Spong, (Rt. Rev.) John Shelby. Project Records

PP-00-R0238

The Archives of the Episcopal Church

Fonds

Spong, (Rt. Rev.) John Shelby. Project Records

• 1924-1990 (Creation)

1.25 cu.ft (2 boxes) and 105 GB

In 1974 the Rev. John Shelby Spong began researching with the intention of writing the biography of former Presiding Bishop John Elbridge Hines. Unsure of the final outcome, he wished to conduct the research for its own sake, and then make it available to the wider Church. The project was sponsored by his parish, St. Paul’s Church, Richmond, and compristed a committee of editorial advisors including the Rev. John Coburn, Bishop Robert Brown, and Bishop Scott Field Bailey. However, after being elected Bishop of Newark, Spong was forced to put the project aside. In 1984 Spong compiled a booklet titled “A Celebration of the Ministry of John Elbridge Hines: A Moment of Grace in the History of the Church” which paid tribute to Hines on the 50th anniversary of his ordination.

This archive documents the records created by John Shelby Spong as he conducted research for an unfinished biography of former Presiding Bishop John Elbridge Hines, whom Spong admired for his courageous civil rights activism. Included are audio interviews recorded with and about Hines between 1974 and 1975, fifty-three of which have been digitized by the Archives. Research materials related to Spong’s planning and execution of the project, as well as his gathered documentation on the various stages of Hines’ ministry, round out the collection.

Interviews with and about John Hines, 1974–1975 (audio recordings)
Spong Research Materials
Material Collected for the Hines Biography, 1924–1990

Access to Episcopal Church records is governed by the Archives Public Access Policy. Research requests must be submitted in writing.

The Archives is able to respond to limited requests for reproductions subject to copyright restrictions, internal policy, and the condition of the source documents.

• English

• Civil rights

• Hines, John Elbridge (Subject)
• Spong, John Shelby (Subject)

• Oral interviews