Ralph E. Hudson was born in Napoleon, Ohio. After serving in the Civil war, Ralph did evangelistic work, published music, and wrote hymns. Among the favorites he left us were "Blessed be the Name," and "At the Cross."
Birth of Samuel Hill, who became one of the founders of the Gideons, the organization that distributes Bibles to businessmen and places them in hotels.
Henry Shilling was born at Freeport Pennsylvania. Becoming a Methodist holiness preacher, he founded Transylvania Bible School and edited its paper The Fountain.
Philip Paul Bliss was born in a log cabin in the mountains of Clearfield County, Pennsylvania. His father, Isaac Bliss, was a dedicated Christian. Philip's first spiritual recollections were of his father's daily prayers. His father was a lover of music, and it was through him Philip developed a passion for singing. He became one of the most famous hymn writers of the twentieth century, although his life was snuffed out in a train wreck when he was just 38. A bridge collapsed, the train caught fire, and Philip dived repeatedly into the burning cars trying to rescue his wife Lucy. His home at Rome, Pennsylvania was made into a museum after his death. Ironically, he is said to have sung "I'm coming home" the night before.
Birth of Cameron Townsend. He became a missionary at twenty and founded Wycliffe Bible Translators. In one decisive moment, Cameron Townsend understood that God had called him to translate the Bible into the language of his Guatemalan friends. For Cam, the obstacles were small when compared to the growing reward of helping the diverse people of Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru read God's life changing Word for themselves. Quick on his feet and slow to give up, Cam started Wycliffe Bible Translators with the dream of making the Good News available in every language. Since 1942, Wycliffe has translated Scripture into hundreds of languages, spreading God's Word to people all over the world.
