Guide to the The Reverend Doctor Marion O. Ballard Papers
Prepared by Myong Shin Jeon, Student Assistant and Mark C. Shenise, Associate
Archivist
United Methodist Archives and History Center
General
Commission on Archives and History, Madison, New Jersey
(Published for the African American Methodist Heritage Center)
4/28/2008
Overview of Records
Biographical Note
Marion O. Ballard (1903-
2007), African-American Minister, was born on June 22, 1903 on Deals, Island, Maryland. Ballard
was one of eleven children sired by James and Harriett Cottman Ballard. At the age of twenty,
Ballard moved to Philadelphia where he met and later married Clara Adams in 1928. Gammon
Theological Seminary awarded him a Bachelor of Divinity degree in 1931. This was the same year he
entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Ballard continued his formal education by
completing a Bachelor of Theology degree from Central University in 1935. In recognition of his
work to the ministry, both Albright and Grambling Colleges in 1971 awarded him Doctor of Divinity
degrees.
Ballard's work in the church was legion. He served a total of forty-four years in
active ministries within the Delaware and Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference which ranged from
pastoring local churches, district superintendent, delegate to the 1956 Jurisdictional Conference
and a reserve delegate to the 1960 General Conference. A calendar of pastoral service is as
follows: Fairlee, Maryland (1931-1934), Millington, Maryland (1934-1938), Nassau, Delaware (1938-
1941), St. Paul's in North Berlin, Delaware (1941-1945), Mother Zoar in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(1945-1953), District Superintendent for the Dover, Delaware district (1953-1959), Camphor
Memorial in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1959-1965), Tindley Temple in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(1965-1976) where he officially retired and attended the Simpson Fletcher church in Philadelphia.
In 1980, at the age of seventy-seven, served as pastor to the Spring Garden church in Philadelphia
for one year. He also served as interim pastor at Union Memorial, Darby Pennsylvania, Siloam UMC,
Chester, Pennsylvania as well as Mt. Zion and Sayers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Ballard
spent his final years at the Simpson House in Philadelphia until his death on October 17, 2007 at
the age of one hundred and four. His funeral was held at the Tindley Temple United Methodist
Church on October 24, 2007 and was interned at Valley Forge Memorial Gardens in King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania. Ballard was survived by his son, Reverend Frank Tyson and a daughter, Hattie
Hamilton.
Scope Note
The collection mainly
consists of sermons that Ballard preached between 1928 and 1992. Many of the sermons were
delivered in the churches Ballard was serving at that time. The sermon topics are diverse and
range from spiritual matters on faith to social problems such as prejudice. There are three
folders that contain miscellaneous sermons with no clear topics from 1931 to 1996 and one folder
on biographical information which covers the years from 1903 to 2007. The photographic scrapbook
documents two elements of Ballard's life, namely church work and family life. There are images of
Ballard's Tindley Park ministry and meetings held by the Delaware Annual Conference from the
1940s to the 1960s. Youth work makes up a sizable number of these images. Family life images
include representation of the Ballard family starting in 1926 and ending at 1976 with photographs
of grandchildren and extended family members. There are a few images of friends and events as
well.
Arrangement
Materials have been arranged in the following manner.
The collection did not
lend itself to a standard series arrangement due to lack of volume. Folders are listed by both
type and title.
Preferred Citation
When citing material
from this collection please use the following format: Direct reference to the item or its file
folder, Marion O. Ballard Papers, African American Heritage Center, Madison, New Jersey. Do
not make use of the item's call number as that is not a stable descriptor.
Access Restrictions
There are no
restrictions regarding this collection.
Restrictions on Use
Detailed use
restrictions relating to our collections can be requested from the office of the archivist at the
General Commission on Archives and History. Photocopying is handled by the staff and may be
limited in certain instances. Before using any material for publication from this collection a
formal request for permission to publish is expected and required.
