Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art

African Inland Mission Collection, EEPA 2008-003, circa 1907-circa 1914

Summary

Collection ID:
EEPA.2008-003
Dates:
circa 1905-1978 (bulk 1905-1920)
bulk 1900-1920
Languages:
English
Physical Description:
147 photographs
3 volumes
books
43 postcards
Repository:
Container:
EEPA.2008-003
This collection contains 147 photographic prints and 43 postcards from East Africa (circa 1907-circa 1914), especially Kijobe, which depict the activities of the Africa Inland Mission; Theodore Roosevelt's safari in 1909; views of Nairobi, Mombasa, Port Said, Lake Victoria and other landscapes; and portraits of Maasai, Kikuyu, Kamba, Kavirondo, Akawba, Gikuyu, Somali and Swahili coast peoples. Missionaries pictured include Hetz, Hurlburt, and Wallace, who is listed as photographer on many of the prints. The collection also contains 3 paperback books, published by Africa Inland Mission, which describe the history of the organization and the experiences of its missionaries:
Faster Beats the Drum
(1978),
Another Hand on Mine
(1975) and
Gardens of Miracles
(1976).

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged in four series:
  • Series 1: Locations
  • Series 2: Cultures
  • Series 3: Other
  • Series 4: Publications

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
The Africa Inland Mission (AIM) is a non-denominational Christian missionary organization that focuses on Africa. The organization was founded in 1895 by Scottish-American missionary Peter Cameron Scott of the International Missionary Alliance. Scott and his fellow missionaries arrived in Mombasa in October of 1895 and within a year had established four missions in Kenya. Scott's untimely death in 1896 almost led to the dissolution of AIM, but support from the Philadelphia Missionary Council and a new director in the person of Rev. Charles Hurlburt reinvigorated the project. In 1909 a station was set up in what was then German East Africa (Tanzania) and in 1912, Theodore Roosevelt intervened on behalf of his friend Hurlburt to persuade the Belgian government to allow the mission to establish a station in the Congo. Today, AIM operates in 13 countries in Central and Southern Africa.

Administration

Author
Eden Orelove
Processing Information
Processed by Eden Orelove, May 2017.
Custodial History
Donated by Sandra Tirey, 2008. Africa Inland Mission U.S. Director Wade Ewing provided copyright in 2017.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Africa Inland Mission Collection, EEPA 2008-003, Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Access
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Conditions Governing Use
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Kamba (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographic prints Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kikuyu (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Postcards Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Masai (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Swahili (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Animals -- Africa Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Port Said (Egypt) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Somali (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Victoria, Lake Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nairobi (Kenya) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mombassa (Kenya) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kenya Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Books Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Safaris Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Missionaries Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Africa, East Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Africa Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Africa Inland Mission Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art
National Museum of African Art
P.O. Box 37012
MRC 708
Washington, DC 20013-7012
elisofonarchives@si.edu