1867-1980 Guide to the Rhode Island Baptist Heritage ... · In early October 2001, Trickett,...

Guide to the Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Centercollection1867-1935 , Ms. 2008.017Brown University LibrarySpecial Collections

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RIAMCO http://www.riamco.org/render.php?eadid=US-RPB-ms2008.017&view=title

Guide to the Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center collection1867-1980

Brown University LibrarySpecial CollectionsBox A, John Hay LibraryBrown UniversityProvidence, RI 02912Tel: 401-863-2146Fax: 401-863-2093E-mail: [email protected]

Published in 2009©Brown University Library


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Collection overview

Title: Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center collection

Date range: 1867-1980

Creator: Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center

Extent: 7.5 linear feet

Abstract: The Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center, an affiliateof the American Baptist Churches of Rhode Island[ABCORI], was established in 2004 to create an officialBaptist presence in Providence, Rhode Island. It providessubstantive information regarding early English andAmerican Baptists and documents traditional formsof worship and doctrine in the Baptist Church. Thecollection includes a wide array of church materialsdocumenting organizational and administrativeoperations, religious practices and beliefs, and thehistory of the Baptist Church in Rhode Island. It includesregisters, reports, correspondence, photographs andchurch publications dating from as early as 1867 to thelate 1980s.

Language of materials: English

Repository: Brown University LibrarySpecial Collections

Collection number: Ms. 2008.017

Scope & content

The Rhode Baptist Heritage Center collection comprises a wide range of Rhode IslandBaptist church materials, dating from mid-to-late 19th century to the late 20th century, withthe bulk of the materials dating from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. It isdivided into three series: Church records, Printed Materials, and Museum Objects.

Series 1, Church records, includes a comprehesive assortment of Rhode Island Baptistchurch records, including annual reports, a variety of church registers and treasurer's


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reports, constitutional documents, correspondence and minutes of numerous committeemeetings. Other noteworthy items in this series include such ephemeral materialsas newspaper clippings and miscellaneous scattered notes. In addition, this seriesincorporates a small number of individual church publications, such as manuals, bulletins,programs and calendars. Also of interest in this series are some scrapbooks and earlyphotographs.

Series 2, Printed materials, includes a collection of early 20th century publications suchas year books from the Rhode Island Baptist State Convention and annual reports fromthe Women's Baptist Foreigh Missionary Society. It includes a remarkable collection of oldBaptist periodicals, including scattered issues from such titles as Among the Deep SeaFishers, Daily Scripture Food and the Rhode Island Baptist.

Series 3, Museum objects, is comprised of two late 19th century printing blocks.

Arrangement

The collection is divided into three series with each series arranged alphabetically.• Series 1. Church records• Series 2. Printed materials• Series 3. Museum objects

Historical note

The Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center was the culmination of the work of individualswho were deeply concerned about the identity and history of Baptists. As a result ofthe decision by the American Baptist Churches of Rhode Island [ABCORI] to move itsheadquarters from Providence to Camp Canonicus in Exeter, some thought that a "Baptistpresence" should be maintained in Providence. As early as June 1999, Dr. Homer Trickett,retired associate pastor of Phillips Memorial Baptist Church, and others met with Rev.Donald Rasmussen, the Executive Minister of ABCORI, to discuss the creation of a"Baptist Cultural and Heritage Center," located in Providence. Disagreement about theconcept caused it to languish until October 2001. In the meanwhile, a few members ofthe Providence Baptist Theological Circle, an organization founded in 1851 to promotethe continuing education of ministers, formed another group to consider issues of Baptistidentity, history, and distinctives. The leader in this movement was Trickett, who wasparticularly concerned that "the ecumenical movement had caused Baptists to water down


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their distinctive beliefs about how one became a Christian and as to the nature of theChurch as the body of Christ." In September 2001, Trickett and Rev. Clay Berry, pastorof the Wakefield Baptist Church, invited a number of persons that they believed would beinterested in participating in such discussions.

