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Inventory of the Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers, 1942-1981 (bulk 1952-1957)

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Descriptive Summary

Title
Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers, 1942-1981 (bulk 1952-1957)
Creator
Coleman, Inabelle Graves
Extent
1.5 Linear Feet
482 Items
Repository
Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University
Language
English.
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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions
The Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers are open for research, but restrictions apply to the collection's use.
In addition, patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.
Provenance
The Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers, 1942-1981 (bulk 1952-1957), were donated to the Rare Book, Manuscript and Special Collections Library in 1974 and 1982 by her sister, Margaret L. Coleman.
Processing Information
Processed and encoded by Lisa Stark
Completed September 29, 1998
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
            

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Biographical Note

1898Born with twin sister, Jesablair, in Durham, N.C.
1918Graduated from Woman's College in Greensboro, N.C., and became assistant principal of Creedmoor School and later principal of Northside School.
1926
Began full-time work for the Intermediate Training Union of First Baptist Church.
Started writing books and contributed regularly to Baptist publications.
1940-1943As a contract teacher under the Southern Baptist Convention's Foreign Mission Board, she served as professor at the University of Shanghai, teaching journalism and English.
1943
Spent seven months in a Japanese internment camp.
Repatriated. Formally appointed a missionary of the Foreign Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.
1946-1950Returned to missionary work and teaching post at the University of Shanghai.
1952After the Communist occupation of China, she transferred to Taipei, Taiwan, and taught at National Taiwan University, a government sponsored university.
1953Helped found Grace Baptist Church in Taipei, Taiwan.
1959After returning on furlough, she became ill and died in the United States.

Coleman worked as a school administrator and journalist before gaining employment with the Intermediate Training Union of the First Baptist Church. During these experiences, she continued writing for the Daily Greensboro News, and Baptist publications, as well as authoring her own books. Her background in writing led to an editorship of the Foreign Mission Magazine whichtook her to Richmond, Virginia.

Later, while a professor in Shanghai, Coleman also became engaged in an active program of evangelism and social work. A request to the Foreign Mission Board of the denomination allowed her to remain in Shanghai during part of World War II. Upon repatriation in 1943, she went to Columbia University in New York, where she received her master's degree from the School of Philosophy, and completed additional graduate work. When conditions in China allowed, she returned to complete four more years at the University of Shanghai. In Taiwan, her teaching and evangelistic duties continued. She worked until a furlough in 1957.

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Collection Overview

The Inabelle Graves Coleman Papers, 1942-1981 (bulk 1952-1957), contain letters and more than 300 photographs documenting her life as a female Baptist missionary in Shanghai, China, and Taipei, Taiwan. Coleman was a school administrator, teacher, and author who lived much of her life abroad in service for the Southern Baptist Convention. Written almost entirely to family members, the letters date from 1946 to 1957, and contain information about her daily life and work; most were sent from Taipei, although some from Shanghai are also included.
The letters reveal tremendous enthusiasm for her work, the people around her, and those she brought into the church's ministry. This zeal for fostering the Christian life in others often overshadowed news of her regular teaching dutes, as she perhaps found no separation of the two. She wrote often of her students, and her concern for her family back in the U.S. Admiration for the people of Shanghai and Taipei are also evident. Letters frequently touch on her health while abroad, her physical surroundings, a tight schedule of teaching and ministering, and Grace Baptist Church, which she founded.
Photographs complement many of the letters, especially those about Grace Baptist Church and its programs. Subjects are mainly people and scenes in Taipei, although a large number are unidentified. Small series of photos include those of her assistants, Lillian Lu and Daisy, students, portraits of her family, as well as many of Grace Baptist Church. Included also are photographs of various church and school groups.
There are two autograph books from Chinese friends; manuscript writings include four articles written for the church, including one about the University of Shanghai's president. Also in the collection is a file of miscellaneous materials including a report of the Yates Baptist Association, biographical information, several business cards, a pamphlet in Chinese, an invitation, and clippings.
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Subject Headings

These are searchable subject entries for this collection. Performing a search on these subjects in the Duke University Libraries online catalog will bring up other related research materials.
  • Baptists--China
  • Baptists--Missions--China
  • Baptists--Missions--Taiwan
  • Baptists--Taiwan
  • China--Description and travel
  • China--Religion
  • China--Religious life and customs
  • Churches--China
  • Churches--Taiwan--Views
  • Coleman, Inabelle Graves
  • Missionaries--Taiwan
  • Missionaries--Taiwan--Correspondence
  • Missions--China
  • Missions--China--Correspondence
  • Schools--China
  • Schools--Taiwan
  • Taipei (Taiwan)
  • Taiwan--History
  • Taiwan--Religion
  • Taiwan--Religious life and customs
  • Women missionaries
List of Series in Collection
Correspondence, 1942-1958
Photographs
Addresses and writings:
Autograph books
Miscellaneous items
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Detailed Description of Collection

Box 1

Correspondence, 1942-1958

(3 folders)
Box 2

Photographs

(1 folder)
Inabelle Graves Coleman
Margaret L. Coleman (sister)
Ina Janett (Wilkerson) Coleman (mother)
Henry Gordon Coleman (father)
Grace Baptist Church, Taipei, Taiwan (Huai En T'ang, Taipei, Taiwan)   (1 folder)
Grace Baptist Church[?], Taipei, Taiwan (Huai En T'ang[?], Taipei, Taiwan)   (1 folder)
Lillian Lu   (1 folder)
Daisy
Photograph greeting cards
Famous places and leaders of Taiwan
Mission Baptist Hospital   (1 folder)
Church services [Taipei, Taiwan?]
Miscellaneous (some of North Carolina)
Miscellaneous (some of North Carolina)   (1 folder)

Addresses and writings:

(1 folder)
"The church that is in their house"
"Glad tidings from Taiwan"
"Missionaries international--are you?"
"Word snap shots of president of University of Shanghai"

Autograph books

(2 folders)

Miscellaneous items

(1 folder)