The Asbury Journal

Article Title

The Integration of Black Students at Asbury Theological Seminary

Authors

Thomas Hampton, Asbury Theological Seminary

Abstract

This article explores the process of racial integration at Asbury Theological Seminary, especially through the lens of its African American students, who began taking classes in 1958. Of particular importance is the response of the local community in Wilmore and Jessamine County, Kentucky, which was strongly opposed to the move and led to a shooting incident at the Seminary’s administration building which made national news at the time. With material drawn from an interview with Rev. Douglass Fitch, one of the first two students to a tuned the seminary, it notes how the support of some administrators, Free Methodist students, and E. Stanley Jones all played a role in making this important transition happen, even with some opposing voices on the Board of Trustees. This key aspect of the history of Asbury Theological Seminary is often left as a marginal footnote in official histories, but is here explored in greater detail.

DOI

10.7252/Journal.01.2022S.07

Recommended Citation

Hampton, Thomas (2022) "The Integration of Black Students at Asbury Theological Seminary," Asbury Theological Seminary: Vol. 77: No. 1, p. 121-139.
Available at: https://place.asburyseminary.edu/asburyjournal/vol77/iss1/7