The National Graduate Training Center (Windham House), which opened in 1928, was one of several training centers that raised up a cadre of women able to minister to people in domestic and foreign venues who were in need of health care, education, and spiritual guidance. Only some of the participants went on to become deaconesses, while most took their vocational interest as a serious lay calling.
The history of Windham House falls into three periods.
From 1928 to 1943 the program of living, worshiping, and studying together was initiated and developed, and some basic convictions and groundwork about the program were established.
From 1944 to 1959 the two-year, fourfold program of study was inaugurated and carried out.
In the years 1959 to 1967 the program took a more exploratory path in an effort to stay current in the midst of rapid cultural change.
The Windham House program was terminated on June 30, 1967 and the property was leased and eventually sold to the Parish of Trinity Church, New York City for the operation of Trinity Institute, a center for the continuing renewal of the ministry of the Church.
Published
The records comprehensively cover Windham House's entire history and include minutes, director’s reports, and correspondence. Administrative files document Windham House's inception through its final director Johanna Mott. There is a solid set of financial records (1931-1973) with building plans, and records relating to the disposal of property. Alumni lists and correspondence exist as does a set of student records (1928-1967). A series of publications and typescripts about Windham House includes yearly catalogs and bulletins on the schools curriculum and academic life. The records also include a set of photographs.
Minutes, Director's Reports, and Correspondence, 1926-1967
Financial Records, 1931-1973
Student Records, 1928-1967
Print Material and Ephemera, n.d.
Photographs, n.d.
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