Ephemera of Elisabeth Alden (Scott) and John Cornelius Stam

Memoirs, newsletters, correspondence, diary, photos, film, poems, newspaper clippings and other items that relate to the Stam family’s involvement in Christian ministry in North America, Asia, and Africa. The bulk of the collection consists of material about John and Betty Stam, workers in China who were killed by Communist soldiers in 1934.

2 boxes (.6 cubic feet); Films, Negatives, Oversize materials, Photo Albums, Photographs, Videotapes

Because of the fragile nature of the letters in folder 1-6, researchers must use the photocopies in folder 1-7 instead.

This collection was created by the staff of the BGC Archives and consists of material they have received from various sources about the Christian ministry of the family of Peter, Sr. and Amelia Stam. The bulk of the collection (Series I) consists of documents relating to missionaries to China John and Betty Stam, who became well known to American Fundamentalists, from books written about their murder by Communist soldiers in 1934. Series II contains material about the work of other Stam family members in North American and Africa.

Series: I. Material related to John and Elisabeth “Betty” (Scott) Stam

Arrangement: By type of document, alphabetically; chronological in folder

Date Range: 1923-1940

Volume: .5 cubic feet

Boxes: 1-2

Geographic coverage: China, United States

Type of documents: Films, Negatives, Oversize Materials, Photographs, Videotapes

Correspondents: John Stam, Cordell Hull, Hamilton Fish, Robert Glover, William Embery, Charles Scott, Daniel Smith

Subjects: Missions to China, Moody Bible Institute, call to missionary work, Chinese Communism, the China Inland Mission, Christian martyrs

Notes: This collection consists of correspondence, photos, newspaper clippings, a film, reports, newsletters, poems, clippings, John Stam's will, his college notebook and a few odds and ends such as a bank book and an insurance application. The Archives received the materials from various members of the Stam family. The order and arrangement of the items was determined by the archivist. Some newspaper clippings were returned to the donor after they had been photocopied. There are three main themes to be found in these documents: Stam’s attitudes toward missions work, missions in China and the story of the kidnaping and murder of the Stams and its effect on Christians in the United States.

Exceptional items: John's speeches and testimony found in folders 1-11 and 1-16 and Elisabeth's poems in folder 1-15 reflect their belief in and acceptance of salvation from Christ and the commitment to full time Christian worker which, for them, naturally followed from that belief. Of special note in folder 1-15 is the poem "Afraid" by E.H. Hamilton, a favorite of Elisabeth and John's, which was publicized at the time of their deaths. Folder 2-2 contains a notebook of John Stam's filled with notes from classes he took at Moody Bible Institute. Many of the notes regard necessary skills and training for Christian service, including leadership organization, evangelism, teaching, Sunday School administration, etc. There are also many comments in the correspondence in folders 1-3 and 1-5 which describe common Fundamentalist attitude toward the imperative purpose of foreign mission. Folder 3-2 contains a pamphlet written from a letter of Betty’s to her sister, Bunny, in 1926 on her call to be a missionary. Also of interest are John's comments on Christian marriage which can be found in his letter and diary (folders 1-3 and 1-10).

The correspondence in folder 1-3 contains detailed descriptions of urban and rural scenes from Chinese life, including information on travel, the conflict between Communist and the Kuomintang forces, a typical missionary day, a worship service, meals, medical care, evangelistic meetings, and responses to the Gospel. John and Elisabeth sent these letters to his family in the United States who would then make a typed copy of the letter and send it to family and friends. Most of the correspondence in this folder are the typed copies, although there are a few handwritten letters. John's diary in Folder 1-10 contains much description of his work as a missionary, language study, etc. Other information on missions in China, especially those of the China Inland Mission, can be found in folders 1-1, 1-5, 1-8, and 1-9. These folders contain letters from other missionaries (including Elisabeth's father Charles) in which they describe their work. Scenes of Chinese street traffic can be seen, very briefly, in the video, V1.

