{"id":955,"date":"2026-04-16T03:37:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T03:37:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/?post_type=exhibit&p=955"},"modified":"2026-04-23T19:50:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T19:50:11","slug":"mission-to-china-1888-1921","status":"publish","type":"exhibit","link":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/exhibits\/john-m-foster-1877\/mission-to-china-1888-1921\/","title":{"rendered":"Mission to China (1888\u20131921)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Chapel and Native Christians at Swatow. Missionaries like John M. Foster helped build local churches and empower Chinese Christian leaders, ensuring the mission\u2019s long-term impact on the community.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

John M. Foster began his missionary work in South China in the late 1880s, joining the American Baptist South China Mission. He was primarily based in the Swatow (Shantou) region, a key coastal area that served as an important point of contact between China and foreign missionary organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mission records identify him as \u201cRev. J. M. Foster, D.D.,\u201d indicating his senior position within the mission and his long-term involvement in its activities. His work included preaching, teaching, and organizing religious institutions, but also extended into education and leadership development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foster\u2019s presence in Swatow reflects a broader pattern of American missionary expansion into port cities, where access to international networks made it possible to establish schools, churches, and training programs. Rather than focusing only on conversion, his work contributed to building lasting institutional structures that connected local communities with global religious and educational systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mission house on the hills of Swatow (Shantou), China. Missionaries like John M. Foster and his family lived, worked, and built enduring community connections in homes like these<\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Excerpt from a missionary letter written shortly after arrival in Swatow (1888), describing early impressions and the beginning of Foster\u2019s work in China.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

John M. Foster began his missionary work in South China in the late 1880s, joining the American Baptist South China Mission. He was primarily based in the Swatow (Shantou) region, a key coastal area that served as an important point of contact between China and foreign missionary organizations. Mission records identify him as \u201cRev. J. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"parent":346,"menu_order":3,"template":"","institution":[],"place":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exhibit\/955"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exhibit"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/exhibit"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exhibit\/955\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1895,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exhibit\/955\/revisions\/1895"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exhibit\/346"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=955"},{"taxonomy":"place","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/colby-and-china-ea333\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/place?post=955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}