A history of the Baptists in the southern states east of the Mississippi

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A HISTORY ( FEB g 191Q

OF THE ^^C^Cj;ir.f! ^^'X^^^^

BAPTISTS IN THE SOUTHERN STATES
EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI

BY
/

B. F. RILEY, D. D.

AUTHOR OF
'■'■Alabama As It Is,'''' "■History of the Baptists of Alabama,'''' etc.

" Different statements of truth, different forms of worship, an altered out-
ward life, there may be ; but the spiritual affections, the sense of duty, the
charity, the penitent trust, the divine desire, the hatred of wrong, the faith
in the unseen, which constitute true religion, belong to all generations."

S. L. Caldwell, D. D.

PHILADELPHIA

AMERICAN BAPTIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY

1420 Chestnut Street

1898

CopjTight 1898 by the
American Baptist Publication Society

iFrom tbe Society's own press

3Fot

DISINTERESTED KINDNESS, SUBSTANTIAL

SYMPATHY, AND FATHERLY COUNSEL

GIVEN WHEN MOST NEEDED BY MY

ELDEST BROTHER

z. fm. 1R.

TO HIM THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTION-
ATELY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR

PREFACE

In the preparation of this volume I have sought
to adhere as far as possible to the intention of the
series and to embrace as much as I could of the
history of the Baptist denomination within the dis-
trict indicated by the title. Throughout the vol-
ume, the relative importance of matter has con-
trolled the fullness or meagreness of detail with
which it has been treated. Because of the impossi-
bility of comprehending within a work of restricted
compass everything that might be of interest to the
general reader, the author has been forced to leave
untouched much valuable material.

It will be observed, from the plan of the work,
that the history has been gathered around the most
eventful epochs or periods that have distinguished
the annals of the Baptist denomination in the older
States of the South. The history has been un-
folded under such subjects as admit of easy applica-
tion to all the States alike. By means of such
treatment, the essential facts of a general denomina-
tional history of the States of the South, east of the
Mississippi, are easily presented.

Indebtedness is acknowledged mainly to such
works as : " The Minutes of the Southern Baptist

5

b PREFACE

Convention," from 1845 to the present time;
Cathcart's " Baptist Encyclopedia " ; Armitage's
" History of the Baptists " ; Semple's " History of
the Baptists of Virginia " ; Spencer's " History of
the Baptists of Kentucky " ; Paxton's " History of
the Baptists of Louisiana " ; Campbell's " History
of the Georgia Baptists," and Boykin's " History
of Georgia Baptists, with Biographical Compen-
dium"; Vedder's "Short History of the Baptists";
Newman's "American Church History (Baptists)";
Carroll's " Religious Forces of the United States,"
in the "American Church History Series" ; Cook's
"Story of the Baptists"; Hervey's "Story of Bap-
tist Missions " ; Tupper's " Foreign Missions of the
Southern Baptist Convention," also his "Decade of
Foreign Missions, 1880 to 1890" ; Taylor's "Vir-
ginia Baptist Ministers " ; Foster's " Mississippi
Baptist Preachers " ; Borum's " Baptist Preachers
of Tennessee " ; J. L. M. Curry's " Struggles
and Triumphs of Virginia Baptists" ; Broadus'
" Memoir of James P. Boyce," and Sampey's
" Southern Baptist Theological Seminary."

For special kindnesses shown, the author is in-
debted to Drs. Lansing Burrows, of Georgia, and
H. F. Sproles, of Mississippi, Mr. J. L. Furman,
of Louisiana, and the late W. G. Whilden, Esq.,

of South Carolina.

B. F. R.

University of Ga., Jan., 1898.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

I. Early Traces '. 9

II. Struggle for Freedom 50

III. Southern Baptists and the Revolution . . 80

IV. Denominational Expansion 110

V. Educational Work 131

VI. Divergent Views 165

VII. Interest in Missions Prior to the Separa-
tion 179

VIII. Formation of the Southern Baptist Con-
vention 199

IX. Work Under Changed Conditions .... 215

X. The Southern Baptist Theological Sem-
inary 241

XI. Sunday-school Work 266

XII. Collateral Agencies 285

XIII. Woman's Work 299

7

8 CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

XIV. Colored Baptists and their Work .... 310

XV. Conclusion 329

APPENDIX A.
Other Baptist Families 337

APPENDIX B.

Institutions for Women and Value of Prop-
erties 361

HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

CHAPTER I

EARLY TRACES

ABOUT the year 1682 a body of respectable
and well-to-do immigrants left their homes in
the southwestern portion of England, and under
the lead of Humphrey Blake, a brother of the fa-
mous British admiral, set sail for America, Land-
ing upon the Carolina coast near the present site
of Charleston, they proceeded a short distance up
Cooper River and built their temporary homes upon
its western bank. The respectability of these im-
migrants led so competent an authority as Gra-
hame, in his " Colonial History of the United
States," to denominate them a " most valuable addi-
tion " to the Carolina population. From the same
source we learn that Mr. Blake so generously shared
in the convictions of the dissenters, whose leader he
became, that he " devoted his fortune " to the fur-
therance of the scheme to emigrate to America in
order that they might escape threatened persecu-
tion, the terrors of which were not a little enhanced
by the apprehended accession of the Duke of York
to the throne.

9

10 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Among the colonists who landed near Charleston
was Joseph Blake, a nephew of the leader of the
party, who though not a Baptist, was nevertheless
in profound sympathy with the denomination in its
views respecting religious freedom. His wife, Lady
Blake, was a most earnest Baptist, as was also her
mother, Lady Axtell. Joseph Blake was destined
to play a conspicuous part in the future history of
the province. Already the friend and trustee of
Lord Berkeley, one of the lords-proprietors of the
province, he was afterward chosen, together with
Paul Grimball, a Baptist, and five others, to revise
"The Fundamental Constitution" originally framed
by the celebrated John Locke. The conduct of
Mr. Blake, from the beginning to the close of his
career as governor of the province, showed that he
was an uncompromising advocate of religious free-
dom.

About the time of the occurrence of the events
just noted, William Screven fled from Kittery,
Maine, with a party of persecuted folk and joined
the colony upon Cooper River. Indications favor
the presumption that it was the result of a mutual
understanding that these harmonious bodies of colo-
nists were thus brought together. One of the most
significant facts is that the locality of the combined
colonists was named Somerton. In his history of
the English Baptists, Ivimey mentions the congre-
gation at Somerton, in Somersetshire, England, as
co-operating with other congregations, in 1656, in

EARLY TRACES 11

publishing a Confession of Faith. This Confession
was signed by twenty-five persons, among whom
was William Screven, of Somerton. Twenty-five
years later we find William Screven at Kittery, on
the Piscataqua River, in Maine, engaged in holding
religious meetings in his own house. There is little
doubt of the identity of the William Screven of
Old England with that of New England.

Subjected to a vigorous persecution, Mr. Screven
left New England for the South and reached
Charleston about the close of 1682. To a constitu-
tion and subscription of a church covenant adopted
at Kittery, September 25, 1682, the First Church
of Charleston traces its origin. The earliest avail-
able records indicate that the settlement of the
colony under Screven at Charleston, was regarded
as being only a transfer of the seat of worship of
the persecuted flock which had been gathered on
the Piscataqua. In a historical sketch of the First
Church of Charleston, which was inserted in the
original minute book of the Charleston Association,
it is particularly stated that most of the members
came with William Screven from the Piscataqua re-
gion. These Baptists on Cooper River, derived
partly from England and partly from Maine, were
the first to settle in the South. The strong proba-
bility is that while they observed social worship in
some form at Somerton, their seasons of stated wor-
ship were held Sunday after Sunday in Charleston.

Every Sunday morning the families of the Som-

12 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

erton settlement would descend the river in their
boats, following the outgoing tide, spend a large por-
tion of the day worshiping in Charleston, and in the
afternoon row leisurely back up the river to their
homes. The time for beginning worship in the
morning was made to depend upon the capricious
subsidence of the tide, and it was as liable to take
place at high noon as at ten o'clock. Prior to the
erection of a meeting-house in Charleston, worship
was held "at the house of one William Chapman
on King Street." There is little doubt that the
Baptists were the first to erect a church edifice in
Charleston.

Naturally enough William Screven became the
pastor of the original Baptist church established by
the combined colonists at Somerton and thereabouts.
He served in this capacity until 1706, when he re-
tired to the head of Winyaw Bay, purchased land
and built a home where Georgetown now is, and
though quite an old man, continued to labor as a
missionary in the destitute settlements about him.
Upon the retirement of Mr. Screven from the pas-
torate of the church, a preacher from England,
named White, was called to succeed him. Mr.
White's pastoral career at Charleston was a brief
one, for he soon died. In their perplexity, the
membership turned again to their venerable ex-
pastor for a supply. About the same time Mr.
Screven received a call from the First Church of
Boston, to which he made reply, "Our minister

EARLY TRACES 13

that came from England is dead, and I can by no
means be spared." In spite of the infirmities of
age, Mr. Screven served the church seven years
longer, and died October 10, 1713, at the age of
eighty-four.

Shortly after the colony under Humphrey Blake
left England, another under the direction of Lord
Cardross, a nobleman from the north of England,
came to Carolina, bringing with him a company of
North Britons, most of whom were Baptists, and
settled at Port Royal Island. But encountering the
hostility of the neighboring Indians and especially
that of the Spanish settlement at St. Augustine,
they removed their residence some time before 1686
to the mouth of the Edisto River.^ Many of these
became members of the First Church of Charles-
ton, thereby greatly increasing its strength and effi-
ciency.

In 1700 the population of Charleston and the
adjacent region numbered about five thousand five
hundred, the larger portion of which was within
the city proper. At that date all the facilities for
divine worship and all the schools connected with
the province were confined to the limits of Charles-
ton. The outlying population afforded an excellent
field for missionary labor, and right zealously was
the opportunity seized upon by the Baptists, who
were the pioneers of missions in South Carolina.

^Hewit, "History of South Carolina and Georgia," Vol. I.,
p. 89.

14 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

The English Society for the Propagation of the
Gospel in Foreign Parts did not enter this field
until 1707, but wherever their representatives went
they found that they had been preceded by the Bap-
tists.^

At the period of Mr. Screven's death there was
in the Carolina province a population of about fif-
teen thousand, fully one-half of which was slaves.
The virgin soil was productive of the most gratify-
ing harvests, the forests yielded an abundance of
the finest timbers for distant markets, the woods
abounded in game, and the streams and seas were
filled with excellent fish. Industry and thrift in
commercial quarters were equaled only by the dili-
gence of the local missionary.

William Peartt, who was second in the order of
pastoral succession to Screven, was a most assidu-
ous and enterprising advocate of church extension.
He was pastor of the church at Charleston for a
period of ten years, during which time he was in-
strumental in the erection of houses of worship on
Edisto Island, on Ashley River, and in Stono, six-
teen miles distant from Charleston.^

As opportunity would offer, the Charleston pastor
would minister to these mission stations in person,
or else authorize some of its gifted members to do
80. In this way William Tilley, first as a licen-
tiate of the mother church in Charleston, and after-

1 Humphrey, pp. 88, 95, 108, etc.
^Manly, " Two Centuries," p. 94.

EARLY TRACES 15

ward as an ordained minister, rendered valuable
service on Edisto Island. None of these stations
became organized churches until some years after
this period.

Virginia. — Although Virginia was settled as
early as 1607, a Baptist church was not organized
until 1714, more than a century afterward. That
there were Baptists scattered throughout some por-
tions of Virginia seems quite clear. There were
dissenters in the province as early as 1648, but it is
claimed that they were for the most part Congre-
gationalists.' In the Assembly of 1661-62, there
was an act passed which seems to have been di-
rected against the Baptists :

Whereas, Many schismatical persons, out of their
aversion to the orthodox established rehgion, or out of
the newfangled conceits of their own heretical inventions,
refuse to have their children baptized,

Be it therefore Enacted, That all persons that in con-
tempt of the divine sacrament of baptism, shall refuse
when they may carry their child. to a lawful minister in
that county, to have them baptized, shall be amerced
two thousand pounds of tobacco, half to the informer,
half to the public.

Notwithstanding the English Act of Toleration
was adopted in 1689, it did not become operative in
Virginia for twenty years. When the provisions of
the Act began to assume practical shape, in the
early years of the eighteenth century, the Baptists

'Newman, " American Church History," Vol. II., p. 229.

16 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

of the province began to show themselves, espe-
cially in the Isle of Wight.

Responding to the first note of encouragement, a
small body of Baptists in Isle of Wight County
appealed to the London Association for missionaries.
Two missionaries, Robert Nordin and Thomas
White, were sent out from London in response to
this demonstration from Virginia, but the latter of
these died before he reached the shores of America.
Mr. Nordin, however, reached the province safely,
and at once threw himself zealously into the work
of evangelization. In anticipation of the advent
of pastors from England, a body of Baptists seemed
already to have been formed at Burleigh, on the
south bank of the James. The constitution of the
church, which is now known as Mill Swamp, was
promptly effected, the organization taking place in
1714. Later, Nordin was reinforced from England
by two other missionaries, Messrs. Jones and Mintz.
From Burleigh, in the county of Isle of Wight,
these ardent missionaries crossed over into the
county of Surrey, and constituted another church
at Branden. This is believed to be the same which
is known to-day as Otterdam's Church.

About 1743 Baptist missionaries from Maryland
entered the northern portion of Virginia, which was
now becoming thickly populated. The prime
movers in this evangelistic undertaking are sup-
posed to have been Edmund Hays and Thomas
Yates, of the Sater's Baptist Church, Maryland.

EARLY TRACES 17

In the midst of the expanding settlements in Berk-
ley, London, and Rockingham counties, these Mary-
land missionaries found a fruitful field for evan-
gelistic effort. These ministers were succeeded in
this portion of Virginia by Revs. Loveall, Heton,
and Garrard, the last named of whom removed from
Pennsylvania in 1754. With consuming zeal they
went from house to house in the different settle-
ments delivering the message of salvation. As
opportunity would offer they would appoint occa-
sions for holding public services, which were almost
invariably attended with remarkable demonstrations
of interest. Not infrequently persons would ride
the distance of forty miles in order to hear the gos-
pel. Vast crowds would assemble under the shades
of wide-spreading trees, bush arbors, and even
under spacious stock sheds, in order to listen to
preaching. As a result of this missionary energy,
Opecon, Mill Creek, Ketocton, and other churches
along the northern border were constituted and
promptly became members of the Philadelphia
Association.

At this period two valuable accessions were
gained from the Pedobaptists in the persons of Shu-
bael Stearns and Daniel Marshall. Mr. Stearns
came to the Baptists from the New Lights, or Sepa-
rates, and was converted under the preaching of
Whitefield about the year 1740. As a New Light
he engaged in preaching for a number of vears,
when his attention was directed to the examination

18 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

of the New Testament upon the matter of baptism.
The result led to the renunciation of his former
views and to his union with a Baptist church. He
was immersed by Wait Palmer, at Tolland, Con-
necticut, on May 20, 1751, and was at once or-
dained to the work of the ministry. After contin-
uing for a brief period in New England, Mr.
Stearns removed to Virginia, where he labored in
the counties of Berkley and Hampshire. Subse-
quently he settled in Guilford County, North Caro-
lina, where we shall have occasion to hear of him at
a later period.

Daniel Marshall was reared a Presbyterian, in the
ranks of which denomination he served as deacon
for a period of nearly twenty years. Brought under
the influence of Whitefield's preaching, he was fired
with new zeal and earnestly craved the opportunity
of breaking the bread of life to the Mohawk In-
dians near the headwaters of the Susquehanna, He
undertook a mission to the Indians, but hostilities
among the savage tribes prompted his removal to
Connogogig, Pennsylvania, and thence to a point
near Winchester, Virginia. Being led to an impar-
tial investigation of the faith and order of the Bap-
tists, he became united with a Baptist church, was
immersed, and straightway licensed to preach. Like
Stearns, he tarried for a period in Virginia, then
moved toward the South and settled at Hugwarry,
North Carolina. Marshall was a brother-in-law to
Stearns.

EARLY TRACES 19

The earliest Baptist churches of Virginia, like
most of those first organized in the South, were
deeply infected with Arminianism. This was due
to the fact that many of the earliest preachers in
the South came direct from England and were the
exponents of the principles of the General Baptists
of Great Britain. While the ordinances of baptism
and the Lord's Supper were stoutly insisted upon
by these early preachers, faith and conversion were
not demanded as prerequisites.

To the Philadelphia Association the Baptists of
the South are chiefly indebted for a correction of
this laxness in doctrine. This Association deputed
Benjamin Miller and Peter P. Vanhorn to travel
southward among the Baptist churches " and to set
things in order among them." By some, these men
of God were received with distrustfulness, but gen-
erally they were most cordially welcomed by the
churches, and listened to with marked attention.
The result of their protracted tour through the
States of the South was a general abandonment of
flabbiness of practice and an adoption of the views
of the Regular Baptists.

Maryland. — When we turn to Maryland to
seek for the first traces of the Baptists in that
province, we find a condition of affairs entirely dif-
ferent from that which exists in the province oi
Virginia. In Maryland, the earliest Baptists were
favored with far greater freedom than was enjoyed

20 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

by their brethren on the west side of the Potomac.
The civil and religious spirit of that early period
finds expression in an enactment of the Assembly
of Maryland in 1649 :

That no persons professing to believe in Jesus Christ
shall be molested in the respect of their religion, or the
free exercise thereof, or be compelled to the belief or
practice of any other religion against their consent, so
that they be not unfaithful to the proprietary, or conspire
against civil government. That persons molesting any
other in respect of his religious tenets shall pay treble
damages to the party aggrieved and twenty to the pro-
prietary. That the reproaching any with opprobrious
epithets of religious distinctions shall forfeit ten shill-
ings to the person aggrieved. That any one speaking
reproachfully against the Blessed Virgin, or the Apos-
tles, shall forfeit five pounds, but blasphemy against
God shall be punished with death. ^

At the time of the enactment of this law, Mary-
land was under Roman Catholic domination. It is
a matter of surprise to find expressed such liberal
sentiments toward dissenters. This becomes more
remarkable still when we bear in mind that at this
time the Baptists were stoutly opposing the en-
croachments of Rome in different portions of Mary-
land. In 1709 a representative of the General
Baptists, named Henry Sater's, reached Maryland
from England and interested himself at once in the
propagation of Baptist principles. The result of
his labors was the constitution of a church at Chest-
iChalmer, "Political Annals," Vol. I., p. 218.

