Laying Cornerstone of Association Building (Seoul, Korea)

Item Information

Title:
Laying Cornerstone of Association Building (Seoul, Korea)
Description:
This lantern slide, “Laying Cornerstone of Association Building (Seoul, Korea),” shows a man wearing a mortarboard and academic gown in the middle of giving a speech. The are an array of flags representing numerous countries above him. This scene is from the laying of the cornerstone of a Y.M.C.A. Association Building in Seoul, Korea around 1909.
Creator:
John F. Sweeney & Son (New York)
Date:
1909
Format:
Photographs
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
College Archives Digital Collections
Series:
Lantern Slide Collection
Subjects:
International Young Men's Christian Association
Lantern slides
Flags
Podiums
Cornerstones
Extent:
3.25x3.25 in
Link to Item:
http://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15370coll2/id/2957
Terms of Use:
Text and images are owned, held, or licensed by Springfield College and are available for personal, non-commercial, and educational use, provided that ownership is properly cited. A credit line is required and should read: Courtesy of Springfield College, Babson Library, Archives and Special Collections. Any commercial use without written permission from Springfield College is strictly prohibited. Other individuals or entities other than, and in addition to, Springfield College may also own copyrights and other propriety rights. The publishing, exhibiting, or broadcasting party assumes all responsibility for clearing reproduction rights and for any infringement of United States copyright law.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
Springfield College
Notes:
During the early twentieth-century, the International Y.M.C.A. Training School (now known as Springfield College) taught a number of international students who eventually worked at the Y.M.C.A. in Seoul. Perhaps the most famous was Phillip Loring Gillett who brought Baseball to Korea. Although the first Y.M.C.A. activities in Korea began in 1888 under the guidance of missionaries from the University of Toronto, formal organization of a Korean association did not happen until ten years later, when missionaries in Seoul requested assistance from the American Y.M.C.A.'s International Committee. In 1901, Philip L. Gillett became the first secretary of the Seoul Association, launching the start of the Y.M.C.A.'s long and significant history on the Korean Peninsula. The Y.M.C.A. introduced the nation to baseball and offered bible study, career training, and agricultural assistance programs, among many other activities. As a result of the organization's openness and promotion of democratic values, the Y.M.C.A. became popular among Korean nationalists who opposed the Japanese annexation of the country. In 1912, the Seoul Association was accused of playing a role in a plot to assassinate the Japanese governor of Korea. In 1919, many Christians affiliated with the Y.M.C.A. were involved in a revolt against Japanese occupation. In 1922, the Korean Association was formally separated from the Y.M.C.A.s of Japan. Following the Armistice Agreement in 1953, the Korean Y.M.C.A.s shifted their focus to reconstruction and nation building. They provided rice and milk lines for refugees, rural reconstruction programs, and English typing classes to meet the needs of the United Nations. In addition, the Seoul Y.M.C.A. established Boy's Town, an orphanage that would operate for several decades following the war. By 1955, the Korean Y.M.C.A. regained its momentum and had grown to include 25 city associations, 29 university associations, and 145 boy's clubs. In 1969, the Korean Y.M.C.A. announced that they would shift their focus to outreach programs, which included constructing roads and community centers in rural areas, as well as anti-poverty efforts in six city slums. In 1971, the Korean Y.M.C.A.s established programs to promote financial self-sufficiency and increased Korean leadership in the organization. Today, the Y.M.C.A. in Korea maintains its traditional services in addition to a variety of social betterment programs that include environmental conservation, electoral transparency, and consumer protection.
Text on border reads, "John F. Sweeney & Son, High Class Lantern Slides;" This image was used in the publication "Contributions of International Y.M.C.A. College to Association Work in Foreign Lands,” call number BV1125.C65 1909.
Identifier:
LS_09_19