Fisher, Alzo John, 1877-1967.

Alzo John Fisher was a Presbyterian minister in China from 1902 to 1947. He was born August 20, 1877 in Cleves, Iowa. He graduated from Coe College in Cedar Rapids in 1899 and from Princeton seminary in 1902. He received his Doctor of Divinity from Coe in 1916. Fisher became a missionary in South China in 1902 after his graduation from seminary college. He married Amenda Elliott shortly after his arrival and, after Amenda died in 1927, Fisher married Dorothy MacKeown in 1930. He had two sons of undetermined maternity. His first 15 years of service were spent in Sheklung, where he established many village chapels, the Sheklung Church, Christian schools and a training center. From 1919 to 1940, Fisher was a member of the Canton Evangelistic Association. Later, he worked with Y.S. Tom, General Secretary of the Kwongtung Synod of the Church of Christ in China. Fisher was concerned with developing Chinese Christian leaders and a self-supporting church in China. His dedication to the Chinese people is evident in this collection, and can be contrasted with the attitudes of many other missionaries. From 1937 to 1940, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, he resided in Canton and looked after a Chinese refugee camp of some 3,000 mothers and children. During World War II, Fisher became associate general secretary to Tom. He was placed under house arrest by the Japanese in December of 1941 and later moved into an internment camp in Shanghai, where he wrote a history of the Church of Christ in China. Fisher repatriated in 1944; he returned to the General Assembly of the Church of Christ in 1946. A prolific writer, Fisher was also interested in Chinese culture and history. In 1947, Fisher retired from missionary service to Pasadena, California and became a member of the Los Angeles Presbytery. He died December 17, 1967.

From the description of Alzo John Fisher papers, ca. 1922-1957. (University of Oregon Libraries). WorldCat record id: 55621877

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