West China Missions Digital Repository

Lone Carrier on Anlan Bridge

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Beginning in the late 1880s, a small stream of Canadian and American missionaries made their permanent home in Sichuan Province in West China. Inspired by Social Gospel theologians, their numbers had swelled to hundreds by the 1920s, then began dwindling during the 1930s and lessened further during  WWII. The missionary presence in China finally ceased in 1951 when they were forced to leave under the Communist regime.

Although these missionary men and women left their homes and families to “evangelize the world in one generation,” from the start their mission embraced not only evangelism, but also education and medicine. Their teaching fine arts, humanities and sciences in middle schools and universities was motivated by the premises that Christianity formed the foundation of a universal democratic society, and that liberal arts and science education was the route to effective Christian leadership. Their social engineering experiment provides a unique opportunity to analyze processes of rapid social and cultural change in both East and West. 

This site is dedicated to presenting resources by and about the West China missionaries, especially photographs and ephemera held in the families of their descendants, compiled and researched mainly by Cory Willmott, a "Mish Kid II" herself, and also an emerita professor of anthropology.

I welcome feedback about the site and its contents. Please email me at cwillmo@siue.edu if you have questions or comments about anything on the site, including but not limited to corrections of fact and identification of subjects in photos.

 

Sneak Peek

  • Bomb Shelter in Chengdu, 1940

    Isabelle Stinson with her son David and their “amah” smiling as they step into their World War II makeshift bomb shelter near their house on the WCUU campus, c.1940.

  • Isabelle Stinson in Bomb Shelter in Tzeliutsing, 1939

    Isabelle Stinson poses at the entrance to the Stinson's bomb shelter in Tzeliutsing.

  • Back of Tzeliutsing Hospital Bombed

    The back of the Tzeliutsing Hospital, or possibly the adjoining women's hospital, showing one side of the roof and the walls torn down completely after the Japanese bombing.

  • Left Side of Tzeliutsing Hospital Bombed

    A close look at the damage to the Tzeliutsing Hospital's left wing and central stories after being hit by Japanese bombs. The roof is complete gone over two of the five archways.

  • Debris Behind Tzeliutsing Hospital After Bombing

    Bamboo fences and structures near the bombed Tzeliutsing Hospital are seen in shambles.

  • Front of Tzeliutsing Hospital Bombed

    An unidentified man and woman stand on the front steps of the bombed Tzeliutsing Hospital. The roof and several stories have collapsed on the left side of the building.

  • Worker with Shoulder Pole and Baskets

    A man with a carrying pole holding two full baskets looks back at the photographer as he approaches a small bridge over a ditch at an unknown location.

  • Street Scene with Horse Cart and Train Car

    A man wearing a bamboo rain hat and poncho leads a horse and cart over a paved road next to a train track and car.

  • Street Scene with Soldier and Scholar

    A street scene in an unidentified town shows, at left, a well-dressed soldier standing under what appears to be a streetlight. Walking away from the camera, a man dressed in a scholar's gown and fedora hat glances at the soldier. Electrical wires rise high above the two-story buildings that line the street. Two man-powered vehicles are also visible in the scene.

  • Portrait of Katharine Hockin, 1946

    Head and shoulders portrait of Katharine Hockin wearing what looks like a Japanese or Chinese silk blouse or dress. She is smiling and looking away from the camera. A crease in the print makes a mark across her hair.

  • Portrait of Lily Hockin, 1946

    Head and shoulders portrait of Lily Hockin wearing a dark colored blouse or dress with a pearl necklace. She wears glasses and has her hair permed.

  • Formal Portrait of Leshan Kindergarten Graduating Class

    The graduating class of kindergarten students stand in two rows wearing mortarboard hats and holding diplomas. John Stinson, Eunice Peters, and three unidentified Chinese teachers stand in the back row. A Chinese inscription is on a banner across the top.
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