About This Site

This website is a platform designed to showcase the photographs and text produced by West China missionaries and their descendants. There are two components to the site. First, there is the West China Mission Repository, which takes the form of a searchable database of records of images and text produced by the West China missionary community and their descendants. Second, there is the digital exhibit, Phases of West China Missionary Life, which interprets the West China missions in terms of the phases in the lifespan of these missionaries and their children. In both components of the site you will also find detailed information about the historical context of the missionary enterprise and their encounters with Chinese allies and adversaries. Both components are in continual development, so check back to find new content!

The West China Missions Digital Repository is organized around the contributions of missionary families who hold significant visual and textual archives among the descendants. Each family archive forms a Collection within the database, which can thereby be searched by family. Within and across these collections, related images are cross-referenced with each other and related text. Those that were taken in series are linked to Event records that explain the context in which they were taken, and also link to related text. 

The Phases in West China Missionary Lives Digital Exhibit is a companion to a book manuscript in the process of writing that will delve into deeper analysis of the West China missionary lives and movement. The digital exhibit will supplement the book with long quotes from missionary letters and memoires, as well as a much greater number and variety of images.