Margaret Moninger papers

The Margaret Moninger Papers consist of correspondence, manuscripts, various publications, a scrapbook, photographs, and a two volume Hainese – English dictionary. This collection provides a wealth of information on the distinctive culture of Hainan.

Series I, Correspondence contains three letters of outgoing correspondence sent to the son of a fellow missionary and to Moninger’s father and one letter of incoming correspondence from a Presbyterian administrator, praising Moninger’s book The Isle of Palms.

Series II, Manuscripts consists of various writings. There are religious parables in this series and essays on the ethnic groups of Hainan.

Series III, Publications contains missionary newsletters, articles written for academic journals, religious publications describing missions and personal stories, and a textbook. The 50th Anniversary edition of the Hainan Newsletter relates some circumstances of the Boxer Rebellion. The Kachek Station newsletters relate Hainese communist threats during the 1930’s. In general, the newsletters contain articles by Moninger, or her editing, or simply brief mentions of her doings. The academic journals contain brief essays by Moninger on cultural practices of the Hainan people or their ethnic characteristics.

Series IV, Scrapbook contains articles, poems, book reviews and magazine photos. There are several articles written by Moninger for U. S. newspapers and religious publications about experiences in Hainan. The article “A Marshall County Girl in China” describes feuding and crime in Hainan. “A Marshall County Woman Between Bolshevik and Anti-Bolshevik Chinese Armies” describes a communist takeover of Kiungchow. In “Conditions in China,” Moninger writes of Hainese refugees fleeing from Japanese invaders. One interesting newspaper clipping in the scrapbook is a published Ivory soap ad, which features a letter by Moninger praising the benefits of Ivory to missionaries.

Series V, Photographs contains photos depicting the people, culture, architecture and natural environment of Hainan. They are interesting and informational, particularly the scenes which portray Hainese agriculture and economy.

Series VI, Oversize consists of the two volumes of Moninger’s Hainese – English Dictionary. The dictionary is handwritten in a large, bound book with lined paper. Each entry contains a Hainese character, then a phonetic spelling followed by a English translation.