Overview
| Repository: |
Yale University Divinity School
Library
409 Prospect Street New Haven, CT 06511 Email: divinity.library@yale.edu Phone: (203) 432-5301 |
| Call Number: | Record Group No. 39 |
| Creator: | Bushnell, Horace, 1802-1876. |
| Title: | Horace Bushnell Papers, |
| Dates: | 1832-1902 |
| Physical Description: | Total archival boxes 5; total linear footage 2' |
| Language(s): | Materials in English. |
| Summary: | The collection includes five diaries containing valuable biographical information and documenting Bushnell's trip abroad, 1845-1846, and manuscript sermons, 1832-1875, which give insight into the less formal aspects of Bushnell's thought. The material written about Bushnell during his lifetime pertains to the controversy associated with his theological beliefs. Horace Bushnell was born in Bantam, Connecticut on April 14, 1802. He was educated at Yale (B.A., 1827; M.A., 1830; B.D., 1833), and received degrees from Wesleyan University, Harvard, and Yale. He served as pastor of North Church, Hartford, CT from 1833-1859. He was the author of God in Christ (1849) and Christ in Theology (1851), as well as other works uncongenial to the orthodox theology of his times. |
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| Finding Aid Link: | To cite or bookmark this finding aid, use the following address: http://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/divinity.039 |
| Request Materials: | To view manuscript and archival materials at the Yale Divinity Library, please submit the request form at http://www.library.yale.edu/div/request.htm. |
| Catalog Record: | A record for this collection, including location information, may be available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog. |
Administrative Information
Provenance
Gift of Howell Cheney, 1945.
Information about Access
Open to qualified researchers.
Cite As
Horace Bushnell Papers, Record Group No. 39, Special Collections, Yale Divinity School Library.
Biographical Sketch
| 1802 Apr 14 | Born in Bantam, CT |
| 1827 | B.A., Yale |
| 1829-1831 | Tutor in Yale College |
| 1830 | M.A., Yale |
| 1833 | B.D., Yale |
| 1833 | Ordained pastor of the North Church, Hartford, CT |
| 1842 | D.D., Wesleyan University |
| 1845-1846 | Year spent abroad in Europe |
| 1849 | Published God in Christ, a work uncongenial to the orthodoxy of the times. Conservative ministers in Connecticut sought to bring Bushnell to trial for heresy. |
| 1851 | Published , Christ in Theology, which answered his critics. |
| 1852 | S.T.D., Harvard |
| 1856 | Traveled to California for health reasons, became interested in the problems of developing the region. |
| 1859 | Retired from the ministry for health reasons but continued to write and publish. |
| 1871 | L.L.D., Yale |
| 1876 Feb 17 | Died |
Biographical information taken from: Historical Register of Yale University, 1701-1937 and Dictionary of American Biography
Description of the Papers
I. Correspondence, 1848, n.d.
II. Diaries, 1845-1846.
III. Writings of Bushnell, 1832-1875.
IV. Material written about Bushnell, 1843-1902, n.d.
V. Personal Items and Memorabilia, 1849-1902, n.d.
The correspondence section consists of two letters written and signed by Bushnell, their recipients unidentified.
The diaries of Series II are a five volume record of Bushnell's impressions during his trip abroad in 1845-1846. These journals would be of greatest value for biographical research. Excerpts from them have been published in Bushnell's daughter's book, Life and Letters of Horace Bushnell.
The writings of Bushnell are divided into three sections:
A. Manuscript sermons and discourses
(1832-1875, n.d.)
B. Published sermons and discourses (1839-1959,
n.d.)
C. Miscellaneous (1839-1873, n.d.)
The manuscript sermons give valuable insight into the less formal aspects of Bushnell's thought. Some of these sermons have been published in whole or in part, largely in Bushnell's posthumous volume, The Spirit in Man. Although many of them were not considered sufficiently valuable or well organized to be included in his published works as entire sermons, these unpublished writings contain material that can assist in tracing the development of his thought. In many cases the unpublished portions of the sermons contain statements of doctrine that were apparently omitted as not being of interest to the general reader.
The published sermons and discourses are largely duplicates of ones already cataloged in the Library's collection, and are included with Bushnell's papers to provide consolidated access. The miscellaneous writings of Bushnell included newspaper articles, a prayer for a wedding, and explanations of two patents obtained by him.
The material written about Bushnell during his lifetime pertains to the controversy associated with his theological beliefs. Bushnell's opposition to the rigid rationalism of his times and his attempts to redefine Christianity in terms of human experience were the cause of much accusation and debate. Additional material in this section stems from the centenary celebration of Bushnell's birth in 1902. Series V includes a letter from Amos Cheseborough to T.T. Munger, biographer of Bushnell, that traces Bushnell's genealogical descent.