Guide to the Thomas Clinton Pears Papers

Descriptive Summary

Title

Thomas Clinton Pears Papers

Inclusive Dates

1919-1944

Call Number

RG 30

Creator(s)

Pears, Thomas Clinton, 1884-1943.

Quantity

2.00 cubic feet

Restrictions on Access

Collection open for research

Repository

Presbyterian Historical Society, 425 Lombard Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147-1516 USA

Biographical Note / Administrative History

Biographical Note

Thomas Clinton Pears, Jr. was educated at Princeton University, graduating in 1907, and at Western Theological Seminary, graduating in 1910. In 1935, Washington and Jefferson College conferred on him the honorary degree of Doctor of Literary Humanities. His pastoral service included calls at the First Presbyterian Churches in Follansbee, WV and Braddock, PA. He also served as assistant pastor at Third and Waverly Presbyterian Churches in Pittsburgh. In 1933, he became manager of the Department of History of the Presbyterian Church and remained in that position until his death.

Dr. Pears' research interests were varied. In 1936, he presented a paper about the 17th century Scots settlement in Panama entitled "Design in Darien." In 1942, Princeton Theological Seminary did him the honor of asking him to deliver the annual lectures for the Stone Foundation. These five lectures were entitled "This American Wilderness--A Study of Some of the Main Currents of Colonial American Presbyterianism." Dr. Pears published a number of other notable papers, including the "Documentary History of William Tennent and the Log Cabin."

Collection Overview

Record Group 30 deals entirely with Dr. Pears' personal research.

Organization and Arrangement

SERIES 1: RESEARCH/LECTURE NOTES ON "THIS AMERICAN WILDERNESS," 1940s
SERIES 2: RESEARCH/LECTURE NOTE ON THE SCOTS SETTLEMENT AT DARIEN, 1935-1945
SERIES 3: MISCELLANEOUS RESEARCH NOTES, ND
SERIES 4: CORRESPONDENCE/PERSONAL ITEMS, 1919-1941
SERIES 5: PRESBYTERIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 1933-1943

Administrative Information

Processing Information

Collection processed: April 1969
Grace Mullen, Assistant Records Researcher

Collection reprocessed and guide created: 1983
Frederick J. Heuser, Jr., Archivist

Collection rearranged and finding aid revised: September 1991
Stephanie Muntone, Processing Archivist

Catalog Headings

The following headings have been used to index the description of this collection in the society’s electronic catalog.

Corporate Subject

Presbyterian Historical Society.

Geographic Subject

United States Church history To 1775.

Collection Inventory

Box	Folder	Description

1	1	Finding Aid to Record Group 30

		SERIES 1: RESEARCH/LECTURE NOTES ON "THIS AMERICAN WILDERNESS," 1940s

1	2	Printing of "This American Wilderness," 1941-44
	3	List of 1878-1942
	4	"This American Wilderness"
	5	Lecture II, typed copy
	6	Lecture III, outline
	7	Lecture IV, outline
	8	Lecture V, "Influence of the Great Awakening"
	9	Lecture V, miscellaneous notes
	10	Lecture V, outline
	11	Notes, outlines
	12	Notes

		SERIES 2: RESEARCH/LECTURE NOTE ON THE SCOTS SETTLEMENT AT DARIEN, 1935-1945

1	13	Manuscript "The Design of Darien"
	14	Chronology, maps
	15	Address given at Canterbury Club
	16	Chronological bibliography
	17	Bibliography
	18	Outline of Borland's "History of Darien"
	19	Burned books
	20	Notes on Caldonian Harbour and Settlement
	21	Charleston hurricane
	22	Church of Scotland and the Darien Company
	23	Papers and contents
	24	Notes from Sir John Dalrymple
	25	Notes from Fasti Ecclesias Scoticanae
	26	First expedition voyage
	27	Acts of General Assembly
	28	Letters from the Commission of the General Assembly
	29	Information concerning L'Affaire de Darien
	30	Excerpt from "History of the Presbyterian Church in South Carolina" (George Howe)
	31	Notes from Briggs' American Presbyterianism
	32	Notes from New Jersey Archives
	33	Notes from New York Archives
	34	Pamphlet warfare
	35	Theodore Roosevelt
	36	Spanish investment
	37	Samuel Sewall–Massachusetts Archives
	38	Virginia Letters about Darien--American Historical Review
	39	Notes from Justin Winsor "Narrative and Critical History of America"
	40	Verse
	41	Spanish title
	42	Rare Americana catalogue
	43	Presbytery of Caledonia
	44	PHS check of Scott's List--PHS titles not in Scott
	45	Notes from Veitch
	46	Ministers
	47	Additional contemporary titles
	48	Description
	49	Causes
	50	Tables of contents
	51	Miscellaneous notes

