Congregation Agudath Jacob

By Amie Oliver, Librarian and Curator of Print Materials, and Paul Fisher, Processing Archivist

Each month, we post an update to notify our readers about the latest archival collections to be processed and some highlights of our print material acquisitions. These resources are primed for research and are just a sampling of the many resources to be found at The Texas Collection!

Here are January’s finding aids:

Selsus Tull Sermon — The Selsus E. Tull papers contain hundreds of sermons written and preached by Reverend Tull. Selsus E. Tull papers, 1901-1964, undated (#3977), box 3, folder 1.

Selsus E. Tull papers, 1901-1964, undated (#3977): Contains the sermon notes and publications of longtime Baptist preacher Selsus Estol Tull (1878 – 1973). Tull pastored numerous Baptist churches over a six-decade career and was an influential participant in the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meetings for more than four decades. You can read more about the Selsus E. Tull papers here and here, and view them online here.
John Cheney Ellis papers, 1890-2000 (#3623): Includes photographs, post cards and correspondence relating primarily to the life and travels of John Cheney Ellis, as well as his mother, Inez Pratt.
Frank Elisha Burkhalter papers, 1902-1959 (#109): Writings by and photographs of Frank Elisha Burkhalter from his time in Waco as a volunteer with local youth and as a Baylor University student and professor.
Archie Hoppenstein papers, 1967-1999 (#3718): The Archie Hoppenstein papers include subject files from various Waco and McLennan County organizations. Hoppenstein was very involved in community activities, and attended Congregation Agudath Jacob in Waco, Texas.

Selsus Tull Sermon Packet — Reverend Tull stored his many sermons in packets like this one, with notes about where and when he preached that particular sermon. One of the entries is for Temple, Texas, in July 1917. Selsus E. Tull papers, 1901-1964, undated (#3977), box 3, folder 1.

Here are January’s featured print materials:

Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders of the World. Chicago: Blakely Print. Co., 1893. Print. — Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders of the World. Chicago: Blakely Print. Co., 1893. Print. Featuring a beautiful full color front and back cover, this unique volume contains photographs and illustrations of Buffalo Bill and his contemporaries. Also included is the “programme” for the Wild West show featuring music, horse races, cowboy fun, and Annie Oakley demonstrating her firearm prowess.

Facts and Figures about Mexico and Her Great Railroad: the Mexican Central. City of Mexico: Issued by the Bureau of Information of the Mexican Central Railway Co., 1898. Print. Published by Mexico’s Bureau of Information as a handbook for potential investors and settlers, this beautifully preserved volume also highlights the unique beauty of the country. The volume helps to answer questions about taxes, safety, agriculture, and education and features photographs and a map.

Austin Hook & Ladder Fire Co. No. 1. Constitution and By-Laws of Austin Hook & Ladder Fire Co. No. 1. Austin: Eugene von Boeckmann, 1893. Print. This small volume provides a glimpse into the 1893 Austin Hook and Ladder Fire Company. With the motto, “Always Ready,” the company’s constitution also includes information on membership, officers, and fines while the by-laws cover duties, committees, and amendments.

By Paul Fisher, Processing Archivist

Texas Jewish Historical Society members exploring display in Texas Collection reading room, 2015 — Texas Jewish Historical Society members exploring display in Texas Collection reading room. The materials on display for society members to view included representative items from over nineteen collections documenting the life and faith experience of Jewish people in Waco.

On January 24, The Texas Collection welcomed the Texas Jewish Historical Society to a special display of materials on Jewish life and faith in Central Texas. Members of the society viewed many different kinds of materials, including:

a letter to a German Jewish family by the German secret police, warning them to leave the country (they later came to Waco, Texas),
an elaborate green velvet scrapbook with photographs from the 1800s of the Goldstein family in Waco,
photographs of Jewish-owned businesses in Waco, such as the Goldstein-Migel and Sanger Brothers department stores,
membership cards and past meeting pamphlets from the Texas Jewish Historical Society, and
photographs of Temple Rodef Sholom and Congregation Agudath Jacob in Waco from the early 1900s.

Photographic scrapbook of the Goldstein Family in Waco, Texas, from the early 1900s — Photographic scrapbook of the Goldstein family in Waco, Texas, from the early 1900s.

All together, The Texas Collection has more than 20 Jewish-related collections available for researchers to explore. Most of these collections are unprocessed, meaning they are not yet described through a finding aid in BARD or housed in modern acid-free boxes and folders. However, two Jewish collections have been processed recently, the De Cordova Family papers 1845-1956 and the Waco Chapter of Hadassah records 1928-2009, and we hope to process the rest of them soon. Stay tuned for more news about our Jewish collections!

Research Ready: January 2016

Exploring the Waco Jewish Community with the Texas Jewish Historical Society

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