This series comprises the personal papers of the Rev. Ernest Edwin (E.E.) Ryden, pastor, author, hymnologist, and editor of the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church's weekly church paper, The Lutheran Companion. Records date from 1907-1962 and include a variety or record types. Included is handwritten and typewritten correspondence, both of a personal and business nature, meeting minutes, printed reports, topical essays and articles, news articles, newspapers clippings, manuscripts, proof pages, postcards, academic transcript, handwritten and typewritten sermons, diary, address book, visitation book, and black and white and sepia-toned photographs. The series is arranged by subseries that correspond to subject matter pertaining to the interests and involvements of Pastor Ryden. Subseries include: family records, pastoral call assignments, worship and liturgical arts, hymnology, the Augustana Synod, Lutheran unity, and ecumenical activities. Family Records: this subseries includes subject matter related family matters regarding brothers, sister, wife, and children; matters pertaining to a family farm in Kansas and his vacation home in Yellow Lake Wisconsin; his involvement in a "chess by mail" group; his 25th anniversary as editor of The Lutheran Companion; Augustana College class reunions; celebrations of Swedish heritage; and his retirement from The Lutheran Companion. There are also two folders of records that pertain to his brother Dr. George H. Ryden, who was a history professor at the University of Delaware and the state archivist of Delaware. There is also one folder of photographs that include individual as well as group shots. Pastoral Call Assignments: subject matter in this subseries includes his ministry during his time as pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Jamestown, New York from 1914-1920 and Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Saint Paul, Minnesota from 1920-1934. Of note there are also several folders of correspondence and reports from Pastor Ryden's work during World War I as a camp pastor of the National Lutheran Commission for Solders' and Sailors' Welfare, a precursor to the military chaplain. Pastor Ryden served as a camp pastor, predecessor to military chaplain, at Camp Wadsworth, Spartanburg, South Carolina, from 1917-1918. Worship and Liturgical Arts: this subseries includes records that demonstrate Pastor Ryden's involvement in the creation of services and liturgies for particular times of the church year, as well as his work on the Augustana Synod's Church Service Book and Ministerial Acts. Hymnology: included in this subseries is the bulk of Pastor Ryden's body of work related to authorship of two works regarding the history of hymns: The Story of Our Hymns, which pertains to the history of Lutheran Hymns, published in 1930 and also the wider scope The Story of Christian Hymnody, which was published in 1960. In addition to his published works, the subseries also includes records related to his work as an instruction of hymnology and as the host of a radio program devoted to the story of hymns. Of note, in this subseries is an original draft of a poem Pastor Ryden wrote as a dedication of The Story of Our Hymns to his son, Richard Edward Ryden, who died in 1929 at the age of 10. Augustana Synod: in addition to his pastoral calls and work as editor, Pastor Ryden was also involved in other aspects of the life of the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church. This subseries has records related to his service on the church's Board of Christian Education and Literature, as well as records related to his service as chairman of the board of directors of one of the church's colleges, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois. Lutheran Unity: this subseries include records Pastor Ryden retained that related to the subject of cooperation, collaboration and ultimate unity of Lutheran church bodies in North America. The bulk of the records are articles and essays he collected from published sources. Ecumenical Activities: records in this subseries pertain to Pastor Ryden's involvement in ecumenical activities, not only through Lutheran participation in larger federations and organizations, but also his involvement in wider ecumenical activities through the Federal Council of Churches of Christ, a predecessor to the National Council of Churches, and his participation with the World Council of Churches.
