Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Cuthbertson And Bruce Families Collection, Circa 1885, Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

Finding Aids

This collection consists of photographs, tintypes and a bible relating to the Cuthbertson and Bruce families.

Alexander Cuthbertson was born on April 29^th, 1849 in Sparta, Illinois to Alexander Cuthbertson (1813 - 1860) and Janet Kirkwood (1814 - 1908). Cuthbertson married Margaret Young Gemmell, together they had 7 children. Those seven children, were Arthur, Robert, Fred, Raleigh, Nellie, David & George. Cuthbertson passed away on December 6^th, 1927 in Girard, Kansas.

Emily H. Bruce was born on February 12^th, 1865 in Ohio to James W. and Sarah A. Bruce. She had a brother named …

New Hope Baptist Church Collection, 1945-1963, Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

Finding Aids

A collection of minutes, ledgers, and balances for the New Hope Baptist Church of Pittsburg, Kansas.

The New Hope Baptist Church of Pittsburg, Kansas was started by Reverend M. Pickins in 1896. Services were first held in his home, but in 1909 a frame building was purchased where Pittsburg Middle School (originally the high school) now stands. When the city of Pittsburg decided to build a new high school at the site in the early 1920s, the congregation moved the building to 11^th Street. One of the ledgers in the collection belonged to Benjamin White, an African American contractor …

Timmons, Bess Spiva, Collection, 1966-2001, Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

Finding Aids

This collection includes accolades, meeting minutes, photographs and other miscellaneous materials.

Bess Cole Spiva was born in 1901, in Galena, Kansas to George Newton Spiva and Bessie Tamblyn Spiva. Her family soon moved to Joplin, Missouri where they stayed. She graduated from Monticello College in Illinois in 1921. In 1923, she married Leroy K. Timmons (1899-1954) and they moved to Pittsburg in 1928. In 1951 she started the Spiva Emergency Loan Fund which became the Spiva Scholarship. In 1966 The Timmons Chapel of All Faiths was built and donated to Pittsburg State University by Mrs. Timmons. In 1985, she started …

Arcadia Christian Church Collection, 1894-1994, Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

Finding Aids

This collection consists of history papers, photographs, handouts newspapers, a letter, and a plat map all in relation to the Arcadia Christian Church, Arcadia, Kansas.

The original Arcadia Christian Church was built in 1893, although the congregation surrounding the church was started in the 1880s as a Sunday School class. In 1892, the State of Kansas granted the congregation a charter which resulted in the building’s construction. The church cost $1,600 and had an organ, a church bell (installed in 1897), and a seating capacity for 300 people. The Sunday School held at the church brought about the most participants. …

Presbyterian Church Of Pittsburg Collection, 1879-2003, Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

Finding Aids

A collection of minutes, registries, historical notes, and photographs of the First Presbyterian and the United Presbyterian Churches of Pittsburg, Kansas.

In the early days of Pittsburg, Kansas, there were two Presbyterian Churches. While both were technically First United Presbyterian Churches, one was locally called the First Church and the other was called the United Presbyterian (UP) Church. The two churches, despite being the same denomination, were different in organization, style, and heritage. The First United Presbyterian Church was started on March 12, 1879. The first full-time minister was Reverend Francis Symmes who served from 1883 to 1885. The church …