General Introduction to the Archive

The Archive consists of digital representations of audio, scanned photographs, documents, objects, and copies of digital images which represent the life of FEBC, including images of events influencing its founding in 1946 to the present. This archive was originally compiled and designed by Jim Bowman of International Christian Radio Associates after his retirement from FEBC. Not only is Jim the son of Robert Bowman, co-founder of Far East Broadcasting Company, he held a number of positions within FEBC including president of FEBC USA. The initial focus of the archive by Jim Bowman was collectiong documentation from the first twenty years of FEBC's development, 1946 to about 1965.

The Archive presents the material in several predefined albums based on region, events or topics. Additional tools are available to search for material based on specific predefined keywords or user defined searches.

Library: This album contains all the items in the archive including documents, photos and multimedia files

Ministry Field Albums: This album sorts the images by country where the activity occurred.

Predefined sets: Sets of images related to specific significant events in the minstry of FEBC International.

"Call of the Orient" Audio Files: A series of programs distributed to radio stations in the United States beginning in 1947 to promote the ministry of FEBC.

Select by Date: To sort material by creation date, select the camera icon on the right side of the screen. This option is available for images in an album as well as search results.

Search by Keywords: Keywords are predefined general themes. The material can be filtered by selecting multiple keywords in the library.

Search by Word or Phrase: Searches the data associated with material in the archive based on user defined words or phrases. The search does not discriminate whole or partial words, or case; therefore "pin" will find "Pin," "pin," "opinion" or "Philippines," etc.

The images on this site have been scanned or otherwise reproduced with computer screen quality in mind. The main image files are in .jpg format, generally between 400k and 1mb, the long side not exceeding about 1000px. These dimensions are exceeded where the images are of unusually high photographic value, or where high resolution is needed to read important details. Almost all images will be satisfactory for PowerPoint or other computer presentations. Depending on the image source, it may be possible to provide higher resolution for print publication purposes on request.

The quality of the web images depends mostly on the quality of the source. Most images in this collection are scanned from first-generation prints or original negatives. Good black and white prints based on medium to large format negatives provide the best quality and tonal gradation. Kodachrome slides, even if 50 or more years old, provide the best color, but not as effective in low or artificial light. Ektachrome slides are prone to excessively high contrast and fading. Kodacolor negatives reproduce fairly well. Good color prints reproduce quite well also.

Return to FEBC International for additional information about the current ministry.