Folder 1-7 contains letters by Secretary of State Cordell Hull, Representative Hamilton Fish and other government officials describing what they had been able to find out about the circumstances of the deaths. Enclosed with these letters are several translations of affidavits given by Chinese who were on the scene. These include information on how Lo Ke-chou found Helen Stam. These documents also contain some incidental information about life in China, social structure, the Chinese government, the conflict between the Communists and Kuomintang, attitudes toward the Communists, and the beliefs of Chinese Christians. Some of the reactions to the death, including newspaper stores, memorial booklets, and letters of condolence can be found in folders 1-1, 1-5 and 1-8. OS 14 contains newspaper clippings regarding the kidnaping and murder of the Stams from 1934 to 1936. Photocopies of these clippings can be found in folder 2-1. Duplicates of many, but not all, of these clippings can also be found in another OS folder in OS 14. Folder 1-4 contains correspondence and a telegram from CIM head Robert Glover about John and Elisabeth's deaths and the memorial service and more letters from treasurer William Embery about the disposition of John and Elisabeth's personal effects. The transcript of the memorial service held in Paterson, New Jersey is in folder 1-14. Folder 3-2 holds an article about the death of the Stams written by Cornelius Stam, John’s younger brother as well as and articles containing his thoughts on their deaths. The death of the Stams became quite well known among American Fundamentalists and influenced many people who later became missionaries. Of interest is a program in folder 1-13 from a Christian Endeavor club for young people in a New Jersey church.

Series: II. Material relating to other members of the Stam family

Arrangement: Alphabetical by folder title

Date Range: 1919-2003

Volume: .2 cubic feet

Boxes: 2

Geographic coverage: China, Holland, United States

Type of documents: Pamphlets, article, memorabilia, photographs, photo album, newsletters

Subjects: Star of Hope Mission, Cornelius Stam, Peter Stam III, John Stam, Betty Stam, Berean Searchlight

Notes: This collection consists of memorials about Stam family members (folders 2-3, 2-4), biography of Peter Stam III, an AIM worker in the Congo, who later became Home Director of the Canadian and then the United States (folder 2-5), family tree, history and memoirs by Stam family (folder 2-6), newsletters of the Star of Hope mission (folder 2-7) started by Peter, Sr in Paterson, New Jersey as a rescue mission and church, and photographs of various members of the Stam family. The Archives received the materials from various members of the Stam family. The order and arrangement of the items was determined by the processor. Some articles in the newsletters of folder 2-7 are in Dutch.

Exceptional Items:

In the Cornelius Stam material is a 50^th anniversary memorial book of the Berean Bible Society that he founded which published Bible studies and devotionals in the dispensational tradition. It contains brief information and photos of the Stam family as well as the history of the Berean Bible Institute and its published work, the Berean Searchlight and Stam’s radio program. It also includes a brief section on the North Shore Church in Chicago, Illinois where Stam pastored for a time. This book can be found in folder 2-3.

“A History of the Stam Family” by Clazina Stam and Helen Stam Fesmire and “Stam Family Memories” by Cornelius give a better idea of what it was like to grow up as a member of the Stam family in Paterson, New Jersey. These both also contain many reminiscences about Peter, Sr and Amelia Stam as well as of the Star of Hope Mission, a rescue mission founded and run by the Stam family. It also contains a family history dating back to Holland from where Peter, Sr immigrated.

F1 - A 16mm silent b/w home movie with scenes from the Stams' wedding (performed by R. A. Torrey Jr.) in Jinan, Shandong in 1933 as well as scenes of foot and horse traffic on a Chinese city street, probably Shanghai. This film was possibly taken by registered nurse Hilma [?] Madelaire, a missionary in Jinan and probably a guest at the wedding. 3 minutes. USE V1 INSTEAD OF THIS FILM.

The following items are located in the NEGATIVE FILE; request by Folder Titles at the beginning of each entry below.

STAM, ELISABETH AND JOHN. Portrait photos of John, ca. 1932; portrait photo of Elisabeth, ca. 1931; the Stam wedding party in Jinan on October 25, 1933, including John, Elisabeth, R. A. Torrey Jr., Katharine Hastings Dodd, Percy Bromley, Margaret Luce, Charles Scott, Clara Scott, and Nancy Rogers (two copies of the same negative); coffins of John and Elisabeth being moved by truck to Wuhu General Hospital, December 1934; tombstone of the Stams (probably in Wuhu). 6 b&w negatives. All are copy negatives made by the BGC Archives.

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LOCATION RECORD
Accession: 01-59
Type of material: Oversize Materials (Newspaper Clippings)

The following items are located in the OS File 14 as indicated in parentheses following the folder title.

NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS; 1934-1936 (OS 14).

NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS; 1934-1936 duplicates (OS 14). Contains duplicates of many, but not all of the newspaper clippings in the oversize folder listed above.

*****
LOCATION RECORD
Accession: 09-24
Type of material: Photo Albums

The following items are located in the PHOTO ALBUM FILE; request by Folder Titles (in bold) at the beginning of each entry below.

