Wichita, Kansas
| Statistics: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Number of Bahá'ís | ||
| - | Bahá'í source | |
| - | Non-Bahá'í source | 466[1] |
| How to contact: | ||
| - | Phone | (316)516-1274 |
| - | wichitabahais@gmail.com | |
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The first Baha'is in Wichita, were the family of Frederick G. Hale (1865-1950) and Emma Louise Haas Hale (1873-1936) arriving in 1901. They had one son Dudley A. Hale (1896-1979). On October 25, 1901 their second son Frederick W. Hale (1901-1980) was born in Wichita. Frederick was working a a traveling man or salesman in 1901-1902.[2] Frederick was an active teacher of the Faith and enrolled Frank Dyer, Fred M. Wyatt, and John Meeks Brown. Two letters were received in 1902 from 'Abdu'l-Bahá in care of Frederick G. Hale. They remained undelivered since the two recipients had moved on.[3] Frederick and family returned to Jersey City, New Jersey in late 1902 or early 1903.[4] Contact with the enrollees was lost when he left.
In 1935 Pliny Abijah Wiley (1875-1965) and Clara May Austin Wiley (1865-1953) pioneered from Topeka, Kansas at the age of 60. They had married in 1902 and the union bore no children. Pliny supplemented their income by submitting short poems to several newspapers. His first known published poem was “The Thanksgiving Snow Storm” published in the Wichita Beacon in 1919.[5] The The Mason City Globe-Gazette in Mason City, Iowa was probably the most receptive and published his last known poem, “Who Holds Tomorrow" in 1962.[6]
In 1939, the Bahá’í Regional Teaching Committee arranged for Mrs. Gayle Woolson to spend a couple of months in Wichita spreading the Faith. Gayle brought a model of the House of Worship bing built in Wilmette, Illinois, It was displayed at the Bell Telephone Office and gave regular classes advertised in the Wichita Bacon and The Wichita Eagle. [7] [8] [9] [10] She also gave talks at various clubs and groups. Her efforts were reported in the Bahá’í News where she indicated that she was well received. [11] Immediately following her visit. Wilfrid C. Barton also visited Wichita in 1939 who gave a series of talks advertised in the newspaper.[12]
As time wore on, Pliny and Clara became frustrated with the lack of response to the Faith in Wichita. The Kansas Bahá’ís lost contact with them in about 1947. Clara Wiley passed away in 1953 and Pliny Wiley died in 1965. They are buried together in Park Cemetery, Wichita, Kansas.[13] There are no known enrollments in the Bahá’í Faith during this period.
Ronald Leslie Preuss (1924-2005)[14] a native of Wichita was attending Friends University in 1946. He took a some time off to research various religions including some books on the Bahá’í Faith he found in the city library. In February of 1947 he enrolled in the Bahá’í Faith. He was an active teacher from that time until his death. Ronald worked tirelessly to expand the Faith in Wichita and the region.
Through Ronald's work, a number of travel teachers, and at the work of few other early enrollments the First Bahá’í Assembly was formed in 1955. The members were:[15]
- Leland Campbell (18 April 1921 - 7 July 1997)
- Clara Niemoller (13 January 1916 - 9 November 2013)
- Ronald Preuss (28 November 1924 - 15 March 2005)
- Marjorie Turner [Later Preuss] ( - 9 February 2015)
- Bill Smith (unknown)
- Pauline Campbell (4 December 1921 - May 2015)
- Mary Peters (26 may 1931 - June 1966)
- Nadine McKay (24 September 1918 - 18 July 1889)
- Pauline Rushing (27 March 1929 - 6 April 1970)
The Assembly only lasted a year and some months. There were withdrawals and individuals moving or loosing interest, but Ronald never gave up.[16]
In 1961, Erwin Schawacker (1934-2019)[17] arrived in Wichita to work on his master’s degree at WSU. Erwin and Ronald teamed up and the Assembly was reformed in 1962.[18] The Assembly has reformed every year since.
In 1969 the Assembly was incorporated.[19] The community grew too large for homes in the 1980’s, and in the 1990’s various facilities were rented to accommodate the community. In 2002, construction was completed on the Bahá’í Center at 3319 North Amidon. The center continues to be used in 2025 for Bahá’í meetings and area children’s classes.
Notes[edit]
- ↑ Wichita, KS Metro Area - Metro Area Membership Report (2020)
- ↑ Ancestry.com; Various Sources, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, Provo Utah
- ↑ Bahai History of Wichita 1902 article by Duane L. Herrmann
- ↑ Ancestry.com. “U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995,” ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011, Provo, Utah.
- ↑ Pliny A. Wiley, “The Thanksgiving Snow Storm;” The Wicita Beacon, Wichita, Kansas, December 24, 1919, Page 8.
- ↑ Pliny A. Wiley. ”Who Holds Tomorrow;” Mason City Globe-Gazette, Mason City, Iowa, June 9, 1962.
- ↑ “Bahá'í Lectures.” The Wichita Beacon, March 24, 1939, Page 7.
- ↑ “Mrs. Gayle Woolson Here for Lectures.” The Wichita Eagle.” March 25, 1939, Page 3.
- ↑ “Bahá'í Lectures.” The Wichita Beacon, March, 26, 1939, Page 2A.
- ↑ “World Unity Speaker Comes.” The Wichita Beacon, March 24, 1939, Page 4A.
- ↑ Bahá’í News, October 1939.
- ↑ Herrmann, Duane L. “Index of Wichita Bahá'í Articles.” 2017.
- ↑ Ancestry.com; Various Sources, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, Provo Utah
- ↑ Find A Grave, findagrave.com, Memorial ID 142533434
- ↑ Richard LeRoy Vore. "The Members of the First Local Assembly of Wichita, Kansas;" https://wilmetteinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/First-Members-of-Wichita-LSA-rev.pdf, 2020
- ↑ Elizabeth M. Owens. “The Wichita Bahá'í Community: In Quest of the Dream.” Paper for master’s program in Department of History at Wichita State University, about 1985.
- ↑ Find A Grave, findagrave.com, Memorial ID 259625234
- ↑ Owens, Elizabeth M. “The Wichita Bahá'í Community: In Quest of the Dream.” Paper for master’s program in Department of History at Wichita State University, about 1985.
- ↑ Wichita Bahá’í Archives, Spiritual Assembly of Wichita, Wichita, Kansas
