This just in: Congregational directories from Altus, Oklahoma

A donor sent us a box of directories from the Elm & Hudson and the Thomas Street Churches of Christ, both in Altus, Oklahoma.  A few are pictured here.  Congregational directories are valuable resources for genealogists and local historians and can serve much larger research projects.  Often they include historical information and sometimes information about the ministries of the congregation.  Usually the information they contain is unavailable elsewhere. We are always glad to see new directories come into the collection.

I have an old directory. How can I know if you need it? Great question. Chances are good we do not already have it.  But we’ll be glad to check.  The first thing you can do is  look up your congregation in this finding aid to determine if we have an existing file.  Our vertical files could contain a wide array of paper items.  There might be a few bulletins, or a historical sketch, or a photograph or flyer or other kind of ephemera in the file.  If your congregation is not listed in that finding aid, we do not have a file for it and therefore anything we receive will be a great new addition!  We are always getting new items in, like these directories from Altus, and would be delighted to hear from you about similar items.  Contact me at mac.ice@acu.edu or 325-2144 if I can assist further.

 

 

This Just In: A congregational history of Western Hills Church of Christ, Temple, Texas, 1908-2022

Dr. Matthew Stephen put together a very nice congregational history for Western Hills Church of Christ in Temple, Texas.  To complement the book, he built this website to showcase photographs and to host the book in PDF form.  It is a well-done history published in an accessible form, freely available to any who are interested.

Cover page, A History of Western Hills Church of Christ, by Matthew Stephen

One of the pitfalls of writing congregational history is the conundrum of printing the fruits of research.  Often the print run needs to be small because the interest is localized; however, small print runs can be expensive and even if monetized, or subsidized the congregation, the costs can still be prohibitive.  Publishing online is the perfect solution.

I predict Matt will have a global readership.  Those who are interested in the subject matter or location will certainly be interested, but any who are engaged in congregational history will find his work a worthy model.  I like to browse congregational histories because, on the technical side, each one has some kind of approach or feature I find useful.  On the historical side, it is fascinating to see how principles and practice intersect on the ground in a local context.  Congregational history is a critical discipline…I’m a big fan (and wrote some about it here and Erma Jean Loveland wrote a helpful guide which we published here).

Congratulations to Dr. Stephen and Western Hills Church for saving the paper and telling their story!

 

Recent books in Restoration history

Several recent publications suggest interest in Stone-Campbell history thought, and theology is by no means dormant.  The sample listed below reflects a wide scope of interest.  Some focus intently on local or regional history, while others are thematic, anecdotal, or institutional.  Some are designed to be immediately accessible to any reader, while others require varying degrees of prior knowledge.  Below are just a few, I intend to regularly post updates as new material is published.

Robert W. Steffer. Saving Cane Ridge. Paris: Cane Ridge Shrine, Inc. 2015. 378 pages.

Robert W. Steffer, Saving Cane Ridge

Libby Weed, A Cloud of Witnesses: Centennial History of Austin Graduate School of Theology. Austin: Christian Studies Press, 2018. 202 pages.

Libby Weed, A Cloud of Witnesses: Centennial History of Austin Graduate School of Theology.

Larry C. Jackson, Choosing Sides: A History of the Churches of Christ in Austin 1847-2018. LaGrange, TX: Larry C. Jackson, 2018. 198 pages.

Larry C. Jackson, Choosing Sides: A History of the Churches of Christ in Austin 1847-2018.

John Young, Visions of Restoration: The History of Churches of Christ. Florence: Cypress Publications, 2019.

John Young, Visions of Restoration: The History of Churches of Christ.

John Young, Visions of Restoration: The History of Churches of Christ.

Edward J. Robinson, Hard Fighting Soldiers: A History of African American Churches of Christ. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2019. 224 pages.

Edward J. Robinson, Hard Fighting Soldiers: A History of African American Churches of Christ.

 

J. Caleb Clanton, editor. Restoration and Philosophy: New Philosophical Engagements with the Stone-Campbell Tradition. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2019. 389 pages.

J. Caleb Clanton, editor. Restoration and Philosophy: New Philosophical Engagements with the Stone-Campbell Tradition.

 

Perry C. Cotham,  Please Don’t Revive Us Again!: The Human Side of the Church of Christ. Bloomington: Archway Publishing, 2020. 390 pages.

Perry C. Cotham,  Please Don’t Revive Us Again!: The Human Side of the Church of Christ.

John Mark Hicks, editor. Resisting Babel: Allegiance to God and the Problem of Government. Abilene: Abilene Christian University Press, 2020

John Mark Hicks, editor. Resisting Babel: Allegiance to God and the Problem of Government.

John Mark Hicks, editor. Resisting Babel: Allegiance to God and the Problem of Government.

Greg Massey, By the Grace of God: The Story of Freed-Hardeman University. Abilene: Abilene Christian University Press, 2020.

Greg Massey, By the Grace of God: The Story of Freed-Hardeman University.