Guide to the William M. Baird Papers
Open for research.
To browse this collection's digitized content visit Pearl.
The Rev. Dr. William M. Baird and his wife, Annie Laurie Adams Baird, were appointed to the Chosen (Korea) Mission in 1890 by the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. From 1891 until 1897, they served at the Seoul, Fusan, and Taiku stations. In 1897, Baird was appointed president of the Pyengyang Academy and Union Christian College (also known as Sungsil Haktang and later Sungsil Taehak), a position that he held until his death in 1931.
Two of the Baird's sons, William M. Baird, Jr. and Richard H. Baird, also served as Presbyterian missionaries to Korea.
The William M. Baird Papers, 1885-1951 (bulk 1885-1931), consist of Baird's diaries, correspondence, reports, photographs, clippings and miscellaneous items. His diaries, 1892-1895, cover the early years of his work in Korea, primarily at Fusan station. The correspondence, 1885-1905, 1916, pre-dates his work in Korea and concludes with the death of his first wife, Annie Laurie Adams Baird, in 1916. It is primarily personal and is arranged chronologically. The reports, 1891-1931, though fairly complete, are not original copies and most likely duplicate those found in Record Group 140, Secretaries' Files, Board of Foreign Missions, Korea Mission, 1903-1973. Included are station, personal, and institutional reports, arranged chronologically. The photographs, 1891-1939, primarily document Korean and missionary school children, missionary groups, and faculty and students of the Presbyterian Seminary and Union Christian College.
Series I: Diaries, 1892-1895
Series II: Correspondence, 1885-1905, 1916
Series III: Reports, 1891-1931
Series IV: Photographs, 1891-1939
Series V: Clippings and miscellaneous items, 1885-1951 (bulk 1885-1932)
To browse this collection's digitized content visit Pearl.
Available on microfilm: MF/POS./1020/r.1-2.
Researchers should also consult Record Group 172, Annie Laurie Adams Baird Papers; Record Group 316, Baird Family Papers; and Record Group 140, Secretaries' Files, Board of Foreign Missions, Korea Mission.
Collection processed and finding aid prepared: 1984
Frederick J. Heuser, Jr., Archivist
Materials added: May 1993
Stephanie Muntone, Processing Archivist
Finding aid revised: July 2012
Bill Brock, Collection Management Archivist
| Box | Folder | Description | Alternative Formats |
| 1 | 1 | Finding Aid to Record Group 173 | |
| SERIES I: DIARIES, 1892-1895 | |||
| 1 | 2 | 1892-1893 | Digital |
| 1 | 3 | 1893-1894 | Digital |
| 1 | 4 | 1894-1895 | Digital |
| SERIES II: CORRESPONDENCE, 1885-1905, 1916 | |||
| 1 | 5 | 1885-1893 | Digital |
| 1 | 6 | 1894-1896 | Digital |
| 1 | 7 | 1897-1905 | Digital |
| 1 | 8 | 1916 | Digital |
| SERIES III: REPORTS, 1891-1931 | |||
| 1 | 9 | Station, institutional, and personal reports, 1891-1931 | Digital |
| SERIES IV: PHOTOGRAPHS, 1891-1939 | |||
| 1 | 10 | Groups of children (Korean and missionary) – includes Pyeng Yang Foreign School, Seoul Girls’ School, First Christian School (Pusan), circa 1895, 1903, 1913-1916, circa 1937 | Digital |
| 1 | 11 | Missionary groups, 1891-1893, 1907-1939, undated | Digital |
| 1 | 12 | Presbyterian Seminary and Union Christian College – faculty and students, 1907-1915, 1929, undated | Digital |
| 1 | 13 | Miscellaneous photos, 1901, 1907, undated | Digital |
| 1 | 14 | Illustrations, 1905-1907, 1914-1916, undated | Digital |
| SERIES IV: CLIPPINGS AND MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS, 1885-1951 (BULK 1885-1932) | |||
| 1 | 15 | 1891-1902, 1914-1915 | Digital |
| 1 | 16 | 1885-1888, 1903, 1913-1932, 1951, undated | Digital |
| 1 | 17 | 1899, 1916, 1931, undated | Digital |