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Subject Terms
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Subject Names - Corporate
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United Methodist Church (U.S.). Delaware Conference |
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United Methodist Church (U.S.). Eastern Pennsylvania Conference |
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Methodist
Church (U.S.). Delaware Conference |
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Subject Topics
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Baptism |
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Faith |
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Family |
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Peace |
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Race |
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Religion. |
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Subject Geographic
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Delaware |
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Maryland |
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Pennsylvania |
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Genre
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Photograph albums |
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Sermons |
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Occupations
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District Superintendent |
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Minister |
Call Number
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Folder Title
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Date(s)
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2411-2-1:
1 |
Advent |
1966-1974 |
2411-2-1:
2 |
Achievement |
1943-1971 |
2411-2-1:
3 |
Adversities |
1948-1975 |
2411-2-1:
4 |
Age |
1943-1950 |
2411-2-1:
6 |
Bible |
1952-1963 |
2411-2-1:
7 |
Blessings |
1936-1966 |
2411-2-1:
8 |
Brotherhood |
1942-1977 |
2411-2-1:
9 |
Call/Calling |
1943-1973 |
2411-2-1:
10 |
Christianity/Christian Life: Folder 1 |
1942-1977 |
2411-2-1:
11 |
Christianity/Christian Life: Folder 2 |
1932-1977 |
2411-2-1:
12 |
Christianity |
1928-1975 |
2411-2-1:
13 |
Christmas/Messiah |
1941-1985 |
2411-2-1:
14 |
Church: Folder 1 |
1943-1979 |
2411-2-1:
15 |
Church: Folder 2 |
1936-1972 |
2411-2-1:
16 |
Commitment |
1974 |
2411-2-1:
17 |
Communion/Lord's Supper |
1944-1983 |
2411-2-2:
1 |
Conversion |
1944-1977 |
2411-2-2:
2 |
Cross, The |
1935-1980 |
2411-2-2:
3 |
Death |
1941-1977 |
2411-2-2:
4 |
Decisions |
1969 |
2411-2-2:
5 |
Destiny |
1947-1969 |
2411-2-2:
6 |
Disappointment, Discouragement, Despair |
1934-1973 |
2411-2-2:
7 |
Discipleship |
1961-1976 |
2411-2-2:
8 |
Duty |
1936-1953 |
2411-2-2:
9 |
Easter |
1943-1976 |
2411-2-2:
10 |
Education/Christian Education |
1946-1965 |
2411-2-2:
11 |
Eternal Life |
1948-1969 |
2411-2-2:
12 |
Evangelism |
1949-1967 |
2411-2-2:
13 |
Evil/Evil Dispositions Need Revenge |
1943-1972 |
2411-2-2:
14 |
Failures |
1939 |
2411-2-2:
15 |