EARLY TRACES 21

nut Ridge, in 1742, which was the first Baptist
church founded in Maryland. This church, to
which was given the name Sater's, is located
about ten miles north of Baltimore, where worship
is maintained to the present time. The church
thrived almost from the beginning, the membership
increasing so rapidly that within twelve years after
its constitution it was enabled to send forth a colony
to organize a church at Winter Run, in Harford
County. This church, which bore the name of Har-
ford, was ministered to by Rev. John Davis, who
died in 1809, greatly honored for his works' sake.
The members of the Sater's Church manifested
considerable missionary zeal in the early portion of
its history in bringing about the organization of
Baptist churches in the northern portion of Vir-
ginia. Its later history, however, has not been so
prosperous because of a defectiveness in faith which
has well-nigh sapped its life. Very soon after the
organization of these two churches, Baptist interests
in Maryland began to drift toward the city of Balti-
more. The First Baptist Church of that city was
organized on January 15, 1785. Its original mem-
bers, only eleven in number, were a colony from
the Harford Church, with the exception of the pas-
tor, Rev. Lewis Richards. The Harford Church
was the parent also of two other organizations, the
churches at Taneytown and Gunpowder. The Sec-
ond Church of Baltimore was constituted by Rev.
John Healey, in 1797. Two years previous to this.

22 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Mr. Healey, in company with five others, came from
England to Baltimore. This eminently useful man
of God enjoyed the rare distinction of being pastor
of the same church for the period of more than
fifty years. He also enjoyed the honor of organ-
izing the first Baptist Sunday-school in Maryland,
and indeed in the South. Almost from the begin-
ning, Baptist interests in Maryland were centered
in the city of Baltimore.

North Carolina. — The exact date of the first
settlement of Baptists in North Carolina, we have
no means of knowing. In his " History of North
Carolina," Moore gives the date of 1653 as being
that of the advent of Baptists into the province.
Without indicating the period of their first appear-
ance in North Carolina, Morgan Edwards, who is
excellent authority, states that there ^vere Baptists
in the province in 1695, and Doctor Hawks, the
Episcopal church historian, mentions the names of
a number of Baptists in the eastern counties of
North Carolina in connection with a period preced-
ing the eighteenth century. The question of their
first entrance into the province has given rise to
much speculation. The suggestion is not without
basis of reason that Baptist churches existed in
North Carolina before they did in Virginia. The
religious liberty enjoyed by the inhabitants of
North Carolina exceeded that of many other colo-
nies. While this freedom so wddely and whole-

EARLY TRACES 23

somely prevailed in this province, the dissenters of
Virginia were sternly repressed by the dominating
establishment and by statutes that were cruel and
exacting. The Carolinas were not divided until
1729, and yet we find Baptists at Charleston as
early as 1683, almost a half-century before. Is it
probable that a region so inviting as was North
Carolina would have been neglected by Baptists
while they flourished on the same coast both north
and south, in the one instance for almost fifty years
and in the other nearly a decade and a half, and
under the most oppressive conditions ? Still we are
not able to find an organic body of Baptists in
North Carolina earlier than 1727, at which time a
church, said to be the first, was constituted on
Chowan River in Perquimans County by the Rev.
Paul Palmer. It has usually been assumed that the
North Carolina Baptists were emigrants from Vir-
ginia when, for reasons already given, a reversal of
the presumption would be more credible. For from
the period when the church was established upon
the Chowan to 1755, a period of twenty-eight years,
the prosperity of the North Carolina Baptists was
phenomenal. They not only grew rapidly in num-
bers, but they were remarkably aggressive. Dur-
ing the same period the Baptists of tidewater Vir-
ginia were a struggling and unprogressive folk.

Paul Palmer, the reputed " father of the Baptists
of North Carolina," hailed from the Welsh Tract
Church, Pennsylvania, and was a correspondent of

24 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

John Comer, of Newport, R. I. The probability is
not without strength that this remarkable man was
attracted to North Carolina because of the unmo-
lested enjoyment of freedom on the part of the
Baptists of that region.

Like those of the colonies already noticed, save
that of South Carolina, the Baptists of North Caro-
lina were General Baptists who held that the pro-
visions of the gospel were general in their nature.
Screven and his followers at Charleston were Par-
ticular Baptists, or Calvinists, who held rigidly to
the doctrines of predestination and particular elec-
tion. AVlien in 1728 the tide was turned against
the General Baptists, who had hitherto prevailed,
and the Particular Baptists assumed denominational
direction in America, which result was largely due
to Whitefield and the Calvinists, Philadelphia and
Charleston became two great centers of Calvinistic
influence. We have already noticed the action
taken by the Philadelphia Association in commis-
sioning Miller and Vanhorn to travel southward to
correct the evils growing out of the Arminian prin-
ciples held by the General Baptists. Tliis action
was taken by the Philadelphia Association in the
autumn of 1755. The Charleston Association had
taken the same step in the spring of 1755 when
that body sent John Gano and Robert Williams
upon the same mission. The combined efforts of
these evangelistic commissioners were eminently
successful. The year 1755 marks the date of the

EARLY TEACES 25

reformation of the Baptist churches of North Caro-
lina.

The church formed by Palmer in 1727 was fol-
lowed by the constitution of the Meherrin Church
by Joseph Parker in 1729, and by the organization
of another at Sandy Run in 1740, which was made
up of a colony from the Meherrin Church, and by
still another under the auspices of William So-
journer in 1742, in Halifax County. Ten years
later w^e find that the number of churches had in-
creased to sixteen.

When Gano, Williams, Miller, and Vanhorn
reached North Carolina they found the Baptist
churches in a most deplorable condition. To bap-
tism and the Lord's Supper were added, as of about
equal authority, the rites of love-feasts, laying on
of hands after baptism, washing of feet, anointing
the sick, the right hand of fellowship, the kiss of
charity, and the public consecration of children
without christening. Induced by degrees to aban-
don these doctrinal appendages, the churches were
ultimately persuaded to adopt the London Confes-
sion of Faith.

The stoutest opponent of this reformatory move-
ment was Joseph Parker, who, in the lead of the
Meherrin Church, vehemently protested against the
adoption of the views of the Particular Baptists.
But with such overwhelming power did the reforma-
tion proceed, that even as doughty an opponent as
Parker succumbed, and Calvinism was permanently

26 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

established among the Baptist churches of North
Carolina. Special distinction is to be accorded to
the Baptists of this province because of their rela-
tion to the prestige enjoyed by the denomination in
the South.

Under the leadership of Shubael Stearns and
Daniel Marshall, North Carolina became the center
and power of influence of the great movement for
liberty on the part of the Separate Baptists. This
spirit of freedom which came to pervade the ranks
of the denomination throughout South Carolina,
Georgia, Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, ema-
nated from the counties of Guilford, Randolph, and
Orange, in North Carolina, where lived and labored
Daniel Marshall and Shubael Stearns. The fact
must not be overlooked that it was the Separate
Baptists who bore the brunt of the long and terri-
ble struggle waged for religious freedom on the part
of the Baptists of the South.

Georgia. — While Baptist principles were mak-
ing initial headway in Maryland, Virginia, and the
Carolinas, seed was being sown by diligent hands in
the province of Georgia.

In January, 1733, an English ship, with thirty-
four families containing one hundred and twenty-
six persons, touched at Charleston, South Carolina.
The passengers on board this good ship "Anne,"
were under the direction of James Oglethorpe,
whose destination was the yet unoccupied territory

EARLY TRACES 27

of Georgia, which was still unnamed except in the
sealed charter in the possession of Oglethorpe.
From Charleston the vessel conveyed the party of
colonists to the present site of Savannah, where
they established their first homes in these primitive
wilds. Among the original inhabitants of Georgia
were a few Baptists, who upon arrival were dispersed
here and there without the formation of a church.
Among the Baptists who first reached this new
province were William Calvert, AVilliam Slack,
Thomas Walker, Nathaniel Polhill, John Dunham,
and Sarah Clancy, of whom the last two named ac-
companied Oglethorpe. This number was grad-
ually increased by accessions from England and
from the northern colonies of America.

The original settlement of Georgia was based
upon the idea of benevolence. Oglethorpe pro-
posed to found in these Western wilds an asylum
for the poor but respectable Englishmen, in wdiich
plan he was supported by an association of his
countrymen. In order to provide for the penniless
children in these inhospitable wilds, it was pro-
posed privately by John Wesley and James Ogle-
thorpe to erect an orphans' home in the neighbor-
hood of Savannah. For some reason the project
was never undertaken by these worthy gentlemen,
but in 1740 Whitefield established such an asylum
at Savannah. It was this enterprise which evoked
from Rev. Mr. Lewis, of Margate, England, the
sneering remark, " There are descendants of the

28 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Moravian Anabaptists in the new plantation of
Georgia." No formal declaration of Baptist prin-
ciples was heard from the colony, however, until
some years later. In 1751, a young Englishman,
who was just twenty-one years of age, was made the
superintendent of the Whitefield Orphan Home.
In the person of Superintendent Bedgewood were
combined the elements of a good classical education
and the gifts of an effective speaker. Shortly after
his assumption of the superintendency of the
Orphan Home, Nicholas Bedgewood was led to
embrace Baptist sentiments, but it was not until
1757 that he made a public profession of faith.
Doubtless this was due to the fact that there was no
Baptist church at this period in the province of
Georgia. But during the year named, 1757, we
find him going to Charleston and requesting bap-
tism at the hands of Oliver Hart, who at that time
was pastor of the First Baptist Church of that city.
His ordination to the ministry following two years
later, we find Mr. Bedgewood preaching, as he had
opportunity, in the region of the Orphan Home.
In 1763 he began to gather in the fruits of his
labors, for during that year he baptized a number
of candidates, among whom was Benjamin Stirk,
who afterward became a useful minister. It is most
likely that Mr. Bedgewood was authorized by the
First Church of Charleston, of which he was a
member, to administer the ordinances to such as
professed faith in Christ under his preaching. It

EAELY TRACES 29

was a custom of the early Baptist churches of the
South to make incursions into unevangelized regions,
as the colonists would continue to increase, and es-
tablish what was known as " branch churches."
These mission posts were nursed by the parent or-
ganization until they became sufficiently strong for
independent existence.

After his baptism Mr. Stirk began to preach
and proved a most zealous and successful mission-
ary. Removing to Tuckaseeking, twenty miles into
the interior, he preached to such as he could gather
from time to time into his own house. Having be-
come a member of the Euhaw Church, on the Caro-
lina side of the Savannah River, he was not long in
establishing a mission station at Tuckaseeking,
which became a " branch " of that church. Mr.
Stirk spent the remainder of his life in this region,
preaching w4th unabated zeal until his death in
1770.

The little band of Baptists at Tuckaseeking hav-
ing learned, the following year, that Mr. Botsford,
a licentiate from the First Church, Charleston, was
visiting the Euhaw Church, sent an invitation to him
to visit them. Accompanied by Rev. Francis Pelot,
who was at that time pastor of the Euhaw Church,
Mr. Botsford visited the little flock and preached to
them on June 27, 1771. He was a missionar\^
who was laboring under the auspices of the First
Church, Charleston, but it seems that up to this
time his evang-elistic effijrts had been confined to the

30 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

eastern side of the Savannah. Being pressed by
the isolated band at Tuckaseeking to abide with
them, he consented to serve them for the period of
a year by being permitted to give a portion of his
time to preaching to the settlements on both sides
of the river.

While the cause was being thus nourished in the
southern portion of the province, an interest was
being developed on the eastern border in the neigh-
borhood of Augusta. Rev. Daniel Marshall, who
had been baptized thirty-five years before at Win-
chester, Virginia, and who had spent most of the
intervening period in North Carolina, was prompted
by apostolic zeal to follow the tide of civilization
westward, and had settled on Kiokee Creek, about
twenty miles northwest of Augusta. Previous to
his settlement in Georgia, he had lingered for a
while at Horse Creek, South Carolina, whence he
had made several visits to the settlements on the
west side of the Savannah, preaching as he could,
sometimes in outhouses, and at others under the
great trees of the forest. On one occasion, while
conducting religious service in a grove and while
upon his knees offering the opening prayer, he was
suddenly interrupted by a heavy hand being laid
upon his shoulder with the exclamation, " You are
my prisoner!" Rising from the posture of devo-
tion, the venerable man of God, with benignant face
and snow-white hair, stood front to front with a
stern officer of the law. The devout preacher was

EARLY TRACES 31

informed that he was a transgressor of the law in
that he had " preached in the parish of St. Paul ! "
In brief, Mr. Marshall had violated the enactment
of 1758 which provided that worship in the colony-
should be " according; to the rites and ceremonies of
the Church of England." Thereupon he was forced
to give security for his appearance in Augusta on
the following Monday to answer for a violation of
the law. Having undergone his trial with meekness
and patience he was ordered to leave the province of
Georgia and to visit it no more in the capacity of
a preacher. With fervor and stern courage he
boldly replied, " Whether it be right to obey God
or man, judge ye " ; and fearlessly disregarding the
existing statute, the prisoner-preacher continued
persistently to proclaim the gospel.^ The sequel of
the scene of the arrest was that of honest indigna-
tion on the part of all present, to which sentiment
Mrs. Marshall gave earnest expression with solemn
denunciation of the law, quoting with fluency pas-
sage after passage of Scripture. The stern consta-
ble, Samuel Cartlege, was so impressed by the in-
spired words to which she gave utterance, that he
was pricked to the heart, and was ultimately led to
Christ. Five years later Mr. Marshall baptized
this same constable, and afterward he so commended
himself that he became a deacon of the church at
Kiokee. Later still, Mr. Cartlege was ordained a

1 Sketch by Rev. Abraham Marshall, "Analytical Reposi-
tory," 1802.

32 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

preacher, and for half a century zealously proclaimed
the gospel.

The Kiokee Church was the first regularly organ-
ized Baptist church in the province of Georgia.
Its constitution took place in 1772 under the fol-
lowing Act of incorporation :

An Act for incorporating the Anabaptist church on the

Kioka, in the county of Richmond.

Whereas, A religious society has, for many years past,
been established on the Kioka, in the count}' of Rich-
mond, called and known by the name of "The Anabap-
tist church on Kioka" :

Be it Enacted, That Abraham Marshall, William Will-
ingham, Edmund Cartlege, John Landers, James
Simmes, Joseph Ray, and Lewis Gardener be, and they
are hereby declared to be, a body corporated, by the
name and style of "The Trustees of the Anabaptist
church on Kioka."

And be it further Enacted, That the trustees (here the
names already given are repeated) of the said Anabap-
tist church shall hold their office for the term of three
years ; and on the third Saturday of November in every
third year, after the passing of this Act, the supporters
of the gospel in said church shall convene at the meet-
ing-house of said church, and there between the hours
of ten and four elect from among the supporters of the
gospel in said church seven discreet persons as Trustees,
etc.

Seaborn Jones, Speaker.

Nathan Brownson, President Senate.

Edmund Telfair, Governor.
December 23, 1789.1

^Watkin's "Digest," p. 409, and "Digest" of Marbury and
Crawford, p. 143.

EARLY TRACES 33

Mr. Marshall became the first pastor of the
church and continued his labors in connection with
it until his death. Contemporaneous with Mr.
Marshall as true yoke-fellows were Sanders Walker,
Solomon Thompson, and Alexander Scott.

At first the early Baptists of Georgia were some-
what annoyed by the diiFerences which existed be-
tween the General and Regular Baptists, but these
differences were eventually settled by casting out
the Arminian features of the General Baptists.

Kentucky. — When we consider the earliest
traces of the Baptists of Kentucky, we discover
that they were the first actual settlers of that terri-
tory. These pioneer Baptists came over from
North Carolina. A brother of the archetype of the
hunter and wilderness wanderer, Daniel Boone, was
a Baptist preacher.

When the daring Boones ventured across the
AUeghanies which walled off the West and boldly
invaded the beautiful and fertile regions beyond,
they found that " it was a fair and smiling land of
groves and glades and running waters, where the
open forests grew tall and beautiful, and where in-
numerable herds of game grazed, wandering care-
lessly to and fro along the trails they had trodden
during countless generations." So far as the mem-
bers of the household of the Boones were Chris-
tians, they were Baptists, though the great Indian
fighter was never a member of any church.

c

34 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

The first Baptist preacher who entered Kentucky
before the settlements began, excepting 'Squire
Boone, was Thomas Tinsley. He was doubtless the
first to preach the gospel in the region of " the dark
and bloody ground," and, so far as can be ascer-
tained, was the first to preach in all the region of
the West.^ It is not known from what quarter
Tinsley came, though it is supposed that he re-
moved from Virginia. William Hickman and
George Stokes Smith who became conspicuous in
the early annals of Kentucky Baptists, removed
from Virginia and settled in the new territory in
1776. Mr. Hickman was not a preacher until
some time after his arrival. He was induced by
Thomas Tinsley to enter the sacred work, and
proved to be one of the most active and efficient
ministers of the early Baptist preachers of Ken-
tucky. Among the colonists who continued to cross
the mountains to make their homes in Kentucky
was a goodly sprinkling of Baptists. Like their
fellow-pioneers they Avere partly actuated by a dar-
ing spirit and partly lured by the fertility and
grandeur of this newly discovered region.

Unlike most of the regions first settled by the
whites in the South, Kentucky was not occupied by
the Indians except as a common hunting-ground
for the tribes which inhabited the domains north
and south of it. At certain seasons roving war par-
ties or hunting bands from beyond the Ohio and the

1 Spenser, " History of Kentucky Baptists," Vol. I., p. 13.

EARLY TRACES 35

Tennessee would visit this attractive section. Nat-
urally enough these wild tribes met with deter-
mined and bloody opposition the intrusion of the
white settlers upon their favorite hunting-grounds.
For the space of twenty years a perpetual conflict
was waged between the two races. Depredations
of every possible character prevailed. Crops w^ere
destroyed, stock was killed or driven off, homes
were pillaged and burned, and the inhabitants
cruelly butchered. Lurking savages would spring
from the most unsuspected quarters to wreak their
vengeance upon the whites. This perhaps is suffi-
cient explanation of the fact that though Kentucky
was settled as early as 1774, it was not until 1781
that a church was constituted. The disturbed con-
dition of the region was such that it was impossible
for the settlers to assemble without serious inter-
ference from the savages.

On June 18, 1781, eighteen Baptists met in the
wilderness under a greeii sugar-tree and constituted
the first church in Kentucky, and indeed in the en-
tire West. This church, which w^as named Severn's
Valley Church, was constituted by Rev. Joseph
Barnett, of Virginia. Rev. John Gerrard was at
once chosen pastor. A few weeks later, on July 4,
1781, came the organization of Cedar Creek Church,
and a little later still this was follow^ed by the con-
stitution of Gilbert's Creek Church. The spirit of
church organization spread rapidly. It was not
long before every populous community was favored

36 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

with the presence of a Baptist churcli. This served
to accelerate immigration from the okler sections of
the South into this favored region.

At first the places of worship of these pioneer
saints were primitive enough. During the milder
seasons, they were God's own temples, the groves,
while during the cold or rainy periods of the year
the rude dwellings of the pioneers were the meeting-
places of these plain but pious worshipers. Imagine
a structure built of round logs of uneven size and
length, and sheltered partly with the skins of wild
animals, and partly with broad strips of bark, and
one has a conception of the home common to the
first settlers of Kentucky. No tools, no implements
of industry could be had, save an occasional long-
handled, light-headed frontier axe. It being impos-
sible to obtain lumber, wooden floors were out of the
question, hence these clumsy houses were built flat
upon the ground, and mother earth was the floor.
The furniture within partook of the roughness which
prevailed without. In these rude cabins the hardy
settlers of Kentucky lived, and for many years wor-
shiped. Surrounded by brute and human foes, they
owed their lives to sleepless vigilance and resolute
hearts. Within these cabin homes the primitive
worshipers would gather, while one or more would
keep sentinel at the door dividing attention between
the message of the preacher and the surrounding
forest.

