Home of Cordell Christian College - Cordell, OK
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member hamquilter
N 35° 17.669 W 098° 59.217
14S E 501186 N 3905700
This historical marker is located at curbside on the northern edge of Lee Park.
Waymark Code: WM11FPN
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 10/15/2019
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member QuarrellaDeVil
Views: 4

Lee Park was established in 1940, constructed by the WPA. On the northern side of the park, on E. 3rd Street, this marker is across the street from the Lee Park Skate Park.

This is a granite marker mounted on a steel pipe, and slanted toward the viewer. The marker is engraved with a drawing of a three-story building on the former campus. The college was run by the Church of Christ. The marker reads:

Cordell, Okla.
Home of
Cordell Christian College - 1907 - 1918
Western Okla. Christian College - 1921 - 1928
Oklahoma Christian College - 1925 - 1931

Washita Co. Historical Society
Oklahoma Historical Society

The marker is factual, giving the dates, but the story behind this school is quite amazing. Back in its time, the Church of Christ believed a very pacifist ideology, which was not popular during the patriotic days of World War I. Let me quote a passage from this website:

OK Christian College
"Cordell was headed by a man named J.N. Armstrong. Armstrong held to what Richard Hughes calls “an apocalyptic worldview.” This viewpoint was fairly common in our brotherhood in the late 19th century, putting a strong emphasis on the Kingdom of God vs. the kingdoms of this earth. Among other things, such a view typically leads to a refusal to participate in war. This apocalyptic thinking became common among the faculty at Cordell Christian, a fact which did not please the pro-war community around them. In particular, the Selective Service board felt that Cordell was not giving sufficient encouragement to its students to enlist in the military. When faculty member S.A. Bell published an anti-war article in the Gospel Herald, that was perceived to be the final straw. The Selective Service board intervened, demanding the resignation of Armstrong, Bell and all faculty members who held to a pacifist viewpoint. Rather than accede to these demands, Cordell Christian College closed its doors."

County: Washita County

Record Address::
E. 3rd Street
North side of Lee Park
Cordell, OK US
73632


Rate the Site:

Sponsor (Who put it there): Washita Co. HS / Oklahoma H.S.

Web site if available: Not listed

Date Erected: Not listed

Visit Instructions:

1 - Must visit the site in person.
2 - New Photo required.
3 - Give some new insight to the marker/site.

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The Snowdog visited Home of Cordell Christian College - Cordell, OK 10/11/2023 The Snowdog visited it