Hist.
Mss. 1-723
Le Roy Bechler
Collection
focusing on History of African-American
Mennonite
Church
in North America
Papers,
Photographs &
Interview Tapes, 1950-2002
(and historical
documentation, 1897-1982)
4
Boxes (1 Large, 3 Gray)
Collection
is Restricted: persons need to contact
Bechler, Goshen, Indiana,
for permission
to make use of these materials.
For
additional photographs, see Bechler, Le Roy, Photograph Collection
(HM4-367 SC)
For
additional Black
Church
history project materials, see Historical
Committee (I-3-3.3)
Scope
and Content
This collection includes the Black History
Project,
and writings collected and organized by LeRoy Bechler.
The
Black Mennonite Church in North America, 1886-1986, by Le Roy
Bechler, was
published by 1986 (Scottdale, Pennsylvania: Herald Press, 1986).
Administrative
Information
The interviews with James Lark (11
cassette tapes) were deposited into the archives by Le Roy Bechler, Goshen, Indiana
in 2006 (Accession #7261, 2 Gray Boxes, December 20, 2006 / des). Additional records on Negro Evangelism
and
James Lark (Box
4)
were deposited into the Archives by Le Roy Bechler on July 29, 2004 and
Sept.
19, 2007 (Accession #7308, 1 Box Gray December 11, 2007 / des). Transcriptions of the interview tapes
completed,
2007-08, by Andre Shenk, Dagan Bontrager and Nathan Yoder..
Inventory Listing
Box 1 (Large)
1/1 “History of
colored Evangelism in the Mennonite
Church,”
by Le Roy Bechler, 1950
1/2
“Facts,
Considerations and Membership of Negroes in the Mennonite Church,”
by LeRoy Bechler, 1955
1/3
Questionnaire on Race attitude, 1951-1954
1/4
“Summary
of Research on the History of Black People in the Mennonite Church,”
by LeRoy Bechler, 1979 draft
1/5
"A
Statistical History of Blacks in the MC, 1898-1980", by LRB (Hand. Draft)
1/6
“A
Statistical History of Blacks in the Mennonite Church,
1898-1980,” by
LeRoy Bechler (typed)
1/7
“Church Growth Among Blacks in the Mennonite Church,
1897-1980,” by LeRoy Bechler, published in Mission
Focus, September, 1982
1/8
Brown,
Hubert – “An Evaluation Instrument Used to Study Minority
Church
Growth Patterns –
A Brief Report”
1/9
Brown, Hubert – “History of Bethel
Mennonite Church,
Norristown,
PA”
1/10 Brown,
Hubert – “The James Lark Story”
1/11 Kauffman, Cal
and Brown, Al – “Factors in Black Mennonite
Church
Growth”
1/12
Miller,
Freeman – “American Inner-City Church
Growth – A Philadelphia
Mennonite Perspective”
1/13 Shands, Regina
“The Future of the Black
Mennonite Church”
1/14
Weber,
John –
“The History of the Broad
Street Mennonite Church, 1936-1971” (Harrisonburg, VA)
1/15
Author
Unknown – “The Roots of contemporary Black Culture Reaches Back to
Slavery and
to Africa”
1/16 Le
Roy Bechler Correspondence, 1951-80
Black
History Project –
Notes
1/17 Black History
Project - Notes
1/18 Minutes, Urban
Evangelism Committee; Negro
Evangelism Committee, etc., 1951-57
1/19 Background materials
(programs, addresses,
etc.)