The garb of the primitive worshipers was equally

EAELY TRACES 37

as rude as their dwellings. In a region where
the arts were scant, recourse w^as had to any means,
however ludicrous, for covering the body. The
men made up their wardrobes partly from In-
dian costume, from whatever material came within
reach. Leather leggings, moccasins, coats and vests
of skins of animals with the fur turned inward,
caps of soft fur taken from the buifalo and rolled
about flexible strips of wood and tied with leather
thongs to hold the parts together — these constituted
the ordinary garb of the first Kentucky settlers.
The garb of the women was even more rude and
grotesque, if possible, than that of the men. Their
quaintly cut garments were entirely of dressed buf-
falo hides and deer skins.

Besides those whose names have already been
mentioned, there were conspicuous in these early
annals of Baptist history in Kentucky, William
Marshall, who was among the first Baptist preachers
to become a permanent resident of the territory,
Benjamin Lynn, John AVhitaker, and James Skaggs.
At the close of the year 1780 there were only six
Baptist preachers in Kentucky. Indeed, they were
the only preachers in the territory, for the Baptists,
for a period of years, were without a rival in this
newly inhabited district. The spirit of the early
Kentucky churches was seriously impaired by the
infection of Arminianism, which was introduced by
the General Baptists. The laxness engendered by
such a spirit was greatly enhanced by the gross im-

38 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHEEX STATES

moralities which seemed to prevail throughout the
circuit of settlements of the new region. While
there were more than twenty thousand inhabitants
in the territory, no one had as yet been received
into a Baptist church upon profession of faith. It
was not because the early ministry was "wanting in
diligence, for they traversed the region in all direc-
tions, preaching as they went. It was a period of
gross disorder which was to be followed by a reac-
tion in 1785, such as has rarely been witnessed in
the history of Christianity.

Tennessee. — Doubtless the Baptists Avho moved
first into Tennessee were refugees from North Caro-
lina and came as fugitives from the battle of Al-
amance— the precursor of the revolutionary struggle.
At any rate we find that Baptists were in East Ten-
nessee prior to 1770. These pioneer Baptists are
said to have founded two churches, but they were
driven out by the Indians about 1774. It was
equally true of Tennessee as of Kentucky, that Bap-
tists were the first Christians within the territory,
and were the first to proclaim the gospel in that
wild region. No definite information earlier than
1781 can be obtained from existing records concern-
ing the early occupation of Tennessee by the Bap-
tists. At that time there were as many as six
churches in the territory, the associational connec-
tion of which was across the border in North Caro-
lina. Indeed five of that number were members of

EARLY TRACES 39

the Sandy Creek Association in the province of
North Carolina. In 1786 we find these early
churches acting in connection with a few others in
the constitution of the Holston Association. We
gather from Asplund's Register for 1790, that at
that time the churches of the Holston Association
had a membership of eight hundred and eighty-
nine. Ten years later, the same Association em-
braced thirty-seven churches, the total membership
of which was two thousand five hundred. The in-
crease of Baptist strength was commensurate with
the growth of the population in the territory.

Writing of these early times in Tennessee, and
commenting upon the pioneer Baptist preachers of
that period, James R. Gilmore (Edmund Kirke) in
his " John Sevier as a Commonwealth Builder,"
says : " Their theory of morals was condensed into
one phrase, ' Thus saith the Lord.' What he com-
mands is right ; what he forbids is wrong ; and the
Bible is his infallible word. A faith, how simple,
and yet how sublime ! "

Impelled by a common motive, it was not unusual
for an entire church membership to emigrate bodily
from Virginia, or the Carolinas, into the new and
inviting region of Tennessee. After locating in a
given portion of the country and after providing
rude shelters for their families, the next care of the
colonists was to erect a place of worship at some
convenient point. Here, as elsewhere, in the pio-
neer regions of the South, the cramped quarters of

40 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

winter worship were abandoned for the freedom of
the groves when the warmth of springtime came.

During the week the preachers would till the
soil, and on Sunday occupy the pulpits. Among
the first preachers who came into the Territory of
Tennessee were Tidance Lane, who had been bap-
tized in North Carolina by Shubael Stearns, James
Keel, Thomas Murrell, Messrs. Mott and Talbott,
Isaac Barton, William Murphey, John Chastine,
and William Reno, all of whom came either from
Virginia or North Carolina.

While the Baptist standard was being planted in
East Tennessee, consecrated missionaries, such as
Ambrose Dudley and John Taylor, from Kentucky,
were operating in the middle and western portions
of the new territory. It was chiefly through the
agency of these missionaries that the first churches,
the Red River and Sulphur Fork, were constituted
in Tennessee.

Mississippi. — In 1780 seven Baptist families
emigrated from South Carolina to the Mississippi
Territory and settled at the mouth of Cole's Creek,
about twenty miles above Natchez. These daring
emigrants hailed from the region of the Great Pedce
River, South Carolina, where since the beginning of
the Revolution they had been special objects of
vengeance to the Tory raiders, in consequence of
their loyalty to the cause of freedom. Not only
were the homes of these devoted sons of liberty

EARLY TRACES 41

frequently plundered, but they themselves were
hunted by the Tories from their hiding-places in the
swamps of the Great Pedee. Attracted partly by
the reports of the fabulous fertility of the soils in
the Natchez region, and partly by the fact that they
would enjoy exemption from the perpetual harass-
ments of such a wily foe as the Tories of South
Carolina, they turned their faces westward. At the
head of this intrepid band of pilgrims was Richard
Curtis, Sr. Making their way overland to the Hol-
ston River, they constructed boats in which to sail
down the Tennessee, Ohio, and Mississippi rivers to
their destination just above Natchez. After en-
countering hostile tribes of red men on the route, in
consequence of which several of the party were
killed, the survivors finally reached the scene of
their future homes. After providing temporary
dwellings, the next care of the colonists was to ar
range for seasons of stated worship. Fortunately
Richard Curtis, Jr., had been licensed to preach
before leaving South Carolina, and naturally enough
he was called upon to officiate in the services.
From these informal meetings came Salem Church.
At this period the Natchez district was nominally
under the dominion of the English, having been
purchased in 1777 by the British Superintendent of
Indian Affairs from the Choctaws ; but religiously
it was under the control of the Spanish Catholics,
whose settlements were scattered here and there over
the broad area. Many of these were led to attend

42 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

upon the worship of the Baptists because of its
freedom from formality, and because of the hearti-
ness in which it was engaged. Encouraged by such
favorable demonstrations, Mr. Curtis by degrees
extended his preaching tours farther into the in-
terior. His labors were greatly blessed, and after
some months a number of conversions occurred.
Being without an ordained minister, the perplexing
question arose as to who should baptize the new con-
verts, inasmuch as no ordained minister was avail-
able. Keferring the matter to the parent church in
South Carolina, from which these members had
come, they received the following answer : " There
is no law against necessity, and under the present
stress of circumstances the members ought to as-
semble and formally appoint one of their members,
by election, to ba})tize the young converts." Very
properly, Richard Curtis, Jr., who had been serving
the colony with such efficiency as a missionary, was
appointed to administer baptism to the candidates.

From this event sprang a sensation which came
well-nigh proving serious to the incipient colony.
Among the candidates baptized by Mr. Curtis was a
Spanish Catholic named Stephen d'Alvoy. This
gave oifense to the Catholic community, and doubt-
less punitive measures would have been taken ; but
as the region was under the domination of Great
Britain, of course the Romanists were utterly with-
out authority to inflict ])unishment. Had the matter
been allowed to rest, no trouble would have come

EARLY TRACES 43

of it. But a little later the colony was reinforced
by a small baud of Georgians, among whom was a
Baptist preacher named Harigail who, with more
zeal than discretion, began a w^iolesale denunciation
of the corruptions of Romanism. Meanwhile the
territory had passed temporarily into the hands of
the Spanish. The conduct of Harigail, coming in
close connection with the active labors of d'Alvoy,
and directly following the provocation awakened by
the baptism of the latter, the Spanish authorities re-
solved upon making an example of Curtis and
d'Alvoy, whom they regarded as chief offenders. A
plan was accordingly concerted for sending them to
labor as convicts in the mines of Mexico ; but hav-
ing learned of the atrocious scheme, these unoffend-
ing men concealed themselves until preparations
could be made for their flight. The region was
thrown into consternation by such high-handed pro-
ceedings on the part of the Spanish officials. But
still intent upon vengeance, the Spanish made an
effort to seize the offending Harigail, and would
have succeeded but for the friendly disclosure of the
plot by a gambler, who was in turn seized and con-
fined in prison for several months. Barton Hannah,
another Baptist preacher, was also imprisoned, but
his courageous wife demanded his release with the
threat of a general uprising of the people if she was
denied, so that the governor deemed it prudent to
release him. Meanwhile arrangements were made
for the flight on horseback of Curtis and d'Alvoy

44 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

across the country to South Carolina. So terrorized
was the population by the demonstrations of revenge
on the part of the Spanish authorities, that for a
time no one was found who was daring enough to
encounter the peril of conveying to the concealed
fugitives the horses and equipments for their jour-
ney. A brave woman, Mrs. Chloe Holt, finally
assumed the perilous undertaking and put them
in possession of the provisions, money, and horses,
thus enabling them to make good their escape.

Louisiana. — In no portion of the territory east
of the Mississippi were there greater barriers to the
introduction of evangelical religion than in Louisi-
ana. According to the notorious '' Black Code "
adopted in 1724, while Bienville was the French
governor of the province, no form of worship other
than that of the Roman Catholic was tolerated.^

Baptists entered Louisiana from Mississippi as
early as 1798. The first preacher that ventured
across the border-line of the territory was Rev. B.
E. Chancy, who removed from the Cole's Creek
community, in Mississippi, to St. Feliciana Parish.
Beginning missionary labor in that region, he was
promptly arrested by the Roman Catholic author-
ities, but obtained his freedom upon promise to de-
sist from further efforts to preach within the prov-
ince. He died soon after this occurrence.^

1 Gayarre's " History of Louisiana," Vol. I. (Appendix.)
- F. Paxton's " History of Louisiana Baptists," p. 36.

EARLY TRACES 45

The next interest seems to have been the estab-
lishment of a Baptist church within nine miles of
Baton Rouge where a colony of South Carolinia
Baptists had settled. Rev. Ezra Courtney, himself
a South Carolinian, who had removed to the southern
border of Mississippi in 1802, where he founded a
church, at a later date served also the group in the
Baton Rouge community. Here again was encoun-
tered Roman Catholic interference. Mr. Courtney
was duly admonished to cease preaching in the prov-
ince, and was informed that persistency on his part
would ultimately lead to imprisonment. But pro-
curing the favor of the alcalde he was permitted to
prosecute his work, the result of which was the es-
tablishment of a church within a short distance of
Baton Rouge.

The next interest in the eastern portion of the
State, originated iu the Pearl River region where,
in 1813, Mount Nebo and Peniel churches were
constituted as the result of the labors of young mis-
sionaries from the adjoining Mississippi territory.
These were admitted into membership with the Mis-
sissippi Association in 1813, and the following year
Hepzibah Church, in Louisiana, was organized and
admitted into the same Association. About 1816
the Mississippi Society for Baptist Missions, domes-
tic and foreign, was organized, which society sent
Rev. James A. Ranoldson as a missionary into the
growing communities of Louisiana. Mr. Ranoldson
extended his labors as far south as New Orleans,

46 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

where a church was organized in 1818. This
church, however, soon became extinct and it was
twenty-two years before another effort was made to
establish a church in the Crescent City.

In 1818 the Louisiana Association was formed
with a total membership of five churches. The
growing importance of New Orleans as a commer-
cial center attracted the attention of the Home Mis-
sion Board of the American Baptist Triennial Con-
vention as early as 1814. Rev. James Ranoldson
was its first missionary to this mart of the South-
west. He continued his labors for a number of
years in the midst of a population three-fourths of
which was Roman Catholic. But all efforts at
organization failed for a long period of years.

In 1842 Rev. Russell Holman, of Kentucky,
was sent as a missionary to New Orleans by the
Missionary Board of the Triennial Convention.
During the year following a church, the First, com-
prising ten members, was constituted. In 1854
another church, the Coliseum Place, was constituted,
with Rev. ^y. C. Duncan as pastor.

Alabama. — There were settlements of whites in
Southern Alabama as early as 1803, but we find the
presence of Baptists in the territory not earlier than
1808. The first representatives of the denomination
came from Tennessee on the North, and across the
eastern border from Georgia. It seems that the
colony from Tennessee preceded the advent of those

EARLY TRACES 47

whose presence is discovered upon the Tombigbee
River, in the Southern portion of the territorv.
Revs. John Nicholson, John Canterbury, and Zad-
dock Parker were the pioneer preachers who first
proclaimed the gospel upon the northern frontier of
Alabama. Through the agency of Mr. Nicholson,
a church was organized on Flint River, near the
present site of Huntsville, on October 2, 1808,
being the first that was constituted in the territory.
Shortly after this period, William Cochrane, a licen-
tiate from Georgia, began preaching in the Tensas
settlement in Southern Alabama. Later he was
reinforced by such efficient laborers as James Court-
ney, Joseph McGee, Jacob Parker, and Alexander
Travis, These men were distinguished by apostolic
ruggedness and fire — elements which were indis-
pensable in a region without roads, abounding in
great bridgeless streams, and one in which the set-
tlements were widely separated, with intervening
tribes of hostile Indians. Courageous indeed was
the missionary who dared to thread his way on foot
following the trail of the Indian the distance of
forty miles sometimes, in order to meet an appoint-
ment to preach. The most noted of the group
whose names have been given was Alexander Travis,
in whom were combined to a remarkable degree ro-
bustness of courage and simplicity and gentleness of
spirit. To him perhaps more than to any other of
the pioneer preachers are the Baptists of Alabama
indebted for the fundamental basis upon which the

48 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHEKN STATES

earliest churches were planted. The library of these
plain and earnest men of God was the English
Bible, which was studied at night by the glare of
pine-knot fires when the toils of the day were over.

Florida. — Early evangelistic work in Florida
began in the years succeeding the close of the Indian
troubles in that State. It is impossible to deter-
mine at the present time just when missionary work
began in Florida. The early records of the Asso-
ciations of Southern Alabama and Southern Georgia
show that, so soon as they could do so, missionaries
from these bodies were sent into upper and central
Florida to preach the gospel. These missionaries,
operating from both sides of the Chattahoochee, con-
sidered Florida an inviting field for evangelistic en-
deavor and made it one with the southern sections of
their respective States. Until a late period churches
in Florida Avere members of the Associations, the
territory of which embraced the southern portions
of Georgia and Alabama.

Work in Florida did not assume independent
formation until about 1841. The Florida Associa-
tion, the first in the State, was organized about that
time by the churches in the counties of Leon, Jeffer-
son, and Madison, together with some churches in
Thomas County, Georgia. This Association was
followed by the organization of Alachua in 1845 or
1846, and this again by the Santa Fe in 1854.

Efforts were made at an early date by mission-

EARLY TRACES 49

aries from Alabama to establish a church in Pensa-
cola. But little headway was made in that Roman
Catholic stronghold, for all the coast cities of the
South fell under the dominion of the Roman Catho-
lics at an early day, and until the Civil War nothing
more than a feeble and struggling interest was main-
tained in that cosmopolitan town.

In 1854 the Florida Baptist Convention was
organized in the home of Rev. R. J. Mays, in Madi-
son County. It was not, however, until after the
close of the Civil War that the work assumed any
conspicuous proportions as distinctive State work.

West Virginia. — Baptists entered the territory
of what is now West Virginia, as early as 1774, at
which period Simpson's Creek Church was formed.
Seven years later. Rev. John Anderson, of New
Jersey, organized the Greenbrier Church, and in
1807 he was instrumental in the constitution of the
Greenbrier Association.

District of Columbia. — The first Baptist church
in the District of Columbia was constituted in Wash-
ington City on March 7, 1802, with only six mem-
bers. They were dependent for preaching upon
Rev. William Parkinson, then chaplain to Congress.
Five years after its organization Rev. O. B. Brown
was called to the pastorate of the church.

CHAPTER II

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM

IN seeking to discover tlie first traces of the Bap-
tists in the several States of the South, we
have been carried much beyond the period which
now comes under review. In considering the con-
flicts in which the Baptist fathers were engaged in
order to the establishment of religious liberty in
the South, we shall have somewhat to retrace our
steps to reach the source of these troubles.

The era upon which we are now entering is
at once the most eventful, the most thrilling, the
most prolific, and the most vital in the history of
the republic. It is a period in which were laid the
foundation principles upon which the union of the
States was to be established and maintained through-
out a revolutionary future. While the liberty-lov-
ing of the Old World had fled to America in order
to escape the oppression which resulted from the
union of Church and State, the advocates of this
unholy alliance had also come that they might
transplant the same iniquitous principles on the
shores of America.

In the original occupation of the States of the
South the lords proprietaries, under the direction of

50

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 51

whom these several colonies were planted, were
largely members of the Church of England. Sup-
ported by the government of Great Britain, these
orio;inal founders of American colonies were defiant
of opposition and most rigorous in the execution of
their demands upon all dissenters. To those of
other communions than that of the establishment,
the outlook for religious freedom was not, for a very
long period, by any means assuring. Roman Cath-
olics formed the only exception to this remark.

Among the first who came from England to
America, as we have seen, were Baptists. They
were generally fugitives from the ecclesiastical tyr-
anny of the old world. Believing that every one
should be left at liberty to worship God as he might
please, or to neglect to worship altogether if he
might choose, they began the propagation of these
principles. In harmony with these views they con-
tended for entire exemption from compulsory sup-
port of a system or creed of which they could not
approve. This opposition they did not hesitate to
express when occasion arose, though such opposi-
tion was frequently attended with extreme peril.
When, therefore, taxation on the part of the estab-
lishment was resisted by dissenters, which included
others besides Baptists, the persecutions against
such were oftentimes violent. The specious plea of
these persecutors was that while magistrates " have
no power against the laws, doctrine, and religion of
Christ, yet for the same, if their power be of God,

52 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

they may use it lawfully and against the contrary." ^
The passage of the Act of Toleration under William
and Mary, in 1689, aroused great hope among the
Baptists both of America and England. But for
some mysterious reason that Act failed to become
operative in America for quite twenty years. While,
as Doctor Woolsey says, it " removed only the harsh-
est restrictions upon Protestant religious worship
and was arbitrary, unequal, and unsystematic in its
provisions," still " it was the entering wedge to relig-
ious freedom." The passage of such an Act was a
concession of Parliament to the dissenters both in
England and America. If it did not bring the
desired freedom, it had the effect of giving enlarged
boldness of assertion to the Baptists. The colonies
of the South, as well as those of the North, were
modeled upon imitations of the mother country.
The spirit of the laws, if not the laws themselves,
were derived from England. In Great Britain con-
formity to the religion of the government was en-
forced by disabilities, pains, and penalties. In the
charter of 1 606 the Church of England was estab-
lished in Virginia. It provided that "the true word
and service of God and Christian faith be preached,
planted, and used according to the doctrines, rights,
and religion now professed and established within
our realm."

