Collection 089 Papers of Paul P. Stough

Collection

Identifier: CN 089

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Oral history interviews, films, videos relating to Paul P. Stough’s missionary service in the Belgian Congo with Africa Inland Mission. Materials contain information on Stough's father, Henry Stough, Wheaton College, Paul Stough's work as a missionary for Africa Inland Mission in the Belgian Congo (Zaire) and Kenya from the 1920s to the 1970s, and generally on the spread of Christianity in Africa.

Dates

Created: 1979-1992

Conditions Governing Access

There are no restrictions on the use of this collection

Biographical Information

Paul Stough (1901-1992) was the second child born to evangelist Henry Wellington and Helen A. Russ Stough. He grew up in Wheaton, Illinois, occasionally helping his father on his revival campaigns. He served briefly in the army during World War I but never left the United States. He graduated from Wheaton College in 1923 with a Bachelor of Arts and married another Wheaton graduate, Rachel Winsor. After several years spent in Florida, they became missionaries of Africa Inland Mission and departed for the Belgian Congo in 1928.

Stough's work in the Congo involved both educational and evangelism work. He was based at the Blukwa Mission in Djugu. He and Rachel had three sons before her death in March 1944. Shortly before returning home on furlough, he married fellow missionary Elizabeth Carolyn Quakenbush in March 1945. During his furlough he served as interim pastor of the College Church in Wheaton. He returned to Djugu in 1948, where his tasks were mainly supervising and training. He worked with the 400 native evangelists in the area, supervised local schools, and consulted with the elders of the local church. He also represented AIM on the Congo Protestant Council, which was a liaison group of the mission in the colony. In 1949 he was elected vice president of the Council. (His daughter, Helen, was born the same year). From 1952-1954 he served as AIM's field director for the Congo, Uganda, and French Equatorial Africa. This responsibility involved extensive travel. After a furlough in 1954, he returned to the Congo in 1955, based in Bunia, where he did work in literature distribution and visited prisoners. In 1956 he served temporarily as Africa area secretary for Evangelical Literature Overseas. This involved travel all over Africa to survey literature needs. Political unrest arising from the Congo's efforts to gain independence from Western control twice forced the Stoughs to flee Bunia - once in 1961 when they went to Uganda and again in 1964 when they went to Nairobi, Kenya. They stayed in Kenya (except for furloughs in 1967 and 1971) and managed the Mayfield House, the mission's guest house. In 1976 the Stoughs retired from AIM and returned to Wheaton to live. Paul, however, maintained his contact with the mission through his service on its Chicago area committee. He also held positions as editorial associate of the World Evangelization Information Bulletin, financial secretary for the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, and visitation pastor of the College Church in Wheaton. He died on August 13, 1992.

Extent

3 Audio Tapes

3 Films

3 Video Tapes

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Arrangement of Materials

Audio Tapes

Paul Stough was interviewed by Herbert Klem on October 1 and 8, 1979 and by Robert Shuster on August 26, 1980. Topics covered by the interviews include: Stough’s family background, education, work in the Belgium Congo for the Africa Inland Mission from 1928 until 1964, the ministry of Stough's evangelist father, his education at Wheaton College, evangelistic work in the Belgian Congo for Africa Inland Mission, the development of the indigenous African Church, Christian cults in the Congo, the Mau Mau movement, independence and the Congolese civil war, relations between missionaries and African Church leaders. Persons described include missionary colleagues, evangelical figures like Jonathan Blanchard, Billy Graham, Festo Kivengere and Billy Sunday. The time period covered by the interviews is 1901 to 1979.

This collection consists of two taped interviews recorded for the Graham Archives in October, 1979 by Rev. Stough and Dr. Herbert Klem. On August 26, 1980, Robert Shuster of the Graham Center staff recorded a third interview with Rev. Stough.

Films/Videos

The collection contains home videos created Stough, which show scenes from the Belgian Congo in the 1930s and 1940s. Two additional videos contain footage of Paul Stough’s memorial service.

Accruals and Additions

The materials in this collection were given to the Billy Graham Center Archives in October 1979 from Dr. Herbert V. Klem. Additional materials were donated in 1979, 1980 and 1992 by Paul and Elizabeth Stough.

Accession: 79-109, 79-114, 80-6, 80-109, 92-2, 92-68, 92-121

February 26, 1980 Robert Shuster

M. Buffington

H. Klem

S. Kouns

April 15, 1981

Robert Shuster

M. Arnold

March 11, 1993

Robert Shuster

M.L. Wohlschlegel

June 16, 1993

M. L. Larson

Related Materials

Accession: 80-6. The following items are located in the Evangelism and Missions Collection:

Stough, Henry W. The Flight in the Air (New York: Gospel Publishing House, 1913).

______. Stubble or Silver (New York: Gospel Publishing House, 1913).

______. The Three-Fold Resurrection (New York: Gospel Publishing House, 1913).