PUBLIC "-//Virginia Union University::L. Douglas Wilder Library::Archives and Special Collections Department//TEXT (US::ViRVU::virvu00005::John Malcus Ellison Papers)//EN" "virvu00005.xml" A Guide to the John Malcus Ellison Papers 1941-1979 Ellison, John Malcus, Papers MS-0001 Beverly Abdus-Sabur and Cathy Lynn Mundale Web version of the finding aid funded in par t by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Archives and Special Collections Department, L. Douglas Wilder Library, Virginia Union University © 2002 By Virginia Union University. All rights reserved.

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 Machine-readable finding aid derived from MS Word 2000, created by Scott Kay, 1941-1979 Description is in English Feb 17, 2004 PUBLIC "-//Virginia Union University::L. Douglas Wilder Library::Archives and Special Collections Department//TEXT (US::ViRVU::virvu00005::John Malcus Ellison Papers)//EN" "virvu00005.xml" converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02.xsl (sy2003-10-15). Feb 25, 2004 converted to conform to eadVIVA.dtd by vivastrict.xsl 2013-11-21 Converted to schema conforming EAD by dtd2schema.vh.xsl. A Guide to the John Malcus Ellison Papers 1941-1979 A Collection in the Archives and Special Collections Department of the L. Douglas Wilder Library MS-0001

Archives and Special Collections Department, L. Douglas Wilder Library, Virginia Union University 2002 Beverly Abdus-Sabur and Cathy Lynn Mundale Web version of the finding aid funded in par t by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Archives and Special Collections Department, L. Douglas Wilder Library, Virginia Union University Descriptive Summary Archives and Special Collections Department, L. Douglas Wilder Library, Virginia Union University John Malcus Ellison Papers 1941-1979 MS-0001 12 linear feet English John Malcus Ellison Papers Administrative Information Access

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 Preferred Citation

John Malcus Ellison Papers, MS-0001 , Archives and Special Collections Department, L. Douglas Wilder Library, Virginia Union University

 Acquisition Information

Received from Elizabeth Balfour Ellison, 06 August 1993

 Processing Information

Collection processed in December 1998.

 Biographical/Historical Information

Born 02 February 1889 in Northumberland County, Virginia, John Malcus Ellison was one of twin sons. His early life was very humble allowing for very little intellectual stimulation beyond learning to read in the racially segregated schools of his rural community. As he explained in a short autobiographical sketch he wrote to James H. Croushore of Fredricksburg, Virginia in the late 1950's, At the age of 14 I was hired out for 7.00 dollars per month as a farm hand. My varied experiences caused me much unrest and anxiety as I longed for a fuller and more meaningful life Opportunities for education were very meager in my home community, and so at the age of 17 I went to Normal Industrial Institute now Virginia State College at Petersburg, Va. After two and one half years of study I transferred to Virginia Union University in 1909 and completed my High School and College work. At that time, Wayland Academy was the division of Union that provided secondary education to students. In 1917, Ellison earned his A.B. in Education at Virginia Union. He returned to his home in the Northern Neck of Virginia as pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church and principal of the Northern Neck Industrial Academy. He later founded and headed the Northumberland County High School.

In 1927 Ellison earned a Master of Arts in Religious Education and Philosophy of Religion from Oberlin College and subsequently taught at what is now Virginia State University in sociology and ethics. There he was appointed the first college minister . He did graduate work at Columbia University from 1930 to 1931 and at Union Theological Seminary in New York City from 1931 to 1932. By 1933, Ellison had earned his Ph.D. in Christian Education and Sociology from Drew University, been pastor of the Zion Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., taught Religious Education at Howard University's School of Religion, and authored several publications on rural, Negro life in Virginia. It was in that same year that he married Elizabeth Balfour, a music educator and performer from Brooklyn, New York.

Dr. Ellison assumed the presidency of Virginia Union at a very difficult time in history. The country had just entered World War II and the era of Jim Crow was at its peak in the South. Being the first African American to assume the leadership of Virginia Union, he lived with the burden of proving himself capable and worthy of the title President. It is generally believed that he succeeded at the task. In spite of the manpower drain on both the student body and the male faculty, Union survived the worst of times through 1946 when the GIs returned to school and prosperity and stability came back to the university. Ellison took an active part in the support of US troops, especially Virginia Union students in the service, and in the civilian efforts that maintained the community at home. It was also during his administration that the Belgian Friendship Building project was undertaken and successfully accomplished.

