The University of Iowa Libraries

Ebenezer Alden attended Andover Seminary. He was ordained November 5, 1843 in Denmark, Iowa. Alden served as Congregationalist minister in Tipton, Iowa from 1844 to 1848. While he was in Iowa, he was a member of the Iowa Band. For thirty-five years, beginning in 1850, he was pastor of the First Congregational Church of Marshfield, Massachusetts, and was pastor or pastor emeritus up to the time of his death on January 4, 1899.
 
For further biographical information on Alden, see the Books At Iowa essay at http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/spec-coll/Bai/jordan4.htm.

This collection is made up of letters, reports, and addresses. Of special interest is a four-page letter written to Reverend Alden while he was at Andover Seminary, June 8, 1841, which describes life on steamboats as "wicked" and "degrading." Also of interest is a report by Alden on western boatmen. The collection includes information on the American Bethel Society for Sailors. Also present here is information on the Millerites. A series of quarterly, monthly, and annual reports from Tipton, 1844-1845, provides information about a small town frontier mission, which includes such topics as slavery, temperance, the "Big Woods," the bleak prairie, and fever and sickness.
 
The collection is comprised of 37 items making up 257 pages.

Access: This collection is open for research.

Use: Copyright restrictions may apply; please consult Special Collections staff for further information.

Acquisition: This collection was purchased by University of Iowa Libraries in 1977.

Preferred Citation: Ebenezer Alden Papers, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City, Iowa.

Repository:	University of Iowa Special Collections
Address:	Special Collections Department University of Iowa Libraries Iowa City, IA 52242
Phone:	319-335-5921
Curator:	Greg Prickman
Email:	lib-spec@uiowa.edu
Website:	http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/spec-coll/

This collection is indexed under the following subject terms.

Personal Names:
Alden, Ebenezer, 1819-1899

Dates:
19th century

Topics:
Congregational churches

Occupations:
Clergy

Geographic Names:
Tipton (Iowa)

Genre/Form of Materials:
Archives

Browse:
Clergy and the Church