This was strongly supported by subsequent legis-

^ Doctor Cutting, in Underbill's "Struggles and Triumphs of
Religious Liberty," p. 10.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 53

lation, which denounced all such provision as hereti-
cal and dangerous. Under the exclusive system of
Episcopacy in Virginia, such oppressive laws were
enacted as entailed the most cruel persecution upon
all dissenters. One of these laws in 1611 required
every person who settled in the colony to appear be-
fore an Episcopal minister and state his religious
views. Should he refuse to do so, he should be
publicly whipped. If still he refused, he was to be
twice whipped. A third refusal led to his being
whipped every day until he should confess. It was
unlawful for dissenters to engage in religious wor-
ship except in the meeting-houses of the Episcopa-
lians. Taxes were levied on the goods of every
man, on his property, and on his crops, for the sup-
port of the Episcopal ministry or for the purchase
for them of glebes or parish farms. Should a dis-
senter absent himself from the "service" of a
church of the Establishment, he was fined fifty
pounds of tobacco for one Sunday, and two hundred
pounds for one month. The penalty for refusing to
have a child christened was two thousand pounds of
tobacco. The original statute books of Virginia
abound in the records of the passage of laws for
building houses of worship in the parishes, the sup-
port of the clergy of the Establishment, compulsory
christening, attendance on public worship, the coer-
cive use of the book of Common Prayer, practi-
cal conformity to the order and constitution of the
Church of England, and forbidding preaching, offi-

54 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHEEN STATES

ciation at marriages, and occasions of public wor-
ship of dissenters/ Nor was there existing the dis-
position to abate the vigor of these unjust statutes,
for when not checked by the softening influence of
Christianity, or awed into inaction by adverse pub-
lic sentiment, these oppressive laws were cruelly
executed.^ That the galling nature of these laws
may be more fully understood, quotation is here
made of one of them :

Whereas, Many schismatic persons out of their
averseness to the orthodox estabhshed rehgion, or out of
the new-fangled conceits of their own heretical inven-
tions, refuse to have their children baptized. Be it there-
fore Enacted, That all persons that, in contempt of the
divine sacrament of baptism, shall refuse when they
may carry their child to a lawful minister in that county
to have them baptized, shall be amerced two thousand
pounds of tobacco ; half to the informer and half to the
public/

This was originally intended for Quakers, but
was vigorously executed against the Baptists of the
Virginia colony. This conflict against dissent-
ers was indiscriminately waged in every possible
direction. Dissenters who were members of the
House of Burgesses were expelled because of their
religious opinions. Men and women alike were
haled before the courts and fined for failure to at-

iHening's "Statutes," Vol. I., II., III., VI.
^Semple's "History of the Baptists of Virginia," pp. 14-23,
294.
^Hening's "Statutes," Vol. II., p. 165.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 65

tend upon the services of the Episcopal Church. A
striking instance of this cruel enactment, as well as
of the heroism of the oppressed, occurs in the
records of Middlesex Court, Virginia : '' Sister
Lucretia Pritchett was true pluck : she was pre-
sented at every Court and fined each time."

By far the fiercest struggle for freedom was made
by the Baptists of Virginia. For the period of
almost three-quarters of a century the conflict con-
tinued in that province in which the Baptists re-
fused to desist until the last vestige of the coalition
between Church and State had been wiped out. The
lofty and boastful cavalier, concerning the courtly
polish of whose manners, and the gentler blood of
whom so much has been said and written, was the ar-
rogant fellow who meted out only brutal intolerance
to the unoffending folk of Virginia, called Baptists.
Booted and spurred and of lofty port, he looked
with disdain upon the plain and simple, but honest
and worthy Baptists of Virginia. The treatment
which was accorded these unoffending people for the
period of more than half a century was largely due
to the contempt with which the cavalier importa-
tions, who were also members of the Establishment,
regarded them. They were the objects of " cruel
mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds
and imprisonment," because they were regarded as
the refuse of the earth. Indeed, these same Baptists
so profoundly excited the contempt of the austere
members of the Establishment in some quarters

56 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

that they escaped persecution altogether. With a
sneer it was said that none but the weak and wicked
would join the intolerable Baptists. It was pre-
sumed that their position in the scale of social
excellence was such that they would soon come to
naught by reason of unseemly wrangles among
themselves.

In many other localities, however, the penal code
was strained to its utmost tension to suppress the
Baptists, who resisted the invasion of their God-
given rights. A profound contempt coupled with a
bitter malice led to the perpetration upon the Bap-
tist ministry of the most cruel treatment. The
same individual held in high esteem by the Estab-
lishment so long as he was loyal thereto, became
suddenly transformed into an object of ridicule and
contempt so soon as he embraced the principles of
the despised Baptists. Samuel Harriss, before his
conversion to the Baptist faith, was a most trust-
worthy citizen of the Virginia colony. This is
shown by the several prominent positions which he
held in society. No other than a most reputable
citizen could have at different times occupied the
several positions of church-warden, sheriff, justice
of the peace, burgess for the county, colonel of the
militia, captain of Mayo Fort, and commissary for
the fort and army. But at thirty-four years of age
he was led to Christ, was baptized, and ordained
a Baptist preacher. This was sufficient to arouse
the contempt and the ire of the Episcopal clergy

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 57

and to call down upon Mr. Harriss their fiery male-
dictions.

On one occasion he was arrested and taken into
court as a disturber of the peace. He was con-
fronted by one Captain Williams, who " vehemently
accused him as a vagabond, a heretic, and a mover
of sedition everywhere." Mr. Harriss made his
own defense. The Court proposed to dismiss the
case upon the condition that Mr. Harriss would not
preach in Culpeper again for the space of a year.
The persecuted preacher stated that as his home
was distant two hundred miles he would possibly
not disturb them for that period of time. Crossing
the Blue Ridge he preached in the Shenandoah
Valley, but Providence soon led him again into
Culpeper where, in violation of his extorted prom-
ise, he again preached, saying : " I partly promised
the devil a few days past, at the courthouse, that I
would not preach in this county again during the
term of a year. But the devil is a perfidious
wretch, and covenants with him are not to be kept :
and therefore I will preach." He was no more dis-
turbed in Culpeper County, but on one occasion, in
Orange County, he was pulled down while preach-
ing and ruthlessly dragged about, sometimes by the
hair of his head and again by the leg, but was
finally rescued by his friends. On another occasion
he was knocked down while preaching.^ It was not
an uncommon occurrence for sacred worship to be
1 Taylor, "Virginia Baptist Ministers," Vol. I., p. 35.

58 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

seriously interfered with, and sometimes broken up
by representatives of the Episcopacy.

Stones and other missiles were sometimes hurled
at the heads of the Baptist preachers while conduct-
ing worship in the woods, or in private dwellings.
On one occasion an Episcopal minister led the
tumult against a Baptist meeting.^ Frequently Bap-
tist preachers were insulted while performing the
most sacred rites. Their persecutors would ride
into the water while baptism was being adminis-
tered, and make sport of the most solemn rite.
When on one occasion Robert Ware was engaged in
preaching he was confronted by two men who stood
before him with a bottle and drank, now and then
offering the bottle to the preacher and railing at him
with oaths. Unable to disconcert him in this way,
they drew from their pockets a pack of cards and
began to play upon the platform upon which he had
been preaching, just so soon as he had closed. It is
said that the object of these disturbers was to pro-
voke him into open reproof of their conduct that
they might find occasion to beat him."

The officers of the law transcended the limits of
their authority in imprisoning men for preaching,
as no law existed forbidding such exercise. Con-
sidering the unreasonable extremity of the penal
code in many particulars, it is somewhat remarkable

1 Bitting, " Religious Liberty and the Baptists."

2 Semple, "History of the Rise and Progress of the Baptists of
Virginia," p. 36.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 69

that there should have been the omission of a law
against the preaching of dissenters. In the absence
of such a law the persecutors fell back upon a stat-
ute upon which was placed a forced construction in
order that they might be justified in such procedure.
The statute behind which they took refuge to sustain
such action was that relating to the preservation of
the peace. Consequently Baptist preachers were ar-
rested as disturbers of the peace of the community.
It is believed that the first imprisonment for
preaching took place in Spottsylvania County, Vir-
ginia, on June 4, 1768. At that time John Waller,
Lewis Craig, James Childs, and others, " were seized
by the sheriif and hauled before three magistrates
who stood in the meeting-house yard, and who
bound them over in the penalty of one thousand
pounds to appear at court two days after.^ At
court they were arraigned as disturbers of the peace,
and on their trial were vehemently accused by a
certain lawyer, who said to the court: "May it
please your worships, these men are great disturbers
of the peace ; they cannot meet a man upon the
road but they run a text of Scripture down his
throat." One of the number. Walker, made an in-
genious defense of himself and of his companions.
Indeed, so adroit was the line of defense that the
persecutors were thrown into perplexity, and finally
adopted the expedient of proposing to release them
upon a " promise to preach no more in the county
1 Semple, p. 29.

60 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

for a year and a day." But this proposal they
finally declined to accept and were consequently sent
to jail. As they moved along the streets of Fred-
ericksburg, surrounded by the guard who escorted
them to prison, these inoffensive preachers sang the
hymn beginning, " Broad is the road that leads to
death."

Upon being liberated after the lapse of a month,
Mr. Craig repaired to Williamsburg, where he ap-
pealed to the deputy-governor, Hon. John Blair, to
release his comrades. Thereupon Mr. Blair ad-
dressed the king's attorney in Spottsylvania as fol-
lows :

Sir : I lately received a letter signed by a good num-
ber of worthy gentlemen, who are not here, complain-
ing of the Baptists ; the particulars of their misbe-
havior are not told any further than their running into
private houses and making dissensions. Mr. Craig and
Mr. Benjamin Waller are now with me and deny the
charge ; they tell me that they are willing to take the
oath as others have ; I told them I had consulted the
attorney-general, who is of opinion that the General
Court only have a right to grant licenses, and therefore,
I referred them to the court ; but on their application
to the attorney-general, they brought me this letter ad-
vising me to write to you : That their petition was a
matter of right, and that you may not molest these con-
scientious people so long as they behave themselves in a
manner becoming pious Christians and in obedience to
the laws till the court, when they intend to apply for li-
cense, and when the gentleinen who complain may
make their objections and be heard.

The act of toleration (it being found by experience

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 61

that persecuting dissenters increases their members) has
given them a right to apply, in a proper manner, for li-
censed houses for the worship of God, according to their
consciences ; and I persuade myself that the gentlemen
will quietly overlook their meetings till the court. I am
told they administer the sacrament of the Lord's Sup-
per near the manner we do, and differ from our church
in nothing but in that of baptism, and in their renew-
ing the ancient discipline, by which they have reformed
some sinners and brought them to be truly penitent. Nay,
if a man of theirs is idle and neglects to labor and pro-
vide for his family as he ouglit, he incurs their censures,
which have had good effects. If this be their behavior,
it were to be wished we had more of it among us. But
at least I hope all may remain quiet till the court.
I am with great respect,

To the gentlemen, etc..
Your humble servant,

John Blair.

Williamsburg, July 16, 1768.

Forty-three days elapsed after the receipt of this
letter before any step whatever was taken in behalf
of the imprisoned preachers ; but at the expiration
of that time they were released without a word.
While confined in the Spottsylvania jail these men
preached through prison bars to the crowds assem-
bled W'ithout. Seeing that the multitudes were be-
ing singularly affected by the preaching done under
such novel circumstances, an opposing mob gath-
ered, and by hoots and yells sought to drown the
voices of the preachers. Released from prison,
these earnest men of God preached with more dili-
gence and zeal than before. Sympathy for the lib-

62 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

erated men was now coupled with the power of
their preaching, and there was abundantly illus-
trated the suggestion made in the letter of Deputy-
governor Blair, that persecution was only produc-
tive of richer results to the persecuted.

In December, 1770, two ardent young preachers,
William Webber and Joseph Anthony, were invited
by some of the inhabitants of Chesterfield County
to visit that region and hold a series of meetings.
The character of their preaching was such as to
arouse the opposition of the magistrates, who charged
Webber and Anthony with '' turning the people
to madness." They were promptly arrested and
thrown into prison. Certain terms having been
submitted, they declined to accept them for con-
scientious reasons and remained in prison for four
months. But they were not idle. Curious and
sympathizing crowds hung about the jail windows
day after day, and were preached to by Webber and
Anthony. The imprisonment of these young men
led to results which utterly defeated the object of
their incarceration, for it was the beginning of a
mighty work in Chesterfield County, and led to an
extensive prevalence of Baptist principles through-
out that region of country. After the release of
Webber and Anthony from Chesterfield jail, they
repaired to Goochland County. Thence Webber
proceeded to Middlesex County where we find him
again thrown into prison.

While preaching he was approached by a magis-

STKUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 63

trate with a drawn club, who would have felled the
preacher to the ground had not the instrument been
caught by some one from behind. There were sev-
eral Baptist preachers present upon the last-named
occasion, all of whom were arrested, the magis-
trate being supported by a clergyman of the Epis-
copacy, tAvo sheriffs, and a posse.' The preachers
who were seized by the officers on this occasion
were William Webber, John Walker, James Green-
wood, and Robert Ware. They were accompanied
to the meeting by Thomas Wofford, a layman, who
was severely beaten with a whip by the officers, and
turned loose with a number of severe wounds.
Diligent search was made through the contents of
the saddle-bags of these traveling ministers to as-
certain if they bore treasonable papers. Failing to
discover such, an attempt was made to extort from
each one separately, in a room apart, a promise not
to preach in the county again, the magistrates prom-
ising liberation upon condition that such assurance
be given. But the proposal was met by a prompt
and firm refusal. The four preachers were at once
thrown into a prison swarming with vermin. On
the following day, which was Sunday, their friends
vied with each other in seeking to contribute to the
comfort of the imprisoned preachers. While these
sympathizers were gathered within the precincts of
the jail, the opportunity was seized upon for hold-

1 Semple, ' ' History of the Rise and Progress of the Baptists of
Virginia," p. 34.

64 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ing sacred Avorship, and services were announced to
be held from the jail windows every Wednesday
and Sunday thereafter. The multitudes thronged
in such numbers upon their preaching that their
enemies were thoroughly enraged and caused a drum
to be beaten, during the service, in order to drown
the voice of the preacher. In all this, the preach-
ers though imprisoned were really the victors, for
these demonstrations of disorder aroused public
sympathy and gained respectful audience for Bap-
tist preachers ever afterward in that region. This
sympathy on the part of the people at large was
not a little enhanced when these prisoners were led
forth to trial attended by armed guards, as if they
had been ordinary criminals.

In the courts, personal pleas were denied them,
and choice was given between abandonment of
preaching in the county, and returning to jail.
They quietly chose the latter alternative and were
thrust into prison upon a scanty and restricted diet
of bread and water. After four davs' sufFerins: for
food and drink, their condition became known with-
out, and friends really overwhelmed them w^th sup-
plies of necessaries, so much so that the ministers
were able for several days together to feed the poor
of the towui of Urbana, in which they were im-
prisoned.

Every incident seemed to conspire to the further-
ance of the gospel. As has already been seen, pub-
lic sympathy was thoroughly stirred in behalf of

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 65

the prisoners and was deepened by the patience and
forbearance with which they endured their wrongs.
To all of this was added tlie sickness of Mr.
Webber which, when taken in connection with the
serious regard with which the public considered the
unjust imprisonment of these men of God, served
to invest the old jail with an air of solemnity and
made it the most honored locality in all the town.
The multitudes which continued to gather about the
jail windows became more curious and anxious still,
and, by degrees, came to regard the prison with
somewhat of superstitious reverence. After remaining
in jail a month and a half longer, these men were
set free upon condition of giving bond for future
good behavior.

In Culpeper again James Ireland was arrested
and brought before magistrates who grossly mal-
treated him and then thrust him into jail. The
harsh treatment to which he was subjected came
well-nigh costing him his life. More than one
attempt was made upon his life while confined in
prison, but each effort failed. Gunpowder was used
to blow into atoms the jail in which he was con-
fined, and the attempt failed only because of its in-
sufficiency. At another time suffocation was at-
tempted by the use of brimstone, and at another
still his destruction was sought by the use of poison.
These repeated deliverances from death, coupled
with the tokens of love from his brethren without,
converted his cell into a spiritual hermitage. His

66 HISTORY OP BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

vivacity of spirit led him, while writing from
prison, to address his letters " From my palace in
Culpeper." Like his imprisoned brethren, Ireland
preached to the crowds from his iron-barred win-
dows. In the same county of Culpeper, Sanders,
Craig, Maxwell, Corbley, and Amnion were impris-
oned for preaching ; two private members, Maxwell
and Banks, were arrested for holding a prayer meet-
ing ; and Delaney, who was not a Baptist, was ar-
rested for allowing a meeting to be held in his
home, so utterly intolerant and filled with the spirit
of persecution had the authorities become.

The irony of history is illustrated in the fact
that upon the identical spot where the old jail stood
in Culpeper, a Baptist church is now located. A
similar retributive justice has been visited upon the
original location of the jail of Urbana, in the county
of Middlesex, where were imprisoned Waller, Ware,
Greenwood, and Webber. Numerous other in-
stances are upon record of the struggles for con-
science' sake in Virginia, extending even to the
period of the dawn of the Revolution. Persecu-
tions similar to those already enumerated were rife
also in the counties of King and Queen, Lunen-
berg. Orange, Fauquier, Caroline, Richmond, and
others.

In 1774 James Madison was so profoundly
aroused by the prevailing persecutions in different
portions of his native State, that he wrote to a friend
in Pennsylvania :

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 67

That diabolical, hell-conceived principle of persecu-
tion rages among some, and to their eternal infamy be
it said the clergy can furnish their quota of imps for
such purposes. There are, at this time, in the adjacent
county, not less than five or six well-meaning men in
close jail for publishing their religious sentiments,
which, in the main, are very orthodox.

Be it said to the honor of James Madison, that he
was the inflexible friend of soul-liberty in the
midst of the most stirring periods of Virginian
history. He sanctioned to the utmost, the views
advocated by the early Baptist fathers, and on more
than one occasion, as we shall hereafter see, became
the champion of Baptist petitioners in the legislature
of Virginia, against the ablest advocates of the op-
position.

Up to this time our attention has been fixed upon
the struggles of the early Baptists of Virginia to
procure freedom from ecclesiastical oppression.
Great prominence has thus been given to these
struggles, because of all the regions of the South,
the greatest oppression was experienced by the
people of that province. But ecclesiastical cruelty
was not confined to A^irginia, for wherever the bale-
ful union of Church and State existed, there was
oppression in some form.

