Mennonite archive expansion will reveal history to the public
WATERLOO — When Lewis J. Burkholder started travelling around Ontario in the 1930s archiving Mennonite history, his collection was so small it fit inside a single box.
Today, his “Mennonite box” is bursting at the seams. The collection he started has swollen to thousands of diaries, photographs, audio recordings, videos and more that are housed inside the Ontario Mennonite Archives at Conrad Grebel University College.
Soon, for the first time, the public will get to glimpse some of its most prized possessions thanks to a $6.3-million expansion at the college that will triple the archive’s capacity. The new construction will make room for a gallery, digital scanning equipment and teaching spaces that will finally open the doors on one of the largest archives of Mennonite history in Canada.
People may be surprised at some of the rare treasures hidden inside its crammed, climate-controlled vault.
That includes prizes like the original Schneider family bible — yes, those , the Mennonite manifesto printed in 1748 that was the largest book ever printed in colonial America.
The collection long ago overflowed the vault and spilled into what was supposed to be work room, stretching the archives to the point it has had to turn away donated historical items because it simply didn’t have space.
“We are at 160 per cent capacity,” said archivist Laureen Harder-Gissing. “When someone comes to you and says ‘I have these wonderful things in my attic’ and you say you don’t have room, that stuff becomes vulnerable … It’s really hard to turn people away.”
The construction, which is set to begin next March and finish in the summer of 2013, is long overdue. The last time Conrad Grebel expanded its academic building was in 1976. The project will also expand the college’s library, music department and add a community education space for the peace and conflict studies department.
The college, affiliated with the University of Waterloo, has already received pledges for $2.9 million of the $3.7 million it hopes to raise in donations, according to college director of development Fred Martin. The rest of the money will come from a possible Heritage Canada grant, revenues from graduate teaching, reserves, and an internal mortgage.
No one may be more excited about the expansion than archivist Harder-Gissing. For the first time, they’ll have room to digitalize pieces long hidden from public view, putting them on the internet for anyone to see.
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WATERLOO — When Lewis J. Burkholder started travelling around Ontario in the 1930s archiving Mennonite history, his collection was so small it fit inside a wooden box. Today, his “Mennonite box” is bursting at the seams.
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History of the Mennonites, historically and biographically arranged from the time of the reformation; more particularly from the time of their emigration to America. Containing sketches fo the oldest meeting houses and prominent ministers. Also, their Confession of faith, adopted at Dortrecht, in 1632
It has been a mooted question for many years whether or not the Mennonites were descendants from the Wal- denses, but the testimony of Dr. Ypeij, ...History of the Mennonites, Historically and Biographically Arranged from the Time of the Reformation, More Particularly from the Time of Their Emigra
History of the Mennonites, historically and biographically arranged from the time of the Reformation, more particularly from the time of their emigration to America, containing sketches of the oldest meeting houses and prominent ministers ; also their confession of faith, adopted at Dortrecht, in 1621
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