Archive transcripts of primary materials meant for scholars studying the NWP’s history 

Note: As explained in an  earlier web page, “UNZA in the NWP: 1975-79,” my primary data collection of academic materials that had started in earnest in 1970, continued in Zambia after a six month overseas academic sabbatical that ended in July 1975. From then, until I left UNZA in 1979, I continued collecting of archive transcripts, at times rather frantically.

These archive transcripts of primary materials (in pdf files) fall into four categories: 1) Zambia National Archives (ZNA) documents, 2) old government documents stored in Solwezi warehouses, and SAGM documents located either: 3) at Wimbledon in England or 4) at Mutanda in the NWP. Please note: The ZNA files cannot be placed on this website because government regulations require that these materials be viewed / used only at the ZNA in Lusaka, but all other materials are available here as pdf files for scholars to use. 

Another special note: As many scholars will know, websites that only exist in “cyber-space” are very fragile(!). Thus, physical copies of all these old primary materials have been deposited in Syracuse University’s Special Collections Research Center in New York. Check this link to see what has been deposited for scholarly use in their well preserved collections: Research Documents and Interviews at Syracuse

Zambia National Archives (ZNA) documents. As these materials had to used at ZNA, whenever UNZA business required me to be in Lusaka, I tried to add several days and spend them in the national archives. Note: These ZNA archival materials are listed in both of my bibliographies — dissertation and e-book — although they cannot be used here.

Pre-1964 government documents were stored in Solwezi Ministry of Education warehouses (often old sheds). The government granted me permission to use old documents related to education provided that they were from the colonial, pre-Independence era. Selected documents from this huge trove were laboriously retyped in over a year by my two secretaries. There was no way to photocopy them in those difficult years. A Rhodesian boycott resulted in an extreme shortage of basic supplies in Zambia including duplicating equipment.

Most documents from this Solwezi trove remain unused. After returning to Syracuse University to write my Ph.D. dissertation in 1979, I reluctantly decided to end it at the end of World War in 1945, not at Zambia’s Independence in 1964. Hence, I made almost no academic use of these documents that had been so laboriously re-typed. Hopefully, these documents will be valuable to future researchers. Scholars should also note that possibly these originals located in Ministry of Education warehouses in Solwezi never reached the ZNA in Lusaka for permanent protection. It is very likely that many may have been destroyed or ruined by rain, etc. Thus, these re-typed copies may be the only ones remaining. These Solwezi materials appear below after pdf files for the SAGM documents.

SAGM documents and materials at Wimbleton and Mutanda:

  • Mutanda materials. In Zambia, a small valuable collection of South African General Mission (SAGM) documents was located at the Mutanda Mission Station. In mid-1975, whilst I was living working nearby in Solwezi for UNZA, I was granted permission by the Evangelical Church of Zambia (ECZ) to examine these mission records that included old school records. These files contained valuable, very  worn, manuscripts. Most had to be re-typed.
  • Wimbledon archives. South African General Mission (SAGM) had a trove of documents stored in the UK at Wimbledon, England where at that time, the SAGM had their international headquarters. I spent many days visiting in January 1976. The Mission’s early records were carefully maintained and I was treated very graciously by the staff. The early correspondence files between the original international headquarters in Cape Town and the Headquarters for the British Isles had been indexed up to the mid-1930s. (This was probably done prior to World War II.) In addition to correspondence, many files contained other enclosures. See exceptionally useful items in the extracts below. Some letters not retained in the files appeared to have been printed in the South African Pioneer. After the mid-1930s, the files had far less detailed information. Wimbledon had the only complete set of On Trek and one of the few complete sets of the South African Pioneer available anywhere. In addition, they had several unpublished manuscripts, and a small collection of rare books.
  • Very important note about SAGM / AEF. Since 1976, its structure has undergone HUGE changes. Internationally, SAGM merged with SIM, a larger, similarly conservative mission society. I have no idea where the above materials from Wimbledon are at present. I can only trust that they have not been destroyed but sent to some archival repository within the UK. If anyone has any information, please let me know and I will post it on this website.

Users beware! The scripts of some of these old primary materials are hard to read! I have tried to indicate some places where materials are only semi-legible. A brief description of each set of archival materials is given beside the link containing the transcript. To read the pdf file, simply click the link.