Numbering about twelve individuals in October 2001, the group initially called itself the"Baptist Distinctives Discussion Group" while they searched for an appropriate name.By April of 2002, they called themselves "The Baptist Authority Project" and electedformal officers. In addition they adopted a Purpose Statement written by Rev. Dr. CharlesHartman, pastor of the Swansea Baptist Church, which proposed:

to identify and reclaim the authentic witness of the early English and American Baptists inorder to provide an authoritative critique for comtemporary Baptist practice.

In early October 2001, Trickett, Rasmussen, Dr. Robert L. Carter, retired pastor of theCongdon St. Baptist Church, and Rev. Paul Schoonmaker, retired pastor of CalvaryBaptist Church met to draft a proposal for the "Baptist Heritage and Cultural Center" to bepresented to the Board of Mission of ABCORI. On October 15, 2001, Trickett and Carter,submitted to the Board an elaborate proposal for a research center, repository for Baptistrecords, a meeting place, and educational center. The Board responded on January 29,2002 by establishing the "Providence Presence Task Force." This task force met for thefirst time on May 1, 2002 with Trickett and Carter serving as co-chairs. By July, when itreported to the Board of Mission, the task force was being called the "Baptist HeritageCenter Task Force," and Trickett and Carter were officially elected by the Board to be co-chairs. As the task force met in the summer of 2002, the original grand scheme for theBaptist Center was pared to a much simpler plan with the hope that the Center would grow.In October 29, 2002, Trickett retired as co-chair and Berry was elected to replace him.

The task force approved a constitution and by-laws for the Baptist Heritage Center [BHC]on May 8, 2003 and forwarded it to the Board of Mission, for presentation at the AnnualGathering of ABCORI on May 17, 2003. ABCORI voted to create the BHC as an affiliatewith its own governing board of directors. In the ensuing year, leaders of the task forcemet and selected officers to be elected officially at the next Annual Gathering. The generalofficers and new members of the board of the BHC must be elected each year by thedelegates at ABCORI's annual business meeting. Headed by Clay Berry, the first board ofdirectors of the BHC was elected on May 15, 2004, and held its first meeting on August 19,2004.

(Historical overview written by Dr. J. Stanley Lemons.)


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Access & use

Access to the collection: There are no restrictions on access, except that thecollection can only be seen by prior appointment. Somematerials may be stored off-site and cannot be producedon the same day on which they are requested.

Use of materials: All researchers seeking to publish materials from thecollections of the John Hay Library are requestedto complete a Notice of Intent to Publish, prior toreproducing, quoting, or otherwise publishing anyportion or extract from this collection. Although BrownUniversity has physical ownership of the collectionand the materials contained therein, it does not claimliterary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine theowners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessarypermissions from them.

Preferred citation: Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center collection, Ms.2008.017, Brown University LibrarySpecial Collections

Contact information: Brown University LibrarySpecial CollectionsBox A, John Hay LibraryBrown UniversityProvidence, RI 02912Tel: 401-863-2146Fax: 401-863-2093E-mail: [email protected]

Administrative information

About the collection

Aquisition: This collection was donated by the Rhode Island BaptistHeritage Center through the Rev. Dr. Paul M. Hanson onApril 15th, 2008

Accruals: Additional materials are anticipated for this collection.


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About the finding aid

Author: Finding aid prepared by Robert J. Rosa.

Encoding: Finding aid encoded by Robert J. Rosa 2009 February 10

Descriptive rules: Finding aid based on Describing Archives: A ContentStandard (DACS)

Additional informationRelated material: See also these additional collections that form part of the

Rhode Island Baptist Heritage Center collection.• Homer Trickett papers (Ms.2011.031)• Niantic Baptist Church records (Ms.2012.010)• Meshanticut Park Community Baptist Church

records (Ms.2012.007)• Roger Williams Baptist Church records

(Ms.2012.009)• Shawomet Baptist Church records (Ms.2011.018)• West Exeter Baptist Church records (Ms.2012.018)

Search terms

Names: Rhode Island Baptist Heritage CenterAmerican Baptist Churches of Rhode Island

Subjects: Rhode Island Baptist Heritage CenterBaptists--Rhode Island--19th centuryBaptists--Rhode Island--20th centuryWomen in church work--Baptists--Rhode IslandBaptists--Education--Rhode IslandBaptists--Societies, etcBaptist Associations-–Rhode Island-–HistoryBaptists--Societies, etc.–-Periodicals