After the 1939 World's Fair in New York City, the Belgian government could not dismantle and return their elaborate exhibit and its housing to Nazi-occupied Belgium. Several options were explored to dispose of the splendid structure originally designed to be a stand-alone college in Belgium. Benefactors of Negro education, however, won the bid. The Belgian Friendship Building with its ornate friezes depicting black life in the Belgian Congo would be relocated to the campus of Virginia Union University. Negotiations for the transfer of title and property were begun in the previous administration of William J. Clark; fund raising, re-design and physical relocation were left to Ellison's stewardship. By 1949 the campus had been renovated, the Belgian building moved and fitted for the library, science laboratories and the gymnasium and a debt of nearly one-half million dollars had been retired under Ellison's leadership. This project was a major concern during the first half of his career and his papers reflect its importance.

Other improvements on the campus followed the Belgian Building project including re-organization of the university's administrative structure, significant increase in the endowment, and additions to the physical plant (e.g., Hovey Stadium, new dormitories and other facilities).

Concurrent with his academic and administrative career, Ellison kept an active ministerial career, preaching and teaching throughout Virginia on a regular basis and appearing as guest pastor a various churches, Sunday Schools and conferences all over the country. Summers were often spent teaching aspiring ministers in special programs that he helped design. He edited religious journals and newsletters as well as publications for the Scottish Rite and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Ellison was a prolific author as well; he published several books, tracts and brochures most of which were copies of his favorite and most popular sermons.

As a prominent African American educator, Ellison was active in many organizations advancing the cause of both civil rights and higher education for his race. His involvement with national organizations such as the National Youth Administration, Southern Education Foundation, Negro Organization Society, National Conference of Church-Related Colleges, the NAACP and many others was typical of African American leaders of that time as they cooperated to support the existence and survival of their schools and institutions.

After his term as president, Ellison continued on at Virginia Union as chancellor and professor until his death on 13 October 1979. He is buried at Riverview Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia.

 Scope and Content Information

This collection contains the administrative and personal records of John Malcus Ellison as president of Virginia Union University (1941-1955), chancellor (1955-79), minister, teacher, author and editor. The bulk of the collection is from the early years of his presidency, 1941-1945, with very few materials from the later years or during his tenure as chancellor. Although most of the collection is correspondence conducted in his official capacity as president, because these materials were received from his family, the Ellison Papers are organized as a manuscript collection.

The correspondence files give an intriguing picture of Ellison in his role as president of a small, African American university in a segregated southern city. The many letters from parents, guardians and prospective students reflect his function as father and disciplinarian to the campus. The letters to and from prominent Richmond figures and leaders of the area schools, both black and white, reveal the part he played in community relations. Of special interest is the correspondence with other African American educational leaders, such as Benjamin Mays, which shows the support these educators lent one another in their struggles for their institutions to not only survive, but succeed.

The subject files disclose what organizations Ellison participated in as president. Like many of his contemporaries, he was active in national organizations as they provided a support network for African American higher education. These files also reveal what was happening on campus during the early years of his administration, including the Belgian Building files which offer a fascinating unfolding of the construction of the building.

The personal files are related mainly to his role as preacher and teacher. As with the other series, the lines are often blurred in these files between Ellison's many roles. His speeches and sermons are an interesting compliment to his writings, and often there is overlap between the two as he published collections of sermons. Included in the writings are his extensive notes in preparation for a definitive history of Virginia Union, for which many of the photographs in these materials were collected. The programs show not only which events and activities Ellison participated in, both on campus and off, but those which he attended or supported.

Due to severe mold damage and insect infestation, many records have been preservation photocopied.

 Arrangement

Collection is arranged by series and chronological therein.

 Contents List Series 1. Correspondence 1941-1978 2500 items

The correspondence spans Ellison's Virginia Union career from 1941 almost until his death in 1979. It is primarily routine correspondence between Ellison and financial contributors, student and job applicants, foundation officers, organizational representatives, alumni and parents. Much of Ellison's correspondence was directed to donors, large and small, especially while fundraising for the Belgian Building.

Personnel issues, as well as student discipline, are included throughout all of the correspondence. The advent of exchange student enrollment from Africa and the Caribbean is reflected as well. Dr. and Mrs. Ellison were described as having this mission: bringing foreign students to Virginia Union for their post-secondary education. There are social notes as well as letters of introduction, reference and inquiry from and about several such students.

