Guide to the Alfred Williams Anthony papers, 1933-1935

Historical Note

Alfred Williams Anthony was born in Providence, Rhode Island on January 13, 1860. His parents were Lewis Williams and Britannia Franklin (Waterman) Anthony. He received an A.B. degree from Brown University in 1883. In 1885, he graduated from the Cobb Divinity School, then affiliated with Bates College and received an A.M. degree from Brown in 1886.

He married Harriet Wyatt Angell in September 1885, and they had two children: Elizabeth Williams and Alfred Williams, Jr. Elizabeth graduated from Bates in 1908.

After graduating from Cobb Divinity School in 1885, Anthony took the position of pastor of the Essex Street Free Baptist Church in Bangor, Maine. In 1887, he was elected Chair of New Testament Exegesis and Criticism at the Cobb Divinity School, a position he did not initially accept. Instead, from 1888-1890, he studied abroad at Berlin University, returning in 1890, to take the position at the Cobb Divinity School, distinguishing himself as a scholar, teacher, and administrator.

In 1893, he published two articles: "The Fourth Gospel" and "The Gospel of Peter," both of which were well received. In 1893 and 1894, he gave a lecture in the campus chapel entitled "The Newly Discovered Epistle of St. Peter," and he often delivered sermons at the Freewill Baptist Churches in Lewiston and Auburn. When the Divinity School was discontinued as a department of the College, he was elected the Fullonton Professor of Christian Literature and Ethics at Bates College and served in that capacity for three years (1908-1911).

Dr. Anthony was active in a variety of educational and religious organizations. By 1908, he was a member of the Executive Committee of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America and the Conference Board of the General Conference of Freewill Baptists. He was President of the Board of Trustees of Storer College, located in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and he was the director for the Maine chapter of the Religious Education Association. In 1910, Anthony delivered the opening address at the Bowdoin Conference of Free Baptist Churches, and that same year he delivered the opening address at the Intercollegiate YMCA Conference at Colby College.

In 1911, Anthony officially resigned his position at Bates, after 23 years of service to the College. That same year he was named Joint Secretary for Free Baptist and Baptist Union. He was also Chairman of the Committee on Goodwill between Jews and Christians. In 1918 he became Executive Secretary for the Home Missions Council, traveling to Baptist and Free Baptist missions in Asia and Africa.

Anthony also was an active religious and civic leader in the Lewiston, Maine community, serving on a variety of commissions and boards. He served on the Maine Charities Commission, and was appointed by Governor Milliken as a member of the Police Commission of the state of Maine.

In 1936, Anthony published Bates College and Its Background, detailing the beginnings and development of the College. It was the last in a long line of books written and/or edited by Anthony. His other most notable books were An Introduction to the Life of Jesus and The Method of Jesus. He was awarded an honorary D. D. from Bates in 1902 and from Brown in 1908 and an L.L.D. from Colby College in 1914. In addition to Storer College, Anthony served on the Board of Trustees for Bates College, Hillsdale College, and Brown University. He died January 20, 1939.

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Scope and Content Note

The Alfred Williams Anthony Papers contains hand and typewritten materials pertaining to Anthony's book Bates College and Its Background. The first written history of the college, the book was researched and written by Anthony at the request of then president of the college, Clifton D. Gray. The collection consists of Anthony's correspondence with men and women related to the college's past, such as William F. and C. A. Garcelon, the sons of Dr. Alonzo Garcelon, and Lillian G. Bates, daughter of Benjamin Bates, for whom the college was named. Letters between Anthony and students from the early days of the college are also included. There is some correspondence regarding the Lebanon Academy and the Maine Central Institute and their relationship to Bates College.

The collection also includes drafts of and notes for the book itself. Included is an unrevised first draft as well as miscellaneous photographs, newspaper clippings, and notes from telephone conversations. Also included are the omitted chapters and appendices from Bates College and its Background. There are also several scrapbooks.

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Organization and Arrangement

Organized into three series: I. Drafts of Bates College and Its Background; II. Research Notes; and III. Correspondence.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

The collection is the physical property of Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library. Bates College holds literary rights only for material created by College personnel working on official behalf of the College, or for material which was given to the College with such rights specifically assigned. For all other material, literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. Researchers are responsible for obtaining permission from rights holders for publication or other purposes that exceed fair use.

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Related Material

Alfred W. Anthony papers, American Baptist-Samuel Colgate Historical Library of the American Baptist Historical Society, Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School, 1106 South Goodman St., Rochester, New York 14620-2532. E-mail: abhs@crcds.edu

David Crowe collection, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College, http://www.bates.edu/muskie-archives/EADFindingAids/MC047.html

Freewill Baptist collection, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College

Harry W. Rowe collection, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College, http://www.bates.edu/muskie-archives/EADFindingAids/MC071.html

Stanton Bird Club records, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College, http://www.bates.edu/muskie-archives/EADFindingAids/MC056.html

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Index Terms

These records are indexed under the following headings in the Bates College Library catalog. Researchers wishing to find related materials should search the catalog under these index terms.

Personal Names:

Corporate Names:

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Administrative Information

Acquisition and Custody Information

No provenance information available. Accession No.: xx-014.

Preferred Citation

Alfred Williams Anthony papers, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College.

Processing Information

Processed by Sean Monahan, 1997.

Final arrangement and description by Kurt Kuss, Special Collections Librarian, 1998.

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Inventory