Types of materials: ManuscriptsLetters (correspondence)Bookkeeping resgistersRegisters (lists)

http://www.riamco.org/render.php?eadid=US-RPB-ms2011.031&view=title









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PublicationsPhotographsScrapbooksEphemeraArtifactsPrinting blocks


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Inventory

Series 1, Church records,Boxes 1-7

Container Description Date

Box 1, Arlington Baptist Churtch : Children'sDay, Order of Service, andcorresponding newspaper clipping

1916 Jun 11

Box 1, Bethany Baptist Church : Reports 1972

Box 1, Congdon St. Baptist Church : “A BriefHistorical Sketch” from 1819-1965, byRev. Leardrew L. Johnson

1965

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Calendars

1893-1894,1896, 1905

Box 1, Cranston Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society

1913 Jan21-1935May 10

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church : Churchmanuals

1876

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Constitution, meeting minutes, andnotes

1870

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Installation Service

1906 Oct 14

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church : LauraBixby Missionary Society

undated

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church : Letter 1945


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Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Newspaper clippings

1905

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Photographs

undated

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church :Scrapbook

ca. 1890

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church : Welch,Mary L : Lights of the Cranston StreetSabbath School [poem]

undated

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church-RogerWilliams Baptist Church : Churchprogram and strategic study

1951

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church-RogerWilliams Baptist Church : Closing

1969 Apr 9

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church-RogerWilliams Baptist Church : Matterspertaining to the Union

1918, 1920

Box 1, Cranston St. Baptist Church-RogerWilliams Baptist Church : Programs

1918,1921-1923,1926-1927,1931, 1933,1940, 1942

Box 1, Eighth Baptist Church : Meetingminutes

1875-1886

Box 1, Federation of United Baptist Churchand United Presbyterian Church :Dissolution documents

1986


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Box 1, Federation of United Baptist Churchand United Presbyterian Church :Documents, various assorted

1967-1968,1978-1980

Box 1, First Free Baptist Church : Programs ca. 1908

Box 1, First Baptist Church : Scrapbook undated

Box 1, First Free Baptist Church : Watson,Rev. John. Beside the Bonnie BriarBush

1899

Box 1, Fourth Baptist Church : AccountingLedger

1905-1913

Box 1, Fourth Baptist Church : Brotherhood :Meeting minutes

1920 Oct5-1934 May14

Box 1, Fourth Baptist Church : History 1921, 1968,1973

Box 1, Fourth Baptist Church : Inventory ofAssets

1905-1909

Box 1, Fourth Baptist Church : Register ofmonetary contributions

1920-1922

Box 2, Fourth Baptist Church : Register ofmonetary contributions

1922-1924

Box 2, Fourth Baptist Church : Treasurer'sledger

ca. 1905


1905-1912


ca. 1916


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Box Over-sizedbox,

Fourth Baptist Church : Treasurer'sledger

1911-1920

Box 2, Jefferson Baptist Church : Meetingminutes

1909 May6-1912 Mar28

Box 2, Jefferson Baptist Church : Treasurer'sledger

1860-1885

Box 2, Jefferson Baptist Church : Treasurer'sledger

1885-1899

Box 2, Olneyville Church : Handbook anddirectory

1909

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church : Helping HandSociety : Meeting minutes

1927 Oct10-1930Dec 10

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church : Ladies' AidSociety : Supper Records Treasurer'sbook

1906-1913

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church : Librarycatalog and newsprint

ca. 1870

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church : Men's Club :Meeting minutes and church register

1907 Nov17-1910 Jun01, 1927Feb 17

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church : Women'sMissionary Society : Meeting minutes

1879-1884


1884-1908


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1908-1912

Box 2, Park St. Baptist Church-United BaptistChurch : Christian Endeavor Society :Meeting minutes

