Ulle, Robert Frederick (1948-1986)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1986 May 29 p. 6

Birth date: 1948 Aug 11

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1986 Aug 21 p. 11

text of obituary:

ROBERT F. ULLE

Robert Frederick Ulle of Blooming Glen, Pa., died May 21, 1986, of liver disease in a Pittsburgh hospital. He was known for his scholarship and writing in Mennonite and Afro-American history and for his advocacy of Christina peacemaking.

Born Aug. 11, 1948 in Berks County, Pa., he was married in 1979 to Deborah C. Bellimer of Bridgewater, Vt. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughter, Charlotte Elizabeth of Blooming Glen, his parents, George and June Ulle of Shillington, Pa.; a brother, Theodore, of Brighton, Mass.; two sisters, Marilyn Schule of Brdsboro, Pa., and Debbie Yoshida of Boise, Idaho; and his maternal grandmother, Charlotte Bates Howe of Reading, Pa.

A graduate of Eastern Baptist (now Eastern) College, Ulle was a doctoral candidate at the University of Pennsylvania. The subject of his dissertation was the growth of the black church in Philadelphia prior to the Civil War. He formerly served as curator for the Trappe Historical Society and as administrator for Germantown Mennonite Church Corporation.

He was co-author of the book, “Conscience in Crisis: Mennonites and Other Peace Churches in America, 1739-1789" (1979). He was also the author of a number of articles which appeared in a variety of historical periodicals. Among the groups for which he did historical research were Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society, the Afro-American History Museum in Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania.

He was a member of the Perkasie Mennonite Church. As long-time chairman of Franconia Mennonite Conference’s peace and social concerns committee, he initiated the Peace Booth at the Kutztown Folk Festival and other fairs. He also formed the Central America Study and Action Group. Other memberships included the Indiana Society of Mayflower Descendants, Mennonite Historians of Eastern Pennsylvania, and numerous other historical societies.

A memorial service was held May 26 at Blooming Glen Mennonite Meetinghouse. Burial was in Perkasie Mennonite Cemetery.

Note: In a May 29 news article, the Review incorrectly stated that Ulle died of cancer.