Brethren Village, 1897-2019 | Earl H. and Anita F. Hess Archives and Special Collections

By Ava Framm '21

Printer-friendly |

Collection Overview

Title: Brethren Village, 1897-2019

Predominant Dates:1970-1990

ID: RG03/CoB III K

Extent: 3.75 Linear Feet

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Administration and Fundraising, 1897-2010],
[Series 2: Centennial, 1997],
[Series 3: Financial, 1897-1946],
[Series 4: Correspondence, 1909-1954],
[Series 5: Audio/Visual, 1957-1998],
[Series 6: Brethren Village Auxiliary, 1957-2019],
[All]

Series 1: Administration and Fundraising, 1897-2010

This series mainly consists of modern fundraising and development projects the Village undertook to maintain its success, but there is a folder of early resident (or ‘inmate’ as they were originally called) applications to live in the Home as well as a few Widows pensions and Will and Testaments for some members. Included in this series are the charter and by-laws, press releases for new buildings, pamphlets for development programs, articles about residents, and copies of the Village newsletter The Messenger (the name changed to The Villager in September 1970). The Village newsletters folders are housed in the Hess Archives Periodicals collection. As the Village relies heavily on donations from members and non-members alike, included in this series is a letter addressed to Andrew Carnegie asking for a $16,000 donation to finish a building. There is also a folder dedicated to the Children’s Aid Society, the Brethren orphanage that was founded in 1914 and is located on adjoining land to the Brethren Home. The Village changed its name from the Brethren Home to the Village some time between 1970 and 1984.

Box 1

Folder 1: Charter and By-Laws, 1910, 1919, 1959
Folder 2: Rules for Guests
Folder 3: Resident Applications, 1897-1923: Majority of applications in this folder are from 1917.
Folder 4: Resident Documents, 1902-1928
Folder 5: Advertising, 1956, 1980, 1987
Folder 6: Village Programs, 1910, 1955-1971
Folder 7: Village Programs, 1971-1978
Folder 8: Village Programs, 1978-1997
Folder 9: Proposal of Brethren Home with Peacock Estate, 1964-1965
Folder 10: Proposal of Brethren Home with Peacock Estate, 1964-1965
Folder 11: Proposal of Brethren Home with Peacock Estate, 1964-1965

Box 2

Folder 1: Brethren Home Report, 1964
Folder 2: Annual Home Report, 1966, 2000
Folder 3: Policy Manual, 1975
Folder 4: Children's Aid Society, 1914

Series 2: Centennial, 1997

The Village’s Centennial occurred in 1997, and this series contains the information collected in a scrapbook, including pictures, letters, and pamphlets from the event. Several of the letters are from local churches explaining how much the Village has meant to them and their members who go to live there.

Box 2

Folder 5: Village Centennial, 1997
Folder 6: Village Centennial, 1997
Folder 7: Village Centennial Napkins, 1997

Series 3: Financial, 1897-1946

Within this series there are a wide range of financial documents, consisting of payroll information, building expenses, and inventories and appraisals of the Home. Also included are the yearly statements of some of the companies the Village worked with and financial report pamphlets from 1931-1946. The bulk of the information in this series is from 1899-1912 and includes the food and milk products the Village bought for its members.

Box 3

Folder 1: Deeds to Original Property, 1897
Folder 2: Financial Documents, 1900
Folder 3: Financial Documents, 1897-1909
Folder 4: Construction of Brethren Home, 1907-1912

Item 1: Blueprints for Contruction of Home, 1910s

Series 4: Correspondence, 1909-1954

This series consists of folders for correspondence with I.W. Taylor and A.M. Kuhn. Both men were secretaries for the Village, Taylor being the first and Kuhn being the second. The Taylor correspondence mainly consists of letters regarding construction, and the letters range from 1908-1912, the bulk being 1910. The financial documents discuss the different companies that reached out to Taylor regarding the renovation to the Home. The correspondence with A.M. Kuhn discusses possible members moving into the Home.

Box 3

Folder 5: I. W. Taylor Correspondence, 1909-1910
Folder 6: I. W. Taylor Correspondence, 1910-1912
Folder 7: Financial Documents, 1909-1910
Folder 8: Financial Documents, 1910-1916
Folder 9: Financial Documents, 1917-1918
Folder 10: A. M. Kuhn Correspondence, 1918, 1925
Folder 11: Financial Documents, 1925-1987
Folder 12: John C. Zug Correspondence, 1953-1954

Series 5: Audio/Visual, 1957-1998

The Audio/Visual series mainly consists of photographs of members and staff, but also includes newspaper clippings, slides, and a cassette tape of the Village Center Groundbreaking ceremony on Sunday, April 24, 1988. There is a portrait of one of the original Trustees, S.R. Zug, as well as several scrapbooks, one of the 2nd Annual Fair in 1982, and one of residents and staff of the Village from September 1987 through May 1988, taken by resident Miriam B. Zug. Pictures of the Board in 1971 and 1976, and pictures of Congressman Robert Walker visiting the Village in 1983 are also included.

