©Mennonite Heritage Centre 2003
Last updated 21 February 2019                    

Mennonite Heritage Centre Archives
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Hamilton Mennonite Church

Retrieval numbers: Volumes 6, 7, 2967, 4260, 4691, 4176, 5291, 5463, 5855.

Title: Hamilton Mennonite Church fonds
Dates: 1962-2010, 2012-2015, 2017-2018
Extent: 48 cm of textual records
Repository: Mennonite Heritage Centre Archives

Historical note

Mennonites began moving to the larger urban centres in southern Ontario after WWII. Many had worked in these centres, such as Hamilton, but had not settled there permanently. In 1952 it was decided that there was enough interest to begin worship services. They were begun at first in private homes and then rented facilities. In 1954 they purchased their own meeting house. In 1957 the congregation was officially organized as the Hamilton United Mennonite Fellowship. In 1962 their meeting house was sold and they met in rented facilities until their new meeting house was completed in 1965. In 1962 they changed their name to the Hamilton Mennonite Church. In 1966 Welcome Inn was begun as a voluntary service project in Hamilton. The congregation attracted local residents as well as the urbanized Mennonites. In 1962 the membership was 21, in 1974 it was 54. In 1983 the membership stood at 90 and remained at about that number until 2000. The leaders of the congregation were: Justina and Gerhard Peters (1952-1962), Estelle and Herman Enns (1962-1974), Elizabeth and Gary Gerber (1975-1983), Eleanor and David Epp-Stobbe (1985-1991), David Epp-Stobbe (1991-1996), Julianna and Philip Bender (1997- June 2004), Ardith Frey (November, 2004-July, 2005), Steve Schumm (August, 2005-November, 2009), Glyn Jones (November, 2009-September, 2010), Alissa Bender (November, 2010- ).

Scope and content note

This fonds contains bulletins (1960-2014), financial records (1959-1964), annual reports and other reports (1963-1993, 2002-2010, 2012-2015, 2017-2018), congregational directories (1969-1997, 2008), newsletters (1971-1996), some Welcome Inn materials (1977-1998), congregational and church council meeting minutes (1962-1997, 2002-2004, 2006-2009, 2012-2013, 2015, 2018), correspondence (1959-1990), executive committee meeting minutes (1982), council of committees meeting minutes (1982), and a congregational history (1959-1977). The records pertain to the founding and development of the Mennonite congregation in Hamilton, Ontario. They document the leaders and participants in the congregation.

Index terms

Subject terms

Hamilton Mennonite Church

Creators

Hamilton Mennonite Church Hamilton United Mennonite Fellowship

Adjunct descriptive data

Finding aids

Inventory file list available.

Notes

Restrictions on access

No restrictions on access.

Other notes

Textual records have been deposited by the congregation on a regular basis at the Mennonite Heritage Centre by the congregation. In 2007 some records collected by Mennonite Library and Archives (North Newton, Kansas) were transferred and integrated with the MHC collection.  Described by Bert Friesen 30 May 2002; updated 18 December by Alf Redekopp; updated by Selenna Wolfe 21 Febrary 2019. 

Hamilton Mennonite Church fonds file list:

Volume 6

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1963)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1964), financial statement (1964)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1965), service project proposal (1965)
4. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1966)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1967), Voluntary service materials (1967)
6. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1968), directory (1968)
7. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1969),  directory (1969)
8. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1970), congregational meeting minutes (1970), directory (1970)
9. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1971), directory (1971), newsletter (1971)
10. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1972), directory (1972)
11. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1973), congregational meeting minutes (1973), directory (1973)
12. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1974), congregational meeting minutes (1974), directory (1974)
13. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1975), directory (1975)

Volume 7

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1976), newsletter ([1976?]), directory (1976)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1977), Welcome Inn – VS, 1966-1977 book, 25^th anniversary book (1977), directory (1977)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1978, 1979), Constitution of Welcome Inn and V.S. Unit (1978)
4. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1980, 1981)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1982), executive committee meeting minutes (1982), council of committees meeting minutes (1982)
6. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1983)
7. Hamilton Mennonite Church financial statement (1959), bulletin (1960), correspondence (1959-1966), brief congregational history (1952-1959), congregational meeting minutes (1962), reports (1963-1964), correspondence (1970)
8. Hamilton Mennonite Church directories (1968-1974)
9. Hamilton Mennonite Church congregational meeting minutes (1969, 1970, 1973, 1974)

Volume 2967

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1984)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1985)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1986), Welcome Inn Community Centre & Church (1966-1986) 20th anniversary book (1986)
4. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1987)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1988)
6. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1989), newsletters (1989), congregational meeting minutes (1989), directory (1989)
7. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1990), congregational meeting minutes (1990), newsletters (1990), fund raising material (1990), directory (1990)
8. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1991), CBS reading guide (1991), newsletters (1991), congregational meeting minutes (1991), directory (1991)

Volume 4260

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1992), congregational meeting minutes (1992), directory (1992)
2. Welcome Inn Community Centre and Church newsletter (1992)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1993), annual reports (1993), newsletters (1993), congregational meeting minutes (1993), Welcome Inn Seniors Golden Yarns (1993)
4. Welcome Inn Community Centre annual report (1989-1990), newsletters (1990-1995, 1998), correspondence (1990)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1994), directory (1994), newsletters (1994), congregational meeting minutes (1994)
6. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1995), congregational meeting minutes (1995)
7. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1996), congregational meeting minutes (1996), directory (1996)
8. Welcome Inn 30^th anniversary newsletter (1996)
9. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1997), congregational meeting minutes (1997), directory (1997)
10. Hamilton Mennonite Church Newsletter: Link (1989-1994)

Volume 4691

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1998)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (1999)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2000)
4. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2001)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2002), report book (2002), congregational and council meeting minutes (2002)
6. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2003), report book (2003), congregational and council meeting minutes (2003).

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins, (2004), report book (2004), church council minutes (2004)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins, (2005), report book (2005)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2006), report book (2006), congregational minutes (2006); church council minutes (2006)
4. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2007), report book (2007),  church council minutes (2007), 50th Anniversary book 1952-2002.

1. Hamilton Mennonite Church annual reports (1965-1968)
2. Hamilton Mennonite Church annual reports (1970-1979)
3. Hamilton Mennonite Church annual reports (1982, 1989, 1990, 1993)
4. North End Christian Action News (1969-1970)
5. Hamilton Mennonite Church bulletins (2008), report book (2008), directory (2008), church council meeting minutes, congregational meeting minutes