STAM - I. The album has a black cover, no title. Album put together by Cornelius Stam, brother of John Stam. Contains photos of John and Betty before marriage, of their wedding and honeymoon, their graves. At that point, the album shifts to photos of Helen Priscilla Stam from the time she was found through age five, with her grandparents, the Scotts. 41 b&w.

*****
LOCATION RECORD
Accession: 90-114, 91-79, 02-03, 09-24, 12-20
Type of material: Photographs

The following items are located in the PHOTO FILE; request by folder title (in bold) at the beginning of each entry below.

STAM, CORNELIUS. 2 b&w, 4 color. Three portrait photos, one as a younger man, two taken 1975 and 1985. One photo with Ruth Wahlstrom Stam, 1975. One photo print with another woman, possibly his first wife, Henrietta. Photograph of Milwaukee Bible Institute (later named “Berean Bible Institute”), 1948.

STAM, ELISABETH AND JOHN. Over two dozen photos of the C. E. Scott family, showing Elisabeth as a girl and young woman, 1909-1933;

Portrait photos of John, ca. 1932;

portrait photos of Elisabeth, ca. 1931; the Stam wedding party in Jinan on October 25, 1933, including John, Elisabeth, R. A. Torrey Jr., Katharine Hastings Dodd, Percy Bromley, Marguerite Luce, Charles Scott, Clara Scott, and Nancy Rogers; baby Helen Priscilla Stam, as she was found in December 1934; Helen Priscilla Stam, with Pastor and Mrs. Lo among others, in the rice basket in which she was carried to safety, December 1934; 1935 picture of Helen with Chinese students; snapshot of baby Helen Priscilla Stam, 1937; coffins of John and Elisabeth being moved by truck to Wuhu General Hospital, December 1934; tombstone of the Stams (probably in Wuhu). 42 b&w.

STAM FAMILY. 5 b&w, 1 color. Two family portraits, one of a Stam family member preaching at an “open air” meeting in Middleburg, Holland, two of Stam members on a boat, one poster of children of the world featuring Helen Priscilla Stam in the center.

STAR OF HOPE MISSION. 1 b&w. Star of Hope Mission staff in front of the mission in Paterson, New Jersey. Peter, Sr, Henry, John and Cornelius pictured

V1 - Copy of film F1, a 16mm silent b/w home movie with scenes from the Stams wedding (performed by R. A. Torrey Jr.) in Jinan, Shandong in 1933 as well as scenes of foot and horse traffic on a Chinese city street, possibly Jinan. This film was possibly taken by registered nurse Hilma [?] Madelaire, a missionary in Jinan and probably a guest at the wedding. 3 minutes.

Full Name		Cornelius Richard Stam (“Neil”)
Birth		May 27, 1908 in Paterson, New Jersey
Death		March 9, 2003 in Carol Stream, Illinois
Family
	Parents	Peter, Sr. and Amelia Williams Stam
	Siblings	Peter, Jr., Clazina, Henry, Jacob, Harry, Catherine, John and Amelia (nicknamed Babe)
	Marital Status	Married Henrietta Winter in 1930 (died in 1971); married Ruth Wahlstrom in 1976 (died in September 1998)
Conversion		May 28, 1922 at an evangelistic meeting at his parents’ mission, Star of Hope, led by Thomas Houston
Career
	1938 ish	Pastor at Preakness Community Church, Preakness, N.J.
	1940	Founded the Berean Bible Society, which began as a series of Bible studies but began distributing material on the Bible and Christian life through their publication, the Berean Searchlight magazine and radio programs
	1945	Co-founded the Milwaukee Bible Institute with Pastor Charles Baker
	1945-1953	Served as the Academic Dean and Instructor in Bible Exposition and Dispensational Studies, Milwaukee Bible Institute
	1953-1987	Continued Berean Bible Society (Berean Searchlight, Bible Time Radio Ministry and Conference Ministries), Chicago, Illinois
Other Significant information
		Cornelius authored more than thirty books in his lifetime, sharing the good news of the Gospel, especially through the theology of Paul with emphasis on the Mystery and dispensational theology. All are available from the Berean Bible Society which continues under the leadership of Pastor Paul Sadler.

