I tweeted about twelve Canadian Pentecostal women during Women’s History Month in Canada in October 2017. Although these tweets were limited to 128 characters and a photo or two, this was an attempt to bring some of this little-known Canadian history to light. Included in this list were the following women, all of whom are notable in some way, and all of whom are deceased:

Lilian Yeomans (1861-1942) Zelma Argue (1900-1980) Coralee Haist (1889-1976) Ellen Hebden (1865-1923) Bernice Gerard (1923-2008) Annie Cressman (1913-1991) Marion Bolton (1927-2017) Maud Ellis (1923-1992) Adeline Stephan (1880-1957) Barbara Johnston (1879-1911) Edna Riblet (1890-1967) Aimee Semple McPherson (1890-1944)

Lilian Yeomans

Dr. Lilian B. Yeomans (1861-1942) was a Canadian doctor, author, and Pentecostal evangelist. #WomensHistoryMonth

11:36 PM – 10 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/917956929632260096

Photo source: Desiree D. Rodgers, “Encountering the Great Physician: The Life and Ministry of Lilian B. Yeomans,” Assemblies of God Heritage 35 & 36, 2015-2016, 4.

Zelma Argue

Zelma Argue (1900-1980) was a Canadian author, musician, pastor, and Pentecostal evangelist. #WomensHistoryMonth

11:32 PM – 11 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/918318434466914304

Photo source: 1940’s promotional photo.

Coralee Haist

Coralee Haist (1889-1976) was a Canadian Pentecostal missionary to China (1917-47) and Hong Kong (1952-74). #WomensHistoryMonth @thepaoc

1:42 AM – 15 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/919544878664769536

Coralee Haist (1889-1976), Canadian Pentecostal missionary, published her autobiography in 1965. #WomensHistoryMonth

8:45 AM – 15 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/919438409567006721

Photo source: Coralee Haist, How Great Oh God Thou Art (Hong Kong: Yee Tin Tong Printing Press, 1969).

Ellen Hebden

Ellen K. Hebden (1865-1923) became Canada’s first Pentecostal on November 17, 1906. https://vimeo.com/220976235 #WomensHistoryMonth

10:57 PM – 15 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/919759120777039873

Video credit: Bethel Pentecostal Church, Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.

No photos of Ellen Kate Hebden are known to exist.

Bernice Gerard

Bernice Gerard (1923-2008) was a Canadian Pentecostal evangelist, broadcaster, and alderwoman. http://www.faithincanada150.ca/initiatives/1000stories/112_bernice_gerard #WomensHistoryMonth

8:04 PM – 16 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/920078045880438785

Photo source: Bernice Gerard, Bernice Gerard: Today and for Life (Vancouver: Sunday Line Communications, 1988).

Annie Cressman

Annie Cressman (1913-1991) was a Canadian Pentecostal Bible translator and missionary to Liberia. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Worldwide-English-New-Testament-WE/ #WomensHistoryMonth

6:32 PM – 18 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/920779679518416898

Photo source: Grace Evelyn Sjokvist, Annie (Toronto: The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada, 1986).

Marion Bolton

Marion Eleanor Bolton (1927-2017) was a Canadian Pentecostal author, scholar, and missionary to several nations. #WomensHistoryMonth

11:38 PM – 19 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/921218936942632960

Photo source: “Obituary for Marion Eleanor Bolton,” Malinoski & Danyluik Funeral Home, accessed on 19 October 2017 at http://www.md-funeralhome.ca/notices/Marion-Bolton.

Photo source: Jean and Marion Bolton, He Sendeth Forth Two (Hong Kong: Asian Outreach Publishers, 1970).

Maud Ellis

Rev. Maud Ellis (1923-1992) was a Canadian Pentecostal pastor and evangelist. http://mpseminary.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/CalebCourtney_MaudEllis-Prototypical_Canadian_Pentecostal_Evangelist-7December2015.pdf @EONDPAOC @thepaoc #WomensHistoryMonth

9:13 AM – 21 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/921726113298239488

Photo source: Caleb Courtney, Rev. Lillie “Maud” Ellis: A Prototypical Canadian Pentecostal Evangelist, 7 December 2015, accessed on 21 October 2017 at http://mpseminary.com/awards.

A. E. Stephan

A. E. Stephan (1880-1957) was a Canadian Pentecostal pastor and evangelist known for her preaching and healing ministry. #WomensHistoryMonth

9:33 PM – 22 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/922274787413463040

Photo sources: “Obituary: Adeline E. Stephan,” Sarnia Observer, 11 February 1957, 22; James F. Kelley, “Healed of Stammering and Stuttering,” Canadian Pentecostal Testimony 4.1, January 1925, 2.

Barbara Johnston

Barbara Johnston (1879-1911), a teacher, was the first Canadian Pentecostal missionary to India. http://calebcourtney.com/blog/?p=360 #WomensHistoryMonth

12:23 AM – 24 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/922679867421970433

Photo source: Caleb Courtney, A History of Bethel Pentecostal Church in Sarnia, Ontario (Sarnia: Caleb Howard Courtney, 2016).

For a detailed account of Barbara Johnston’s life, see my article in the Canadian Journal of Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity (2017). Caleb Howard Courtney, “Barbara Johnston of Sarnia, Ontario: The First Canadian Pentecostal Missionary to India,” Canadian Journal of Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity 8.1 (2017): 1-18.

Edna Riblet

Edna Riblet (1890-1967) became a Canadian Pentecostal at @BraesideCamp in 1938. Her Sunday School became @bethelsarnia. #WomensHistoryMonth

5:56 PM – 26 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/923669579179667457

Photo source: Edna Riblet’s personal collection of photos, courtesy of Bethel Pentecostal Church, Sarnia, Ontario.



Aimee Semple McPherson

Aimee Semple McPherson (1890-1944) was a dramatic Canadian Pentecostal evangelist and pastor. http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/archives/la-me-aimee-semple-mcpherson-19440928-story.html # WomensHistoryMonth

5:31 PM – 30 Oct 2017 from Sarnia, Ontario

Originally posted at: https://twitter.com/courtneycaleb/status/925112875273859072

Photo source: unknown; Aimee Semple McPherson, This is That: Personal Experiences, Sermons, and Writings (Los Angeles: The Bridal Call Publishing House, 1919).