The records of the Michigan Synodical Society document its historical development, the administration of its business, its annual meetings, and its interests in missions, both foreign and home missions, from 1873 to 1973. These records document the beginnings of both the foreign (1873) and home (1879) missionary societies which eventually became the Michigan Synodical Society (1919). The bulk of the collection, however, covers the later period, 1942-1968.
The Michigan Synodical Society (now Association) was formed from several women's societies within the Presbyterian Church of Michigan. Women had from the beginning of the church in Michigan played an important role. Though they had early organized themselves into presbyterials, not until 1873 did they form a synodical-level mission society to be called the Michigan Woman's Foreign Missionary Society. Six years later, in 1879, a second society, the Michigan Woman's Board of Home Missions, was established. Though these two synodical organizations, the women of the local presbyterials were now able to participate in a fuller sense in the goals of the church, especially as they related to the home and foreign mission fields.
By 1898 the Michigan Woman's Foreign Missionary Society supported fourteen missionaries, corresponded with different presbyteries advising them about their missions program, and arranged visits of missionaries home on furlough. Although the Women's Board of Home Missions supported missionaries all over the United States, an important part of its work was with the Detroit Mission of the Presbytery of Detroit. Here the board pioneered work among Italian and Hungarian immigrants to the city, appointing women to minister to the women and children of these communities. In 1885, the Women's Board of Home Missions, through the Detroit Mission, began a program of support to freedmen now living in Michigan. In 1919 the two synodical societies (Foreign Missions and Home Missions) merged to form the Michigan Synodical Society. The first meeting of the two, now joined, organizations was held in Monroe, Michigan in 1920.
In the early 1930s the function of presbyterials changed as presbyterial boundaries were redrawn. As a result, the character of the Michigan Synodical Society also changed with more emphasis given to developing leadership abilities among the church women. Despite these changes, missions remained a primary focus of the society. In 1961, the designation "presbyterial" was dropped, and the local presbyterial-level groups were known simply as the United Presbyterian Women. In 1968, the name of the organization was changed to Michigan Synodical Association, and in 1969, it became part of the Synodical of the Covenant, covering the area of Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky.