In 1698 a serious blunder was committed by the
Baptists of Charleston in acquiescing in a measure
which was fraught with much future evil. That it
would lead to such serious consequences was not, at

68 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the time, so clearly indicated by reason of the inco-
herent condition of society. The mistake was an
agreement on the part of the entire colony, includ-
ing the Baptists, of course, to suifer the passage of
a bill " allowing the Episcopal minister of Charles-
ton and his successors forever, a salary of one hun-
dred and fifty pounds sterling, together with a
house, glebe, and two servants." ' The bill secured
a passage during the administration of Joseph Blake
as governor of the province. Prompted by a de-
sire to preserve amicable relations among the dif-
ferent elements of the province. Governor Blake
greatly favored the measure, and through his in-
fluence, as the friend of the Baptists, he succeeded
in gaining their consent and co-operation. The in-
iquitous measure derived additional support from
the amiable character and popularity of the rector
of the Episcopal church at Charleston at that time.
Rev. Samuel Marshall. This last fact, coupled with
the conservative policy of Governor Blake, blinded
the dissenters to all apprehensions of subsequent
mischief. But when, at a later period, it was dis-
covered that the proprietors

Concerted measures for endowing the church of the
mother countrj^, and for advancing it in South Carohna
to a legal pre-eminence ; and when it was known that in
order to that end they labored to obtain a majority of
Episcopalians in the provincial legislature, dissenters

^B. R. Carroll, "History of the Colony of South Carolina,"
Vol. I., p. 126.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 69

took alarm. It was a matter of surprise to many that
the Episcoi3ahans, by energetic maneuvering, succeeded
in electing a majority of those to the provincial legisla-
ture who were friendly to their restricted views. ^

Having the majority, these political ecclesiastics
at once took steps to perpetuate the power which
they had obtained. The advantage gained in the
outset encouraged them to take bolder strides in the
direction of a permanent establishment of churchly
power in the Carolina province. The next step was
the enactment of a law making it necessary for all
legislators thereafter chosen " to conform to the re-
ligious worship of the Church of England and to
receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper accord-
ing to the rights and usages of that church." Fail-
ure on the part of any candidate to comply with
this provision, no matter how great his majority
of the popular vote, rendered him ineligible to a
seat in the Commons' House of Assembly. The
name of such a one being dropped because of non-
conformity to the provision, the candidate receiving
the next highest vote was considered in the same
manner, and was dropped or retained according to
his compliance or noncompliance with the condition
already named. It is clearly seen that such a pro-
ceeding might make one a representative, though
he received the smallest number of votes. These
measures were enacted under the direction of Lord
Granville.

1 Ramsey, "South Carolina," Vol. II., p. 3.

70 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

The result of this gross assumption on the part
of the Establishment was great popular indignation.'
But this did not deter the party in power from a
continuance of abuses, for the measures just named
were followed up by another arbitrary Act which
provided for extending and maintaining the mode of
worship of the Establishment. Money was pro-
vided by law for the erection and repairing of Epis-
copal meeting-houses ; lands for parochial farms and
for churchyards were provided for by donation,'
purchase, or grants from the proprietors at the pub-
lic expense ; salaries were fixed and made payable
out of the provisional treasury for rectors, clerks,
and sextons of the Established parishes. Episcopal
clergymen were encouraged by legislative enact-
ment to remove to the province and to exercise
their clerical functions in the several parishes desig-
nated by law. To such as were disposed to accept
governmental inducement, twenty-five pounds was
given from the provincial treasury immediately upon
their arrival, and the annual stipends, provided by
law, began at once.

But another measure, equally obnoxious with
those just quoted, was adopted. There was organ-
ized an arbitrary court of High Commission "for
the trial of ecclesiastical causes and the preserva-
tion of religious uniformity in Carolina."

Be it said to the honor of some churchmen that
because of different reasons, one or both of the last-
iRamsey, "South Carolina," Vol. II., p. 3.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 71

named enactments met their strongest opposition.
The creation of the ecclesiastical court awakened
strenuous opposition on the part of the Society for the
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, and they
declined to send out other missionaries until that act
was repealed. Prompt steps were at once taken to
bring to the attention of the mother country the tyr-
anny which was prevailing in the province of Caro-
lina. So impressed was the House of Lords with the
presentation of these facts that the queen was advised
to annul the offensive laws. The annulment of the
proprietary charter was advised by the Board of
Trade. These obnoxious laws were finally an-
nulled, and it was manifest from this time that the
charter would be revoked and that the province
would pass directly under the control of the crown.
The issue was at once joined, and the people were
triumphant over the lords-proprietors and their rep-
resentatives as early as 1720, but the change was
not effected until nine years later. The utmost that
was secured by this popular victory was the tolera-
tion of evangelical forms of Christianity. The
Church of England, under the new charter, was es-
tablished and maintained in the province at public
expense, notwithstanding it is estimated that at that
time at least two-thirds of the population were dis-
senters. -

In North Carolina the condition of things was
very similar to that already described as obtaining
in South Carolina. As early as 1678 serious re-

72 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

monstrance was made, under the lead of John Cul-
peper, against the encroachments of provincial au-
thority. In 1704 a partisan law was enacted by the
General Assembly, " disfranchising all dissenters
from any office of trust, honor, or profit." ^ A pre-
vious Assembly (1702) had enacted a law whereby
each precinct should raise thirty pounds to support
a minister of the Church of England. Naturally
enough this produced much public commotion, in
which all dissenters were united — Baptists, Quakers,
Presbyterians, and Lutherans. A clearer view of
religious intolerance in North Carolina is gained
by the following extract from Williams' " History,"
published in 1812 :

Carolina had been settled many years, as we have
seen, before bigotry or pride, under the venerable cloak
of religion, began to vex the inhabitants. Provision
was made near the beginning of the eighteenth century
for the clergy of the Church of England. Magistrates
were authorized to join people in marriage in parishes
that had no minister, and dissenters from the estab-
lished church were permitted to worship in public.

In the year 1741 it was enacted that the freeholders
in every parish should choose twelve vestrymen on
Easter TVIonday, who were authorized to lay a poll-tax,
not exceeding five shillings per poll, for building
churches, buying glebes, and maintaining the clergy,
whose respective salaries was not to be less than fifty
pounds proc. per annum. It was increased by a subse-
quent law to one hundred and thirty-three pounds six
shillings and eight pence. By another law it was pro-

1 Wheeler, " History of North Carolina," p. 34.

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 73

vided that the fee of a clergyman for marrying with li-
cense should be ten shillings, or five shillings for marry-
ing by publication. The license was a device for in-
creasing the perquisites of the governor. It will readily
be conceived that in a parish where a great majority of
the people were dissenters they would choose vestrymen
who had no disposition to lay taxes for the support of
a church in which they did not worship. But when it
was found that the majority were not disposed to tax
themselves for the convenience of other people, a law
was devised for compelling them, under the sanction of
an oath, to do what they accounted wrong. Every ves-
tryman was to swear that he "would not oppose the
doctrine, discipline, and liturgy of the Church of Eng-
land " Every person chosen to be a vestryman and re-
fusing to serve was to pay a fine of three pounds, ami
another member was to be chosen by the vestry m his
place It was presumed that twelve Episcopalians, or
men who were ready to take the oath, would be found
in every parish, and it would follow that taxes would be
laid for the Episcopal church.

The law, unjust and artful as it was, did not serve the
intended purpose, for there were parishes in which no
vestrymen were chosen, except men who were called dis-
senters, and none of them tendered the oath to his
associates. Hence it was that in many of the western
parishes no provision was made for minis^ters of the
Episcopal church. As an Assembly had been found,
during the administration of Governor Dobbs, capable
of passing the shameful law to which we have referred,
there were people, at a future sitting of the Assembly,
ready to assist in making that law a more perfect system
of ecclesiastical tyranny.

In proof of this Dr. Williamson prints a copy of an
"Address to the Governor, his Majesty's Honorable

74 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Council, and the House of Burgesses of North Carolina
from sundry inhabitants of the county of Rowan " pray-
ing for the enforcement of the law, or ' ' that means be
taken for compelling persons chosen vestrymen to take
the oaths prescribed, or such other means as may pro-
duce a regular lawful vestry."

' ' There were, ' ' says Williamson, ' ' thirty-four sub-
scribers to the petition ; six of them made their marks,
and some of the other signatures are hardly legible.
When thirty-four such persons could propose that six or
seven hundred should be taxed for their accommodation
they certainly had need of the gospel that teaches hu-
mility." ^

The most serious expression of persecution in
North Carolina occurred in Newbern, Craven
County, in 1740. It seems that three Baptist
preachers, Brinson, Fulshire, and Purify, upon ap-
plication for license to build a church in Newbern,
were confronted by certain accusers who

Made oath to several misdemeanors committed by the
sd Petitioners contrary to & in contempt of the laws now
in force. Upon which it was ordered by this court the
sd Petitioners be bound by Recognizance for their ap-
pearance at the next court of assize and Goale delivery
to be held in this Town then and there to answer to such
things as they shall be charged with and in the mean-
time be of Good behavior to all his Magesties Liege
People.

The old record, as examined in 1883, by H. S.
Nunn, editor of the " Newbern Journal," disclosed

iHugh Williams, "History of North Carolina," Vol. II., pp.
115-118.

STKUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 75

the fact that these men were " publicly whipped,
bound over to keep the peace, and required to give
bond for their good behavior and also to take the
test oath." '

There seems to be little doubt that the preachers
already named were not only whipped, but impris-
oned for the period of three months. The records
of the same court bear evidence of the fact that the
persecution of Baptists was quite common in that
region between the years 1730 and 1745. AVhile
North Carolina was comparatively free from severe
methods of persecution, still it was visited in a
variety of ways upon dissenters. One of the means
employed was that of the enforcement upon all dis-
senters of the tithe system, while another was the
enforcement of the muster laws of the province
against all dissenting ministers, while those of the
Establishment were exempt ; still another was, the
prohibition of officiation in marriage by Baptist
ministers. The last-named law was annulled in
1776.

Georgia Baptists were as firm in withstanding the
aggressions of the State upon the prerogatives of the

1 The truthfulness of this statement has been challenged. In
order to confirm it, the late Rev. C. Durham, of Raleigh, N. C,
visited Newbern, but found that the old record from which the
extract had been taken had " seemingly by design been mutilated
— a half-page cut or torn out — a page, two pages, and at a num-
ber of places from three to six pages, have been cut or torn out.
When or by whom this was done, or just what was their real
object we cannot here and now discuss " (Rev. C. Durham, in
" Biblical Recorder," for March 29 and April 5, 1893).

76 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

church as were those of any other of the Southern
provinces. Their declination to pay a tax to the
State for the support of the church was at once firm
and positive. With equal stoutness they refused
the funds offered from the public treasury for the
support of tlieir own churches. The law which
prevailed in the other provinces relative to the levy-
ing of taxes for the erection and repair of churches
and for the payment of the salaries of church offi-
cials obtained in the province of Georgia also.

While a dissenting congregation might apply for a
grant of land whereon to build a church with some
assurance that the aijplication would not be alto-
gether unheeded, there was an evident intention on
the part of the government, both royal and colonial,
to engraft the Church of England upon the prov-
ince, and to contribute with partial hand to its
maintenance.

When on February 21, 1785, the legislature
passed an Act for the support of religion, providing
that " thirty heads of families " in any community
might choose a minister " to explain and inculcate
the duties of religion," and "four pence on every
hundred pounds valuation of property " should be
taken from the public tax for the support of such
minister, the Baptists of Georgia promptly protested.
It would have been easy to avail themselves of the
provisions of this Act, for they formed a large ma-
jority of the population in many portions of the
province ; but instead, they united in a remon-

STRtJGGLE FOR FREEDOM 77

strance and sent it by the hands of Silas Mercer
and Peter Smith, praying that a law so obnoxious be
repealed, and it was done/

The difficulties which encompassed the Baptists
who first settled in Mississippi were greatly increased
when they undertook to exercise the liberty of wor-
ship. As has already been seen the original Bap-
tists of Mississippi came from South Carolina and
Georgia. The headway rapidly gained in the
Natchez settlements, aroused the sturdy opposition
of the Romish priests. No violent demonstrations
were exhibited, however, until indiscreet attacks
were made by some of the Baptist ministry upon the
faith of the Catholics. This uncalled-for assault
furnished an occasion for the vent of Romish wrath
which had been accumulating commensurately with
the prevalence of Baptist principles in the new
settlements on the Mississippi. Nor was the situ-
ation in the least relieved by the conversion of
Roman Catholics to the Baptist faith.

After the flight of Curtis and d'Alvoy there was
quiet in the Natchez settlements for a brief period,
but the Baptists continued to hold their meetings
with more or less secrecy, and the Romanists grew
more vigilant. Owen, a Baptist preacher, was
forced to secrete himself for a season, in order to
escape the clutches of the watchful priests, and
Bailey Chaney fled the province lest he fall into

»" Public Recs. of Ga." MS. Vol. B, p. 284, "Marshall
Papers."

78 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

their hands. Meanwhile converts to the Baptist
faith continued to multiply, and at one time a num-
ber of these remained unbaptized for a period, be-
cause all authorized administrators had fled ; but in
the emergency the church wisely chose Deacon
William Chaney to perform the rite.

Somewhat later, a minister named Mulkey made
his appearance in the Natchez district. He is said
to have been a preacher of more than ordinary
ability, and one possessed of excellent spirit. The
former interest in Baptist meetings, which had oc-
casioned so much concern on the part of the Cath-
olics, was revived under the preaching of Mr. Mul-
key. Emboldened by their late efforts in the sup-
pression of such religious demonstrations, the Cath-
olics sent an officer to arrest Mulkey on the occasion
of one of his meetings, but the assembly, aroused by
a spirit of honest indignation, boldly resisted such
unwarranted interference and drove the officer and
his guard away. Determining no longer to be kept
upon the defensive, the infuriated people seized their
arms and marched against the local fort which was
under the command of Gov. Don Manuel Gayoso de
Senies, at whose instigation all the previous trouble
had been fomented. Alarmed by the appearance of
so formidable a body of indignant people, and find-
ing himself too weak to resist them, the governor
consented to allow them to proceed unmolested with
their meetings, but sent a secret agent forthAvith to
Baton Rouge for reinforcements, and as soon as

STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM 79

they arrived placed himself in a hostile attitude.
The Baptists were again routed, Mulkey and others
left the province, and tyranny was again dominant.
About 1796 Col. Andrew Ellicott was deputed a
special commissioner of the United States to confer
with the Spanish authorities of the Natchez dis-
trict, about which there was some dispute between
Spain and America. Upon the arrival of Col.
Ellicott, a Baptist minister. Rev. Mr. Hannah, ap-
plied to him for permission to preach in the camp
of his escort. Deference to Governor Gayoso
prompted the colonel to refer the matter to him, and
Gayoso consented. The sermon by Hannah led to
a subsequent discussion between himself and a
batch of Irish Catholics, who had previously beaten
him severely. Applying to Gayoso for protection,
Hannah was summarily arrested, thrown into prison,
and his feet were made fast in stocks. This led to
a disturbance between the governor and Colonel El-
licott, the latter threatening to destroy the Spanish
fort if matters Avere not speedily adjusted. After a
formal negotiation of two weeks, Mr. Hannah was
set at liberty. Upon the reluctant abandonment of
the Natchez district by the Spaniards, the Americans
promptly built a considerable arbor and appointed
Rev. Bailey Chaney to "preach under the Stars and
Stripes." An immense concourse of people greeted
him, and great was the enjoyment of the first relig-
ious service held in the Natchez district under the
government of the United States.

CHAPTER III

SOUTHEEN BAPTISTS AND THE EE VOLUTION

THE contest for civil liberty in America followed
a long and bitter struggle for religious free-
dom. It would seem that the one was productive
of the other, if indeed it was not the same struggle
which came naturally to involve the question of
civil freedom in common with that of religious
emancipation in the outworking of the principle of
liberty in Arnerica. Hence it is easy to see how
the Baptists of the several colonies of the South
would become prompt contributors to the spirit
which kindled the fires of the Revolution. It was
the same spirit which had animated them for almost
a century in resisting the oppression of a tyrannous
power. Naturally enough they would regard the
impending struggle not as a political contest alone,
but as one involving all that was cherished by a
people seeking to be free. Great boon as political
liberty is, religious freedom is a greater. In a ver}^
important sense then, the matter to be considered
now is only a continuation of that which engaged
our attention in the preceding chapter.

The first note of the American Revolution was
sounded at Alamance, North Carolina, on May 16,

80

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 81

1771. To this event sufficient prominence has
never been accorded, either in civil or religious his-
tory.

It was the first popular uprising of any consider-
able portion of the American colonists against the
encroachments of the representatives of the British
crown. The primary cause of this outburst of
popular indignation was the passage of what is
known as the "Vestry Act/' referred to in the
previous chapter, which was adopted by the As-
sembly in 1764, during the administration of Gov-
ernor Dobbs. The chief provision of that meas-
ure was the support of the Episcopal clergy and
the erection of Episcopal houses of worship ; but
the methods adopted for assessing and collecting
these taxes, and for the imposition of fines and pen-
alties, aroused at the very outset great popular op-
position. The initial provision was that every
freeholder who owned fifty acres of land was re-
quired by law to meet at the courthouse on Easter
Monday to elect twelve vestrymen. Failure to do
so subjected one to a fine of twenty shillings "to
be recovered by a warrant from any justice of the
peace within the limits of said county." In order
to exclude all dissenters it was provided that the
vestrymen be required to subscribe to an oath " not
to oppose the doctrine, discipline, and liturgy of the
Church of England, as by law established," To
these vestrymen was given power to levy taxes, to
build churches and chapels, pay ministers' salaries,

82 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

purcliase a glebe, erect a mansion and convenient
outhouses, maintain the poor, pay clerks and readers,
and defray other incidental charges of the parish;
and the minister could bring suit against the vestry-
men if they should fail or refuse " to lay a sufficient
tax to satisfy " him. The sheriif was required
under a heavy bond to collect the taxes thus im-
posed.

