Trevecca Nazarene University - Darda Yearbook (Nashville, TN)

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Tr evecca Students in a Holiday Mood Going on a Picnic in a Hired Transportation Vehicle. 1913 Senior Class Trevecca College, Nashville, Tenn.: The Administration Building. The Percy Warner Estate on Gallatin Road offered room in which to expand in the residential area. The ante- bellum colonial Warner Mansion served as the main build- ing. The property lay on the main auto route linking Chicago, Louisville, and Florida and this put the college on a transportation line which served as a great advan- tage. A great deal of time and effort went into the occupa- tion preparations for the college in the summer of 1914. In the early morning of the opening day of the school, September 16, 1914, J.O. McClurkan died of typhoid fever in St. Thomas Hospital. He was laid to rest in Mt. Olivet Cemetary near the college. The shape of the tomb stone is a pulpit symbolizing the centrality of preaching for McClurkan. The Bible carved in the stone of the pulpit signifies the source of his preaching and ministry. Across the pulpit are the words, He lived for others . The tombstone eloquently summarizes the emotions that came from the burning heart of J.O. McClurkan. The memory of McClurkan ' s supreme desire to fulfill the spiritual vision for Trevecca is commemorated each year. 5

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The Gospel Wagon (Ised by the Students in Evangelistic Outreach. Students from the college swarmed over the Nashville area preaching the good news. They even preached on the street corners. Some holiness folk helped them to get a Gospel Wagon to carry them to places where the street cars could not take them. The Gospel Wagon was horse drawn, of course. Again, Trevecca College had outgrown her boundries and demanded more space. On March 10, 1913, a called meeting of the congregation assembled with McClurkan in charge. The Fourth Avenue Property and facilities were proving to be far too small, and for some reason, the buildings were failing to meet the city fire code. The full history is not known, but McClurkan had negotiated for the 80-acre Percy Warner estate lying out near the edge of the city. The Mission Board ratified this deal, September 29, 1914 after McClurkan ' s death.

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J.O. McClurkan ' s Gravestone He Lived for Others. In 1979 and 1980, the spirit of the vision for Trevecca has passed on to President Homer Adams as we strive to meet the pressures of the surrounding world, attempting to bring the gospel to work on the age old problems of men. We, reap the reward of the spirit of the man, J.O. McClurkan. Trevecca College has struggled through two major world wars, economic illness in the great depres- sion, and the changes in her locations, but her direction still remains the same. We must give attention to all this heritage for it provides the stability for purpose. The institutional purpose ought to be a product of the past college community, reflect the interest of the present community, and allow for adjustments from future mem- bers. Under the leadership of President Adams we as a college have met our challenges for the 1979-80 school year, and with much anticipation look forward to the challenges of the future. McClurkan was an idealist when it came to paying bills that were necessary in order to run his work. He seemed to think that if God wanted a thing done he would inspire his people to pick up the tab and they usually did. He was not disappointed in his friends. They upheld his hands as Moses ' hands were held up because they believed in the man and what he was doing. Oh the wondorous joy McClurkan would have felt if he had been at Trevecca on September 27, 1979, a date that shall ever be one of the significant events in the 78-year history of Trevecca.