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Historical Note
Scope and Content Note
Organization and Arrangement
Restrictions
Index Terms
Related Material
Administrative Information
Series Description
Shiloh Publications, 1897-1970, n.d.
Writings about Shiloh, 1896-1997
Correspondence, 1890-1930, n.d.
Lawsuits against Frank W. Sandford, 1904,
1911-1912
Audio Recordings, 1968, 1971, 1984
Photographs, ca 1900s-1950s, 1990, n.d.
Kingdom letters to members and related material,
1993-1998
Research material and notes, 1887-2005
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Collection Summary
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| Title |
Shirley Nelson collection of Shiloh material |
| Creator |
Nelson, Shirley, 1925- |
| Dates |
1853-2005 |
| Bulk Dates |
1896-1998 |
| Extent |
3.5 linear feet |
| Collection ID |
MC020 |
| Abstract |
Comprised of various Shiloh publications, photographs,
correspondence, audio recordings, and newspaper articles and other
writings related to Frank Sandford, the Shiloh religious community
he founded in Durham, Maine, and the Kingdom religious philosophy
he espoused. The material was collected by Shirley Nelson, whose
parents Arnold and Merlyn Brackett White, grew up in the community.
Some of the material in the collection was compiled by Mr. White
for his book, "The Almighty and Us: the Inside Story of Shiloh,
Maine." |
| Repository |
Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections Library,
Bates College |
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Historical Note
Shirley Nelson, whose parents grew up in the Shiloh community,
is the author of Fair, Clear and Terrible: The Story of Shiloh, and
is the compiler of this collection of material related to Frank
Weston Sandford and his Shiloh sectarian community which flourished
at the beginning of the twentieth century.
Frank Weston Sandford was born on October 2, 1862, in
Bowdoinham, Maine. In 1882, he entered Bates College and was a star
player on the baseball team. After graduating in June 1886,
Sandford entered the Maine State Seminary in September, having
decided to pass up offers to play professional baseball. However,
he stayed there for only three months and on New Years' Day 1887,
Sandford was ordained a Freewill Baptist minister.
Sandford preached in several towns in his area until 1893, when
he resigned his pastorate and became an independent evangelist. He
soon founded The Kingdom as an evangelistic, apocalyptic Christian
movement. A few years later, in 1896, Sandford and several others
began construction of a Bible school in Durham, Maine, called
Shiloh. Shiloh would eventually grow into a self-contained town of
over 600 people.
The Kingdom sought to prepare the world through prayer for
Christ's second coming. As a means of doing this, Sandford and some
of his followers made the first of several voyages around the world
on the schooner Coronet in 1907. Following a voyage in 1911, on
which several of his crew died from scurvy and starvation, Sandford
was convicted of causing death at sea and served nearly seven years
in the Federal penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia. Although the
Shiloh community ended shortly after his release, Sandford
continued to lead his followers while in strict seclusion until his
death in March 1948.
Most of the Shiloh complex is gone today. However, The Kingdom
still maintains a headquarters, now located in Dublin, New
Hampshire, and has approximately 2,000 members nationwide.
Return to the Table of Contents
Scope and Content
Note
The collection includes various materials created by or related
to Sandford and his Shiloh community, including various Shiloh
publications, photographs, correspondence, and audio recordings of
interviews. In addition, there are several publications and a
college paper written about Shiloh, a diary of a Coronet crew
member, Sandford's autobiographical account, newspaper articles
from the Lisbon Enterprise and material on Frank Sandford's
manslaughter trials. Also includes more recent material on the
Kingdom, including letters to the membership and Shirley Nelson's
research material including the updated page notes from "Fair,
Clear and Terrible."
Return to the Table of Contents
Organization and
Arrangement
Organized into eight series: I. Shiloh Publications; II.
Writings about Shiloh; III. Correspondence; IV Lawsuits against
Frank W. Sandford; V. Audio Recordings; VI. Photographs; VII.
Kingdom letters to members and related material; and VIII. Research
material and notes
Return to the Table of Contents
Restrictions
Access Restrictions
Student papers may be restricted for
privacy reasons. Please consult the archives staff for more
information.
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.