Several letters of interest from prospective teachers provide profiles of aspiring African American professionals during the Jim Crow era. Missives from parents and guardians about their young people away at school for the first time reflect the more comprehensive, paternal role of the African American college administrator of the time. Threads of dialogue between Ellison and concerned fathers can be traced in the correspondence concerning the progress of Simeon Booker, Jr., Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., and William H. Gray, Jr. as examples.

Newly appointed presidents and principals of black institutions were his contemporaries; as a network of leaders, they corresponded frequently both professionally and personally about issues facing African Americans at that time. The success or failure of the schools originally founded to educate and uplift the emancipated slaves depended upon their leadership and tenacity. Both male and female administrators were active in this support network as evidenced by correspondence from Nannie Burroughs, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Charlotte Hawkins Brown along with Benjamin Mays, Mordecai Johnson, F. D. Bluford, and Miles W. Connor, all prominent leaders of black educational institutions. Other notable personages among the correspondents are Rev. Vernon Johns, Carter G. Woodson, and Judge William H. Hastie.

chronological

 January-June 1941 1.1 July 1941 1.2 August 1941 1.3 September 1941 1.4 October 1941 1.5 November 1941 1.6 December 1941 1.7 January 1942 1.8 February 1942 1.9 March 1942 1.10 April 1942 1.11 May 1942 1.12 June 1942 1.13 July 1942 1.14 August 1942 1.15 September 1942 1.16 October 1942 1.17 November 1942 1.18 December 1942 1.19 January 1943 1.20 February 1943 1.21 March 1943 1.22 April 1943 1.23 May 1943 1.24 June 1943 2.25 July 1943 2.26 August 1943 2.27 September 1943 2.28 October 1943 2.29 November 1943 2.30 December 1943 2.31 January 1944 2.32 February 1944 2.33 March 1944 2.34 April 1944 2.35 May 1944 2.36 June 1944 2.37 July 1944 2.38 August 1944 2.39 September 1944 2.40 October 1944 2.41 November 1944 2.42 December 1944 2.43 January 1945 2.44 February-March 1945 2.45 April-May 1945 2.46 June-July 1945 2.47 August-December 1945 2.48 Correspondence 1946 3.49 Correspondence 1947 3.50 Correspondence 1948-1949 3.51 Correspondence 1950-1951 3.52 January-August 1952 3.53 September-October 1952 3.54 November-December 1952 3.55 January-February 1953 3.56 March-April 1953 3.57 May 1953 3.58 June 1953 3.59 July 1953 3.60 August-September 1953 3.61 Correspondence 1954-1955 3.62 Correspondence 1956-1959 3.63 Correspondence 1961-1978 3.64 Series 2. Special Correspondence 1941-1947 500 items

Ellison kept separate files for certain individuals who were primarily fundraisers first pressed into service for the Belgian Building project. Some worked among African American friends and churches and others were institutional representatives who handled larger sums of money. In the case of Marie Hancock (Mrs. Gordon), she was apparently an employed fund developer for the university, while Miles Connor and C. L. Franklin were active alumni chapter presidents. Because of the distinction of being the first African American president of Virginia Union, Ellison received many pieces of congratulatory correspondence ranging from commercial greeting cards to letters and telegrams. The latter were preservation photocopied.

chronological

 Congratulatory Letters 3.65 Connor, Miles W. 3.66 Foster, Luther H. 3.67 Franklin, C. L. 3.68 Hancock, Marie 3.69 Norris, Morgan E. 3.70 Porter, Henry A. 3.71 Powell, Adam Clayton, Sr. 3.72 Series 3. Subject Files 1939-1970 2000 items

Ellison's role as college administrator meant that he was involved in every facet of campus business, as well as with many civic, state and national organizations. These subject files demonstrate the multiple hats Ellison wore as president of Virginia Union. Materials such as those in the administrative, Athletics Department and Library files reveal that he was active in the day-to-day business of the campus departments. It was this same intimate involvement that made him so active in personnel and student affairs as exemplified in the application and recommendation letters. (Job applicants often included photographs with their resumes. These snapshots have been removed and housed in PMS-001.)

