Ruth Duvall Crawford’s Wonderful Career in Music and Evangelism

This book is a study of the career and ministry of Ruth Duvall Crawford (1916-1986), the wife of prominent evangelist Percy Crawford (1902-1960). As pianist for Percy’s evangelistic team and director of music for his various evangelistic enterprises, Ruth put together an ensemble of 40-50 musicians, and produced hundreds of high-quality music programs, geared to Percy’s nationwide radio and television audiences. These programs set a new standard of performance in evangelical circles in the Northeast and Central United States in the 1930s and 40s. In the process of building this musical program, Ruth developed a format and an original style of gospel music that proved to be highly effective in communicating the gospel to a wide audience. Even with the constraints placed upon her as a woman, Ruth was able to carve out her own identity and realize her full potential as a musical artist. Throughout their twenty-nine year ministry together, Ruth devoted herself fully and faithfully to Percy’s single-minded mission of winning souls; she and her musicians always viewed the significance of their music as supportive of this soul-saving work. I will argue, however, that, in fact, her music comprised a ministry in its own right, with a message of its own that had the power to change hearts and transform lives. I formulate what I believe was the content of that message-namely, the possibility of drawing close to the person of Jesus, and entering into an intimate relationship with him. Further, I suggest that her message did not merely complement Percy’s and strengthen its appeal, but offered the listener a different way of coming to know Christ as one’s personal savior.