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This collection consists of the 95 files which Dr. Rempel selected from the St. Petersburg Archive related to Mennonites which he requested to have microfilmed in 1962. The St. Petersburg (known as Leningrad at the time) Archive holds the documents of the Russian Senate (later referred to as the Duma) for the period of 1789 to 1917.

This collections contains a photocopy of a journal written in 1919 by a young woman, Katharina Hildebrandt (1901-1920), who was engaged to be married to Johann Isaac Warkentin, who was murdered on 26 October 1919 in Eichenfeld, South Russia. The collection also includes a Hildebrandt family register of birth and death dates of the children of Heinrich David Hildebrandt (1870-1919), father of Katharina, who also was murdered at the Eichenfeld massacre on October 26, 1919. Another item is a 1988 transcript of an interview of Isaac Warkentin (1908), a brother of Johann who died in 1919.

This collection consists of 50 letters written by members of the Peter Schroeder and Johann Fast families from 1930-1988. These are letters which the David and Agatha Fast family of Manitoba received from members of the family who were left behind in the Soviet Union when they emigrated in 1929-1930. Of the 50 letters, 42 were written between 1930-1934, and the remaining 8, scattered widely over the period from 1939-1988. They convey the experiences of the terrifying Stalinist years and convey glimpses into how life unfolded for the family.

This collection consists of correspondence, a travel diary, condolence cards, short biographies, and photographs related to bishop David Toews, his work, and his family. Together with the related materials this collection shows the depth of involvement Bishop Toews had in the Mennonite community and how he, as one of the most influential Mennonite leaders of his time, dealt with forces from within and without the Mennonite community for the good of the Canadian Mennonite community.

This fonds consists of research files collected by Jake Peters with the unrealized hope of writing a history of the Sommerfeld Mennonite Church. The materials are a mix of copied and original materials in German and English that detail the experiences of the Sommerfeld Mennonite Church and its leaders. Peters started as early as 1979 with the collection of materials when he conducted interviews in the villages of Sommerfeld and Neubergthal about the early history of the Sommerfeld Mennonite Church. On this trip he collected some materials which he deposted at MHC much earlier than the bulk of materials. The collection has been divided into the following twenty-two categories primarily by the compiler.
1) Bibliography research
2) Endeavors at writing Sommerfeld History
3) Sommerfelder pre history
4) Early observers of West Reserve Life
5) General leadership oriented historical file
6) Sommerfeld Church and the wars
7) Minutes and correspondence from ministers
8) Migration
9) Schisms
10) Church meetings functions, and activities
11) Statistical data
12) Ideology, theology and sermons
13) Social concerns and broader involvement
14) Local congregations and people
15) General West Reserve materials
16) Various Sommerfeld diaspora communities
17) Swift Current and Herbert area Sommerfeld Mennonite Church
18) Assorted non Sommerfelder research materials
19) Addendum
20) bulletins and correspondence
21) Early collection of materials related to the Sommerfeld church in Neubergthal and Sommerfeld
22) Photographs.

This genealogical collection is primarily contained in four large binders that include family group sheets, photographs, maps, original and photocopies of documents and correspondence. Each binder traces the ancestral lines of Kathy Peters (Dueckmann on her mother's side and Goerzen on her father's side) and her husband, Ed;'s families (Peters and Braun).

This collections contains research files related to Heinrich Bergen's work on Kronsgarten and Einlage. The files related to the village of Kronsgarten include files on the Kronsweide Mennonite Church and the villages of Wiesenfeld and Prijut, which had original settlers from Kronsgarten. There is extensive correspondence (some original and copy copied) between Henry Rempel (Montreal), Johann Klassen (Germany) and Jakob Bergen (Saskatchewan). Writers of articles and longer pieces on Kronsgarten or Kronsweide include Isaac P. Klassen (Winnipeg)and Hans Rempel (Virgil).

The Einlage accumulation of materials also has some correspondence, articles, clippings and longer writings. It includes the recollections of Abram A. Martens (1900-1979), who wrote about his memories covering 1907-1927, in German and English. Other writers include Wera Teichroeb, Catharina Martens-Berg and Isaac Reimer.

The photographs in the collection include an 1973 Reunon photo of former residents of Kronsgarten, Wiesenfeld and Prijut. There are also a few historic photos of Kitchkas (formerly called Einlage) such as the construction of the bridge across the Dnieper River and also a view of the hydro electric development project on the river. Eleven photos were taken by a group of Canadian tourist who went to visit the village of Prijut, Ukraine in 2000.

The Peter J. Braun Mennonite Archive collection is large and varied. It includes a selection of documents of the Halbstadt District from the period 1803-1820, the archive of the Agricultural Society [in Molotschna] since 1831, the papers of Johann Cornies (1789-1848), Moloschna Mennonite School records, records regarding the forestry service after 1880, and much more. One significant document included in this collection is a complete census of the Molotschna colony taken in 1835.

This collection contains the correspondence created and photographs collected by Anna Epp Ens in conjunction with a number of Epp family reunions and the publications associated with this family.

In 1975 the descendants of Heinrich Epp (1811-1863) met at the International Peace Gardens and Camp Koinonia south of Boissevain, Manitoba. Out of this gathering grew the request that a book be compiled and published. Anna Epp Ens took up the task supported by a book committee, which led to the publication of the book "The House of Heinrich: The Story of Heinrich Epp..."

The collection also includes files related to publishing a newsletter and organizing subsequent reunions.

In 2010 the original genealogical data published in the book was updated and distributed on a CD ROM using the shareware program, Brother's Keeper, and the original book was scanned and made available in a pdf format. These digital files are also part of this collection.

The documents show the interactions between the Canadian government and three minority religious groups -- Mennonites, Hutterites, and Doukhobors. The materials document the issues of communal landholding, special arrangements for the education of their children, exemption from military service, and modification in welfare-state matters. From these materials Janzen identified the underlying patterns in the government's responses.

Mennonites, Hutterites and Doukhobors are three minority protestant groups with origins in 16th Century Europe, that believed in separation from "the world" or general society. All three groups had a connection with Russia (former Soviet Union) and immigrated to Canada in the late 1800s-mid 1900s after securing some special privileges related to religion, education, and military exemptions from the Canadian government. These groups, sometime classified as Christian sects, settled in group settings in Western Canada, were agrarian based and believed in pacifism and non violence. Each group negotiated with the federal and provincial governments in order to practice their religion as they saw fit. The groups had some similar issues such as conscientious objection and alternative service during times of war. Other issues affected the groups differently. These included education, land settlement and use, and freedom from paying some taxes or contributing to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). The documents included private and government correspondence, reports, articles, essays, and newspaper clippings; and, both primary and secondary documentation on all these issues. Almost all the materials are photocopies.

This fonds consists of photographs depicting a small Mennonite village, particularly the village school and committee school the village children attended