Full name		Elisabeth Alden Scott Stam
Birth		February 22, 1906 in Albion, MI
Death		Killed December 7, 1934 in Miaosheo, China by Communist soldiers
Family
	Parents	Dr. Charles Ernest and Clara Heywood Scott
	Siblings	Beatrice Stevenson, Helen Mahy, Francis and Kenneth.
	Marital Status	Married October 25, 1933 to John Stam in Jinan, China by Rev. R.A. Torrey, Jr.
	Children	Helen Priscilla, born in September, 1934
Conversion		As a child, rededicated her life in 1925 at a Keswick conference in NJ
Education
	1923-1928	Wilson College, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. Received bachelor’s degree, involved in student government and the literary society.
	1928-1931	Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Illinois for further training in Christian work. Served on the executive committee of the Missionary Union.
Career
	1931-1933	Sailed to China with China Inland Mission (now called Overseas Missionary Fellowship). Assigned to Fowyang in Anwhei province
	October, 1933- 1934	Joined John in his work in Xiancheng, China, completed her language study and assisted in evangelistic work.
	Early 1934	Traveled to Jingde, China to run the mission station.
	September 1934	Moved to Wuhu, China where Helen Priscilla was born. Investigated possibility of evangelistic work in the area.
	November 1934	Moved back to Jindge which was taken captive by the Communist army and was taken hostage and murdered.

Full Name		John Cornelius Stam
Birth		January 18, 1907 in Paterson, NJ
Death		Killed December 7, 1934 in Miaosheo, China by Communist soldiers
Family
	Parents	Peter and Amelia Williams Stam
	Siblings	Peter, Jr., Clazina, Henry, Jacob, Harry, Catherine, Cornelius (Neill) and Amelia (nicknamed Babe)
	Marital Status	Married October 25, 1933 to Elisabeth Alden Scott in Jinan, China by Rev. R.A. Torrey, Jr.
	Children	Helen Priscilla, born in September, 1934
Conversion		May 28, 1922 at an evangelistic meeting at his parents’ mission, Star of Hope, led by Thomas Houston
Education
	1929-1932	Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Illinois for training in Christian work.
Career
	September 24, 1932	Sailed to China with China Inland Mission (now called Overseas Missionary Fellowship).
	1932-1933	Attended language school in Anqing, China.
	1933-1934	Assigned to Xiancheng to run a mission station, continued language study, held Bible classes and did evangelistic work.
	Early 1934	Traveled to Jingde, China to run the mission station.
	September 1934	Moved to Wuhu, China where Helen Priscilla was born. Investigated possibility of evangelistic work in the area and distributed famine relief funds.
	November 1934	Moved back to Jindge which was taken captive by the Communist army and the Stams were taken hostage.
	Other significant information	While at Moody John received the call to be a missionary and met Elisabeth. Their friendship gradually grew, although much of John's time was taken up with a rural church two hundred miles from Chicago which he was leading. Elisabeth graduated in 1931 and sailed to China as a worker with China Inland Mission. John planned to go out to China the next year, also as a CIM worker. They had an informal understanding that if after they had worked as missionaries for a year or two in China as single people they still felt the same and it was the Lord's will, they would marry. On arriving in China, Elisabeth was assigned to Fowyang in the province of Anwhei [Pinyin romanization: Anhui]. John was formally accepted by CIM in July 1932 and sailed for China on September 24. When he reached Shanghai on October 12, he met Elisabeth who was in the city to meet her family and for medical care for her tonsils. John and Elisabeth then became formally engaged. Elisabeth returned to Fowyang and John traveled to Anking [Pinyin romanization: Anqing] for language school. Upon completing the course in the summer of 1933, he went to the CIM station in Suancheng [Pinyin romanization: Xiancheng] to assist the Birches who worked there and run the mission station during their vacation. He continued his language study and began holding Bible classes. In the fall he traveled to Jinan, where he and Elisabeth were married on October 25, 1933 by Rev. R. A. Torrey Jr. After a brief honeymoon in Qingdao, the couple returned to Xiancheng. There Elisabeth completed her language study and they both assisted missionaries and Chinese Christians in evangelistic work. John led several meetings in Kinghsein, drawing on messages he had heard given shortly before by evangelist James R. Graham Jr. In 1934, the couple traveled sixty miles southwest to investigate Tsingteh [Pinyin romanization: Jingde], which was to be their station. They were to be in charge of the mission station there in the absence of Mr. and Mrs. S. J. Warren, who were going on furlough. In September of that year, Elisabeth went to the Methodist hospital in Wuhu, where the Stam's daughter, Helen Priscilla, was born. John was distributing famine relief funds and planning a unified evangelism effort with Erwin A. Kohfield, who was at the station in nearby Tunki. They met with local government officials to find out if the area would be safe for missionaries, in view of the continuing fighting between Communist and government forces nearby. The district magistrate in Jingde, Mr. Peng, told John that there was a good deal of bandit activity in the area and agreed with him when John said perhaps they should not return for awhile. But the magistrate also personally guaranteed their safety from Communist attack. Aware that a large body of government troops had been moved to Xiancheng, John and Kohfield agreed that they could return to their stations. The Stams left Wuhu on November 13 and were soon back in Jingde. On December 6, the city fell to a sudden, unexpected attack by the Communist forces led by Lo Ping-hui and Fang Chi-min. First John and then Elisabeth were taken hostage, after money had been extorted from them. The Red army took the Stams (who were allowed to take their baby) and many Chinese captives with them to nearby Miaosheo. John was allowed to write a letter to the CIM headquarters, saying they would be released in exchange for $20,000. He closed the letter, "God give you wisdom in what you do and give us grace and fortitude. He is able." John and Elisabeth were executed by decapitation the next day, shortly before the Communist army left Miaosheo. Helen was left behind and found by a Chinese evangelist and friend of the Stams, Lo Ke-chou. She was then taken to her grandparents in Jinan. The Stams death shocked and stirred American Fundamentalists and was later cited as many by the event that caused them to become missionaries.

