We are prepared for guests: We offer a total of four reading stations, a photocopier and a microfilm reader as well as the possibility of digitalization on site or by order on our premises in the Mission House in Wuppertal.
And of course we are always happy to help with any questions.

The Written Archives

Online finding aids are available for some of the holdings. The Written Archives are divided into seven groups/departments:

• The Archive of the Rhenish Mission Society, reporting period 1799-1970.
  also contains documents of the Elberfelder and Barmer Mission Societies. Finding aids are available for Southern Africa (South Africa, Namibia), Indonesia (Borneo/Kalimantan, Sumatra, Nias, Mentawai and West Papua), Kaiser-Wilhelmsland/Papua New Guinea, China/Hong Kong and the Heimatarbeit (= work in Germany).
• The Archive of the Bethel Mission/Evangelical Mission Society for German East Africa, 1885-1970.
  This archive also contains material on the Evangelical Africa Association. A printed finding aid is available.
• The archive of the UEM, from 1970 
  indexed by lists, partly not yet released for use
• Rhenish and Westphalian Mission Conferences 
  Deposita (archive material deposited in the archive) - a finding aid is available
• Bequests
  for the most part already included in the finding aids for the mission regions
• Map collection
  A printed overview is available.
• Collection of audio material
  Audio tapes, audio cassettes, records, partially indexed by lists

Finding aids of the Written Archives can be viewed online:

Introduction Finding Aid

Finding Aid Bethel Mission

Finding Aid Rhenish Mission

The library

The library complements the Written Archives. It contains mission literature as well as brochures and pamphlets from the Rhenish and Bethel Mission, but also from many other German and non-German mission societies.

We also collect literature on the history and present of UEM countries and UEM churches: Cameroon, Congo, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa (only related to the time of the Rhenish Mission Society), Rwanda, Tanzania and Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Hong Kong/China, Philippines. Since 1990, about 300 documents (dissertations, master's theses, etc.) have been collected, resulting from work with the sources in the Written Archives.