HANCE, GERTRUDE R. (GERTRUDE RACHEL) b. 1844.
Family papers, 1854-1922.

MANUSCRIPT NUMBER 016

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CITATION:  Gertrude R. Hance Family papers, MSS 016, Archives and Manuscripts Dept., Pitts Theology Library, Emory University. 

Gertrude Rachel Hance was a Presbyterian missionary who worked in Natal, South Africa, with the American Zulu Mission from about 1870 to 1899.  She was from Brookdale, Pennsylvania, in Susquehanna County.  Born in 1844, Hance died in 1922.

This collection consists of correspondence between Gertrude Hance and her family in New York.  The majority of the letters were written to and from her sister, Frank M. Hance between 1870 and 1899.  Hance is very forthcoming in the opinions she expresses to her sister regarding the Zulus and the ever changing political climate in Natal.   Among the topics discussed in the letters are the Battle of Tugela, the coronation of a new Zulu king, Zulu customs, and British policy in South Africa.

The collection also contains correspondence between her family members in the United States that does not pertain to Hance and her missionary work.  The bulk of this correspondence was written in the 1850s and 1860s.  Most of the letters are to Frank Hance but included are pieces to or from the Hance siblings: Ella English, Jennie Hance, and George Hance.  Correspondents also include Sue Chapman, Addie Baker and James T. Clark.  The letters are about the friendships, activities, and daily life experienced by middle class women in the late 19th century.

Also included are miscellaneous family business papers, a pamphlet and newspaper clippings on missionary work with the Zulu people, and a copy of the last will and testimony of Gertrude Hance. 

CONTAINER LISTING

Box/
Folder      Description                                   Date

            Correspondence from Gertrude Hance
 1/1                                                      1855, 1872-1880
 1/2                                                      1881-1885
 1/3                                                      1886-1893
 1/4                                                      1894-1899, 1920
 1/5           Fragments                                  n.d.

            Correspondence to Gertrude Hance
 1/6                                                      1859-1871
 1/7                                                      1872-1876
 1/8                                                      1877-1879
 1/9                                                      1880-1884
 1/10                                                     1885-1893
 1/11                                                     1894-1897
 1/12                                                     1898-1920
 1/13          Fragments                                  n.d.

            Family correspondence
 1/14                                                     1855-1859
 1/15                                                     1860-1863
 2/1                                                      1864-1865
 2/2                                                      1866-1869
 2/3                                                      1870-1902
 2/4           Fragments                                  n.d.

            Miscellaneous
 2/5           Will and cemetery marker receipt for 
                  Gertrude Hance                          1920-1922
 2/6           Miscellaneous publications and clippings   n.d.
 2/7           Family business papers                     1854-1900, n.d.
 2/8           Calling cards and empty envelopes          n.d.