1/20 Background Materials –
Miscellaneous (2
folders)
1/21 Background Materials Miscellaneous
1/22 Background – The
Evangelicals and Blacks
1/23 Background Statistics
1/24 Background – History of
Black Culture
Black History Project –
Related articles
1/25 Black History Project -
Related articles
1/25a Calvary
Mennonite Church,
Los Angeles,
CA –
Data
1/26 Calvary
Mennonite Church,
Los Angeles
VS
Data, 1966-1970
1/27 Calvary
Mennonite Church,
Los Angeles
VS
Data, 1971-1978
1/28 Calvary
Mennonite Church,
Newport
News, VA –
Data and History
1/29 Community
Mennonite Church,
South Bend,
IN –
Data
1/30 Diamond
Street Mennonite
Church, Philadelphia, PA
– Data
1/31 Grace Chapel, Saginaw, MI
– Data
1/32 Lee Heights
Community Church,
Cleveland,
OH –
Data
1/33 Ninth
Street Mennonite
Church, Saginaw, MI
– Pictorial History
1/34 Ninth
Street Mennonite
Church, Saginaw, MI
– Data
1/35 Ninth
Street Mennonite
Church, Saginaw, MI
– Pictures
1/36
Ninth Street Mennonite Church, Saginaw, MI
– Slides
1/37 Rehoboth
Mennonite Church,
St. Anne,
IL
– Data
1/38 Youngstown Ohio Mennonite
Churches
(Rockview MC and Berean MC) – Data
1/39 Photo Album, 1950-57,
showing ministry of
LeRoy and Irene Bechler
Box 2 (Gray)
Interviews with James A.
Lark, 1976, by LeRoy Bechler
Tapes
#1-7 (Cassette tapes). Transcription to
all tapes has been completed, 2007-08, and posted on web.
Summary introduction to tapes below provided
by Nathan Yoder.
2/01
Introduction, and background information and
notes. Includes introduction to
"Transcription
of Tapes," by Nathan Yoder, May 2008, 2 pages. And
includes notes from Bechler on "Conversation
with Brother Lark, April 14, 1976.'
2/1
Tape # 1, April 11, 1976 (Sunday). “Conversations
with Bro. Lark." Brother Lark
discusses the role of Mennonite Mission Board, the lack of program
vision and
leadership in the Mennonite Church, his personal opinions of important
Christian
literature, education and training at Hesston
College
and in Wichita,
the importance of establishing
smaller committees based on specific activities
Includes Transcription, Side 1, 12 pages,
Side 2, 11 pages. Hardcopy.
Computer copy created by Dagan Bontrager,
2006.
2/2
Tape # 2. Between
April
11-16, 1976. “Details about his family, early background
to the 7th
grade in Washington
D.C.”
Brother Lark discusses Rowena's death and
his resulting belief shift,
traces his ancestry from Scotland
to Georgia to his
birth,
discusses his grandparents and family, early life in Georgia,
running away to Savannah and then Jacksonville, traveling from New
York
to Washington
and attending school
Transcribed by Andre Shenk, 2007, and
completed by Nathan Yoder, 2008. 13
pages.
2/3
Tape # 3. April
13 and
14, 1976. “Family life, etc.” Brother
Lark
discusses the congregation in St. Louis,
his
passion of gardening, attending Cheney Institute in Pennsylvania
as a teenager and social life there, moving back to New York
temporarily. Transcribed by Nathan Yoder, 2008. 9 pages.
2/4
Tape # 4. April
14,
1976. [Tape was blank]
2/5
Tape # 5. April
14,
1976. “Conversation with Brother
Lark.” Brother Lark discusses the
importance of experience and having a "success story" in leadership
roles in the church, his opinion that opportunity and educational
programs that
the Mennonite church should offer to increase racial understanding, his
entering the Mennonite Church through befriending Linford Hackman
and Abram
Landis in Pennsylvania.
Transcribed by Nathan Yoder, 2008. 8 pages.
2/6
Tape # 6. April
14,
1976. “Brother
Lark coming into the Mennonite
Church.” Brother Lark discusses moving to Washington, issues with wearing a plain coat,
leaving the
American Legion, aiding in the foundation of Ambler
Mennonite Church,
being ordained in Chicago, the current
congregation in St. Louis.
Transcribed by Nathan Yoder, 2008. 10 pages.
