The religious community of Northern California was actively involved in the farm labor movement but its role is not discussed extensively in histories of the movement. This collection will help researchers better understand the role of the Northern California Conference and affiliated religious organizations in the farm labor movement specifically and in the California farming communities in general from 1964 to 1986. The bulk of the records reflect the activities of the Conference in the 1960s, the most volatile decade of the farm labor movement since the 1930s.

The Northern California Conference of the United Church of Christ played a significant role in the agricultural communities in the Central Valley of California, most notably in the 1960s. In 1962, after ministering for decades to members of the small valley towns, the Conference began a dramatic new program in Goshen, a small town in Tulare County. The Goshen Project specifically sought to minister to farm workers, whose needs moved the Conference into nontraditional programs. Working with other organizations throughout the decade, the Conference struggled to serve farm workers as well as other members of Northern California's agricultural communities. Northern California Conference. The United Church of Christ. San Francisco: Northern California Conference, n.d. Arthur Carl Piepkorn. Profiles in Belief. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1978. Smith, Sydney D. Grapes of Conflict. Pasadena, CA: Hope Publishing House, 1987.

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Collection is open for research.