Worley Oscar (W. O.) Vaught Jr. (1911–1989)

W. O. Vaught was a leading figure in Arkansas and in Southern Baptist life. Remembered as “one of the country’s most powerful Baptist preachers and an astute Biblical scholar,” Vaught led one of the largest Baptist congregations in central Arkansas for almost four decades. He also held various positions of leadership and authority in the Southern Baptist Convention during his pastorate.

Worley Oscar Vaught Jr. was born on January 11, 1911, in Versailles, Kentucky, to educators Florence Vaught and W. O. Vaught Sr. Vaught’s father taught at schools in Indiana, Kentucky, and Mississippi after graduating from Kentucky Wesleyan College in 1897. Vaught was the younger of two children.

Vaught graduated from high school in Caledonia, Mississippi, in 1928. In 1932, he graduated from Mississippi College, a Baptist school in Clinton, Mississippi, with a BA. As a college student, Vaught participated in the Baptist Student Union, serving as president of the campus and the state chapters in his senior year. An honors student, Vaught was active in music, debate, and the Hermesians, a literary society for male students.

After receiving a Master in Theology degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, Vaught held pastorates in Missouri and Texas. In 1936, he married fellow Kentuckian Mary Frances Bostic, daughter of a Baptist minister. Vaught and his wife had one son, Carl Gray Vaught.

In 1945, Vaught accepted the pastorate of Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock (Pulaski County), a position he held for thirty-eight years. During Vaught’s tenure, Immanuel experienced unprecedented growth. The church grew from one building to a two-city-block complex. Church membership doubled, and the church staff grew from six to thirty-eight. Additionally, the church budget increased from $100,000 to $2.1 million by the early 1980s. More than twenty churches grew out of Immanuel’s congregation during the Vaught years. His tape ministry, began in 1976, distributed three million recorded sermons worldwide.

Vaught also served as pastor to some influential Arkansans, including Governor Bill Clinton. Clinton credited Vaught with shaping many of his views on political and social issues. When Vaught died in 1989, Clinton served as a pallbearer.

Vaught was a leader in state and national Baptist circles. In 1955, Ouachita Baptist College, now Ouachita Baptist University (OBU), conferred on him an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree. In 1983, Immanuel members spearheaded the endowment of the W. O. Vaught Chair of Bible at OBU. He served on the board of trustees of OBU and the board of the Arkansas Baptist Home for Children. He also served as president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention (ABSC) and the ABSC Executive Board.

He served on various boards and programs within the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), including the Southern Baptist Pastors Conference, the Foreign Mission Board, and Building Committee for the SBC’s headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. Southern Baptists elected him vice president of the convention in 1960.

Following his retirement from Immanuel on April 17, 1983, Vaught continued to be active, writing and conducting Bible conferences across the nation. He authored three books, Believe Plus Nothing (1983), God’s Calendar (1984), and The Best Is Yet to Be (1985).

Vaught died on December 25, 1989, and is buried in Roselawn Memorial Park in Little Rock. Shortly after his death, WOVen Teaching Ministry was organized to preserve and perpetuate his ministry. The group placed his papers in the archives at Ouachita Baptist University in 1994.

For additional information:
“Minister and Bride Will Make Home Here after Rites June 26.” Greenville [South Carolina] News, June 21, 1936, p. 11.

Rogers, J. S. History of Arkansas Baptists. Little Rock: Arkansas Baptist State Convention, 1948.

Scudder, James. “Dr. W. O. Vaught Dies.” Arkansas Gazette, December 27, 1989, pp. 1A, 7A.

______. “1500 Mourn Death of Baptist Pastor.” Arkansas Gazette, December 29, 1989, p. 12B.

“‘Vaught Chair’ Is Endowed by His Church.” Arkansas Gazette, May 1, 1982, p. 4C.

W. O. Vaught Papers. Archives & Special Collections. Ouachita Baptist University, Arkadelphia, Arkansas.

“W. O. Vaught Sr. Rites Tomorrow.” Tennessean [Nashville], November 19, 1958, p. 24.

Lisa Speer
Ouachita Baptist University