A definite portrait of the times in which Ellison was working can also be found in the subject files. In files regarding wartime matters, there is material about life during World War II and the Negro's role and expectations during and after it. The many organizations dealing with race relations belie the tense days as institutionalized segregation was coming to an end. The files for educational organizations show the support available at that time to the president of a small African American university.

alphabetical then chronological

 Administrative 1940-1944 4.73 Administrative 1945-1949 4.74 Administrative 1950-1979 4.75 Africa Committee 4.76 Alumni Association (VUU) 4.77 American Council on Education 4.78 American Teachers Association 4.79 Application Letters 1941-1943 4.80 Application Letters 1944-1945 4.81 Photographs (removed to PMS-0001) 4.82 Association of American Colleges 4.83 Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools for Negroes 4.84 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association 4.85 Correspondence 1939-1941 4.86 Correspondence 1942 4.87 Correspondence 1943-1947 4.88 Financial Records 4.89 National Collegiate Athletic Association 4.90 Programs 4.91 Public Relations 4.92 Baptist Board of Education 4.93 Barco, John W. 4.94 Belgian Building 4.95 Hening, S.E. 4.96 Publications 4.97 Van Kuyck, Hugo 4.98 Budget 4.99 Commencement 1941-1942 4.100 Commission on Interracial Cooperation, Inc. 4.101 Faculty Committee Reports 5.102 Faculty Meeting Minutes 5.103 Fetter, Newton C. 5.104 Founder's Day Letters 5.105 Hampton Institute 5.106 Haynes, George E. 5.107 Administrative 5.108 Calendars and Schedules 5.109 Correspondence 5.110 Howard University, Washington, D.C. 5.111 Julius Rosenwald Fund 5.112 Lee, J. Oscar 5.113 Annual Reports and Miscellaneous 5.114 Correspondence 1941-1942 5.115 Correspondence 1943-1950 5.116 Miscellaneous 5.117 National Association of Collegiate Deans and Registrars in Negro Schools 5.118 National Conference of Church-Related Colleges 5.119 National Education Association 5.120 National Student Health Association 1.21 National Urban League 5.122 National Youth Administration 5.123 Negro Organization Society 5.124 Public Relations 5.125 Rationing Board 5.126 Recommendations 1941-1942 5.127 Recommendations 1943-1945 5.128 Richmond Community Council 5.129 Scholarships 5.130 Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools 5.131 Southern Conference on Race Relations 5.132 Southern Education Foundation 1941-1947 5.133 Southern Education Foundation 1948-1961 5.133 State Board of Education 5.135 Student Government Association 5.136 U.S. Office of Education 5.137 Veterans Administration 5.138 Virginia Conference on Race Relations 5.139 Virginia Council of Churches, Department of Interracial Cooperation 5.140 Virginia State Teachers Association 5.141 World War II Materials 5.142 YMCA 5.143 Series 4. Personal Files 1941-1978 About 1200 items

Ellison led active life off campus as well. He kept an active preaching schedule both locally and across the country. (Frequently, when visiting a distant city on Union business, Reverend and Mrs. Ellison would appear as guest preacher and soloist to help offset the expenses of travel.) He was president of the Richmond Ministers Association and the National Program for the Training of Negro Ministers. He was also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha and the Masons (United Supreme Council).

His speeches and sermons grouped here are typed, often untitled essays which seem to be written as orations. There may be some overlap with his writings, especially since most of his publications were originally conceived and presented as sermons.

Ellison was editor of the Baptist Herald (Richmond, Va) and the Scottish Rite Informer (Southern Jurisdiction), and many of his articles and editorials are in the collection. Articles submitted to the periodicals under his supervision are also included, but not always identified with their authors.

alphabetical then chronological

 Baptist Herald 6.144 Baptist Training Union Lessons 6.145 Biographies (VUU) 6.146 Clippings 6.147 Connor, Miles W. (Clippings) 6.148 Correspondence and Miscellaneous 6.149 Inaugural Addresses and Eulogies 6.150 Ministerial Materials 6.151 Practice Preaching 6.152 Richmond Ministers Association 6.153 Scottish Rite 6.154 Social Christianity (Seminary Notes at Alderson-Broadus) 6.155 Speeches and Sermons 6.156 Speeches and Sermons 6.157 Speeches and Sermons 6.158 Teaching Materials 6..159 Syllabi and Course Outlines 6.160 Syllabus- Literature in the Ministry of Preaching 6.161 Series 5. Writings 1945-1978 About 2000 items

Ellison wrote several books and religious pamphlets based on his sermons. He also in the years after his presidency, was working on a history of Virginia Union. His drafts and research notes are included here. Most of his books, including his reports written as a sociologist, are available in the library's rare books collection

alphabetical

 Subseries 5.1. General Writings 1000 items

The smaller books and tracts are filed here, some with the original manuscript. The miscellaneous files are partial writings or those that were not published. The correspondence is between Ellison and his publishers regarding his writings.

