch Coulee Mission (1938) and St. Mark's Cathedral, Minneapolis (1941); Keeler's appointment as bishop in charge of the Missionary District of Honolulu (1942-1943); and his installation as bishop of Minnesota (1944). Other materials include information on the Lambeth Conference of 1948; the General Convention of 1949; affairs of other Episcopal dioceses; the General Convention of 1952; the election of Hamilton Hyde Kellogg as coadjutor bishop of Minnesota (1952); the American Church in Europe and Keeler's trips to Europe (1953-1956); and the 1954 Anglican Congress in Minneapolis. There are comments on Episcopal doctrine and worship, Protestant unity, Anglo-Catholicism, and politics, as well as numerous sermon notes and inspirational quotations.

Portions of Keeler's official diary also form part of the scrapbooks for 1941-1956. The entries are generally scattered and sometimes incomplete. They are published in condensed form in issues of the Minnesota Missionary, along with parts of the diary not present in these papers.

Some personal letters were removed from the diocesan scrapbooks and filed with Keeler's correspondence. Many loose post cards, programs, and newspaper clippings not pertaining to the Episcopal Church and not commented on by Keeler in his diary were removed and discarded.

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From 1954 to 1956, Keeler was bishop in charge of the Convocation of American Episcopal Churches in Europe, which consisted of churches, missions, and church institutions in Europe, particularly centered in Italy, Geneva, Germany, France, Spain, and Portugal. His files on this work relate to clergy and services in the European churches; Keeler's supervision of the European field and his trips to Europe; Convocation and individual church finances; relationships with other American and local churches; and services to American residents and soldiers.

There is discussion of a proposal to make Rome a pilgrimage center, and correspondence regarding the Old Catholic Church in Germany and the Lusitanian Church in Portugal. The folders for Spain contain considerable material on the persecution of Episcopalians in that country.

The various subject folders overlap in content to some extent, since the Episcopal clergy in Europe frequently exchanged comments on each others' work.

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The Diocese of Minnesota hosted this international Episcopal Church congress, held in Minneapolis during August 3-14, 1954. Attended by delegates and church officials from around the world, the congress required a great amount of local advance preparation. These files cover the work of the Minnesota Anglican Congress Committee and its subcommittees, which handled local arrangements.

The papers, organized as subject files, consist mainly of delegates' correspondence with the Minnesota committee's chairman, Valentine Wurtele, and vice-chairman, John W. Gregg. There is also substantial correspondence with Bishop Keeler as honorary chairman and Bishop Kellogg as vice-chairman. It concerns such things as reservations, arrival dates, accommodations (particularly for non-white delegates), financial aid, meals, and attendance by wives. The correspondence also includes exchanges with the National Congress Committee, based in New York; informational queries from non-delegates; an invitation to U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower; and letters dealing with publicity and press coverage and the use of various Minneapolis facilities for meetings, such as the Hennepin Avenue Methodist Church, the Minikahda Club, and the Women's Club of Minneapolis.

Also included are files on each of the subcommittees, which contain correspondence, minutes, budgets, form letters, itineraries, and membership lists. The subcommittees are for auditorium meetings, cathedral, executive, exhibitors, finance, first aid, general, hospitality, housing, meeting places, music, program and editorial, public relations, religious services, sponsoring, supplies, and transportation. Especially voluminous are the files of the finance committee, which dealt with quotas to be paid by each Minnesota parish to help finance the congress; the religious services committee, which contains correspondence with photographs and resumes of delegates who wished to speak at a Minnesota parish during their stay in the state and state parishes that requested a speaker; and the transportation committee, which was in charge of local transportation for all delegates, speakers, and church officials.

The delegate reservations files and religious services committee delegate correspondence files are arranged alphabetically by surname. All other files are arranged chronologically.

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Bishops -- Appointment, call, and election.

Church management -- Minnesota.

Installation (Clergy).

Persons:

Keeler, Stephen E., 1887-1956.

Organizations:

Anglican Congress (1954 : Minneapolis, Minn.).

Convocation of American Episcopal Churches in Europe.

Episcopal Church -- Clergy.

Episcopal Church -- Doctrines.

Episcopal Church -- Minnesota -- History.

Seabury Divinity School.

Types of Documents:

Diaries.

Occupations:

Bishops -- Minnesota.

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