Kenneth Lane Carroll

Dr. Kenneth Lane Carroll was born May 8, 1924, the third child of Albert Raymond and Mary Ethel Lane Carroll of Easton. He was educated in the Easton Public Schools and then continued his education at Duke University, in Durham, NC, receiving his B.A. degree in 1946. His undergraduate major at Duke was in history, with minors in Religion, Political Science, and Economics. In his senior year, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, national academic honorary society. Following his undergraduate degree, Dr. Carroll continued his studies at Duke, majoring in Religious Studies. Here he earned both the B.D. degree (1946) and Ph.D. degree (1953). In the autumn of 1952, he accepted a position in the Religion Department at Southern Methodist University (SMU), Dallas, TX, and taught there thirty-four years. Professor Carroll had a very successful and distinguished career at SMU, moving from Instructor to Full Professor in seven years (still a record there). A number of honors were bestowed on him during those years, being chosen as "outstanding professor," "Friendliest Professor," and "Senior Class Sponsor" a number of times. He was also initiated into Blue Key, national leadership honorary. Also, during his time at SMU, he served in various capacities such as freshman advisor, a member of the College Planning Board, and faculty advisor to Delta Kappa Epsilon. While still a student at Duke, Carroll began publishing on the New Testament, Quakerism, and the Nicholites. He published a number of books, including Quakerism on the Eastern Shore, Joseph Nichols and the Nicolites, and John Perrot. He also contributed chapters to a number of books as well as nearly a hundred articles on the New Testament, Quakerism, and the Nicholites in both American and European journals. Being descended from a number of 17th and 18th century Eastern Shore families, he also developed an interest in genealogy and published several articles in Chesapeake Cousin and elsewhere. Much of his genealogical material has been deposited in the Maryland Room at the Talbot County Free Library. In recent years, his interest in genealogy led him to produce several books including: Carrolls and Related Families in 2011, Miscellany: Odds and Ends in 2013, and Me, Myself and I in 2017. At the start of graduate studies, Dr. Carroll was drawn to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and received membership in the Durham (NC) Friends Meeting. On moving to Dallas in the autumn of 1952, he found no Quaker Meeting there but soon discovered several other Friends who had recently moved to Dallas. Together they started the Dallas Friends Meeting, which he served for many years as Clerk (presiding officer). Soon he became involved in Quaker activities on regional, national and international levels. He served as Clerk of South Central Yearly Meeting of Friends, as well as Clerk of the Executive Committee of the South Central Region of the American Friends Service Committee. In 1962, he began his long connection with the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC), both on the national and international levels, when he attended a triennial meeting in Kenya. He served for a time as Assistant Clerk of the FWCC, Section of Americas, and for a number of years chaired the nominating committee of the worldwide FWCC. In that capacity he attended a number of their meetings on three continents. He remained active in the work of the FWCC until returning to Easton at the end of 1986. During this period, he also gave the New Testament course at Pendle Hill, the Quaker Study Center in Wallingford, PA, in the summer of 1956 and also spent 1960-1970 as T. Wistar Brown Fellow at Haverford College. After returning to Easton at the end of 1986, Dr. Carroll became active in the life and work of Third Haven Friends Meeting in Easton, serving as Clerk from 1989 to 2001. He also served on the Boards of a number of other local organizations, including the Historical Society of Talbot County, Friends of the Talbot County Free Library, Dixon House and the Historic District Commission of Easton. He also gave a number of talks for various groups, including Third Haven Friends Meeting, the Historical Society of Talbot County, Dixon House and at the Brown Bag lunches at Talbot County Free Library. His service on the General Board and Executive Boards at Pendle Hill began in the 1980s and continued until 2003. He became a member of the Board of Directors of the Friends Historical Association (USA) in the 1980s and has served as its president from 1993-2014 as well as the President of the Friends Historical Society in Great Britain. Professor Carroll’s research, lectures, committees and offices gave him many opportunities to travel. His love of Ireland and England took him to those two countries more than 50 times. He was also a frequent visitor to France and Italy, and he visited Greece and Israel three or four times. He never made it to South America but did travel widely in Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific. He has left a host of friends in many of these places. Kenneth Carroll was an “Honorary Life Member” of the Penn Club (London), and also held Life membership in the Society of Biblical Literature, Friends Historical Association (USA), Friends Historical Society (UK), The Maryland Historical Society, the Historical Society of Talbot County, Friends of the Guilford College Library, and Phi Beta Kappa. He was member of the Trustees of Third Haven Friends Meeting. Other memberships included the Fellowship of Reconciliation, the “Friends of Russell Square” (London, England) and the Upper Shore Genealogical Society. At his death Dr. Carroll held the rank of Professor Emeritus in Religious Studies from Southern Methodist University. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Dr. Howard Carroll and Philip David Carroll, and a sister, Annabelle C. Warrington. He is survived by an adopted brother, Lon Slaughter of San Angelo, TX (who saved Ken’s life during their 1957 rafting trip down the Rio Grande through Santa Elena Canyon); two adopted sons, Allan F. Mielke and Mark Dickerson of Easton; surviving members of his adopted family, Dr. Gianfranco Occelli of Carru, Itlay; Winston Duquid of Bath, England; Margaret Burtt of London, England; Paddy Nolan, County Kildare, of Ireland; David W. Sarjeant, County Cork, Ireland; and Breifne O’Brien and Christopher Kane, both of Dublin. He is also survived by a number of nieces and nephews including Charlene Carroll Sullivan of New Hampshire; Philip David Carroll, Jr., SC; great-nephews Caleb Carroll, SC, and Ryan D. Clark, FL; and great-great-nephew Ethan David George Carroll, SC; and great-great-neice, Dr. Jennifer W. Donahue, AZ. Also surviving are two cousins he especially valued, Tommy Espy Whitehead of Sonora, TX and Marsha Staubli-Wint of Coppet, Switzerland. Burial will be in the Carroll family lot at Spring Hill Cemetery in Easton. A memorial service will be held at Third Haven Friends Meeting on May 8, 2021. Memorial gifts may be made to the Trustees of Third Haven Friends Meeting, 405 S. Washington St., Easton, MD 21601, or to Pendle Hill, 338 Plush Mill Road, Wallingford, PA 19081, marked for the Kenneth Carroll Scholarship (for Quaker and Biblical Studies). A celebration of his life will be held at Third Haven Friends Meeting House on 405 S Washington St. in Easton on May 8th at 1PM. Space for in-person attendance will be limited. If you wish to attend in person, please email: 3rdhaven@gmail.com to reserve your place. If you wish to attend by ZOOM, the link to the ZOOM service will be published by May 1st on this link: http://www.ThirdHaven.org/ken-carroll.php

Kenneth Lane Carroll

May 8, 1924 - February 25, 2021