Parish Messenger Collection

During 2020, we were able to digitise the collection of parish newsletters and magazines published for over a century beginning in 1892. Over the years, the name of the publication varied from time to time, although Parish Messenger was used for the majority of the period. There was also variation in the size and scope – mostly a monthly newsletter, but from 1896 to 1910, and at other periods including the early 2000s, expanded to a magazine. During the Church Messenger period – 1896-1902, the scope of the magazine extended across the diocese, making it a useful source for the wider history of the Anglican Church in Tasmania. Please note that this is not a complete collection. There are, for instance, only 13 issues for the period 1910-1930. This may reflect breaks in the publication of monthly newsletters (the series numbers suggest this), but also the lack of systematic storage of back issues. There is some evidence that a large part of the early collection was the personal collection of long-standing churchwarden, Ernest Whitfeld, whose name and address are hand-written on, for instance, the cover of the July 1897 issue. We would welcome information and access to any further issues, including the most recent period – 2000 onwards.
We have a largely complete collection of monthly newsletters, from 1980 to 1993. After that, there are gaps in the publishing of newsletters, and by 2005, they were no longer being published. From 1987 onwards, the Parish Messenger name seemed to go out of favour, and various titles came and went, such as Good News, The Link and Compass, reverting to Parish Messenger during the early 1990s, and finally, St. John’s Parish Magazine (aka Newsletter). As we continue to sort through document collections, a few more issues have turned up. These are digitised as they come to hand, and added to this collection.

Parish Messenger 1892-1895Church Messenger 1896-1902The Churchman 1905-1910
Parish Messenger 1920-1949Parish Messenger 1950-1969Parish Messenger 1970-1979
Parish Messenger 1980-1989Parish Messenger 1990-1999Parish Messenger 2000-2005

Parish Messenger 1892-1895 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Church Messenger 1896-1902 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

The Churchman 1905-1910 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Messenger 1920-1949 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Messenger 1950-1969 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Messenger 1970-1979 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Messenger and some titles Good News 1980-1989 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Messenger and some titles Good News 1990-1999 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania

Parish Magazine, Compass, The Link and St. John’s Parish Newsletter 2000-2005 – published by St. John’s Church, Launceston Tasmania