Hardin Simmons University - Bronco Yearbook (Abilene, TX)

Page 11 text:

DEDICATION Dr. B. W. Aston In 1936 Franklin Delano Roosevelt was in the White House, King Edward VIII abdicated the throne of England for Wallis Warfield Simpson, Jesse Owens brought home the gold and humiliated Adolph Hitler in the process, the German dirigible Hindenberg made its maiden voyage across the Atlantic, and the State of Texas turned 100 years old while in Fort Worth, B. W. Aston became yet another baby born during the Great Depression. Dr. Aston grew up in the shadow of the Fort Worth Court House and used the streets of the city as his playground. The lure of the big city held such a fasination for young B. W. that during the second grade he found it much more educational to cut school after recess and to go such places of interest as the Leonard Brothers Department Store. This phase of his education only lasted a few weeks before he was caught and taught yet another lesson. Dr. Aston, like most kids of the day, soon found that spending money came only to those who were willing to work for it. While in the third grade, Dr. Aston obtained a position as a paperboy with the Fort Worth Press. Later while in junior high and high school he delivered papers for the Fort Worth Star Telegram. In addition to his responsibilities to school and his newspaper customers, Dr. Aston worked as a pinsetter in a bowling alley and later was employed by a grocery store. In the fall of 1954, Dr. Aston entered Arlington Junior College (now the University of Texas at Arlington) starting the first of many years he would eventually spend on a college campus. He temporarily left the ivy covered walls of academe to join the United States Air Force in January 1955. Dr. Aston's stint with Uncle Sam proved to be a great learning experience. Before he entered college again in the fall of 1958, Dr. Aston had spent three years in England and traveled through most of Western Europe. During the next two years he completed 96 hours and changed from a business major to a history major in education after a close encounter of the worst kind with two courses titled Money and Banking and Intermediate Accounting. In December of 1959, Dr. Aston met a Texas Christian University coed named Lillie Mae Fields. They would eventually become man and wife on August 26,1961 in Fort Worth. But before the wedding bells could chime, Dr. Aston transferred to Texas Technological College (now Texas Tech University) in time for the fall semester of 1960. Obtaining his first degree in January of 1962, Dr. Aston continued to go to school because he found that practically the only way one could get a job teaching history was to also be a coach. That fact also turned out to be a blessing, as Dr. Aston continued to go to Tech until he had completed all the requirements for the Ph.D. in history. Dr. Aston first arrived on the campus of Hardin-Simmons University in June of 1967. At that time he expected to be at HSU for a couple of years while completing his dissertation, and then he planned to look for a job elsewhere. Dr. Aston told former HSU President, Dr. Elwin L. Skiles in the interview that he was looking for a home, but he really did not expect to find it in Abilene. He was not sure how he would fit in at HSU, or how HSU would like him, but over the years both have found that they can accommodate each other rather well. During his tenure at HSU, Dr. Aston has served in several positions including chairman of the History Department since 1972, president of the faculty in 1976-1978, and sponsor of Epsilon Pi Alpha

Page 13 text:

Baptist work there. In January of 1986, Dr. Aston was invited to Cuba as a part of a professional undertaking in that country. Dr. Aston has also carved a role for himself in the local community where he serves on the Abilene Committee for the Humanities, the Abilene Landmark Commission, and presently;