		SERIES 3: MISCELLANEOUS RESEARCH NOTES, ND

1	52	Webster Correspondence
	53	James Latta sermons
	54	Index of Joseph Engles papers
	55	Notes in Latin and Greek
	56	Elders, ordination
	57	Pennsylvania Archives
	58	The Querists
	59	Schism
	60	Early Philadelphia Presbyterians
	61	John Witherspoon
	62	Associate Reformed Synod
	63	Catechisms
	64	Extracts from minutes
	65	Cases about indenture of 1721 and deed of 1742
	66	West of Mountains--missionaries and supplies
	67	West of Mountains--chart
	68	West of Mountains--Donegal supplies, Newcastle
	69	Expansion of the Presbyterian Church in Colonial America
	70	Western Pennsylvania
	71	Account of Bordel's voyage to Brazil
	72	Opening devotional of 152nd General Assembly
	73	"Michael and the Dragon"
	74	Work of the Westminster Assembly in the American Tradition
	75	"Inarticulate and Unconscious"
	76	William Tennent
	77	"History by Hearsay"
	78	Articles
	79	"John Milton and the Westminster Assembly"
	80	"Charity and Truth United"--Introduction
	81	"The First Assembly"
	82	Notes
	83	Calvin
	84	Early Church fathers
	85	Petitions, answers, etc. of 1642-43
	86	List of Hazard manuscripts
	87	List of Boudinot papers
	88	Index of pamphlets about Pennsylvania history
	89	"Beyond the Mountains"
	90	Romanism
	91	Pre-Redstone
	92	The Presbytery
	93	The Presbytery--members
	94	Index to Roche papers
	95	Wheelock Tracts–Eleazar Wheelock
	96	Memorial services

2	1	Genealogy of American Princeps
	2	Samuel Davies works
	3	New England Synod minutes
	4	Asolamus to Erasmus
	5	Londonderry pamphlets
	6	American revision of Watts' Psalms
	7	Colonial schools
	8	Synods
	9	Presbyterian and Reformed Churches
	10	Statistics of Presbyterian Churches at intervals of 20 years
	11	Minutes of General Assembly--printing and editions

		Presbyterian Board of Publication

2	12	Board of Publication
	13	History
	14	Periodicals and digest
	15	Hymnal
	16	Westminster question book
	17	Catalogues
	18	Index of Boston Presbytery
	19	Burning Bush
	20	Milton and the Westminster Assembly
	21	"Charity and Truth" (Davies' notes)
	22	Schism of 1741
	23	Log College graduates
	24	The Presbytery
	25	First Church elders
	26	Washington Presbytery
	27	Amendments to draft
	28	Draft--form of government (Hanover Presbytery)
	29	Notes and correspondence
	30	Faitoute's draft
	31-32	Philadelphia, PA--First Presbyterian Church records
	33	Philadelphia Presbytery--miscellaneous minutes
	34	Renewal of the Covenant--copy of 1748 pamphlet
	35	New York--Third Presbyterian Church
	36	Kentucky, early records
	37	John Brodhead Romeyn
	38	16th-century imprints
	39	"Michael and the Dragon"--copy of pageant
	40	"Journal of Nicholas Cresswell"
	41	University of Delaware
	42	Smiths of Newport Pagnell
	43	Confessional articles on relationship of Christians to the state
	44	From S.W. Carruthers
	45	Gilbert Tennent–sermons
	46	William Tennent Sr.--Log College
	47	James Logan
	48	Old synod paper
	49	Miscellaneous
	50	The Infallible Rule of Faith and Practice
	51	Westminster Confessions--Calling of the Assembly
	52	Westminster Assembly--People present
	53	Westminster Assembly
	54	Larger Catechism
	55	Shorter Catechism

		Westminster Confession

2	56	"The Printing of the Westminster Confession"
	57-58	Rothwell's edition
	59	Bostock-Lithgow editions
	60	Kincaid
	61	Typed text
	62	Cumberland recension
	63	USA amendments
	64	American edition of British text
	65	British editions
	66	"of public authority"
	67	"first agreed upon"
	68	New School
	69	Dr. Carruthers' lists
	70	with Scriptures at large
	71	Proof texts
	72	Editions in PHS library
	73-76	Notes
	77-80	Errors
	81	Confession and Shorter Catechism--errors
	82	Westminster Catechism--translations
	83	Catalogue of Frames--Alison Library, 1938
	84	Carruthers, S.W, 1939, 1943; Nolan Harmon, 1943

		SERIES 4: CORRESPONDENCE/PERSONAL ITEMS, 1919-1941

2	85	McEwan, William, 1919-20
	86	"The Design of Darien," 1935-37
	87	Mudge, Lewis Seymour
	88	Personal correspondence, 1937-41
	89	Sermon preached at Ben Avon, 1931

		SERIES 5: PRESBYTERIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 1933-1943

2	90	Minutes concerning PHS in 1867
	91	Book Reports
	92	PHS Papers
	93-94	Lists of Periodicals
	95	List of manuscript collection
	96	List of books--gifts of Dr. Roberts
	97	Important accessions since April 1933

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Guide to the Thomas Clinton Pears Papers

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