Funeral program of Dr. T. Oscar Chappelle Sr. with notes by Eddie Faye Gates: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

Digital copy of a funeral program for Dr. T. Oscar Chappelle Sr. The funeral program consists of black ink printed on a single sheet of cream-colored paper, folded once to produce four pages. The first page, or cover, has an image of Dr. Chappelle with his birth and death years printed to the left and right of the photo respectively. Text at the top of the program reads [MEMORIAL SERVICES / for / DR. T. OSCAR CHAPPELLE, SR.]. Below the image, text lists the date, time, and location of the service, and where the interment will take place. The service took place at Morning Star Baptist Church and was presided over by Dr. T.J. Jemison, President of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

The left-side interior page contains the "Order of Service" from an organ meditation and processional through recessional. An acknowledgement from the family is printed below the Order of Service. The right-side interior page contains an obituary for Dr. Chappelle detailing his life, family, and service in the church, with section headings "The Man..., The Husband..., A Father..., A Minister..., A Leader..."

The remainder of the obituary is printed on the last page, or back cover, with the section heading "He was blessed and so were we..." Below the obituary text the active and honorary pallbearers and flower bearers are listed.

Also included is a page from a 1994 Metropolitan Tulsa Urban League calendar with a photo and biography of Dr. Chappelle on one side and a May/June calendar on the other as well as a newspaper clipping announcing Dr. T. Oscar Chappelle Jr.'s appointment as second vice president of the National Baptist Congress of Christian Education and a set of eight (8) handwritten notes by Eddie Faye Gates.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1990
• Printed by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Dr. T. Oscar Chappelle Sr., American, 1915 - 1990
• Subject of: Morning Star Baptist Church, American, founded 1916
• Subject of: Dr. T. Oscar Chappelle Jr., American, 1942 - 2008
• Written by: Eddie Faye Gates, American, 1934 - 2021
• Owned by: Eddie Faye Gates, American, 1934 - 2021
• Type: digital images
• Type: programs
• Type: digital media - born analog
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: File size (overall): 886 MB
• Place collected: Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: American South
• Topic: American West
• Topic: Baptist
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Families
• Topic: Funeral customs and rites
• Topic: Religion
• Object number: 2014.117.71
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Eddie Faye Gates, Tulsa OK, author, historian, community activist
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Restrictions likely apply. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.