DOCUMENTS USED AT MUTANDA MISSION

OPEN AND READ THIS FILE FIRST before looking at other pdf files as it explains basic terms and how the contents of the files are divided: Key Overview: Mutanda & Wimbledon

DOCUMENTS LOCATED AT WIMBLEDON

Wimbledon documents: 1910-1917. 49 pp. Includes the following correspondence files and report:

  • Vol.9, 1 July 1910–30 June 1911.
  • Vol.10, 1 July 1911–30 June 1912.
  • Vol.11, 1 July 1912–30 June 1913.
  • “Report for the General Conference 1913 from Northern Rhodesia, 20th May 1913”.
  • Vol.12, 1 July 1913–30 June 1914.
  • Vol.13, 1 July 1914–30 June 1915.
  • Vol.14, 1 July 1915–30 June 1916.
  • Vol.15, 1 July 1916–30 June 1917.
  • Vol.16, 1 July 1917–30 June 1918.
  • “District and Executive Reports”. By Edgar Faithful.

Wimbledon documents: 1918-1920. 49 pp. Includes the following correspondence files and reports:

  • Vol.17, 1 July 1918–30 June 1919.
  • Vol.18, 1 July 1919–30 June 1920.
  • “N. W. Rhodesia, Educational Reports”. By W. Roy Vernon, n. d.
  • “‘Report’ to the Native Commissioner, Solwezi, Northern Rhodesia”. By Roy Vernon, 12 March 1919.
  • “The Work of the S.A.G.M. in North West Rhodesia, June 1919”. By Ernest A. M. Harris.
  • “The B.M.M.S. at Musonwedji, etc.”. By J. H. Melland, District Commissioner, Solwezi, to A. A. Wilson, S.A.G.M., Chisalala, 4 April 1919.
  • “Minutes of the District Commissioner of N. W. Rhodesia held at Blanche Memorial Mission Station, Musonwedzi from November 13th to November 24th 1919”. By Herbert G. Pirouet.

Wimbledon documents: 1921-1925. 53 pp. Includes the following correspondence files and reports:

  • Vol. 19, 1 July 1920–30 June 1921.
  • Key letter on government policy in relation to S.A.G.M. policy. From F. H. Melland, District Commissioner, Solwezi, to Rev. Charles Foster, 11 September 1920.
  • Vol.20, 1 July 1921–30 June 1922.
  • “Minutes of the D. C. of N. W. Rhodesia at Blanche Memorial Mission Station Musonwedzi from May 18th to June 1st, 1921.” By Herbert G. Pirouet,
  • “Report of the D. C. of N. Rhodesia, 1921”. By C. S. Foster.
  • Vol.21, 1 July 1922–30 June 1923.
  • Vol.22, 1 July 1923–30 June 1924.
  • “Minutes of the District Conference of North West Rhodesia, held at Musonweji Mission Station, from September 17th to 24th, 1923”. By C. S. Foster.
  • “Occupation of Kaondeland”. By C. S. Foster, 2 May 1924.
  • Vol.23, 1 July 1924–30 June 1925.
  • “Minutes of the District Conference held at Chisalala M. S., N. W. Rhodesia”. 21 April to 2 May 1924, C. S. Foster, Chairman.

Wimbledon documents: 1925-1928. 20 pp. Includes the following correspondence files and reports:

  • Vol.24, 1 July 1925–30 June 1926.
  • “Minutes of Northern Rhodesia District Conference, held at Musonweji M. S. – June 1 and 2, 1925”. C. S. Foster, Chairman.
  • Vol.25, 1 July 1926–30 June 1927.
  • “Minutes of Northern Rhodesia District Conference. Held at Mukinge Hill Station–28 July to 30th, 1926.”.
  • “District Conference 1926. Matters for Consideration.”.
  • “Annual Return for the Year Ending 31st December 1930. Station. Mukinge Hill.”.
  • Vol.26, 1 July 1927–30 June 1928.
 RETYPED DOCUMENT TRANSCRIPTS FROM THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION’S SOLWEZI STOREROOMS

Explanatory note (from the dissertation bibliography):  These files started in 1954, when the NWP was permanently severed from the old Western (now Copperbelt) Province. The original order of these files was impossible to discern. Thus, I divided them into groups: those dealing with the colony/nation and the province in general, and then those dealing with the various districts. Any available file numbers have been quoted. If the file had two numbers, one was put in parentheses.

File 01: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Overview File: READ FIRST. 4 pp. This overview is a Preface meant to help scholars. It contains 3 pp. (also replicated below) that lists these materials.

File 02: Min. Ed. Solwezi: General Prov. 1954-1967. 100 pp. Contains: General Provincial Materials: Policy, Correspondence (general), etc.