1910 Apr03-1930Dec 10

Box 2, Phenix Baptist Church : Manual andchurch role

1914-1915

Box 2, Phenix Baptist Church : Photographs undated

Box 3, Rhode Island Free Baptist Association :Minutes and reports

1911-1947

Box 3, Roger Williams Free Baptist Church :Church manuals

1873

Box 3, Roger Williams Free Baptist Church :List of members

undated

Box 3, Roger Williams Free Baptist Church :Orders of service

1899,1901-1902,1909-1910,1913

Box 3, Roger Williams Free Baptist Church :Women's Missionary Auxiliary : Annualmeeting reports

1900-1901,1903-1904

Box 3, Roger Williams Free Baptist Church :Women's Missionary Auxiliarycalendars

1898-1916

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Annual reports 1915




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Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Constitutionconvenant and by-laws

1915

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church :Correspondence

1914Jan-1914June


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1914July-1914Dec


1915Jan-1915Apr


1915May-1915June

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Directory andorder of service

1947 May18

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Ellen S. Slater,Estate of

1925-1938

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Incorporation 1914 Jun 16

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Inventory ofrecords

1915 Jun 30

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Membershipapplications

1914-1921

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Membershipletters to the church

1914-1920

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission, annualreports

1914

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission,clippings

undated

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission,covenant

1914 Feb 10


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Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission,emblem

undated

Box 3, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission, notices undated

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Mission, pressmanuscripts and corresponding notes

1914

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Newspaperclippings

1914Jan-1914April


1914May-1914Aug


1914Sept-1914Dec


1915Jan-1915Apr

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Resolutions 1914

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Resolutions 1915

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Trinity BaptistBeraca Herald (Periodicasl), Vol. 1

1916 Oct

Box 4, Trinity Baptist Church : Trinity BaptistTruth (Periodical), Vol.1, Nos. 1-7, 9-11

1917

Box 4, United Baptist Church : AdvisoryCouncil, meeting minutes

1960-1971


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Box 4, United Baptist Church : AmericanBaptist Convention, program changesand additions

1968 May29-1968 Jun2

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Annual reports 1910,1935-1936,1938,1951-1956

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Annual reports 1970-1972,1975-1979

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Baptist YouthFellowship

1953,1958-1962

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Baraca Class 1938, 1940

Box 4, United Baptist Church : C.C. Lambertin 1938-1940,1944,1947-1952

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Choir Directorreports

1936,1939-1940,1942-1944,1949-1952

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, associate memberpledges

undated

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, meeting minutes

1917-1925

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, membership book

undated

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, role call and recordof attendance

1924 -1935


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Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Union : Treasurer's book

1908-1939

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, Junior : Compositionbook

1932

Box 4, United Baptist Church : ChristianEndeavor Society, Junior : Records ofattendance and roll calls

1920-1923

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Church repairfund

1944-1945,1948,1950-1952

Box 4, United Baptist Church :Correspondence

1910, 1935,1939,1941-1942,1946,1950-1952,1954-1955,1959,1962-1963

Box 4, United Baptist Church : FellowshipFund

1939-1953

Box 4, United Baptist Church : FinanceCommittee

1949-1950

Box 4, United Baptist Church : George W.Beckwith Men's Bible Class : Role ofmembers

1948-1959

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Golden JubileeBond

undated

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Guest book 1974-1986


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Box 5, United Baptist Church : Helping HandMissionary Society : Meeting minutes

1920-1934

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Letters ofDismission

1922,1928-1931,1933, 1936

Box 4, United Baptist Church : Letters ofDismission, certificates

1928-1931,1933,1936-1937,1939,1942, 1962,1965-1966

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Letters ofDismission, transfer certificates

1915, 1918,1926,1928-1929,1931-1932,1934-1935,1939-1940,1942,1945-1946,1948-1949,1951-1954,1959,1964-1966,1979

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Letters ofNotification

1910, 1913,1923,1925-1932,1934-1936,1939,1951-1956,1958-1959,1961-1964,1966-1967,1979-1980


1927-1929,1931,


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1937-1940,1942-1943,1964,1948-1952,1954-1957,1960-1961,1963-1966,1969


1927-1931,1933, 1936,1938-1950,1954-1955,1958, 1961,1963-1964,1966-1967

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Meetingminutes

1948

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Member lists 1940-1942,1944-1945,1948,1951-1953