alphabetical

 Correspondence 6.162 The Abiding Influence of a Faithful Minister 6.163 Achieving Character Through Christian Education 6.164 The Christian Minister and His Preparation 6.165 The Church Associations-Their Program and Task 6.166 The Church of Our Times and Her Inescapable Challenges 6.167 The Church's Program in Times of War 6.168 Finding Life's Adequate Mastery 6.169 His Disciple Came Unto Him 6.170 How God Made His Prophets 6.171 Let This Mind Be In You 6.172 Life's Adventures 6.173 The Minister: His Educational Leadership and Message 6.174 The More Excellent Way 6.175 The Personal Quality in Preaching and the Preacher's Message from the Psalms 6.176 Prayers and Meditation Expressions 6.177 The Preacher: His Preparation and Message 6.178 Preparing to Preach in the Space Age and The Master's Method: The Preacher's Supreme Example 6.180 Tension and Destiny 6.181 They Who Preach 6.182 A Trilogy on Adventurous Living 6.183 The Voice of Music in Human Experience and the Great Organ 6.184 Miscellaneous 7.185 Miscellaneous 7.186 Subseries 5.2. History of Virginia Union University 1000 items

One of Ellison's retirement goals was to write a definitive history of Virginia Union University and he amassed a wealth of research information in preparation. He began by subdividing his work into decades of history and collecting clippings, photographs, programs, personal histories that he recorded and books written at the turn of the century about African American progress after slavery. Several articles were among his book notes as well as hand-written notes. There is a separate folder of distinguished alumni news. The chapters he used as file labels do not signify actual chapters, but notes and research material related to proposed chapters. Included in chapter one is a typed manuscript of what appears to be chapters one and two.

chronological

 Chapter One 7.187 Chapter Two-VUU Comes Into Existence 7.188 Chapter Three-The Period of Transition and Expansion 7.189 Chapter Five-School of Religion News 7.190 Chapter Seven-Institutional Budget 7.191 Chapter Eight-Decade of the 1940's 7.192 Chapter Nine-The Decade 1950-1960 7.193 Chapter 10-The Decade 1960-1970 7.194 Chapter 12-Biographical Sketches 7.195 Chapter 12-Photographs Removed to PMS-001 7.196 Chapter 13-Dr. A. B. James 7.197 Chapters 16-19 Inauguration 7.198 Chapter 20 Appendix 7.199 Drafts and Outlines 7.200 Notes 7.201 Research Materials 7.202 Series 6. Pictures 1912-1973 About 20 items

In preparation for his history of Virginia Union, Ellison collected and duplicated old photos of the Virginia Union and Hartshorn Memorial College faculty and students. The images range from an early Union Football team to faculty events of the 1960's. All but two of the photographs are black and white, and not all of the subjects are identified.

 Photograph of Southern Education Foundation members and directors at the Annual Meeting in New York April 11, 1963 PMS-001/1 Color photograph portrait of Ellison 1970 PMS-001/2 VUU 1912-1920's PMS-001/3 VUU 1917-1973 PMS-001/4 Series 7. Programs 1936-1979 About 200 items

With the active personal and professional life that Ellison led, he participated in and attended many programs during his lifetime. He was frequently a guest speaker at local churches in the Richmond area and especially Northumberland County's Shiloh Baptist Church. The vas array of programs are sorted in chronological order by whether Ellison appeared on the program or not.

chronological

 With Ellison 7.203 Without Ellison 7.204 Series 8. Awards and Certificates 1950-1979 About 25 items

There were many awards and recognition memorabilia presented to Ellison, especially as his career wound to a close. The plaques were given by a wide range of admirers, from Union-affiliated groups to churches to national organizations. Ellison received honorary degrees from Virginia Union University (06 June 1950), Morehouse College (07 June 1955) and Virginia State College (30 May 1960).

chronological

 Certificates 1950-1979 7.205 Honorary Degrees 7.206 Plaques 1955 7.207 Plaques 1977-1979 7.208 Southern Education Foundation plaque 1970 8.209 Afro-American Award plaque 1953 8.210 St. Stephens Baptist Church plaque 8.211 Miles W. Connor Chapter (Vuu Alumni Assn.) May 5, 1979 8.212 Trophy Oversize certificates and plaques removed to OMS-001 8.213 oversized (4 certificates and 2 plaques)