  • Provincial Education Officer: Headquarters Correspondence (Confidential). 1954-65.
  • Finance: Capital Estimates, F/4, 1957-65.
  • Managers, General.                M/1/1, 1954-68.
  • Staff, Manager, European.  M/3/1 and ST/23, 1960-3.
  • Policy and Organisation.        P/5, 1958-63.
  • Policy and Organization. Policy and Planning: General. P/5, Vol. II, 1963-7.
  • Literature-Publications: Vernacular Readers. L/7 1956-66. L.A.E. and P.T.S.C. Appointed Bodies. B/3, Vol. I, 1961-2.

File 03: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Meetings from 1954-64. 201 pp. Contains: Minutes of District Education Authority (DEA) and Provincial Education Authority (PEA) and Provincial Teachers Supervisory Council (PTSC): Provincial and District.

  • Solwezi P.E.A. Minutes. AB/15/M, Vol. I, 1954-62.
  • Balovale D.E.A. Minutes. AB/15/M, 1954-66.
  • Kasempa D.E.A. Minutes. AB/9/M, 1954-66.
  • Solwezi D.E.A. Minutes. AB/13/M, 1952-66.
  • L.E.A. and P.T.S.C. Minutes 1961-2.
  • P.E.A. Minutes. 1961-6.
  • P.E.A. and D.E.A. Minutes,1965-7.

File 04: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Correspondence from 1953-64. 129 pp. Contains: Correspondence for DEA, PEA and PTSC: Provincial and District.

  • Balovale D.E.A.  Correspondence. AB/5, Vol. I, 1953-62.
  • Mwinilunga D.E.A. Correspondence. AB/11, 1954-66.
  • Solwezi D.E.A. Correspondence. D/1/10 Vol. I, 1954-62.
  • Kasempa D.E.A. Correspondence. Vol. I 1953-62 and Vol. II, 1962-66.
  • Kabompo D.E.A. Correspondence. Vol. I 1954-65. Statistics, General.

File 05: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Statistics from 1958-64. 17 pp. Contains: Statistics, General.

  • Policy and Organization: Statistics, Mwinilunga. P/17, 1955-8.
  • Primary School Statistics . 5/12/1, 1960.
  • Statistics. 1964.

File 06: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Tour Reports from 1954-64. 37 pp. Contains: Tour Reports.

  • Provincial Tour Reports. R1/3, 1953/60.
  • Mwinilunga Tour Reports. 1954-6.
  • Touring, Manager Balovale West:  Reports.  R/3, 1960-8.

File 07: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Secondary & Trades from 1954-64. 87 pp. Contains: Secondary Schools and Trade Schools.

  • Solwezi Secondary School. S/1/15, 1956-9.
  • Balovale Trades School.         B4/B, 1954-63.
  • Trades School, General:   School Organization. SO/23, 1955-65.
  • Balovale Trades School Council.   C/1/5, 1954-64.

File 08: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Missions in Solwezi District: 1953-64. 19 pp. Contains: Solwezi District: General Correspondence with Mission Agencies and Government (Local) Officials.

  • Agency Correspondence–Mutanda.  M/1/9 (A/29), 1959-63.
  • Kapijimpanga L.A.E. Correspondence. (Title on file changed from Solwezi Native Authority.) S/1/1, 1953-60.
  • School Councils. C/1/9, 1954-7
  • Franciscan Fathers(St. Francis) Agency Correspondence. A/15, 1954-67.

File 09: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Missions in Mwinilunga District: 1954-65. 45 pp. Contains: Mwinilunga District: General Correspondence with Mission Agencies and Government (Local) Officials.

  • Agency Correspondence: Mujimbeji. M/1/8 (A/25), 1954-62.
  • Agency Correspondence: Kamapanda. A/22, Vol II, 1962-5.
  • Matonchi Mission Correspondence. M/1/3, 1954-9.

File 10: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Mukinge Mission in Kasempa District: 1954-58. 14 pp. Contains: Kasempa District: Correspondence with Mission Agencies.

  • Mukinge Mission Schools. M/1/10, Vol. I, 1954-8.

File 11: Min. Ed. Solwezi: Missions in Kabompo District: 1954-64. 20 pp. Contains: Kabompo District: Correspondence with Mission Agencies and Government (Local) Officials.

  • Kabompo D.E.A. Schools. S/1/8, 1954-9.
  • Kabulamema Correspondence. A/19, 1954-64.

File 12: Min. Ed. Solwezi: All agencies in Balovale District: 1954-65. 61 pp. Contains: Balovale District: Correspondence with Mission Agencies and Government (Local) Officials.

  • Luvale D.E.A. Schools. S/1/9, 1954-9.
  • Chinyingi Agency Correspondence. A/11, 1956-66.
  • Chavuma Agency Correspondence. A/9, 1956-65.
  • Chavuma L.E.A. Correspondence. S1/11, 1953-60.
  • Certificates—Teachers C/3, 1954-68.