Roger E. Sappington Research Collection | Earl H. and Anita F. Hess Archives and Special Collections

By Tanner Simon '20

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Collection Overview

Title: Roger E. Sappington Research Collection

ID: MSS/MSS-0006

Extent: 24.88 Linear Feet

Collection Historical Note

Roger Sappington (1929-1989) was born on March 6, 1929 to Ross and Beulah Sappington in Avon Park, Florida. He attended Manchester College and Bethany Theological Seminary before attaining his Ph.D from Duke University in 1959. In 1949, Sappington married LaVerle Hochstetler, with whom he had four children. In 1951, Sappington was ordained as a minister for the Church of the Brethren, serving a congregation in Lima, Ohio. In 1958, he took a position at Bridgewater College in Virginia as a professor of history, where he would teach for 31 years until his death in 1989. In addition to being a professor, Sappington was also the debate coach at the College. He was a member of the National Historical Committee of the Church of the Brethren, serving as chairman between 1958-1963 and 1970-1973. A dedicated Brethren historian, Sappington authored a number of books, including Brethren Social Policy (1960), Courageous Prophet (1964), The Brethren Along the Snake River (1966), The Brethren in the Carolinas (1971), The Brethren in Virginia (1973), The Brethren in the New Nation (1976), The Brethren in Industrial America (1985) and The Brethren in Tennessee and Alabama (1988). Sappington passed away in 1989 at the age of 60.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Brethren Service Committee, 1938-1952],
[Series 2: Brethren Social Policy, 1959-1961],
[Series 3: Research Material, 1800-1985],
[Series 4: Brethren in Virginia, 1889-1989],
[Series 5: Meeting Minutes and Committees, 1957-1980],
[Series 6: The History of the Bridgewater Virginia Church of the Brethren, 1813-1978],
[Series 7: Sappington's Sermons, 1935-1958],
[Series 8: Brethren Committee Meeting Notes, 1912-1985],
[Series 9: Professorial Papers, 1962-1987],
[Series 10: Assorted Biographical Research and Resources, 1833-1988],
[Series 11: General brethren Research, 1865-1970],
[Series 12: Brethren in Industrial America & The Brethren in the New Nation, 1893-1970],
[Series 13: The Brethren in the Carolinas: the history of the Church of the Brethren in the district of North and South Carolina, 1869-1986],
[Series 14: General Notes on Conscientious Objection and Peace, 1926-1988],
[Series 15: Correspondence, 1955-1988],
[Series 16: Sappington's Graduate Work, 1950-1992],
[Series 17: The Courageous Prophet: chapters from the life of John Kline; The Brethren Along the Snake River; Reuel B. Prichett: Tennessee churchman and antiquarian, 1964-1972],
[Series 18: Sappington's Classes, 1937-1991],
[Series 19: Sappington's Undergraduate Class Papers, 1946-1959],
[Series 20: Index Cards],
[All]

Series 13: The Brethren in the Carolinas: the history of the Church of the Brethren in the district of North and South Carolina, 1869-1986

Box 13

Folder 1: Carolina Book Correspondence
Folder 2: North Carolina Sources I
Folder 3: Brethren in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Montana
Folder 4: Brethren Sources
Folder 5: NC Maps
Folder 6: Miscellaneous Research Material
Folder 7: Brethren as an Ethnic Group
Folder 8: Bridgewater College Honors Project
Folder 9: P.R. Wrightsman
Folder 10: John Bonsack Letters
Folder 11: Carolina Brethren History #18 & #20
Folder 12: Research Materials for Brethren in TN
Folder 13: Misc. Articles
Folder 14: Carolina Brethren History Draft
Folder 15: Tennessee Brethren Draft
Folder 16: Carolina Brethren Draft
Folder 17: The Dunkers in North Carolina During the Revolution
Folder 18: Brethren in Tennessee Part I
Folder 19: Brethren in Tennessee Part II
Folder 20: Correspondence and Resources Regarding Sappington's Scholarship