Norman L. Foote Papers, 1937-1974

Overview of the Collection

Title
Norman L. Foote Papers
Dates
1937-1974 (inclusive)
Quantity
2.25 linear feet, (5 boxes)
Collection Number
MSS 055
Summary
Sermons (1940-1974), articles (1962- 1969), appointment books (1958-1973), letters, biographical material, photos, and other papers relating chiefly to Foote's career in the Episcopal Church, including Montana and Idaho.
Repository
Boise State University Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
1910 University Drive
Boise ID
83725
Telephone: 2084263990
archives@boisestate.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is available for research.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided, in part, by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Norman Landon Foote was born on November 30, 1915, at Saratoga Springs, New York. The son of Leroy Herman Foote, a noted dental surgeon in Saratoga Springs, and Amy Verina (Close) Foote. Foote attended the Saratoga Public Schools and graduated from Saratoga High School in 1933. After graduating from high school Foote attended Hamilton College, located at Hamilton, New York, for one year (1933-1934). In the autumn of 1934 he transferred to Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, where he pursued studies in history. In 1937 he graduated from Princeton with an A.B. in history. Following graduation from Princeton, Foote studied for the ministry at the General Theological Seminary, New York City, New York, and received a Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree (S.T.B.) in 1940. Subsequently, Foote was awarded two honorary degrees; a Doctor of Sacred Theology (S.T.D.) from General Theological Seminary in 1957, and a Doctor of Divinity (D.D) from the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, Berkley, California, in the same year.

On June 1, 1940, Foote married Carolyn Hope Swayne, a native of Newton, Pennsylvania, at a ceremony conducted at Princeton, New Jersey. From this union four children were born: Margaret Elizabeth, Gerald H., Francis, and Ralph Norman.

Ordained as a deacon of the Protestant Episcopal Church at Albany, New York, in May 1940, Foote was assigned to the Episcopal Missionary district in Montana. In December 1940, he was ordained as a priest at Bozeman, Montana. From 1940 to 1943, Reverend Foote served as a missionary priest at Virginia City, Montana. In 1943 he was named Archdeacon for Episcopal Church in Montana and remained in that post until 1950. During his ministry in the rural areas of Montana, Foote became interested in the uniqueness of the rural ministry. In 1950 he accepted a call to serve as director of Roanridge, a post graduate training center for Episcopal seminarians called to the rural ministry. Located at Parkville, Missouri, Roanridge also known as the National Town and Country Church Institute was to remain as Foote's home until 1957. In 1956, Reverend Foote was named by the Episcopal House of Bishops as the sixth, and last, Bishop of the Missionary District of Idaho. On February 14, 1957, Norman Foote was consecrated as a Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in a solemn ceremony conducted at Saint Michael's Cathedral, in Boise, Idaho. In 1967 the Missionary District of Idaho was elevated to the status of a diocese and Bishop Foote became the first Bishop of the Diocese of Idaho.

During Bishop Foote's tenure the Diocese of Idaho gained strength in church membership and became well known as the "testing ground" of innovations for the Episcopal Church in the United States. Some of the programs established during Bishop Foote's years as head of the Episcopal Church in Idaho were: Ecumenicalism, Pastoral Care, Metropolitan Planning, and The Idaho Project - an experimental program for self supporting ministries. On February 14, 1972, after 15 years service as Bishop of Idaho, Bishop Foote retired due to ill health and moved to McCall, Idaho. Active even in retirement, Bishop Foote continued to serve the Episcopal Church in Idaho in various capacities. On May 12, 1974, Bishop Norman Landon Foote died at the age of 59, from complications of emphysema, in a hospital at Cascade, Idaho.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The papers of Bishop Norman L. Foote consist of correspondence, sermons, class notes, term papers, church records, newspaper clippings, photographs, memorabilia, and date books. Includes course notes and writings from his studies at General Theological Seminary, New York, N. Y. and addresses and organizational material from his work (1950-1957) as director of the Episcopal Church's National Town and Country Church Institute and Roanridge Rural Training Center, Parkville, Mo. These items document the life of Norman L. Foote, his education, and his career in the Episcopal ministry, much of which took place in Montana and Idaho.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

[item description], Norman L. Foote Papers, Box [number] Folder [number], Boise State University Special Collections and Archives.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in five series: 1. Biographical material and family papers; 2. Sermons and writings; 3. Episcopal Church papers; 4. Personal educational materials; and 5. Appointment/date books.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Bishop Foote's daughter, Judith Wright, Boise, Idaho, 1984.

Separated Materials

During the processing in 1992, one item was removed from the collection: a bound copy of a program file for the Paradise Point, (McCall, Idaho) Episcopal Conference Center covering the years 1957-1969. This file marked "Diocesan Permanent File Copy" was returned to the archives of the Episcopal Diocese of Idaho (Paradise Point series) also located at Boise State University.

Related Materials

See also: Carolyn Foote Papers and Episcopal Diocese of Idaho Records.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

1:  Biographical materials and personal papersReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
1 1
Certificates and Honors
1943-1966
1 2
Biographical materials
1 3
Information sheets: The National Cyclopedia of American Biography
1 4
Photographs
1 5
Published articles
1 6
Miscellaneous
1 7
Memorials

2:  Sermons and writingsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
1 8
Communion services
1941-1953
1 9
Lenten services
1941-1963
1 10
Various subjects
1940-1960
1 11
Various subjects
1961-1973
1 12
Montana ministry
undated
1 13
Town and Country Institute (Roanridge, Parkville, Missouri)
undated
1 14
Missionary District of Idaho
undated
1 15
Various subjects
undated
2 1
Episcopal Church sermons (reprints)
1970-1972
2 2
Writings: general
1957-1972

3:  Episcopal Church papersReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
2 3
Diocese of Montana
1933-1950
2 4
Rural Ministry - General Synod Province of Ontario, Canada
1951
2 5
National Town and Country Institute
1949-1956
2 6
Report: Study of Episcopal Congregation in the United States
1954
2 7
Report: Revision to the Book of Common Prayer Diocese of Western Missouri
1955
2 8
Study: Diocese of Northern Michigan
1956
2 9
Missionary District of Idaho: Consecration of Bishop Norman L. Foote
1957
2 10
Consecrations and Ordinations: California, Idaho, Kansas and Oregon
1957-1973
2 11
Idaho: Diocesan and Parish histories
1956-1969
2 12
Ministry: pastoral care
1949-1960
3 1
Conference on Metropolitan Planning
1964
3 2
The Idaho Project: Experimental Program for Self Supporting Ministries
1964-1971
3 3
Diocese of Idaho: Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church
1971
3 4
Episcopal Diocese of Idaho: Miscellaneous correspondence, Clerical directory, and report of meeting of House of Bishops
1957-1972
3 5
Church service programs
undated
3 6
The Messenger -- diocesan newsletter
1969-1974

4:  Personal educational materialsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
4
Seminary papers
1937-1938
4
Book - Class Notes: Old Testament
1937-1938
4
Book - Class Notes: New Testament
1937-1938
4
Book - Term Paper: Richard Bancroft and Puritanism
undated
4
Book - Senior Thesis: Richard Baxter's Theology in Relation to the thought of the 17th century
1937

5:  Appointment/date booksReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
5
1958-1973 (missing 1969-1970)

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Religion

Corporate Names

  • Episcopal Church
  • Roanridge Rural Center (Parkville, Mo.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Photographs

Occupations

  • Rural clergy