The eifort to enforce such a law created wide-
spread dissatisfaction, and meetings were soon called
by the common people to confer about the opposi-
tion which was to be interposed. These were soon
formed into a popular organization known as the
Regulators. Instead of relenting in view of these
expressions of popular disapprobation, Governor
Dobbs became more exacting, and the complaints of
the masses grew apace. A paper was established at
Wilmington, in 1764, known as "The North Caro-
lina Gazette and Weekly Post Boy," which gave
the current news. This pioneer enterprise greatly
aided the people in their cause, as it informed them
of the measures which were from time to time
adopted for their oppression. Meanwhile extor-
tions became rife in every department of govern-
ment. Lossing says that " deputy surveyors, entry-
takers, and other officers of inferior grade, became
adepts in the chicanery of their superiors." Mat-
ters were growing rapidly worse and the situation
was not in the least relieved by the receipt of the
news of the passage of the Stamp Act, which infor-

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 83

mation reached the province in June, 1765. Popu-
lar gatherings became general. The people were
greatly agitated. After more than one popular as-
semblage, the people came together at Hillsboro, on
April 4, 1767, and passed resolutions to pay no
more taxes until they were sure of their legality ;
to pay officers no more fees than was rigidly re-
quired by law, unless forced to do so, and then to
show open resentment ; to be cautious in the selec-
tion of representatives ; to petition the governor,
council, king, and parliament for a redress of griev-
ances ; to maintain a continual correspondence
among the members ; to defray all necessary ex-
penses ; to submit all differences in judgment to the
whole Regulation, the judgment of the majority to
be final ; and closed by a solemn affirmation " to
stand true and faithful to this cause until we bring
things to a true regulation."

Commenting upon this action of the Carolina
patriots, Lossing says :

The resolutions passed at this meeting were almost
equivalent to a declaration of independence of the civil
power of the State. Tryon, who became governor of
the province in 1765, endeavored to crush out the Regu-
lation movement by bringing to bear undue influence
upon the North Carohna Assembly, and referred to the
" Regulators as a faction of Quakers and Baptists who
aimed at overturning the Church of England."

At the time of this period of agitation the Bap-
tists were by great odds more numerous than any

84 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

other religious denomiuation in the province, for
there were twenty-two Baptist churches in seven-
teen of the twenty-three counties in North Caro-
lina. Some of these churches, like the Sandy Creek
Church, had a numerous membership. Even as
early as 1758 its membership numbered nearly nine
hundred members. Trifling as the numbers of the
Episcopacy were, when compared with those of the
Baptists, all the public offices were held by the
former by reason of the failure of the Baptists to
subscribe to the tenets of the Establishment. And
yet the Baptists paid a large portion of the taxes
by which the Establishment was maintained.

It is not difficult to see the inevitable tendency of
such a condition as prevailed for many years in
North Carolina. When the extreme of endurance
had been reached, the people openly rebelled. The
clash of arms came at Alamance. The Regulators,
composed largely of Baptists, were defeated by the
royal forces, and fled toward the West. The result
was that this portion of North Carolina from being
one of those in which Baptists were most numerous
was now almost altogether abandoned by them.
Fleeing westward into Kentucky, Tennessee, and
Georgia, Baptist churches sprang up wherever they
went. In accounting for this precipitate emigration,
Morgan Edwards, a Tory Baptist,^ said in 1775 :

The cause of this dispersion was the abuse of power

1 " He was the only Tory in the ministry of the American Bap-
tist churches." — Cathcart, " Baptist Encyclopedia,^' p. S62.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 85

which too much prevailed in the province and caused
the inhabitants at last to rise up in arms and fight for
their privileges ; but being routed, May 16, 1771, they
despaired of seeing better times and therefore quitted
the province. It is said one thousand five hundred
families departed since the battle of Alamance, and, to
my knowledge, a great many m.ore are only waiting to
dispose of their plantations in order to follow them.
This, to my mind, is an argument that their grievances
were real, and their oppression great, notwithstanding
all that has been said to the contrary.

An indication of the extent to which the thrifty
Baptist communities were thinned is afforded by the
fact that the membership of the Sandy Creek
Church, near which the battle was fought, was re-
duced from nine hundred to a membership of four-
teen.

Recoiling from the oppression visited upon them,
the Baptists of North Carolina came to question the
slightest assumption of human authority. Oppres-
sion had driven them to the extreme in the assertion
of the principle of soul-liberty. This spirit was
shown in the fact that the Sandy Creek Association,
during a period of thirty or forty years, and the
Yadkin, for a period of twelve years, refused to
elect moderators to preside over them. From a
position so extreme, they were dissuaded by John
Gano during his missionary tour through the South.

Contemporary with these revolutionary move-
ments in North Carolina was the activity in the
same direction on the part of the Baptists of Vir-

86 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ginia, and of other provinces of the South. Pro-
tracted oppression had made them vigilant of the
discovery of the slightest opportunity to contribute
to the growing complications between England and
the American colonies. Promptly seizing upon
these advantages, the Baptists of the South wisely
and vigorously pushed them toward the desired end
without halt or compromise. As citizens they
struggled for civil liberty ; as Christians, for relig-
ious freedom.

Of one thing the Baptists never lost sight — that
of the abolition of all legal ecclesiastical distinc-
tions. The political crisis induced by the growing
exactions of the mother country impelled the Bap-
tists to struggle more vigorously for the attainment
of that much desired end, which was sought for
themselves not only, but for all citizens, whether
Christian, Jew, or infidel. That for which they
contended was a divorcement of the Church from
the State, that the former might work out its own
destiny unaided by the government ; in short, their
ultimate object was absolute religious freedom. In
this contest Baptists were aided by the Presbyteri-
ans and other members of the community.^ That
the spirit of the Baptists was entirely exempt from
hostility to any other sect, and that they w^ere actu-
ated solely by principle, is shown by the fact that
at the session of the General Association of Vir-
ginia in 1784, public fast days were set apart "in
^Semple, " Rise and Progress of Virginia Baptists," pp. 26, 73.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 87

behalf of our poor blind persecutors and for the re-
leasement of our brethren." ^

In 1775 the General Association of Virginia
memorialized the Convention of the province to
make military resistance to Great Britain, setting
forth at the same time in a Declaration of Princi-
ples " that the mere toleration of religion by the
civil government is insufficient ; that no State re-
ligious establishment ought to exist ; that all relig-
ious denominations ought to stand on the same foot-
ing." Charged with a copy of the memorial, a
committee was deputed by the General Association
to attend the convention and to lay under tribute all
legitimate means for the accomplishment of the de-
sired end. All that was asked for was not granted,
but an extraordinary concession was made when the
Convention gave respectful answer, and adopted a
resolution granting that " dissenting clergymen be
permitted to celebrate divine worship and to preach
to the soldiers." This was the entering wedge to
religious equality in Virginia. Doubtless on the
part of the Convention this was intended so to con-
ciliate the Baptists that they would desist from
further effort. So far from that being true, how-
ever, it only served to stimulate them to greater
energy and more vehement protests. If it gave
hope and encouragement to Baptists, it must have
indicated to the clergy of the Establishment that
their power was already beginning to decline. But

1 Semple, " Rise and Progress of Virginia Baptists," p. 56.

88 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

a supremacy so long and profitably enjoyed was not
to be easily surrendered. Accordingly the clergy
of the Establishment began at once an active can-
vass, circulating petitions to be signed in behalf of
the retention of the Episcopacy as a permanent
legal establishment, which in turn provoked the Bap-
tists to procure counter petitions. The efforts of
the Baptists resulted in procuring the names of ten
thousand persons who were chiefly freeholders.

The year 1776 marks the era of the adoption of
the Constitution of Virginia, which instrument en-
joys the distinction of being " the first written con-
stitution for a free, sovereign, and independent State
which the history of the world has called forth."
The constitution was prefaced by the Bill of Rights,
the sixteenth section of which, as written by George
Mason, provided for the " fullest toleration." But
through the instrumentality of James Madison, the
term " toleration " was stricken out and all men
were declared equally entitled to the free exercise of
religion. The famous section as amended by Madi-
son reads as follows :

That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Cre-
ator and the manner of discharging it, can be directed
only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence,
and therefore all men are equally entitled to the free ex-
ercise of religion according to the dictates of conscience ;
and that it is the mutual duty of all to practise Christian
forbearance, love, and charity toward each other.

It will be remembered that Mr. Madison had

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 89

been a witness to the wrongs perpetrated upon Bap-
tists under the guise of toleration, and was therefore
the better prepared to give heed to the formal appli-
cation of that people to expunge a " term intrinsi-
cally fallacious and fraught with dangerous impli-
cations."

Animated by the victories already achieved, the
Baptists now took fresh courage throughout the
State of Virginia. Their work had just begun.
They became more aggressive. Endurance of pro-
tracted wrong deepened their determination to break
off the yoke of English tyranny. They stimulated
every possible agency of opposition and set in mo-
tion a strong popular current which was pressing
with increasing force against the Establishment, al-
ready quaking to its foundation. Others besides
Baptists, who had previously held themselves some-
what aloof and had regarded the long and trying
struggle with an air of conventional propriety, now-
joined the aggressive party against the Establish-
ment. This was notably true of the Presbyterians,
whose privileges had greatly exceeded those of the
Baptists. The Hanover Presbytery for 1776,
while entreating equal protection for all sects, asked
to be exempt from the payment of taxes for the
support of any church further than might be agree-
able to their choice as individuals or because of vol-
untary obligations.^

The year 1776 being that during which the first

^Foote, "Sketches of Virginia," p. 324.

90 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

session of the independent legislative assembly con-
vened, was one of the most notable periods of our
denominational history. Anticipating the assembly
of the legislature, the Baptists were active for
months throughout Virginia circulating petitions for
the enrollment of the names of those who favored
the extension of the benefits of religious liberty to
every class of citizens. When the General Assembly
met in its initial session during this year, it found
itself overwhelmed with such a flood of petitions as
to compel the most serious consideration. This
strong array of petitioners from every portion of
Virginia, clearly forecast the approaching conflict.
The " crowding " petitioners were referred to a com-
mittee of seventeen, of which Jeiferson and Madison
were members. A long and bitter contest followed,
which is described by Jeiferson in his autobiography
as " the severest in which he had ever engaged."
He further says : " After desperate contests in that
committee almost daily from the eleventh of Oc-
tober to the fifth of December, a bill was brought
in repealing the laws which restrained freedom of
religious opinion or worship, exempting dissenters
from all levies, taxes, and impositions whatever for
the support of the Established Church." This was
an overAvhelming victory — a long stride toward
absolute freedom.

But gigantic as had been the struggle, and well
won as was the victory, the end of the contest was
not yet reached. Seeing that the foundations of

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 91

the Establishment were being gradually sapped, its
friends became desperate in their efforts to arrest the
tottering fabric. Consequently they succeeded in
securing the passage of a declaration to the eifect
that provision ought to be made for continuing the
succession of the clergy and for superintending their
conduct.' There was in the bill passed an " express
reservation whether a general assessment should not
be established by law, on every one, for the support
of the pastor of his choice ; or whether all should
be left to voluntary contributions.''

Having gained so much, through legislative meas-
ures, the Baptists were willing to bide their time for
a season, persuaded that their ultimate object would
eventually be attained. But they were not idle as
patriots and in the expression of loyalty to the cause
of the colonies. Elder McClanahan, a Baptist min-
ister from Culpeper County, raised a company of
soldiers for the Continental service mainly from the
members of Baptist churches. While he led them
to battle as their captain, he ministered to their spir-
itual wants as their chaplain.^ In commenting upon
the preaching of Elder McClanahan, in connection
with his service as captain of a company of volun-
teers, Howe takes occasion to remark that " the
Baptists were the most strenuous supporters of
liberty." ^ The valuable service rendered by our
ministry to the cause evoked from Washington the

1 Jefferson, "Works," Vol. I., p. 39.
^Howe, " Virginia Historical Collections," p. 238. ^ Ihid., p. 238.

92 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

declaration that " Baptist chaplains were among the
most prominent and useful in the army." ^ Among
those who shouldered their muskets and entered the
ranks of the American army was Rev. David Bar-
row, one of the most eminent, as well as one of the
most useful, of the Baptist ministry of that period.
On the field of carnage he was as efficient as he had
been in his peaceful ministrations at home.^ Rev.
Daniel Marshall, though an old man, was unremit-
ting in his patriotic appeals in behalf of the struggle
for independence, notwithstanding he was several
times warned and threatened by the British soldiery.
So persistent was he in denunciation of the mother
country, that he was at last arrested and placed
under strong guard ; but having obtained leave to
speak, he so overwhelmed his enemies with his ex-
hortations and prayers, that they promptly set him
free.

The influence by the Baptists against the crown
was not restricted to any particular portion of the
country. They were actuated by the same spirit
throughout the entire South. The province of
South Carolina was among the first to give expres-
sion of her loyalty to the provincial congress. She
organized the " Council of Safety," as the executive
power was called, composed of a body of thirteen
eminent citizens. One of the chief concerns of this
Council was, by public speaking to bring the people

1 " Manning and Brown University," p. 136.
2 Semple, p. 359.

SOUTHEEN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 93

into sympathy with the revolutionary movement by
conciliating them to the newly formed government,
enlisting their support of it, and removing their
pre'judice and misapprehension. From the begin-
ning of the Revolution, Rev. Oliver Hart and his
church, at Charleston, warmly espoused the cause of
the country. By reason of his acquaintance and in-
fluence in the back country, Mr. Hart was chosen,
together with Rev. William Tennent, another Bap-
tist, and Hon. William H. Drayton, to arouse the
patriotism of the Carolinians in behalf of the
American cause.^ Not less conspicuous for his in-
fluence and patriotism was Rev. Richard Furman,
Sr., D. D. Indeed he is said to have incurred the
wrath of Lord Cornwallis so seriously that the
British commander ofi'ered a considerable sum for
his apprehension. According to Thomas Jefferson
two-thirds of the inhabitants of Virginia were dis-
senters when the Revolution began ; ^ these were
composed almost entirely of Baptists and Presby-
terians. While the latter had a number of eminent
men, the number of their communicants was small
when compared with those of the Baptists. This
furnishes an indirect indication of the patriotism of
Baptists during the great struggle for freedom.

With 1777 came a renewal of the determination
on the part of the Baptists of Virginia to separate
Church and State. Having that end in view, the

1 Sprague, " Annals of the American Baptist Pulpit," pp. 48, 49.
^Jefferson, " On the State of Virginia," p. 169.

94 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

General Association of Virginia at its session in
1777 appointed a committee to ascertain and report
to that body whether there were existing in the
Commonwealth any oppressive or ecclesiastical laws.
The result of this action was an elaborate report
setting forth the fact that quite a number of laws
which seriously interfered with the exercise of re-
ligious liberty were still prevailing. This report
gave rise to a formal and respectful address to the
legislature by the General Association, calling atten-
tion to these oppressive and obnoxious laws, and
with the transmission of the address was another
inundation of petitions from the Baptists and Pres-
byterians protesting most vehemently against the
maintenance of a State Church. Against these
were arrayed the petitions from the Episcopalians
and Methodists, as the latter at that period co-
operated with the Establishment. The presentation
of these conflicting documents before the lawmakers
of Virginia occasioned no little interest. Out of
this came a law suspending the collection of taxes
for the support of religious teachers.^ While this
gave additional elation to the Baptists, it served to
embolden them for future aggression.

Two meetings of the General Association were
iield during the year 1778. Encouraged by what
had been accomplished at previous sessions, a com-
mittee on " civil grievances " was again raised, re-
sulting in the submission of a report remonstrating
1 Hawks, Vol I., p. 139.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 95

most stoutly against a general assessment for the
support of all denominations- — a conciliatory meas-
ure which had been set on foot by the supporters of
the Establishment to prevent the total wreck of that
fated institution. The report also strongly inveighed
against the law granting to Episcopal clergymen the
exclusive right, under the penalty of illegitimacy of
issue, to perform the marriage ceremony. These
solemn protests took the same course as those of the
year before — they were transmitted to the legisla-
ture by means of a most competent committee. It
seems that the most that M'as accomplished by this
Baptist delegation was favorable prospective action
on the part of the legislature ; for at the session of
the General Association the following year, the
draft of a bill establishing religious freedom was
placed before the members of the General Associ-
ation and it was generally approved. Here as
before commissioners were appointed to visit the
legislature, urging that body to legalize the mar-
riages which, under the advice of Patrick Henry,
dissenting; ministers had celebrated. The result of
this persistent activity of the Baptists was the
enactment of a law repealing all laws authorizing
the collection of taxes for the support of the clergy,
Jefferson's estimate of this action was that "the
Establishment of the Anglican Church was entirely
put down." This was the result of an intense
struggle on the part of the Baptists, which was pro-
longed through three years.

96 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Some of those who entered into co-operation
with the Baptists when the issue was first joined,
forsook tliem when the matter of general assessment
was forced into the struggle. Dr. Hawks, the
Episcopal church historian, sums up the struggle
thus :

In each successive meeting of the Legislature from
1776 to 1779, this quxstio vexata was brought up for dis-
cussion. . . In 1779, all things being ready for a final
vote, the question was settled against the system of a
general assessment, and the Establishment was finally
put down. The Baptists were the principal promoters
of this work and, in truth, aided more than any other
denomination in its accomplishment. Their historian
boasts that they alone were uniform in their eff"orts to
destroy the system of an assessment and to introduce
the plan of a voluntary contribution. Whether this be
so or not, it is very certain that in the Associations of
that sect, held from year to year, a prominent subject
of discussion always was as to the best modes of carrying
on war against the Establishment.

The year following that of the overthrow of the
Establishment, the enactment of a law legalizing
marriage by dissenting ministers was procured. As
has been suggested, Patrick Henry urged Baptist
ministers to disregard the law in the celebration of
the marriage ceremony with the expressed opinion
that this was the speediest method of sweeping it
from the statute books — and it proved true. It is
a remarkable fact, however, that four years after the
Declaration of Independence, oppressive laws were

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 97

existing upon the pages of the colonial, or State,
statute books.

We have now reached a period (1780-81) when
the South was overrun by British troops. The
theatre of war in the Southern provinces was Vir-
ginia and South Carolina. The well-known loyalty
of Baptist preachers to the cause of freedom made
them conspicuous objects of vengeance to the British
commanders, and for some of these ministers hand-
some rewards were offered by the royal generals.
Baptist churches too were desecrated by being trans-
formed into storage houses, temporary magazines,
and field hospitals. Special delight seems to have
characterized the seizure of these temples of worship
and the reduction of them to hostile service. How-
ever, this ceases to be a matter of surprise when it is
borne in mind that Baptists were the most ardent of
dissenters and the most belligerent of patriots. In
Virginia and the Carolinas, during the two years,
1780-81, the greatest demoralization prevailed
among Baptist churches. Pastors were driven from
their stations, flying sometimes for their lives, while
many of them entered the army as chaplains or
commanders; and congregations were broken up
and scattered in every possible direction. The
-Revolution was the occasion of the early occupation
by Baptists of regions westward. This movement
preceded the opening of the Eevolution, because of
the exactions of the crown officers, and continued
throughout the years of the gigantic struggle.