Return to the Table of Contents
Related
Material
William Hiss collection of Shiloh material, Edmund S. Muskie
Archives and Special Collections Library, Bates College,
http://www.bates.edu/muskie-archives/EADFIndingAids/MC019.html
Return to the Table of Contents
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:
Nelson, Shirley,
1925---Archives
Sandford, Frank W., 1862-1948
Topical Subjects:
Cults--Maine--Shiloh
Geographic Subjects:
Shiloh (Me.)--History
Return to the Table of Contents
Administrative
Information
Acquisition and Custody Information
Gift of Shirley Nelson. Accession No.:
xx-049, 06-013.
Preferred Citation
Shirley Nelson collection of Shiloh
material, Edmund S. Muskie Archives and Special Collections
Library, Bates College.
Processing Information
Initial arrangement and description by
Scott Kelly, Class 2000.
Final arrangement and description by
Kurt Kuss, Special Collections Librarian, 2002.
Return to the Table of Contents
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MC020/01: Shiloh
Publications, 1897-1970, n.d.
1.25 linear feet |
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Scope and Content Note |
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This series contains a variety of Shiloh
publications, including "Tongues of Fire" (1897-1899); "The
Everlasting Gospel" (1901-1903); "The Young Warrior" (1902); "The
Glad Tidings of the Kingdom" (1904); "The Golden Trumpet"
(1912-1916); "The Truth" (1917-1918) and "Glad Tidings of the
Kingdom of God" (1919). Also includes several issues of "Kingdom
News" (1905) published by the Shiloh High School. In addition,
there are more recent publications including "Beulah" (1935); "The
College World" (1934, 1939, 1941-1942) and "The Standard"
(1964-1970). |
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Also included are two letters from Frank Sandford
to A. A. Whittaker concerning the farming of the Kingdom and six
letters from Sandford to the Shiloh community. Included among a
number of Frank Sandford's writings are his autobiographical
account entitled "Seven Years With God;" "The Sent One;" "Two Great
Prophets-One Hundred Utterances;" "The Art of War" and Mr.
Sandford's account of his arrest and journey south, written from
the federal prison in Atlanta, Georgia. |
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In addition are several booklets of religious
teachings written by various members of the Shiloh community ;
funeral service programs for two Shiloh members; a hymn book
published by the community and a few Bible reading guides. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged alphabetically by title and then
chronologically. |
MC020/02:
Writings about Shiloh, 1896-1997
5 folders |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series contains material written about Frank
Sandford and Shiloh including newspaper articles, primarily from
the Lisbon Enterprise, and several other published articles as well
as a student paper. Also includes Frank Sandford's obituary and a
news article on Shiloh's centennial. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged alphabetically by title. |
MC020/03:
Correspondence, 1890-1930, n.d.
.25 linear feet |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series includes handwritten and typescripts of
letters the majority of which are photocopies with a few originals.
The correspondence is primarrily from Frank Sandford to his mother
but includes letters to his wife and children and to several other
family members. Also includes Sandford's correspondence to members
of the Shiloh community including Merlyn Bartlett, R.E. Gleason,
Arnold White and J.B. Harriman. Other correspondence includes
letters written by Helen Sandford, Adnah Guptill, Herbert Jenkins,
Everett Knight, Merlyn Bartlett and Mrs. W.N. Gleason. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged chronologically. |
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box |
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001: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, January 6, 1890
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002: Letter from Frank Sandford to
mother, Charles and all at home, November 8, 1890
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003: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, December 6, 1890
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004: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, December 16, 1890
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005: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, December 26, 1890
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006: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, January 23, 1891
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007: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, February 19, 1891
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008: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, October 28, 1891
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009: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, February 7, 1893
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010: Letter from Helen Sandford to her
mother-in-law, February 21, 1893
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011: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, March 2, 1893
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012: Letter from Helen Sandford to her
mother-in-law, April 8, 1893
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013: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, August 28, 1896
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014: Adnah Guptill to the students at
the high school at Shiloh, Dec. 1, 1903
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015: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
sister, June 25, 1907
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016: Letter from Herbert Jenkins to
Merlyn Bartlett, October 1907
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017: Letter from Herbert Jenkins to
members of the Bible school, December 19, 1908
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018: Letter from Everett Knight to
members of the Bible school, December 20, 1908
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019: Letter from Frank Sandford to
Merlyn Bartlett, August 30, 1909
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020: Frank W. Sandford to R. E.
