Big Sandy Historical Timeline

Roy Buck Hammer, Gladewater, Texas, donated the original 25 acres (of what later became a 1,600 acre campus) to the Radio Church of God in 1951. Director of Big Sandy Buildings & Grounds, Buck became a church elder in RCG, WCG, and later UCG. Buck Hammer's sister, Shirley Ann Hammer, married Garner Ted Armstrong on March 8, 1953. Buck died from a heart attack in Longview, Texas on Nov. 15, 2003. He was 81. See Buck's obituary page on The Journal.

Big Sandy Buildings & Grounds, in its early years, was originally designed and prepared by the Radio Church of God to host God's annual spring and fall festivals. Assemblies and worship services were held in partially-completed buildings as early as 1953. Source, The Good News December 1958, Volume VII, Number 8. Watch © 1993 WCG Big Sandy 40th Anniversary Video

Big Sandy first opened its fall college enrollment to 109 students on Sep 1, 1964. Big Sandy was the 3rd and final Ambassador College campus established in time order, after Pasadena, California in 1947, and Bricket Wood, England in 1960. Source, Ambassador College Envoy 1964, pg. 154

Adding the 'Miehie 36', 'Schimanek Cutter', and 'Christensen Folder' machines to Big Sandy upgraded printshop facilities to include full, four-color printing and modern magazine capabilities. Source, Ambassador College Envoy 1968, pg. 151

Flying high over East Texas, the Ambassador Airstrip was installed at Big Sandy in 1976 to train student pilots and help coordinate logistic and flight programs for media and broadcasting operations. Source, Ambassador Big Sandy 1976-77, Volume III, Number 2.

Ambassador College at Big Sandy was temporarily closed by the Worldwide Church of God from 1977-1980 to effectively transition Garner Ted Armstrong and his administrators out of all executive administrative operations and businesses at WCG Headquarters in Pasadena, California. Sources, July 31, 1978 Brethren & Co-worker Letter; May 22, 1979 Pastor's Report, WCG Forced to Sue GTA; Dec 4, 1978 Good News, Is Christ Starting a Second Church

Rebirthing Big Sandy, Ambassador re-opened as a 2 year Jr. College. Student Orientation started Thursday, Aug 22, 1981. Source, The Good News Oct-Nov 1981. Read about 4 reasons why Big Sandy did not re-open as a 4 year school in Herbert Armstrong's January 15, 1982 Pastor General's Report. 1.) additional academic programs too expensive, 2.) church had enough ministers, 3.) anticipated Great Tribulation fulfillment was eminent, 4.) Chancellor turned 90 years old

197 teens attended the Summer Educational Program (SEP) in Big Sandy in 1983. Big Sandy hosted Y.O.U. sporting tournaments as church administrators, onsite coordinators, and parents developed the Youth Opportunities United (YOU) program throughout the late 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Source, Oct 3, 1978 Pastor General's Report, pg. 7

Wide Area Telephone Service (WATS) lines were installed at Big Sandy in 1984 to help process the increasing amounts of literature requests and provide students with jobs. Source, 1984 Ambassador College Envoy, pg. 90

Herbert Armstrong, Pastor General of the Worldwide Church of God, Chancellor of Ambassador College, died on January 16, 1986 in Pasadena, California. Source, Feb 10, 1986 Worldwide News, Vol XIV, No 3.; HWA Memorial Page on Find A Grave website; 1986 Ambassador College Envoy

Board of Directors, led by then-Chairman Joseph W. Tkach, began the process of consolidating and moving Ambassador's Pasadena operation to Big Sandy in 1989. Source, Watch © 1993 WCG Big Sandy 40th Anniversary Video

Ambassador College was renamed Ambassador University after the 1994 academic year in order to gain regional accreditation and state certification by the Southern Association of Colleges & Schools (SACS) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB). Source, 1994 Ambassador College Envoy, Watch © 1993 WCG Big Sandy 40th Anniversary Video

Board of Regents, led by then-Chairman Joseph W. Tkach Jr., officially closed Ambassador University after its final school year in 1997, exactly 50 years since Ambassador first opened its doors in Pasadena in 1947. Source, Ambassador University 1997 Envoy.