98 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

As we have seen, the utmost consistency was
maintained by the Baptists of the South during
the Revolutionary War. The struggle itself was
only a more emphatic and sanguinary expression of
the protests which had been made for a long period
prior to the clash of arms. Throughout the years
of the war Baptists were equally conspicuous in
pressing the claims of liberty before legislative as-
semblies and in resisting the invasions of the royal
armies. Speaking of the aggressive spirit of the
Baptists in Virginia during this stormy period, Dr.
Hawks, the learned Episcopal historian, says of
them : " After their final success in the matter of
voluntary contribution, their next efforts were to
procure a sale of the church lands, and their efforts
never ceased until the glebe lands were sold." ^

The Baptist General Association of Virginia was
most unremitting in its efforts to snap the last bond
that united Church and State. During both ses-
sions, held in the years 1782 and 1783, committees
on " Civil Grievances " were appointed and the two
items, still dear to the Establishment — the retention
of glebe lands and the popular assessment for the
support of ministers of all denominations — were
made themes of firm remonstrance. The usual
committee was appointed to wait upon the legisla-
ture, but these measures were, for the time being,
disregarded in view of the pressing demands of the
political necessities of the time. In 1783 the Gen-
1 Hawks, Vol. I., p. 53.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 99

eral Association entrusted the matter of the direc-
tion of grievances to a General Committee composed
of not more than four delegates from each district
Association. This committee in 1784 renewed with
vigor its protests before the legislature, arraigning
before that body the proposed laws for general as-
sessment, and the incorporation of religious societies,
the vestry, and the marriage laws. A commissioner
was deputed to bear the memorials of this committee
to the legislature. This year, the General Assem-
bly went so far as to pass a law authorizing all min-
isters to officiate at marriages.^

At the preceding session of the General Assem-
bly, in 1783, action upon the general assessment bill
was postponed in order that an expression from the
people might be had. This served to elicit the full
strength and influence of the Baptist denomination
in Virginia. It was fully realized Avhat was in-
volved in this popular expression and Baptist influ-
ence was strained to its utmost tension. Under the
direction and management of the General Commit-
tee, the people in the different counties were urged
to prepare petitions against the proposed assessment
as being repugnant to the spirit of the gospel and
the freedom of religion. The text of the resolution
upon which such action was based, in Virginia, read
as follows :

Resolved, That it be recommended to those counties
which have not yet prepared petitions to be presented to

iSemple, pp. 34,69, 70.

100 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the General Assembly against the engrossed bill for a
general assessment for the support of the teachers of the
Christian religion to proceed thereon as soon as possible ;
that it is believed to be repugnant to the spii'it of the
gospel for the legislature thus to proceed in matters of
religion ; that the holy author of our religion needs no
such compulsive measures for the promotion of his
cause ; that the gospel wants not the feeble arm of man
for its support ; that it has made, and will again,
through divine power, make its way against all opposi-
tion ; that should the legislature assume the right of
taxing the people for the support of the gospel, it will
be destructive of religious liberty.

The contest had been so ingeniously narrowed
down by the opponents of the dissenters as to
restrict the aggression almost entirely to the Bap-
tists, w^ho never stood more alone than now while
they strove to defeat these adroit measures. Up to
this time, the Baptists had been able to rely upon
the friendly co-operation of the Presbyterians, but
that communion was now divided. There were then
arrayed against the Baptists, the Episcopalians, the
Methodists, and a goodly portion of the Presby-
terians. The specious and insiduous pretext of the
opposition was that an assessment of the people
should be made to provide a remedy for the alleged
decay of morals and the general decline of religion.

The issue was squarely joined when a petition
from the Isle of Wight County appeared before the
legislature praying that every one be compelled to
contribute of his substance for the support of relig-

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 101

ion. Fortunately for the Baptists, they enjoyed the
co-operation of such eminent representatives as
James Madison, George Mason, and Thomas Jefi'er-
son. But they were in turn opposed by such
patriots as Patrick Henry, George Washington,
Richard Henry Lee, and John Marshall. The
general assessment bill was championed by Patrick
Henry, who was pitted against James Madison, who
appeared as the leader of the opposition to that ob-
noxious measure. It was a struggle of giants. The
discussion was vigorous and vehement. For a time,
it seemed that the battle was lost to the Baptists.
When the bill was ordered read the third time, that
it might be put upon its passage, its advocates were
confident. There was no hope left save in delay.
Rallying the opposition to the measure, its managers
succeeded in having action postponed to another
session. This led to a representation of the matter
to the masses of the people. Mr. Madison was
foremost in calling popular attention to the subject
in an admirable paper which was known as the
" Memorial and Remonstrance," which was exten-
sively circulated and read by thousands. Mean-
while the advocates of assessment were by no
means idle, for they circulated twenty-four copies of
the bill in each county in the commonwealth. Upon
the reassembling of the legislature in October, 1785,
the great table in the Assembly hall almost sank
under the weight of the petitions and remonstrances
against the general assessment measure. Public

102 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

protests were so overwhelming that the advocates of
the measure surrendered without further struggle.
Baptists had finally won.

As the friend of soul-liberty, Jefferson seized
upon the opportunity which was now presented for
the submission of the following bill looking to the
establishment of religious freedom. This was
adopted December 16, 1785, and is still the funda-
mental law of Virginia :

AN ACT TO ESTABLISH RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That no man
shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious
worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall he be
enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body
or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his re-
ligious opinions or belief ; but that all men shall be free
to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions
in matters of religion, and that the same shall, in no
wise, diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

There was not the slightest relaxation of effort on
the part of the Baptists to wipe out the remaining
traces of oppression and to thwart their enemies in
efforts to procure such legislation as would entrench
them in ecclesiastical supremacy. The General
Committee now turned its attention to the opposition
of the measure looking to the incorporation of the
Episcopal society. At the meeting of this commit-
tee held in 1786, it was resolved,

That petitions ought to be drawn and circulated in the
different counties and presented to the next General As-

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 103

sembly, praying for a repeal of the Incorporating Act,
and that the public property which is by that act vested
in the Protestant Episcopal Church be sold, and the
money applied to public use, and that Reuben Ford and
John Leland attend the next Assembly as agents in
behalf of the General Committee.

In this step the Presbyterians rejoined the Bap-
tists, insisting that the act be repealed and the
property distributed. In opposition to this pro-
nounced expression, the Episcopal Convention
recommended to the parishes throughout the State
that petitions be prepared and presented offsetting
the memorials of the Baptists and Presbyterians, but
to no purpose; for on January 9, 1787, the law-
was repealed. The w^ork to which the Baptists had
applied themselves so assiduously for a long period
was now^ almost completed, there being but one re-
maining element of the original Establishment
which demanded their attention, and that was the
settlement of the glebe land question. Passing
judgment upon this, the General Committee decided
that the glebe lands were the property of the people
— rightly belonged to the public — because bought
with money collected by taxes from the people gen-
erally. With this w^as coupled a solemn protest
against its exclusive use by the minister of the
parish in which the lands were located. This ques-
tion had to be brought to the attention of the public
in such way as to enable intelligent action to be
taken.

104 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Baptists were as industrious in the urgent prose-
cution of the claims of this question as they had
been with every other. In 1799 their efforts were
rewarded by the passage of an act recognizing the
principle that all property belonging to the Episco-
pal Church devolved on the good people of the
commonwealth. This was followed by an act in
1802 ordering the sale of the glebes. In a sum-
mary of these events, Dr. Hawks says :

Persecution had taught the Baptists not to love the
Establishment. In their Association they had calmly
discussed the matter, and resolved on their course. In
this course, they were consistent to the end ; and the
war which they waged against the church was a war of
extermination. They seem to have known no relentings,
and their hostility never ceased for twenty-seven years. ^

When the struggle began, there Avas little or no en-
couragement to prosecute the work dear to the Bap-
tists of the South. Almost hoping against hope be-
cause of the formidable odds opposing them, the Bap-
tists steadfastly pursued their claims, holding every
inch of ground gained, and gathering new boldness
with each advantage, until there was a complete
severance of Church and State. They were equally
active in the field and in the legislative chamber
for the consummation of the single purpose of se-
curing to the new republic the fullest freedom. The
ratification of the Federal Constitution by the Vir-
ginia Convention was largely due to the exertion
1 Hawks, Vol. I., pp. 137, 138.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 105

and self-sacrifice of a Baptist minister, John Le-
land. Mr. Madison being absent from the State on
public business at the time when a representative
was to be chosen, Leland was agreed upon as a can-
didate for the position which would have been occu-
pied by Madison in the Convention of 1788, which
convention was to ratify or reject the national con-
stitution. Upon his return to Virginia, Madison
visited Leland and spent some time with him,
which resulted in the withdrawal of the latter
from the race in favor of the former. Mr. Madi-
son's presence in the convention was most oppor-
tune, as it is quite sure that the ratification of the
constitution was due to that fact. The new consti-
tution encountered the opposition of Patrick Henry
who thought it " squinted toward monarchy." By
reason of his personal popularity and splendid ora-
tory he carried the people with him, and would
have defeated ratification but for the influence of
Madison. Commenting upon this, Senator John S.
Barbour, of Virginia, asserts :

That the credit of adopting the Constitution of the
United States, properly belongs to a Baptist clergyman,
formerly of Virginia, named Leland. If Madison had
not been in the Virginia Convention, the constitution
would not have been ratified, and as the approval of
nine States was necessary to give effect to this instru-
ment, and as Virginia was the ninth State, if it had
been rejected by her, the constitution would have failed
(the remaining States following her example), and it was
through Elder Leland' s influence that Mr. Madison was

106 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

elected to that Convention. It is unquestionable that
Mr. Madison was elected through the efforts and resig-
nation of John Leland, and it is all but certain that
that act gave our country its famous constitution. '

The national Constitution, while generally accept-
able, was not faultless. Naturally enough it was
most rigidly examined by those who had struggled
so long and sacrificed so much for the young nation
just now in its swaddling clothes. At the session of
the General Association of Virginia in 1788, the
General Committee had submitted for consideration
the question, " Whether the new Federal Constitu-
tion, which had now lately made its appearance in
public, made sufficient provision for the secure enjoy-
ment of religious liberty ? '*

A unanimous opinion was reached by the commit-
tee that it did not. This occurred three months pre-
viously to its ratification by the State Convention,
in doing which that body made certain reservations
among which was that the liberty or right of no de-
nomination can be abridged by the government.
Certain essential rights, among which was that of
liberty of conscience, cannot be abridged, restrained,
or modified. That there might be no doubt attend-
ant upon the action of the Virginia Convention, the
General Committee held a consultation with Mr.
Madison as to future action, and afterAvard addressed
a communication to President Washington on the
same subject. After reference to their struggles for
^Sprague, " Annals of the American Baptist Pulpit," p. 179.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 107

religious freedom, and after respectful allusion to
the part taken by Washington in the contest, the
Committee said :

The want of efficacy in the confederation, the re-
dundancy of laws and their partial administration in
the States, called aloud for a new arrangement of our
systems. The wisdom of the States for that purpose
was collected in a grand convention, over which you,
sir, had the honor to preside. A national government
in all its parts was recommended as the only preserva-
tion of the Union, which plan of government is now in
actual operation.

When the Constitution first made its appearance in
Virginia we, as a Society, had unusual strugglings of
mind, fearing that the liberty of conscience (dearer to
us than property and life) was not sufficiently secured ;
perhaps our jealousies were heightened on account of
the usage we received in Virginia under the British
government when mobs, bonds, fines, and prisons were
our frequent repast.

Convinced on the one hand that without an effective
national government the States would fall into disunion
and all the consequent evils ; on the other hand, it was
feared we might be accessory to some religious oppres-
sion should any one Society in the union preponderate
all the rest. But amidst all the inquietudes of mind
our consolation arose from this consideration, the plan
must be good, for it bears the signature of a tried, trusty
friend ; and if religious liberty is rather insecure in the
Constitution, "the administration will prevent all op-
pression, for a Washington will preside." According to
our wishes the unanimus voice of the Union has called
you, sir, from your beloved reti'eat to launch forth again
into the faithless seas of human affairs to guide the

108 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

helm of the States. Should the horrid evils that have
been so pestiferous in Asia and Europe — faction, ambi-
tion, war, perfidy, fraud, and persecutions for conscience'
sake — ever approach the borders of our happy nation,
may the name and administration of our beloved Presi-
dent, like the radiant source of day, scatter all those
dark clouds from the American hemisphere.

This letter to Washington was the wise and
timely product of John Leland, a man of fertile
resource, calm judgment, courageous disposition,
and of ripe piety.

In reply to the letter, of which the foregoing is
an extract. President Washington wrote :

If I could have entertained the slightest apprehension
that the Constitution framed by the convention where I
had the honor to preside might possibly endanger the
religious rights of any ecclesiastical society, certainly I
would never have placed my signature to it ; and if I
could now conceive that the general government might
ever be so administered as to render the liberty of con-
science insecure, I beg you will be persuaded that no
one would be more zealous than myself to establish ef-
fectual barriers against the horrors of spiritual tyranny
and every species of religious persecution. Tor you
doubtless remember I have often expressed my senti-
ments that any man conducting himself as a good citi-
zen, and being accountable to God alone for his religious
opinions, ought to be protected in worshiping the Deity
according to the dictates of his own conscience.

While I recollect with satisfaction that the religious
Society of which you are members have been through-
out America uniformly and almost unanimously the
firm friends to civil liberty and the persevering pro-

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS AND THE REVOLUTION 109

meters of our glorious revolution, I cannot hesitate to
believe that they will be faithful supporters of a free yet
efficient general government. Under this pleasing ex-
pectation I rejoice to assure them that they may rely
upon my best wishes and endeavors to advance their
prosperity. In the meantime be assured, gentlemen,
that I entertain a proper sense of your fervent supplica-
tion to God for my temporal and eternal happiness.
I am, gentlemen.

Your most obedient servant,

George Washington.

The outcome of this correspoudence was the
submission by James Madison, in the House of
Representatives, of the first amendment to the
Constitution of the United States. Although it en-
countered strong opposition at first, it was finally
passed by the House and afterward approved by
two-thirds of the States and became a law. The
Baptists have all along insisted that the credit of
this amendment belongs to them. It was for this
that the appeal was made to Washington, who
promptly recognized the wisdom of it. The request
commended itself to the judgment of Madison also,
and gave to him an additional opportunity to endear
himself to the Baptists of the South by submitting
the amendment and securing its passage.

The adoption of the first amendment to the Con-
stitution should have ended the struggle ; but it
was not until 1798 that all the barriers were swept
away and dissenters were admitted to equal priv-
ileges with the Episcopalians of America.

CHAPTER IV

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION

IN 1770 the Baptists of the South were, in point
of numbers, quite a weak folk. At that period
there were but few church organizations in the
States now covered by the territory of the South.
While a few of these were strong, relatively speak-
ing, the most of them were feeble. Of the seventy
Baptist churches reported for 1770, according to a
recent author,^ only seven were accounted as existing
in the South. There were, however, known to be
more than that. Still there were perhaps not so
many as ten thousand Baptists in the United States
when the Revolution began. The eifect of that
great struggle was to disperse the Baptist churches
of the Southern provinces. Baptists were intensely
enlisted in the cause of freedom, and almost none
of the churches observed stated seasons of worship.
For the most part, the pastors were enlisted as chap-
lains, or as soldiers in the ranks.

After the close of the war, however, there was a
speedy reaction. Differences were forgotten in the
single aim to unify the denomination in order to

iH. K. Carroll, ll.d., in "The Religious Forces of the United
States," p. 25.
110

DENOMINATIONAL, EXPANSION 111

give a lasting effect to the achievements wrought.
The sufferings and struggles which all had under-
gone in common, served to weld them the more
easily after the gigantic contest had closed. This
was illustrated by the easy fusion of the " Separate "
and "Regular" Baptists of Virginia in 1787.
This was the signal for union throughout the prov-
inces, so that within a few years after the fusion in
Virginia the denomination presented a united front.
This spirit of unity which, in turn, was the result of
that singleness of aim for the princijjle for which
the Baptists of the South in common suffered and
contended, was the fountain source of the denomi-
national expansion with which the period following
the Revolution was signalized. A grateful senti-
ment everywhere prevailed because of the achieve-
ment of liberty. Places of worship which had
long been desecrated by the vile uses to which they
were subjected by the enemy, were venerated more
than ever before. Meeting-houses were rebuilt
where they had been demolished, repaired where
they had been damaged ; and congregations gathered
again with alacrity and gratitude, and resumed,
without fear of interruption, the worship of God.
Only the sufferers from persecution could realize
how precious was the boon of freedom, and it is but
natural that these people should be frequently found
at their places of worship.

The beneficent reaction from the turbulent period
of the Revolution was favorable to the production

112 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

of the grateful feelings which prevailed universally
among the Baptists of the South. This sponta-
neous spirit which dictated an equally spontaneous
worship, was the starting point of the phenomenal
growth which characterized the denomination during
the subsequent periods throughout the Southern
States.

From this prevalent condition of the Baptist
churches inevitably sprang a revival which not only
greatly augmented the membership of the churches
already existing, but rapidly multiplied the number
of churches themselves. It seems that as early as
1784 there were in Virginia alone one hundred and
fifty-one churches and fourteen thousand nine hun-
dred and sixty members, and eight years later the
number of churches had increased to two hundred
and eighteen, with a membership of twenty thou-
sand four hundred and forty-three. The revival
wave swept into the opening years of the nineteenth
century, so that in 1810-12 we find Virginia with
two hundred and ninety-two churches and thirty-five
thousand six hundred and sixty-five members.
These numbers are furnished as to the resident
membership of Virginia Baptist churches, although
Semple estimates that between 1791 and 1810 fully
one-fourth of the Baptists of Virginia removed to
Kentucky. Notwithstanding that the Revolutionary
period found the Baptists of the North far out-
numbering those of the South, in 1814 there were
nearly twice as many members in the Baptist

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 113

churches of Virginia as in those of New York, and
there were many more in Virginia than there were
in all the New England States together.

The same spirit of revivalism extended into
North Carolina ; but it was not until 1800 that the
most memorable revival in the annals of that State
occurred. James McGready, a Scotch-Irish Pres-
byterian preacher, began a revival in North Caro-
lina in the first years of the nineteenth century,
which shook the State to its center, and which was
soon felt in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio. The
return of peace had brought to most of the Carolina
churches many demoralizing practices which re-
quired sturdy heroism to attack and expose. From
the labors of this wonderful man, the Baptists de-
rived immense increase to the membership of their
churches throughout North Carolina.

Attention has already been called to the organi-
zation of the earliest churches in North Carolina,
among which there were many struggling interests.
In 1784 we find in the State forty-two churches,
with a membership of three thousand two hundred
and seventy-six; eight years later, in 1792, the
number of churches had increased to ninety-four
and the membership to seven thousand five hun-
dred and three. The results of the McGready re-
vival are manifest in the figures furnished for 1812,
for then we find two hundred and four churches in
the State, with a membership of twelve thousand
five hundred and sixty-seven. As the churches of

114 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Kentucky were recruited from those of Virginia, so
the churches of Tennessee derived their strength
from those of North Carolina.

