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Hist. Mss. 1-429
L.
A. (Levi
A.) Blough, 1855-1936
Minister in Johnstown
District of Allegheny Mennonite
Conference, 1890-1936
Papers,
1890-1936
1 Box (Green)
Scope and Content
These
papers reflect the pastoral ministry of L. A. Blough in the Johnstown
District
of the Southwest Mennonite Conference, 1890-1936. The conference has
been known
as the Allegheny Mennonite Conference since 1954. This district
included the
Blough, Thomas, Stahl and Weaver congregations found in the Somerset
and Cambria Counties,
Pennsylvania. Later they came to include the Kaufman and
Pleasant
Grove churches as well.
The
papers consist of membership records, 1890-1904; records of marriages
and
funerals, 1890-1934; sermon outlines; and additional items such as the
1936
photograph of a Wingard reunion. Blough
was ordained to the ministry by J. N. Durr on December 7, 1890, at
Stahl church
(Page 222 of History*). Jonas Blauch
(1830-1906) was bishop over this district during this area, 1862-1906.
Biographical Sketch
Blough-Levi A. Blough was born June 17, 1855; died
Jan. 9,
1936; aged 80 y. 6 m. 22 d. He was married to Lavina Thomas Dec. 31,
1876. She
died Dec. 14, 1879. To this union was born one son who died in infancy.
On Jan.
2, 1881, he was united in marriage to Annie Wingard, who died Feb. 14,
1925.
Surviving are the following children: Polly, wife of Ed Thomas; Sue,
wife of S.
K. Eash; Katie, wife of Homer Baer; Margaret, wife of Lawrence Speigle;
Elsie,
wife of John Showalter;
Edith, wife
of Clarence Collins. Wesley, Sally, Bertha, and Annie Ruth preceded him
to the
grave. He is also survived by one brother (Jacob A. Blough).
He
united with the Mennonite
Church
about sixty years
ago. In 1890 he was ordained to the ministry, in which he served
faithfully
until his death. He was a loyal defender of the faith, ruled his people
through
love, and held the esteem and good will of all people as far as he was
known.
His voice will be missed in his home congregation and in the
Southwestern Pa.
Conference where he served so faithfully and well. The whole Church was
the
field of his interest and prayers.
Funeral
services were held Jan. 11 at the home of Homer Baer and at Blough Mennonite Church,
in charge of A.
J. Metzler, assisted by J. A. Ressler, James Saylor, S. G. Shetler, and
Harry
C. Blough. Text, Jno. 4 :37, 38. Buried in cemetery near by.
Source:
Obituary
found in the Gospel Herald,
February 6, 1936 - Vol. XXVIII, No.45 -
page 958, 959. Web site:
http://www.mcusa-archives.org/MennObits/36/feb36.html.
Sources
for history of area include *History [Minutes 1876-1923] of
the Southwestern Pennsylvania
Conference (1923); "Southwestern Pennsylvania Mennonite
Conference," Mennonite Encyclopedia
(1959); and Two Centuries of Struggle and
Growth, 1763-1963, by Sanford
G. Shetler (1963).
Administrative Information
The
papers had been passed down to a daughter of Levi A. Blough, Mrs. John
(Elsie)
Showalter, and then deposited into the archives by a granddaughter,
Mrs. Royal
Bauer, Goshen, Indiana, via Curator Nelson Springer, Mennonite
Historical
Library, Goshen College, in 1972 (Accession #2208).
The membership records of Johnstown
area churches were deposited
by Ron Collins, Goshen,
Indiana,
in 1983 (Accession #4005).
Note:
there are also three letters of Levi Blough in the J. N. Durr
Collection (Hist.
Mss. 1-203, Box
6,
File entitled "Correspondence, A-Z") found at the Archives.
Inventory Listing
Box 1 (Green)
1/1
Membership Records, 1890-1904, of
Johnstown District area
churches - Blough, Thomas, Stahl and Weaver church districts /
congregations
found in the Somerset and Cambria Counties, Pennsylvania. (51 pages)
1/2
Record book of Funerals attended,
1891-1934 (62 pages), and
Marriages performed, 1893-1932 (6 pages) (Total: 68 pages)
1/3
Record of Sermons preached, 1932-35. Found in a small Memorandum Book.
Also includes three pages of purchases
(Gospel Herald, 1932), etc. (13 pages)
1/4
Sermon Outlines, circa 1890-1935. Blough would often give the sermon text and a
brief subject description at the top of each sermon outline. For example, "Judges 14:8-9: Hands full
of Honey." Most outlines are 4
pages in length (5" x 8" sheets).
Approximately 70-100 sermons. (282
pages)
1/5
Programs, circa 1920s-30s; and Letter
(1933) (Total: 5 pages)
Programs of Ministerial Meetings of
Johnstown
District (Stahl Church, no date; Weaver Church, 1935); and of an
All-Day Sunday
School Conference, Stahl
Church
(1932);
Letter regarding Johnstown Bible
School
(1933).
1/6
Preaching Schedule, January - June
1935, indicating the rotation
of ministers preaching in the Johnstown District at the Blough (B),
Kaufman
(K), Pleasant Grove (PG), Stahl (S), Thomas (T) and Weaver (W) churches. Ministers included Samuel G. Shetler (SG),
Lloy Kniss (Lloy), Sanford G. Shelter (San), Aldus Wingard (AW, or EW),
W. C.
Hershberger (WC),
Levi A. Blough (LA),
Harry Blough (HB), James
Saylor (Jas), Hiram Wingard (HW), Irvin Holsopple (IH) and Joseph
Saylor
(Joe). [Based on research
and explanation by Nelson Springer,
March 1, 1972, as found in file] (4 pages)
1/7
Constitution, and Rules and Discipline
(1908) of the Mennonite
Conference of the Southwestern Pennsylvania District.
(10 pages)
1/8
Bible Doctrine Notebook (28 pages)
1/9
Church History Notebook (34 pages)
1/10
Statement of Doctrine; Tracts (I. L.
Derstine); Clippings, and D.
L. Moody pamphlet (1934). (Total: 32
pages)
"A Statement of Christian Doctrine"
(4 pages, no date, Mennonite Publishing House);
Two tracts from I. L. Derstine, Telford, Pa.
(The Auto King; and Prophecy of Isaiah 11, no date);
Clippings on "Bible Meeting Topic on
Social Gatherings" (newspaper clipping, no date); and "The Madness of
War" (newspaper clipping, 1929);
Pamphlet, These
Forty Years, 1894-1934 [D. L. Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Illinois]
(22 pages)
1/11 Photograph,
Wingard Reunion circa. 1936 (4 pages)
Name and Subject Tracings
(Archives Card
Catalog)
Blough, L. A. (Levi A.),
1855-1936
Johnstown Area Churches - Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania - Johnstown
Area Churches
May 6, 2008 / January 31, 2008 / Updated
organization and annotated
listing, including obituary and administrative information, by Dennis
Stoesz, and posted on web site
December 12, 2006 / Update by Helen Hostetler
July 31, 2003 / Inventory typed into the computer by
Nelda Nussbaum
November 16, 1983 / Collection processed and
organized by Bryan L. Kehr
File: “Hm1-429 L. A. Blough.doc”
Mennonite Church USA Archives-Goshen, 1700 S Main St., Goshen, Indiana 46526
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