Full Name		Peter Stam III
Birth		April 26, 1917 in Paterson, New Jersey
Death		December 8, 2009 in Wilmington, North Carolina
Family
	Parents	Peter, Jr. And Margaret (Gardenier) Stam
	Siblings	John (b. 1918), Margaret Lois (Peggy) (b. 1920), and Ruth Wilma (b. 1924)
	Marital Status	Married Mary Lou Kennedy in 1943 (died in 1989); married Jeanelle Jensen in 1990 (died in 1997); married Anne Zillger in 1999.
	Children	Sharon [Rouse], Bruce, Marilyn and Peter Blair
Conversion		1922 while praying with his mother
Education
	1939	Graduated from Wheaton College, Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy
	1940	One year of graduate work in theology at Wheaton Graduate School
	1942	Transferred to and graduated from Faith Theological Seminary in Wilmington, Delaware, Master of Divinity
		One year of graduate work in linguistics with SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics) and one year of business administration at University of Western Ontario
Ordination
	1942	Ordained by Wheaton Bible Church in Wheaton, Illinois
Career
	1942-1944	General Secretary of Student Foreign Missions Fellowship
	1944-1945	Interim Pastor of the Western Springs Bible Church
	1946-1964	Missions work with Africa Inland Mission in the Congo (Zaire) as principal for a missionary kids school, Bangala language learning, church planting, teaching Bible, leadership training.
	1964-1977	Canadian director of AIM, Toronto, Ontario
	1977-1987	United States director of AIM, Pearl River, NY
	1977-1981	President of Interdenominational Foreign Missions Association (IFMA)
	1987	Latin American coordinator and US Director Emeritus of AIM
	1990-?	Pastor of Missions, Fourth Presbyterian Church in Maryland; Pastor of Missions, Myrtle Grove Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, North Carolina

Container List
Box	Folder	Folder Title
1	1	Articles and clippings		1935-1940
1	2	Bankbook		1932-1934
		Correspondence
1	3		1931-1934	1931-1934
1	4		China Inland Mission	1934-1935
1	5		Condolences	1934-1937
1	6 R		Government officials about the murders	1934-1935
1	7		Government officials about the murders (copies)	1934-1935
1	8		Scott, Charles Ernest	1933-1935
1	9		Smith, Daniel	1936?
1	10	Diary (John Stam)		1932-1933
1	11	Graduation speech (John Stam)		1932
1	12	Insurance application (John Stam)		1923
1	13	John and Betty Stam Christian Endeavor Society Program		1939
1	14	Memorial service transcript		1935
1	15	Poem (Elisabeth Stam)		1926-1929, n.d.
1	16	Testimony (John Stam)		1932
1	17	Will (John Stam)		1932
2	1	Newspaper clippings (copies)		1934-1936
2	2	Notebook (John Stam)		1929-1930, n.d.
2	3	Cornelius R. Stam material; 1990-2003		1990-2003
2	4	John and Betty Stam material		1951-2003
2	5	Peter Stam, III material		n.d.
2	6	Stam Family History		1984, n.d.
2	7	Star of Hope Mission Newsletters		1919-1938, n.d.

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