Revision as of 00:40, 7 October 2025

Downtown Meeting Gospel Hall, Philadelphia, PA (OB) 1884-1952

Correspondents

• David Simpson +1922-1927+

Notable Families

Campbell family

Irish co-founder.

• James Campbell 1884+

Matthews family

Irish co-founder.

• William Matthews 1884+

Strom family

Charles Strom died at the Longport Gospel Hall Home near Atlantic City, NJ where he had served as its secretary of the board of trustees for 18 years. During WWII, he had served in the Army medical group, then was employed as a traffic manager for R.M. Hollingshead in Camden from 1947-1974, as per his obit. Ironically, there was another Ruth Curran who also died at Longport, whose father was a longtime shoe merchant in Camden.

Ruth's husband David, who was promoted to Glory on Jan. 14, 2025 (see his memorial tribute was a longtime correspondent and elder at Pennsauken Gospel Hall near Camden. He "worked tirelessly to meet the spiritual and practical needs of many in the area over the years, including those in other area assemblies, in particular the Olney Gospel Hall" in NE Philadelphia. He "loved to study the Bible and share what he learned with others in helpful ways."

As per his tribute, he graduated in 1963 from Haddonfield Memorial High School, and "earned a BA in Chemistry from Rutgers", including "two summers with Rutgers Biology Estuarine Research in Great Bay", New Jersey. He subsequently spent "several years in graduate research in Physical Organic Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania. He worked for many years as an Advanced Chemist in the laboratory of ExxonMobil's Paulsboro refinery, and later with Valero until his retirement in 2010."

One by his name was also varsity baseball coach at Manhattan College, and elected president of the Metropolitan Collegiate Baseball Conference (MCC) in 1967, as per Camden Courier-Post.

• Charles A. Strom +1947 (b. 1912 South Philadelphia, PA - d. 1997 Longport, NJ)
• Matilda Keen Strom +1947
  • Ruth Ann Strom Curran 1943-1947 (b. 1943). Husband (1966): David Arnot Curran (b. 1945 - d. 2025).

Sources

• AAB's 1922 & 1927

• • 1st annual Conference Christmas Day 1887: preachers Donald & Charles Ross, James Campbell, William Matthews, Norman Case, Frank Cook, William Staner, David Oliver & John Haliburton;
  • c/o David Simpson @ 4619 Hazel Ave. +1922-1927+;