Finding Aid Round Up

We’ve been busy writing finding aids for recent acquisitions and revising finding aids for some materials already in our holdings. You can browse all of our archival holdings on DigitalCommons. See something below that piques your interest or could be useful for your research? Get in touch and let us know what you’re thinking about; we’d love to help!


Glenn L. Wallace Papers, 1930-1970, MS#31 [Revised Finding Aid]
Nephew of Foy E. Wallace, Glenn L. Wallace was born in 1907. He married Leola Duckworth. He was baptized by E.S. Fitzgerald in 1923. He began his preaching career in Abilene, Texas in 1925. Wallace attended Abilene Christian College where he received his B.A. degree. He also attended Friends University in Wichita, Kansas. He worked with churches in Kansas, Texas, and California, eventually moving back to Abilene in 1946 where he began working with the College Church of Christ. He was a regular contributor to Christian Worker, Gospel Advocate, and Firm Foundation. He did a great deal of evangelist work through the years working mostly in the midwest states of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas. He also did a six-month effort in the British Isles establishing and settling works there in progress. This collection contains papers from Glenn L. Wallace. The collection contains information about Herald of Truth, sermons, notes, lessons, articles, manuscripts, notebooks, membership lists, funeral sermons and other papers.

Henry Walker Papers, 1957-1976, MS#33 [Revised Finding Aid]
Henry Alexander Walker was born April 7, 1923 in Hico, Texas, to Floyd Edgar Walker and Effie Luetta Scales. Walker was married to Dorothy Marie Sims (1927-2015) on September 13, 1942, until their divorce in 1955. He later married Bonnie McGhee (1923-2013). Walker served as a minister and preacher in the Churches of Christ. Walker died at age 68 in Abilene, Texas, on December 8, 1991. He is buried in the Johnsonville Cemetery in Johnsonville, Texas. These papers include a collection of studies on baptism and the New Testament church and copies of the San Marcos Sounder.

William Everett Ferguson Papers, 1941-2014, MS#78 [Revised Finding Aid]
The Ferguson papers consists primarily of over 9600 color slides taken by Dr. William Everett Ferguson while on trips to study the antiquities of Europe, Israel, Turkey, Greece and Egypt. He photographed museum artifacts such as coins, sculptures, and portrait busts depicting the art and objects of ancient civilizations and early Christianity. Also included are slides of buildings related to the history of these early civilizations and the beginnings and development of Christianity. Images include those of early Christian churches, basilicas and cathedrals as well as images of modern and ancient cities and archaeological sites in Israel, Turkey, Greece, ancient Rome, and throughout Europe. The objects photographed are from exhibits at the British Museum, the Ashmolean, the Louvre and other prominent museums of Europe and the Mediterranean countries. These slides document both Dr. Ferguson’s travels and his pedagogy because he used them as visual aids to his lectures on ancient world history and religion and the development and art and symbolism of early Christianity through the Middle Ages. The full collection was digitized in 2015 by Simon Summers and is available online at https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/ferguson_photos/.

Jedburgh Abbey – Scotland from So. Apr ’93. Founded 1118. Built 1140-1220. Work on choir began 1140.
From the William Everett Ferguson Papers, Center for Restoration Studies MS#78.

Charles Ready Nichol Papers, 1926-1961, MS#345 [Revised Finding Aid]
Charles Ready Nichol was a Church of Christ minister, debater, and writer. He was born 26 March 1876 near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He was educated at the Nashville Bible School, Southwest Kentucky College, Vanderbilt University, and Transylvania University. He married Harriet “Hattie” Thompson Helm in 1896. He began preaching in Woodbury, Tennessee in 1891 and continued his work in numerous other places, often holding protracted meetings. He is perhaps best known for his work with R. L. Whiteside in producing the multi-volume series of Sound Doctrine books. These remain in print and were widely used in Bible classes in Churches of Christ. Nichol often wrote for church papers such as Gospel Advocate and Firm Foundation. He wrote 21 books and in 1948 received an honorary doctor’s degree from Abilene Christian College. Nichol died in 1961 and was buried in the Clifton Cemetery in Clifton, Texas. These papers includes notes, charts, newspaper clippings, debate materials, and photographs from Charles Ready Nichol.

Bonnie Deal Packer Papers, 1918-1920, MS#369 [Revised Finding Aid
Bonnie Deal Packer was born March 10, 1900. She was a student at Abilene Christian College (1918-1920), and she married Napolean Clinton Packer on February 25, 1922. She died on August 26, 1988. This collection includes two scrapbooks and photographs from Bonnie Deal Packer’s time as a student at Abilene Christian College (1918-1920).

From the Bonnie Deal Packer Papers, 1918-1920. Center for Restoration Studies MS#369.


Stay tuned for more installments of Finding Aid Round Ups!