2/7
Tape # 7. April
15,
1976. “Conversation
between Brother Lark, Brother Cash, and myself concerning
the church situation in St. Louis, then
on to
some happenings in Wichita and Chicago.”
Brother Lark and Brother Cash discuss the
current state of the Mennonite
Congregation in St. Louis and offer their own opinions of leadership
candidates, Lark criticizes the ministry and leadership of Lawrence
Horst,
Richard Yordy, and Ray Horst, he pushes the idea that black Mennonites
must
push for financial and spiritual power, Lark discusses business and the
church,
his experiences with raising rabbits and selling real estate, they
close with
devotionals
Transcribed by Nathan Yoder, 2008. 20 pages.
Box 3 (Gray)
3/1
Tape #8. January
17,
1978. Funeral service for James A. Lark,
Fresno,
California.
(Tape #A)
3/2
Tape # 9. January 17, 1978.
Funeral service for James A. Lark, Fresno, California.
(Tape #B)
3/3
Tape # 10. ____________
(Date?). Memorial service for James. A.
Lark.
3/4
Tape # 11. ____________
(Date?).
Box 4 (Gray)
Negro Workers and Urban Evangelism, 1951-62
4/1
Negro Worker's Meeting and Plans, 1951-59
4/2
Urban Evangelism Committee, Notes and
Minutes, 1953-54
4/3
Negro Evangelism Minutes and Correspondence,
1951-55
4/4
Home Missions, Evangelism Committee, 1958-64
4/5
Miscellaneous Information, 1955-57
Correspondence and collected materials on
James Lark,
1949-2002
4/6
Correspondence with James Lark, 1949-76
4/7
Lark Writing Project, 1978-92
4/8
Pictures - identified, 1947-1970s. For example, Larks, Summer
Bible School,
Bethel,
summer
1947. [Photographs placed
4/9
Lark Information - Historical.
Includes materials dating from 1942-78.
For example "Rocky Ridge Mission" writeup by
Ernest Moyer, Souderton,
Pennsylvania,
ca. 1942.
4/10 Lark
materials. Research
and writing by Bechler, 1980s. Includes
collected documents, 1950-2002.
4/11 Allensworth,
California, information on Colonel Allen
Allensworth, 1976, 1980, 1991, including Arthur Cash, James Lark, and
Alexander
Lark at dedication of Colonel Allensworth State Historic park.
Additional Records - Black Council, 1979-81
4/12 Black
Council Correspondence, Minutes, etc., 1979-1981
Name and Subject Tracings
Berean Mennonite
Church, Youngstown, OH
Bethel Mennonite
Church, Norristown, PA
(Hubert Brown paper)
Brown,
Al
Brown,
Hubert
Calvary Mennonite
Church, Los Angeles, CA
Calvary Mennonite
Church, Newport News, VA
Community Mennonite
Church, South Bend, IN
Diamond Street
Mennonite Church,
Philadelphia,
PA
Grace
Chapel, Saginaw, MI
Kauffman, Cal
Lark,
James (Hubert Brown paper, passim)
Lee Heights
Mennonite Church,
Cleveland,
Ohio
Miller,
Freeman
Ninth Street
Mennonite Church,
Saginaw,
MI
Negro
Evangelism Committee
Race
Issue
Rehoboth Mennonite
Church, St. Anne, IL
Rockview Mennonite
Church, Youngstown, Ohio
Urban
Evangelism Committee
June
3, 2008 / Updated inventory posted on web
May
21, 2008 / Tape transcriptions completed, 2007-08, and copies added to
collection
December
11, 2007 / Box
4
added to collection
September
20, 2007 / Files numbered by Nelda Nussbaum
December
20, 2006 / Boxes 2-3
added to collection by Dennis Stoesz
March
30, 2004 / Updated by Helen Hostetler
File:
"HM1-723 Le Roy Bechler.doc:"
Mennonite Church
USA Archives-Goshen, 1700 S. Main St., Goshen, Indiana 46526
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