| Earl West | |
| Birth Name: | Earl Irvin West |
| Birth Date: | 18 May 1920 |
| Birth Place: | Carmel, Indiana, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.[1] |
| Education: | Ph.D American History |
| Alma Mater: | Butler University Indiana University |
| Years Active: | 1949–2004 |
| Organization: | Harding School of Theology |
| Occupation: | Professor of church history |
| Known For: | American Restoration Movement history |
| Notable Works: | Search for the Ancient Order |
Earl Irvin West (May 18, 1920, Carmel, Indiana – February 4, 2011, Memphis, Tennessee) was a historian of the Restoration Movement.[2] He was known for his multivolume work Search for the Ancient Order, published incrementally from 1949 to 1993.[3] He was baptized by Hugo McCord in 1935. A graduate of Butler University, he received his Ph.D in American History at Indiana University. Although he lived in Indianapolis, Indiana, and was the minister for two different congregations, he also served for many years as professor of church history at Harding Graduate School of Religion in Memphis, Tennessee, now Harding School of Theology, commuting once a week to Memphis.[4] West founded Religious Book Service.
West attended Freed–Hardeman University, Abilene Christian University and Pepperdine University.[2]