Helen Brenton and Roy Jr. Pryor Papers

The Helen Brenton & Roy Jr. Pryor Papers mainly document the personal experiences of Dr. Helen Brenton & Rev. Roy Jr. Pryor and Helen’s mother Mary Foster Brenton in the Nanjing Incident on March 24, 1927 in Nanjing, China. There are also some correspondence and manuscripts describe the Japanese attack in Beijing (Peiping) and Tianjin (Tientsin) as well as the Nanking massacre in 1937. The overall arrangement of the collection was provided by the archivist while some of the folder titles were provided by Roy Jr. Pryor and his family.

Dr. Helen Brenton and Rev. Roy Pryor were American Methodist Episcopal Church missionaries who stationed in Nanjing (Nanking), China during the 1920s. Dr. Helen Brenton Pryor was a medical doctor practicing at the University Hospital of Nanking (Nanjing), and she established a women’s clinic for both Chinese and foreign patients. Rev. Roy Jr. Pryor was the head of the Hua Chong Middle School for boys. Some bank statements and receipts in the Primary notes and documents on Nanking Incident file (folder 1-7) give a glimpse of Roy’s work in Nanjing and his future plan while he was at college. Helen’s mother, Mary Foster Brenton had also attained a MD degree, she stayed with the couple in Nanjing, spent time at Ginling College, did some volunteer work with nurses, taught at the Hwei Wen Girls’ School and was active with the Methodist women.A Scrapbook in folder 1-2 contains photographs that the family took in Honolulu, Nanjing including the University of Nanking Hospital, Beijing and Guling in China. There is a group photograph of missionaries leaving Shanghai, China on board of SS Tenyo Maru for the U.S.A. after the Nanjing Incident and one of the passengers was Pearl S. Buck. There are also some photographs of buildings that were damaged in the Account of the Nanjing Incident file (folder 1-5).

The Helen Brenton and Roy Jr. Pryor Papers contain detailed personal account of the Nanjing Incident (Nanking Incident 南京慘案) that occurred on March 24, 1927. Before the Incident, there was anti-foreign and anti-Christian sentiment in the 1920s when unrest and warlord fightings were common. On March 24, 1927, when soldiers of the Northern Expedition entered Nanjing (Nanking), instead of protecting the city, the soldiers looted foreign institutes and killed several foreigners including Dr. J.E. Williams, the Vice-President of the University of Nanking. Foreign warships were ordered to evacuate the foreigners soon after this so-called Nanjing Incident.

Helen, Roy and Mary gave detailed account of their personal experiences in the Nanjing Incident and described how they were evacuated and left China in the Nanjing Incident files (folders 1-5 & 1-7). They vividly described the chaotic situation and widespread looting in Nanjing on March 24. Helen and her mother (Mary Foster Brenton) were robbed at home, valuables including blankets and coats were taken away by looters. Roy’s manuscript also described his deadly journey to pay ransom for the school. Helen believed Roy was killed. However, with the help of their Chinese friends, the family reunited. A few days later, the family and other foreigners fled to Shanghai and finally to San Francisco, U.S.A. In a letter written by the American Consul John K. Davis to Dr. A.J. Bowen on board of USS Isabel (folder 1-7), Davis expressed his appreciation to the Americans who were affected in the Nanjing Incident. When Roy and Helen returned to the U.S.A., they faced some financial difficulties and contacted the Board of Foreign Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church (folder 1-6).

After the Pryor family had settled down, Roy still collected information on the development in China (folders 1-1 & 1-4). Articles, correspondence, diary and manuscripts written by some foreigners and members of the Home Economics Study Tour (from the U.S.A.) in folder 1-4 document the eye-witness account of the fall of Beijing and Tianjin and their escape from China, as well as the killing and rape incidents in the Nanjing Massacre (Rape of Nanking 南京大屠殺) in 1937. In addition, two reports to the Board of Trustees of the Yenching University (燕京大学) described the condition in Beijing during the Japanese military occupation in 1937. One of these reports was written by Dr. John Leighton Stuart.

Geographic coverage

Beijing (Peiping), Nanjing (Nanking), Tianjin (Tientsin), China, Japan, United States

Types of documents

Articles, bank statement, book, clippings, correspondence, documents, journals, manuscripts, photographs, photo album and receipts