Box 5, United Baptist Church : MissionarySociety : Reports

1938-1943,1951-1953

Box 5, United Baptist Church : MissionarySociety : Treasury fund

1938-1953

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Notes,scattered

undated

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Pastor's annualreports

1939,1941-1942,1944,1947, 1950,


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1952-1953,1961

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Pastor'snewsletter

1978 Apr

Box 5, United Baptist Church : PhilatheaSociety : meeting minutes

1928 Sep18-1933 Jun13


1948 Sep14-1959May 12


1944 Jan13-1948Dec 5

Box 5, United Baptist Church : PhilatheaSociety : reports

1938-1942,1944-1952

Box 5, United Baptist Church : PhilatheaSociety : secretary's book

1959-1967

Box 5, United Baptist Church : PhilatheaSociety : treasurer's reports

1945Sep-1967Jun

Box 5, United Baptist Church : PressCommittee

1940-1941,1952

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Records 1912-1961

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Register ca.1875-1949

Box 5, United Baptist Church : Scrapbook undated

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Treasurer'sbooks

1908-1933,1941-1958


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Box 6, United Baptist Church : SeniorChristian Endeavor Society

1938-1941

Box 6, Series United Baptist Church :Summary of findings : StatewideStrategy Study of the RI BaptistConvention

1964

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Sunday school 1938-1953

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Treasurer'sreport

1938-1941,1945-1947,1949

Box 6, United Baptist Church : What-so-everClass : Annual reports

1939-1942,1944-1953

Box 6, United Baptist Church : What-so-everClass : Meeting minutes

1936-1942


1952-1968


1969-1986

Box 6, United Baptist Church : What-so-everClass : Sunshine Committee : Register

1968-1981

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Women'sMissionary Society : Reports of thesecretary

1934-1952

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Women'sSociety in a Baptist Church Manual

undated

Box 6, United Baptist Church : Women'sSociety : Meeting minutes

1959-1969


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Box 6, United Community Church : Closing ca. 1986

Box 6, United Community Church : Contractwith Haitian Ministries

ca. 1986

Box 6, United Community Church : Pastor'sannual reports

1980,1982-1986

Box 6, United Presbyterian Church : ChurchCouncil : Meeting minutes

1984-1986

Box 6, United Presbyterian Church : Concernsand celebrations

1972-1973

Box 6, United Presbyterian Church : Meetingminutes

1964-1973

Box 6, United Presbyterian Church-Mt.Pleasant Church-United Baptist ChurchInterfaith Council

1969-1979

Series 2, Printed materials,Box 6-7


Box 6, Among the deep sea fishers [periodical] 1936 Jan,1936 July

Box 6, Annual of the Northern BaptistConvention

1925, 1934

Box 6, Annual of the Northern BaptistConvention

1937-1938

Box 7, Daily scripture food [periodical] 1911

Box 7, Home Study Quarterly [periodical] 1936


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Box 7, Picture puzzles or how to read the bibleby symbols. [monograph] Arranged byJ.L. Nichols

1908

Box 7, Providence Bible Institute annualcatalogue

1930-1931

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist [periodical] 1948,1957-1958,1967

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist [periodical] 1932,1935-1936

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist Anniversaries :Meeting minutes

1920,1922-1923

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist Anniversaries :Meeting minutes

1913,1915-1916,1919

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist StateConvention : Year books

1923,1931-1932,1934

Box 7, Rhode Island Baptist TercentenarySouvenir

1938 May

Box 7, Sing a song : Campaign hymns usedby the Evangelistic Party (monograph)

undated

Box 7, Warren Association : Minutes of the101st Annual meeting

1867

Box 7, Wilkins, Rev. Frank L. The diaconate 1914

Box 7, Without the Camp : Quarterly magazine 1911 Apr


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Box 7, Woman's Baptist Foreign MissionarySociety : Annual reports

1886-1887,1924-1942

Series 3, Museum objects,Box 7


Box 7, Printing blocks undated

1867-1980 Guide to the Rhode Island Baptist Heritage ... · In early October 2001, Trickett,...

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Transcript of 1867-1980 Guide to the Rhode Island Baptist Heritage ... · In early October 2001, Trickett,...