Faith 1 |
1926-1976 |
2411-2-2:
16 |
Faith 2 |
1941-1978 |
2411-2-2:
18 |
Faithfulness |
1961 |
2411-2-2:
19 |
Family: Father-Mother's Day |
1946-1970 |
2411-2-2:
20 |
Forgetting |
1937-1942 |
2411-2-2:
21 |
Forgiveness |
1936-1966 |
2411-2-2:
22 |
Freedom-Liberty |
1936-1971 |
2411-2-3:
1 |
God 1 |
1928-1973 |
2411-2-3:
2 |
God 2 |
1961-1981 |
2411-2-3:
3 |
God 3 |
1942-1986 |
2411-2-3:
4 |
God: Power of God 1 |
1943-1974 |
2411-2-3:
5 |
God: Power of God 2 |
1928-1971 |
2411-2-3:
6 |
Good Friday |
1985 |
2411-2-3:
7 |
Goodness |
1951 |
2411-2-3:
8 |
Gospel |
1963-1966 |
2411-2-3:
9 |
Grace |
1941-1978 |
2411-2-3:
10 |
Heaven |
1936-1973 |
2411-2-3:
11 |
Hell |
1948-1951 |
2411-2-3:
12 |
Holiness |
1942-1962 |
2411-2-3:
13 |
Holy Spirit: Spiritual Refreshment |
1941-1981 |
2411-2-3:
15 |
Jesus/Christ 1 |
1936-1976 |
2411-2-4:
1 |
Jesus/Christ 2 |
1935-1978 |
2411-2-4:
2 |
Jesus/Christ 2 |
1944-1975 |
2411-2-4:
3 |
Jesus/Christ 2 |
1928-1981 |
2411-2-4:
4 |
Judgements |
1941-1979 |
2411-2-4:
5 |
Kingdom of God |
1942-1973 |
2411-2-4:
6 |
Labor |
1944-1946 |
2411-2-4:
7 |
Life |
1937-1987 |
2411-2-4:
8 |
Love |
1944-1981 |
2411-2-4:
9 |
Man |
1944-1979 |
2411-2-4:
10 |
Mercy |
1972-1988 |
2411-2-4:
11 |
Ministry/Gospel |
1955-1976 |
2411-2-4:
12 |
Miracles |
1946-1965 |
2411-2-4:
13 |
Miscellaneous |
1941-1978 |
2411-2-4:
14 |
Missions |
1947-1964 |
2411-2-4:
15 |
Mother's Day |
1941-1983 |
2411-2-4:
16 |
Nation |
1942-1980 |
2411-2-4:
17 |
Palm Sunday |
1942-1988 |
2411-2-5:
1 |
Peace |
1950-1972 |
2411-2-5:
2 |
Power |
1941-1949 |
2411-2-5:
3 |
Prayer |
1941-1981 |
2411-2-5:
4 |
Prejudice |
1971 |
2411-2-5:
5 |
Redemption |
1942-1964 |
2411-2-5:
6 |
Revelation |
1955-1988 |
2411-2-5:
7 |
Religion |
1927-1975 |
2411-2-5:
8 |
Repentance |
1945-1975 |
2411-2-5:
9 |
Responsibility (Human) |
1942-1975 |
2411-2-5:
10 |
Resurrection |
1948-1977 |
2411-2-5:
11 |
Rewards |
1943-1955 |
2411-2-5:
12 |
Righteousness |
1948-1978 |
2411-2-5:
13 |
Salvation 1 |
1942-1969 |
2411-2-5:
14 |
Salvation 2 |
1943-1982 |
2411-2-5:
15 |
Salvation 3 |
1968-1989 |
2411-2-5:
16 |
Security |
1941-1972 |
2411-2-5:
17 |
Service |
1942-1973 |
2411-2-5:
18 |
Sin/Sinner 1 |
1933-1966 |
2411-2-5:
19 |
Sin/Sinner 2 |
1941-1981 |
2411-2-5:
20 |
Sin/Sinner 3 |
1953-1981 |
2411-2-5:
21 |
Social Problems |
1951-1963 |
2411-2-5:
22 |
Spiritual |
1941-1970 |
2411-2-6:
1 |
Stewardship |
1934-1976 |
2411-2-6:
2 |
Struggle |
1948-1970 |
2411-2-6:
3 |
Success |
1941-1967 |
2411-2-6:
5 |
Suffering 2 |
1941-1967 |
2411-2-6:
6 |
Suffering 3 |
1957-1987 |
2411-2-6:
7 |
Suffering 4 |
1960-1984 |
2411-2-6:
8 |
Sunday Observance |
1968-1969 |
2411-2-6:
9 |
Temperance |
1951 |
2411-2-6:
10 |
Temptations |
1946-1976 |
2411-2-6:
11 |
Thanksgiving |
1944-1975 |
2411-2-6:
12 |
Trouble |
1936-1986 |
2411-2-6:
13 |
Truth |
1951-1952 |
2411-2-6:
16 |
Victory |
1941-1970 |
2411-2-6:
17 |
Witness |
1941-1974 |
2411-2-6:
20 |
Miscellaneous Sermons 2 |
1967-1989 |
2411-2-6:
21 |
Miscellaneous Sermons 3 |
1976-1981 |
2411-2-7:
1 |
Photographic Scrapbook: Church work and Family Life |
1926-1976 |