Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia

Records, 1905-1990, 93.0 cu. ft., Ms85-004

Introduction:

The records of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia consist of incoming and outgoing correspondence, financial reports, meeting minutes, pamphlets, clippings, photographs, and building plans and surveys. The Diocese was founded in 1919, when it split from the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia, and represents thirty-two counties in the southwest corner of the state. Headquartered in St. John's Church in Roanoke, the Diocese's first bishop was Robert Carter Jett, who served from 1920 to 1938. Successive bishops were Henry D. Phillips (1938-54), William Marmion (1954-79), Heath Light (1979-96), and F. Neff Powell (1996- ).

History

The Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia was originally formed from the Diocese of Virginia, which was organized in 1795 and included the area that is now the states of Virginia and West Virginia. West Virginia achieved its statehood in 1863, and split from the Diocese in 1877. In 1892 the Diocese of Southern Virginia was formed, and in 1919 the western part of the diocese split off to form the Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia.

Robert Carter Jett, D.D., of the Virginia Episcopal School, was consecrated Bishop of the Diocese in March 1920. He selected Roanoke as the headquarters, and St. John's for his parish church. Bishop Jett established a diocesan newsletter, encouraged interdenominational cooperation among the Protestant sects, and oversaw a program of church construction and the growth of mission schools.

In 1938 Bishop Jett retired and Henry Disbrow Phillips assumed the duties of Bishop of the Diocese. Under Phillips' leadership, the Diocese continued to expand in parishioners and influence, most notably in the growth in the Diocese's function in education.

William Henry Marmion became the third Bishop of Southwestern Virginia in May 1954, and led the Diocese through an era of social upheaval in the 1960s. Bishop Marmion was strongly against racial segregation, and was confronted with the problem of challenging the long-held beliefs of many of his parishioners while integrating blacks into the church at the same time. The 1960s and 1970s also saw women pushing for a higher status in society, and the Diocese saw women increasingly become part of the church leadership as lay readers, deacons, and priests. Bishop Marmion also guided his parish into accepting the revisions of the Book of Common Prayer. Bishop Marmion retired in 1979, and Bishop Heath Light assumed leadership that same year.

See Hills of the Lord: the Background of the Episcopal Church in Southwestern Virginia, 1738-1938 by Katherine L. Brown (1979) for more information on the early history of the Diocese.

Scope and Contenet

The records of the Diocese consist of the Diocese's administrative records, including incoming (often from parishioners) and outgoing correspondence, with a scattering of newspaper clippings, photographs, building plans and surveys, pamphlets, and meeting minutes, from the central administrative office in Roanoke and the churches within the Diocese.

The materials are organized in rough chronological order from 1905 to 1984. The original numbering system used in the Bishop's office is noted in the container list following with a number the year the material was created. For example, (1921:309) indicates that the material in the Folder dates from 1921 and that the Folder was originally numbered 309. That numbering system was organized with participating Episcopal parishes listed alphabetically, followed by subjects, within each year. Not every year has materials from each parish or about each subject.

Provenance

The records were permanently deposited in 1985 by the Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia.

Container List

Archives of the Episcopal Church (national office)

Return to:
Guide to the Manuscript Collections in the University Libraries
Manuscript sources for Appalachian History

Please refer to our page giving information on how to duplicate Special Collections Department materials.