Archive of the Month
Life in North India, 1910–1939.
Words, Images and Now Artefacts Linked to the Revd Gerald W. Dickson (1882–1975) Missionary and Diarist
Dr Susan Hood
THE REVD GERALD W. DICKSON (1882–1975) served as an SPG (Society for the Propagation of the Gospel) Missionary in North India between 1910 and 1939. A typescript copy of his diary accompanied by a rare set of lantern slides which bring to life the diocese of Chota Nagpur in and around Manoharpur (the mission station which he helped to build during the early 20th century) were featured in an earlier Archive of the Month (click here to view) with the lantern slides themselves digitised and available to view here:
The work represented a positive collaboration with Dr Hia Sen, Assistant Professor at the Department of Sociology at Presidency University, Kolkata who analysed the source and captioned the slides in 2018. In the original presentation she wrote:
“The images and the diary entries are from 1910 to 1939, a time which is historically significant not only for missionary activities overseas, but also for the reverberations of the First World War, which were felt in India, and for the intensification of nationalist sentiments among the Indian people. A substantial collection of some 67 lantern slides of India, and a copy of the Gerald Dickson’s diary, held in the RCB Library, Dublin, reveal a glimpse of this period from the lens of everyday life within the diocese of Chota Nagpur.”
The diary and the slides had been donated to the Library by the late Revd Dickson’s son Prof. David Dickson, and more recently he kindly brought in additional items to add to the collection, which are the focus of September’s Archive of the Month.
The Chota Nagpur region (now in the State of Jharkhand) with its hills, dense forests,and vast tribal population of Uraons and Mundas, was a remote area and here Gerard Dickson was involved in the development of a school and the building of St Augustine’s church, which served the Christians of neighbouring villages. Both institutions are still in existence today. He travelled extensively within this landscape, often camping for the night in the forests or in remote villages on his way to lecture tours or confirm remote parishes, especially as there were so few local diocesan workers.
Several images in the collection capture him on these travels – one in particular next to his tent accommodation. In this particular image we see all kinds of travelling cases, and possibly Dickson actually writing up the day’s events in his diary. He used various modes of transport particularly his bicycle which sometimes both he and his bishop were forced to carry over their shoulders to cross flooding waters.
His diary also contains records of where, when and the numbers of children and adults involved in the fully–immersive baptisms he performed in open river waters. The image on view is particularly evocative with a barefoot Dickson perched on something within the river surrounded by baptismal candidates, presumably with their families and other community members, carrying the cross and banners, watching on from the riverbank.
After each ceremony his diary frequently records how the procession would carry on to the nearest church where candidates were given candles to mark the occasion. Further images in the collection show various processions on the move.
We can presume that these rituals must have been accompanied by music, singing and perhaps the beat of a ceremonial drum to set the tempo. Of two new artefacts added to the collection in the RCB Library recently by Dickson’s son, this wonderful drum captures a sense of the beat!
Indian drums and percussion then as now were an integral part of Indian culture and have helped to shape the music of the state of Bihar. The origin of Dickson’s drum is not known but it features hide, likely goat strung over a circular lath of wood to make the frame with handmade wooden pegs driven into the side. It has a resonant tone we can imagine added to the ritual.
Whilst there are no photographs of the drum in Dickson’s collection of lantern slides, a second item does appear to be photographed – or certainly one very similar. This is the engraved brass pan which we see in an image of a couple welcome Dickson to their home with a ritual hand washing at the door. A variety of pots and pans feature throughout Dickson’s images, for carrying water, cooking food, and even warming hands in the cooler evenings and the hand–washing one demonstrates a warm greeting for the guest.
For the last four years of his time in India Dickson became Archdeacon of Chota Nagpur diocese before returning to Ireland when he married Norah Chatterton of Enniskerry and then moved to Donegal, serving out the remainder of a long and fulfilled ministry in the parish of Fahan where he grew up, until retirement in 1965. He died in 1975.
Until the end of this month, the diary, a selection of the lantern slides and related items can be viewed in the foyer of the RCB Library where visitors are always welcome.