Gleason, Nov. 4, 1912
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021: Frank W. Sandford to J.B.
Harriman, Apr. 3, 1913
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022: Frank W. Sandford to Captain
Knight, Jan. 7, 1914
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023: Frank W. Sandford to Miss Grace
Brown for the members of the high school at Shiloh, Maine, Feb. 1,
1914
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024: Frank W. Sandford to Miss Esther
Sandford, 1915
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025: Letter from Frank Sandford to
Arnold White, June 21, 1917
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026: Frank W. Sandford to John
Sandford, June 3, 1918
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027: Letter from Frank Sandford to
Merlyn Bartlett, February 29, 1919
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028: Letter from Merlyn Bartlett to
Frank Sandford, March 23, 1919
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029: Letter from Frank Sandford to
Merlyn Bartlett White, May 12, 1920
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030: Letter from Mrs. W.N. Gleason to
People, June 1930
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031: Frank W. Sandford to Mrs. Helen
Sandford, Undated
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032: Letter from Frank Sandford to his
mother, Undated
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033: Frank W. Sandford to Mrs.
Sandford and the Kingdom, Undated
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034: Unaddressed letter from Frank W.
Sandford, Undated
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MC020/04:
Lawsuits against Frank W. Sandford, 1904, 1911-1912
4 folders |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series contains the transcript of the first
manslaughter trial of Frank Sandford in the case of Leander
Bartlett, a teen-aged member of Shiloh who died of diptheria. Also
includes typescript of the diary of John Adamson which covers his
time as a sailor on the last voyage of the Coronet. During that
voyage the deaths of six sailors from scurvy, including Adamson who
died shortly after the Coronet's return, resulted in the
manslaughter trial which sent Sandford to prison for almost eight
years. In addition is material on the case of Florence Whittaker
who brought charges of false imprisonment against Frank
Sandford. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged alphabetically by title. |
MC020/05: Audio
Recordings, 1968, 1971, 1984
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series includes three interviews done by
Judith Swartzbaum with Shiloh member Mary Hastings Thomas,
concerning her impressions of Frank Sandford and of the community.
Also included is an interview by Shirley Nelson with Charles Jones
telling of his experiences at Shiloh and as a sailor aboard the
Kingdom. Additionally is an interview done by Arnold White with Dr.
Alton Lancaster, Frank Sandford's nephew, who reminisces about his
uncle. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged chronologically. |
MC020/06:
Photographs, ca 1900s-1950s, 1990, n.d.
2 folders |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series is comprised of thirty-five
photographs, four of which are in color. Included are Frank
Sandford and members of the Shiloh community; buildings and grounds
of Shiloh including the cemetery and a photograph of the Coronet;
most of these photographs appear in "Fair, Clear and Terrible" and
in Arnold White's book, "The Almighty and Us." Also includes
photocopies of addtional Shiloh photographs that do not appear in
either book. Oversize photograph is located in the map case. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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By subject. |
MC020/07:
Kingdom letters to members and related material, 1993-1998
1 folder |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series is comprised of assorted material
written by the Kingdom Executive Committee and others associated
with the Kingdom Corporation, including pastoral letters and memos
to the membership; vision, mission and position statements; and
other writings, including articles by Frank S. Murray, Timothy
Murray and Neil R. Sanford. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged chronologically. |
MC020/08:
Research material and notes, 1887-2005
.25 linear feet |
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Scope and Content Note |
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The series includes a variety of material compiled
by Shirley Nelson while researching her book, "Fair, Clear and
Terrible." Includes updated page notes for the book; lists of
newspaper sources; news articles about Bates College and the local
area, written by her great uncle and Bates graduate, George Loring
White,'76; material on Dwight L. Moody and John Alexander Dowie;
and a book of poetry by L. H. Beal which includes several poems
about Shiloh and Frank Sandford. Also in the series is genealogical
information on the Sandford family including correspondence with
Edward Webber, a great nephew of Dr. Alton Lancaster; a draft of a
chapter from Arnold White's book, "The Almighty and Us," and
miscellaneous papers from the White family including Avis White's
composition book; a copy of Arnold White's Shiloh High School
diploma and the class prophecy and valedictory addresses and
graduation program from the 1907 class of Shiloh High School. |
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Organization and Arrangement |
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Arranged alphabetically by title. |
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