Document Type
Finding Aid
Publication Date
8-17-2022
Inclusive Dates--Span
1955-1983
Inclusive Dates--Bulk
1960, 1964-1965, 1972-1978
Scope and Content Note
This collection includes George Benson’s correspondence concerning his fundraising efforts for the Namwianga Christian Secondary School (Kalomo, Zambia), correspondence with American missionaries in Zambia (e.g., Merritt, Elkins, Parker, Perry, and Kumalo), and some correspondence concerning mission work in the Philippines (e.g., Adap, Brashears, Buchanan, LeCroy, Garner), and Vietnam (e.g., Hall). There are meeting minutes and financial records concerning the school as well.
Biographical Note
George Stuart Benson was born in Oklahoma on September 26, 1898. He received a B.A. from Harding College (Searcy, Arkansas) in 1923, a B.S. from Oklahoma A&M University (Stillwater, Oklahoma) in 1925, and an M.A. from the University of Chicago (Chicago, Illinois) in 1931. He served as a missionary in China and the Philippines (1925-1930, 1932-1936), and then became the President of Harding College in 1936. Benson helped fundraise for a number of Churches of Christ schools, including Harding University (Searcy, Arkansas), Oklahoma Christian University (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), Faulkner University (Montgomery, Alabama), and Namwianga Christian Secondary School (Kalomo, Zambia). He died on December 15, 1991, in Searcy, Arkansas.
Donor Note
Acquired by McGarvey Ice in portions from 2007-2011; The material for Benson's papers came from the estate/papers of James D. Bales (see MS #82). June 2022 addition from Mark McWhorter.
Arrangement
Correspondence has been alphabetized and then placed in chronological order.
Content List
See PDF finding aid for inventory.
Language
ENGLISH
Extent of Collection
2.5 linear feet (2 boxes)
Manuscript Number
Center for Restoration Studies Manuscripts #81
Physical Location
Center for Restoration Studies
Preferred Citation
[identification of item], File or Folder Name, George S. Benson Papers, 1955-1983. Center for Restoration Studies MS #81. Abilene Christian University Special Collections and Archives, Brown Library. Abilene Christian University, Abilene, TX.
Use Restrictions
Open to researchers. Contact Abilene Christian University Special Collections and Archives to make an appointment.
Processing Status
Processed
Finding Aid created by
Brady Cox, Amanda Dietz, Natali Gonzalez, Erica Pye
Subjects--Personal Names
Benson, George S.; Elkins, Phillip Wayne; Brashears, Ralph F.; Hall, Maurice C.; Merritt, Roy; Perry, Eugene C.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Comments
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