Timothy Lawrence Smith (April 13, 1924 – January 20, 1997) was a

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

and educator, known as the first American

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

historian to gain notoriety in research and higher education.

Early life and education

Smith was born April 13, 1924Legacy.com Obituaries
/ref> in

Central, South Carolina Central is a town in Pickens County, South Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,159. Contrary to its name, it is not near South Carolina's center. It received its name from being halfway or the central point betw ...

,''Washington Post'': Obituaries, January 24, 1997
/ref> the son of Nazarene ministers.Nazarene.org: Timothy Smith and the Recovery of the Nazarene Vision
/ref> He earned his

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ( ...

and

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

sWipf and Stock Publishers: Author Timothy L. Smith
/ref> from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

, where he was a Jefferson Scholar and

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

student, and his

doctoral degree A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in history from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

under

Arthur M. Schlesinger, Sr. Arthur Meier Schlesinger ( ; February 27, 1888 – October 30, 1965) was an American historian who taught at Harvard University, pioneering social history and urban history. He was a Progressive Era intellectual who stressed material cause ...

Librarything.com: Timothy L. Smith
/ref>
/ref>

Career

He has been described as "the first evangelical historian in the U.S. to make it in the

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are "the key sites of Knowledge production modes, knowledge production", along with "intergenerational ...

." Smith began his teaching career at the

Eastern Nazarene College The Eastern Nazarene College (ENC) was a Private university#United States, private, Christian college in Quincy, Massachusetts, United States. Established as a Holiness Movement, holiness college in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1900, the college m ...

(ENC) in 1949 and left in 1954 to take a position at

East Texas State University East Texas A&M University (ETAMU; formerly Texas A&M University–Commerce) is a public university in Commerce, Texas, United States. With an enrollment of over 12,000 students as of fall 2017, the university is the third-largest institution in ...

.James R. Cameron Center: History of the History Department at Eastern Nazarene College
During his time at ENC, he was the first director of Quincy School Department-sponsored College Courses, Inc., after which fellow Eastern Nazarene history professor Charles W. Akers transformed it into Quincy Junior College and served as its first full-time director. He later went on the teach at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

before becoming director of the American Religious History doctoral program and Chair of the Education Department at the

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

,Christianity Today: "Obituary: Historian Smith, 72, Dies" posted 4/07/1997 12:00AM
/ref> where he taught for 25 years. Smith received numerous awards and honors, and served as president of both the

American Society of Church History The American Society of Church History (ASCH) was founded in 1888 with the disciplines of Christian denominational and ecclesiastical history as its focus. Today the society's interests include the broad range of the critical scholarly perspecti ...

, and the Society of Religious Historians. He was also an ordained elder in the

Church of the Nazarene The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism during the late 19th century. The denomination has its headquarters in Lenexa, Kansas. and it ...

, and pastored churches in

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, and

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

Published works

A prolific author who published in nearly every historical journal, Smith's best-known and most-praised work is his 1957 book ''Revivalism and Social Reform'', formed from his dissertation from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

, which received the Brewer prize from the American Society of Church History. Smith also wrote a history of the

, ''Called Unto Holiness'', which Smith considered his most outstanding accomplishment.

Legacy

Smith retired to

Burke, Virginia Burke is an unincorporated section of Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, traditionally defined as the area served by the Burke post office (Zip Code 22015). Burke includes two census-designated places: the Burke CDP, population 42,312 in ...

but died at age 72 in

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, Florida, Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lag ...

on January 20, 1997, after several

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

s. The Wesleyan Theological Society at

Northwest Nazarene University Northwest Nazarene University (NNU) is a private Nazarene university in Nampa, Idaho. History Eugene Emerson organized a combination grade school and Bible school in 1913 as Idaho Holiness School. It was renamed twice in 1916, first to Nor ...

established a book award in honor of Smith and Mildred Bangs Wynkoop in 1999, and presents an award annually. The 2008 recipient of the award, Randall J. Stephens, currently teaches at the

, as well.Harvard University Press: ''The Fire Spreads'' by Randall J. Stephens, 2008 Smith-Wynkoop Book Award
/ref>

Notes and references

External links

Nazarene.org: Historiography of Timothy L. SmithNazarene.org: Smith's work online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Timothy L. 1924 births 1997 deaths Harvard University alumni University of Virginia alumni Eastern Nazarene College faculty American historians of religion People from Central, South Carolina Quincy College faculty Texas A&M University faculty University of Minnesota faculty Johns Hopkins University faculty American Nazarene ministers 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers People from Burke, Virginia American male non-fiction writers Presidents of the American Society of Church History 20th-century American clergy Historians from Virginia Historians from Texas