Personal papers, mostly diaries, of a domestic mission worker of the (old) Mennonite Church.  Leaman, sister of Clara Eby Steiner, served the Mennonite Home Mission (Chicago, Ill.) with her husband, Amos Hershey Leaman, for twenty years.  The diaries are a rich source of information about Leaman's mission service, spiritual life, and personal experiences.  Among other topics, she describes her work as a teacher and mission worker, experiences with Chicago's immigrant community and new converts to Christianity, her engagement and marriage, various illnesses and deaths in the family, Women's Missionary Society and Sewing Circle Meetings, and disagreement among mission staff over a church organ. Her diaries cover the years 1894-1902, 1904-1926, and 1931-1937.

Other materials in her papers include a book of clippings, poetry and prose collected by the Leamans, drawings of Amanda and Amos Leaman, and miscellaneous correspondence and ephemera found in her diaries and other journals.

The collection includes a small booklet reporting on the work of the Twenty-Sixth Street Mennonite mission in Chicago, an ordination certificate, a certificate of appointment by the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities, a membership pledge, and a handwritten note.

The collection includes clippings and articles related to the arson and attempted murder directed against Curtis E. Burrell Jr. who served as the pastor of the Woodlawn Mennonite Church in Chicago.

A 12 page autobiographical manuscript entitled "Recollections of a Mennonite Boyhood" that describes Slagel's childhood from 1930 to 1942 in Chicago and Topeka, Indiana.

Emma Oyer’s collection contains many of her writings, including essays, poetry, and her diaries.  Her work as a Home Missionary is well documented in her diaries, which provide brief summaries of her daily activities. While these diaries do not document her entire life, her earliest years are represented at the Mennonite Home Mission, as well as her latter years as an author and essayist.  Her essays and poetry provide insights into her theology and faith. Also included is a 1951 edition of Missionary Sewing Circle Monthly dedicated to Emma Oyer, with eight tributes to her by Mennonite women.

Two Christmas letters written to friends and family describing Carper's work with the African American community through West Side Christian Parish in Chicago.

Consists of notes, etc. on the history of Mennonites in Chicago. Later accrual includes more on Chicago Mennonites and missions, family and biographical material, some correspondence, some photos; Neufeld’s translation of a chapter of Anna Brons on Prussian Mennonites

A small set of records documenting the first Hispanic Mennonite congregation.  Records consist primarily of bulletins, but also include scattered directories, newsletters, reports, and other records. Previous names for the congregation include Iglesia Menonite Mexicana, Latin American Mennonite Church, and Second Mennonite Church.

Records documenting congregational life of the (Old) Mennonite Church's urban mission in Chicago, Illinois.  Materials include a membership ledger, records of events and organizations associated with the mission congregation, Sunday school records, financial records, and photographs.