Box 4

Folder 1: Brethren Village BBQ, 1967, 1968
Folder 2: Photographs, 1971-1985
Folder 3: Summer, 1981
Folder 4: Photographs, September 1987-May 1988
Folder 5: Photographs, September 1987-May 1988
Folder 6: Photographs, September 1987-May 1988
Folder 7: Photographs of Residents Painting Outside
Folder 8: Photographs of the Home
Folder 9: Photographs of Residents
Folder 10: Henry Gibbel Photographs
Folder 11: Renovation Photographs of Village
Folder 12: Early Photographs of Founders and Residents
Folder 13: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1970
Folder 14: Miscellaneous Photographs of Home
Folder 15: Photographs of Residents
Folder 16: Life at the Village
Folder 17: Photographs and Cassette of Groundbreaking Service, 1970s
Folder 18: Board of Trustees, 1990s-2000s
Folder 19: Polaroid Photographs of Residents and Staff
Folder 20: Village BBQ, 1974
Folder 21: Brethren Village Fair, 1981
Folder 22: Renovations to Village, 1990s-2000s

Oversize Box 1

Item 1: Miscellaneous Family Portrait, c. 1900s
Item 2: Board of Trustees Portrait, 1976

Box 5

Folder 1: Miscellaneous Slides, 1971-1977
Folder 2: Miscellaneous Slides, 1971-1977
Folder 3: Miscellaneous Slides, 1971-1977
Folder 4: Miscellaneous Slides, 1971-1977
Folder 5: Slides, 1997-1998

Sub-Series 1: People at Brethren Village (Photographs and Newspaper Clippings)

Box 5

Folder 6: Residents of the 1970s
Folder 7: Centenarians
Folder 8: Centenarian Samuel Reinhold
Folder 9: Talented Residents
Folder 10: 50th Anniversaries
Folder 11: 60 Years of Love
Folder 12: 65 Year Partnership
Folder 13: Prominent Citizens
Folder 14: Misfortunate Incident Involving Village
Folder 15: A Fifth Generation
Folder 16: Eulogies
Folder 17: Newspaper Clippings, 1958-1959
Folder 18: Newspaper Clippings, 1971-1975
Folder 19: Newspaper Clippings, 1976-1992

Series 6: Brethren Village Auxiliary, 1957-2019

This series contains minutes and annual reports of the Brethren Village Auxiliary. The goal of this group, as stated in the charter and by-laws, was to enrich the other clubs and organizations at the Village. They are responsible for fundraising, holding events, and even funding scholarships. Included are the charter and by-laws, minutes from 1957-2019, and event flyers. This organization was very successful at the Village and funded several events and dedications, including the barbeque and chapel dedications. Also included in this series is a folder on the Green Thumb Society, a club on the Village campus that allows residents to garden.

Box 6

Folder 1: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1975
Folder 2: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1976
Folder 3: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1977
Folder 4: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1978
Folder 5: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1979
Folder 6: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1980
Folder 7: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1981
Folder 8: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1982
Folder 9: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1983
Folder 10: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1984
Folder 11: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1985
Folder 12: Women's Auxiliary Group Fall Luncheon, 1985
Folder 13: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1986
Folder 14: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1987
Folder 15: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1988
Folder 16: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1989

Box 7

Folder 1: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1990
Folder 2: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1991
Folder 3: Women's Auxiliary Group, 1992
Folder 4: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1957-1965
Folder 5: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1965-1971
Folder 6: Ladies Auxiliary Annual Reports, 1961-1977
Folder 7: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1971-1974
Folder 8: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1974-1977
Folder 9: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1977-1980
Folder 10: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1980-1981
Folder 11: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1981-1983
Folder 12: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1983-1984

Box 8

Folder 1: Ladies Auxiliary Meeting Report, 1958-1975
Folder 2: Eastern Brethren Home Conferences, 1965-1985
Folder 3: Ladies Auxiliary Group Minutes, 1958-1970
Folder 4: Ladies Auxiliary Group Minutes, 1967-1979
Folder 5: Ladies Auxiliary Reports, 1975-1981
Folder 6: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1982-1991
Folder 7: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1985-1988
Folder 8: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1988-1990
Folder 9: Ladies Auxiliary Minutes, 1984-1986
Folder 10: Auxiliary Minutes, 2012-2013
Folder 11: Auxiliary Minutes, 2014-2015
Folder 12: Auxiliary Minutes, 2016-2019

Box 9

Folder 1: BBQ Committee, 1975-1980
Folder 2: BBQ Committee, 1980-1986
Folder 3: Women's Auxiliary Scholarships, 1976-1978
Folder 4: Auxiliary Group 80th Anniversary of Village, 1977
Folder 5: Auxiliary Group Chapel Dedication, 1978
Folder 6: Green Thumb Society, 1980
Folder 7: Brethren Home Activities Program, March 1970-April 1973
Folder 8: Brethren Home Activities Program, May 1973-April 1976

Oversize Box 10

Item 1: Layout of BBQ Luncheon Tables, 1986