Some of the churches of South Carolina were
almost extinguished by the Revolution. The part
borne in the great struggle by the leader of the
South Carolina Baptists, Oliver Hart, in arousing
the patriotism of the colonists and in inciting them
against the royal forces, so aroused the wrath of the
British commanders that on the approach of their
armies to Charleston, Pastor Hart was advised by
his friends to seek a safe retreat. He made his way
northward to Hopewell, New Jersey, and never
again returned South. His church, which had so
long been a center of evangelistic influence in
southern South Carolina, was almost destroyed.
With the restoration of peace, Mr. Hart was re-
called to the pastorate of the church, but declined.
Dr. Richard Furman was then called from the high
hills of the Santee to Charleston, where he entered
upon a career of marvelous usefulness on October
18, 1787. The membership was easily rallied and
Charleston again became a controlling center of in-
•fluence to the Baptist denomination in the South.
The churches throughout South Carolina shared in
the revival spirit which was now prevailing through-
out all the Southern settlements. McGready, th§
noted revivalist, visited the State in 1802 and fol-
lowed up the work which had been accomplished in
North Carolina. Immense audiences thronged

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 115

upon his preaching, variously estimated from four
to eight thousand, drawn together from a group of
districts, and even from many counties in Georgia.
As was true in the AVest, here were the remarkable
physical demonstrations attendant upon the revival
meetings of the period. Sudden loss of strength,
swoons, outcries, groans, involuntary but violent
spasmodic jerkings of the body-; — all these mani-
festations were witnessed during these remarkable
meetings in the Carolinas.

The growth of the denomination in South Caro-
lina is indicated by the fact that in 1784 there were
in the State twenty-seven churches, with a member-
ship of one thousand six hundred and twenty ; by
1782, or within a period of eight years, the num-
ber of churches was almost trebled, there being then
seventy churches, with a membership of four thou-
sand one hundred and sixty-seven; in 1812 the
churches numbered one hundred and fifty-four, and
the total membership was eleven thousand three
hundred and twenty-five.

Only a passing notice has been given to Dr. Rich-
ard Furman, who became pastor at Charleston in
1787. Nothing could have been more fortunate
than his settlement in the Charleston pastorate just
at the time that he assumed the care of the church.
Just rallying from the ill effects of the war, and
realizing again its strength, for a long period the
center of denominational influence in the State,
with its opportunities and possibilities greatly in-

116 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

creased by the changed conditions induced by the
return of peace, the church at Charleston needed a
master-hand, directed by consummate prudence, to
grasp the situation and wield eflPectively the agen-
cies within reach. These elements were combined
in Richard Furman, who readily became the leader
of Southern Baptists, and was the peer of any man
in the denomination of the entire country. He was
without university training, but was endowed with
a high order of intellect, which was studiously cul-
tivated by self-application until he became one of
the most cultured men of the period. His tastes
led him to retain the dress of the colonial gentle-
man long after it had been generally abandoned.
He never failed to appear in his pulpit with the
gown and bands. Favored wdth fortune, he made
a liberal and judicious use of his means and wielded
a commanding influence throughout the State. The
subsequent prosperity of the churches of South
Carolina is, in large measure, due to the influence
of Richard Furman, Sr., d. d.

The first churches constituted in Kentucky were,
for a considerable period, in a sluggish condition.
Though the population had increased to twenty or
thirty thousand, and though eight Baptist churches
had been in existence for years, still up to 1784 no
one had been baptized in Kentucky. Assiduous
missionary labors and earnest preaching seem to
have availed nothing in the way of quickening
spirituality in the churches or of arousing anxiety

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 117

among the masses. But a revival was experienced
in 1785 which drew the Baptist churches of that
State into closer union, for no community of inter-
est had up to this time bound them together. Two
years later John Gano removed from New York to
Kentucky, and contributed greatly to the efficient
organization of the Baptists of the State. He was
readily accorded the position of leadership in the
denomination and was profoundly venerated to the
close of his life.

Again, in 1789, a revival of profound and wide-
reaching power prevailed throughout Kentucky.
This revival was not restricted, however, to that
State, but was prevalent throughout the upper States
of the South, especially in Virginia. In some por-
tions of Kentucky it lasted through a period of three
years, and had the happy effect of blending the de-
nomination into greater unity and of giving it greater
efficiency. During the period of this remarkable
spiritual demonstration thousands were baptized and
many new churches were constituted. This revival
was followed by what is known as " The Great Re-
vival" of 1800, in which nearly all the States of
the South and West largely shared. This was the
revival which began under James McGready in
North Carolina, and which swept over the Southern
and Western States and Territories and shortly
changed the aspect of religious society. All oppo-
sition seemed to yield to the advancing tide of
spirituality. Haunts of evil were closed, and the

118 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

obscenity and profanity so characteristic then of
the wayside inns and other places of popular resort
gave place to prayer and praise. The multitudes
of a given region would concentrate at the same
point, spread their tents, and establish a " camp
meeting." Persons rode on horseback and in wagons
a distance of a hundred miles sometimes to attend
these extraordinary gatherings. At a point near
Paris it was believed that there were concentrated
at one time as many as twenty thousand people.
One of the occasions of worship is thus described
by an eye-witness :

Here were collected all elements calculated to affect
the imagination. The spectacle jji-esented at night was
one of the wildest grandeur. The glare of the blazing
campfires falling on a dense assemblage of heads simul-
taneously bowed in adoration and reflected back from
long ranges of tents upon every side ; hundreds of candles
and lamps suspended among the trees, together with
numerous torches flashing to and fro, throwing an uncer-
tain light upon the tremulous foliage and giving an ap-
pearance of dim and indefinite extent to the depth of
the forest ; the solemn chanting of hymns swelling and
falling on the night wind ; the impassioned exhortations ;
the earnest jjrayers, the sobs, shrieks, or shouts, bursting
from persons under intense agitation of mind ; the sud-
den spasms which seized upon scores and unexpectedly
dashed them to the ground, all conspired to invest the
scene with terrific interest and to work up the feelings to
the highest pitch of excitement.^

Here were the most marvelous manifestations of
1 " History Presbyterian Church," p. 137.

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 119

physical excitement connected with that great move-
ment. It is said that during a given service three
thousand persons were known to liave been pros- '■

trated at one time upon the ground in an apparently ^. ' ^_J^
lifeless condition. Others were thrown into violent /-
convulsions which were popularly called " the jerks,"
while others rolled upon the ground or ran franti-
cally here and there ; others still, danced and sang ;
while still others barked like so many dogs. While
the revival was largely directed by the Presbyterian
ministry during its earlier stages, the Baptists w^ere
equally the recipients of its advantages. In 1790
we find in Kentucky forty-two churches, with an
aggregate membership of three thousand one hun-
dred and five; in 1800, at the beginning of "The
Great Revival," there w^ere one hundred and six
churches, with a membership of five thousand one
hundred and nineteen ; in 1803 there were two hun-
dred and nineteen churches, with a membership of
fifteen thousand four hundred and ninety-five. One
of the most salutary results of the series of revivals
in Kentucky was the obliteration of the trifling dif-
ferences which existed between the Separate and
Regular Baptists. Several attempts had been made
to bring about this fusion in Kentucky, but it was
not consummated until 1801.

The Baptists of East Tennessee retained their
associational connection with the Sandy Creek Asso-
ciation of North Carolina until 1786, when they
entered into the constitution of the Holston Associ-

120 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ation, which af^first embraced only seven churches.
This region shared in the gracious results of the re -
vival of 1800-1803, so that six years after its consti-
tution the Holston Association included thirty-six
churches, with a total membership of two thousand
five hundred. From this, in consequence of its
overgrown condition, was set off the Tennessee As-
sociation. Baptists did not become permanent in
Middle Tennessee until during the Revolution, and
about the year 1780. In 1791, Ambrose Dudley
and John Taylor rode on horseback from Ken-
tucky, a distance of two hundred miles, through an
uninhabited region, to assist in the constitution of
the Tennessee Church at the mouth of Sulphur
Fork River. For three years this church stood a
solitary outpost of evangelization, with no other
nearer than one hundred miles. But when in 1794
White's Creek Church was planted in Middle Ten-
nessee, this was the signal for an advance in the Bap-
tist cause. The last-named church emigrated bod-
ily from North Carolina under the lead of Elder
Dorris and settled at the source of Sulphur Fork
River. It appears that the removal of Mr. Dorris
to Middle Tennessee proved to be a misfortune to
the struggling cause in that region, for his presence
was a source of disturbance alike to his church and
to the Association of which it became a member.
It was in this portion of Tennessee that the rem-
nants of a disorganized church, which had been
formed in 1765, were found. This original organi-

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 121

zation had been forced to disband in 1774 because
of the atrocities of the Indians in that region. In
1797 there were five churches in Middle Tennessee
in such proximity as to enable them to constitute
the Mero Association. Subsequent to this the
Cumberland Association was formed, which had in

1806 a membership of thirty-nine churches. The
Elk River Association was created in 1806. In
1808 a sufficient number of churches withdrew from
the Cumberland to form the Red River Association,
and again, in 1810, another instalment severed their
membership with the Cumberland and constituted
the Concord Association. The expansion of the de-
nomination in Tennessee is indicated by the follow-
ing statistics :

In 1784 there were in the Territory of Tennes-
see six churches, with a membership of less than
four hundred ; in 1792 there were twenty-one
churches, with a membership of nine hundred ; in
1812 the churches had increased to one hundred
and fifty-six with a total membership of eleven
thousand three hundred and twenty-five. About

1807 Baptists had extended southward into the
Alabama Territor}^, where in the settlements, both
in the northern and southern ends of the Territory,
there was steady development. The denomination
in Alabama did not begin to grow rapidly until after
the battle of New Orleans and the consequent peace
with Great Britain. With the close of that struggle
and the attendant cessation of Indian hostilities in

122 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the South, immigration flowed rapidly into Alabama
from the older States toward the east as well as
from Tennessee.

But little progress Avas made by the Baptists of
Georgia until after the Revolution. From Tucka-
seeking, as a common center of his labors, Botsford
extended his evangelistic efforts up and down the
Savannah River, sometimes preaching in Georgia
and again in South Carolina. On the Georgia side
his labors extended as far north as the Kiokee
settlement, and as far south as Ebenezer. Mr.
Botsford was ordained to the full work of the min-
istry in 1773, by Oliver Hart and Francis Pelot.
For years he was a most zealous and efficient mis-
sionary in the populous settlements of Georgia and
South Carolina. When in 1780 Mr. Hart fled be-
fore the advancing British, Mr. Botsford accompa-
nied him as far north as Virginia, but returned
after the restoration of peace. The four or five
struggling churches of Georgia might have become
extinct during the stormy period of the war but
for the heroism of Daniel Marshall. He seems to
have been left alone by Abraham Marshall, his son,
Silas Mercer, and Edward Botsford, all of whom
sought safety in retreat during the hottest period of
the Revolution. But defy^ing all danger, Daniel
Marshall labored on as indefatigably and serenely as
if universal peace prevailed. To the three churches
of Kiokee, Botsford, and Red Creek, which were
constituted previous to the war, were added those of

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 123

Little Brier Creek and Fishing Creek, which were
formed by Daniel Marshall during the Revolution.
There was still one other church, the name of which
is not now known, which was situated on Buckhead
Creek, the pastor of which, Matthew Moore, was a
loyalist. During the Revolution the membership
was scattered and the church became practically
extinct. In 1787 it was revived through the
efforts of Revs. James Matthews and Benjamin
Davis, who gave it the name of Buckhead Creek
Church.

With these few organizations as a nucleus, ex-
tending in a line up and down the Savannah River,
the denomination began its marvelous development
in Georgia after the declaration of peace with Eng-
land. To Daniel Marshall more than to any other,
are Georgia Baptists indebted for the successful
planting of churches of our faith in the first period
of their history. He was an ideal organizer, and
was unremitting in his efforts to develop the churches
of which he had the oversight. Wisely calling into
exercise the gifts of the membership of a church,
he developed them as fully as the prevailing con-
ditions allowed. Embryonic indications were quickly
observed by the wise pastor, and gifts were nour-
ished into the fullest usefulness possible. From
such spiritual tutelage came some of the brightest
names of Georgia Baptist history — Alexander Scott,
Sanders Walker, Samuel Cartledge, Silas Mercer,
Abraham Marshall, Loveless Savidge, Samuel New-

124 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ton, William Davis, Jeremiah Reeves, Joseph
Baker, and others. Through the active missionary
labors of such men, the denomination entered upon
its new career in the years which followed the
Revolution/

The organization of churches into Associations
was a fruitful means of expansion. This was nota-
bly true with the early churches of Georgia. In
1784 a meeting preliminary to the constitution of
the Georgia Association was held, though the body
was not formally organized until the following year.
The stimulation resulting from the annual gathering
of such bodies in these early times was shown in
the multiplication of churches within their territory.
For instance, in Wilkes County alone, within the
territory of the Georgia Association, there were
organized twenty-two churches during the brief
period of six years. By the year 1794, ten years
after its constitution, the Georgia Association con-
tained fifty-six churches, several of Avhich were in
South Carolina. The overgrowth of this body sug-
gested the formation of the Hepzibah Association,
and later still of the Sarepta, both of which were
created from churches drawn from the parent organi-
zation. This was a period of enthusiastic progress

^ Beginning with one Baptist church in 1772, there were in
Georgia two in 1773; three, in 1774; four, in 1777; seven, in
1780; eight, in 1782; nine, in 1784; eleven, in 1785; fifteen, in
1786; twenty, in 1787; thirty-three, in 1788; thirty-five, in 1789;
forty-two, in 1790, and fifty-tliree, with a membership of nearly
four thousand five hundred, in 1794.

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 125

to Georgia Baptists. The State was fortunate in
having superior leaders from the beginning. Daniel
Marshall, a man of rare powers with the masses,
having died in 1784, his mantle of leadership fell
upon Silas Mercer, a man of sterner qualities than
his predecessor, but a preacher of great power and
influence with the people. Mercer had removed
from North Carolina to Georgia in 1775, and was
trained for his life-work through the silent agency
of Daniel Marshall. Mercer was cordially and
ably sustained by Abraham Marshall.

In 1786 Rev. Jeremiah Walker made his appear-
ance in Georgia after his deposition from the min-
istry in Virginia for unbecoming conduct. Just
before leaving Virginia, however, he had been re-
stored to the ministry. He was accompanied to
Georgia by Mr. Tinsley, who had been his fellow-
suiferer of persecution by imprisonment in Virginia.
The early churches of Georgia had been singularly
free from the taint of heterodoxy and had entered
upon a career of great promise when Walker and
Tinsley appeared upon the scene as the ardent ad-
vocates of Arminianism. They found ready sym-
pathizers in tAvo Baptist preachers, JNIatthew Talbot
and Nathaniel Hall. W^alker was a man of much
popular dash, was able, and possessed of a fascinat-
ing oratory. W^ith the assistance of those already
named in this connection, he undertook to promul-
gate Arminian views in Georgia. In the very out-
set these men encountered the most obstinate resis-

126 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tance, accompanied by aiFectionate renionstrauce on
the part of the leaders of the denomination, with
the hope of recovering the Arrainian advocates
from their error. For a period this was the occa-
sion of much disturbance. Finally, when the dis-
orderly elements refused to yield, they were finally
expelled and order restored. Walker soon after died
and his associates passed from public notice. Less
toleration was accorded the presentation of Arminian
views, perhaps, because the Methodists were contest-
ing every inch of territory with the Baptists in press-
ing their claims upon public attention.

Among those who were becoming conspicuous for
denominational leadership at that period was Sanders
Walker, Avho was perhaps the first Baptist preacher
ever ordained in Georgia. He was a Virginian by
birth, but was attracted westward by the alluring
reports prevalent in the other States of the advan-
tages enjoyed in the newer territory of the West.
He became a tower of strength in his adopted State.

Still farther westward, in Mississippi, the terri-
tory was rapidly occupied after the close of the
war of 1812. But little denominational progress
was made before that time. The cong-lomerate char-
acter of the population, coupled with the hostility
of the Indians, forbade rapid headway until order
was established. In the earlier years of the present
century New Hope Church was constituted in Adams
County ; Bethel Church, in Bayou Sara ; and New
Providence and Ebenezer, in Amite.

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 127

In briefly reviewing the causes which produced
this phenomenal growth of the Baptists, we may
name as a prime factor the reaction from the perse-
cution to which they were subjected during a large
portion of the preceding century. This strain of
long-continued persecution made the reaction one of
great force and energy. Such harsh treatment not
only gave a tremendous rebound to the persecuted,
but it elicited a popular sympathy, to which was
added an eager interest aroused by the uncurbed
fervor of the preaching of the Baptist ministry.
The conjunction of two such genial elements largely
accounts for the rapidity of denominational expan-
sion after the return of peace.

Another factor which operated to bring about
this great spiritual upheaval was the missionary zeal
of the early Baptist ministry of the South. The
world never witnessed more consecrated earnestness
than was displayed by these rude preachers of the
early days of the denomination in the Southern
States. Most of them came from the walks of
common life, and were, for the most part, tillers
of the soil. They would labor upon their farms
until near the close of the week, studying their
plain English Bibles at night, and at the proper
time would start to their appointments, often more
than forty miles away. Not infrequently in pioneer
regions, where the trail of the Indian was the only
means of uniting the diiferent settlements, these
hardy men would encounter streams swollen and

128 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

bridgeless, but undaimted would swim to the oppo-
site side and prosecute their journeys with 'alacrity.
Their familiarity with the needs of the masses would
enable them readily to meet the demands of every
occasion. The popular esteem excited by their dis-
interested zeal made the utterances of these plain,
unlettered men almost oracular. Disturbances of
whatever character in the new settlements were
often submitted to the calm decision of the pious
Baptist missionaries, and the conclusions to which
they were led by their rugged sense of right, not
only enabled them to adjust difficulties, but gave to
them a wonderful hold upon the popular mind and
heart.

The strength and compass of this influence were
increased by the fact that the labors of these men
were uncompensated. Under the stress of existing
conditions this was unavoidable. Through self-ab-
negation alone could the gospel be given to the rude
settlers upon the frontier, as they were frequently
subjected, for the first few years, to great privation.
This unrequited labor gave to the early preacher
unusual liberty and plainness of speech which he
exercised without stint. Though advantageous at
this time, this failure to exact compensation from
the early churches proved a barrier in after years to
church development in the South. When, as the
result of such unflagging zeal and unremitting labor,
churches began to multiply throughout the early
settlements of the South and Associations began to

DENOMINATIONAL EXPANSION 129

be organized, evangelization became more system-
atic and eiFective. A Baptist organization, whether
it was a church or a district Association, became at
once an evangelistic center, and so surely as an un-
evangelized district lay within reach, just so surely
did it fall under the influence of the progressive
home missionary of the Baptists.

Following up their success by preaching Sunday
after Sunday under the difficulties and embarrass-
ments already named, these men of fiery zeal would
quit their homes for weeks together, when their crops
would no longer demand rigid attention, and preach
day after day to assembled hundreds.

More rapid headway was gained by the Baptists
of the South in the periods immediately succeeding
the Revolution, by reason of the thorough accord
of the polity of Baptist churches with the genius of
the government and the republican spirit of the
masses. If Baptists did much toward achieving
American independence, the consummation of that
event in turn did much for their denominational
expansion. The reaction from royal dominion and
from everything that pertained to the crown was
terrible, and out of this condition sprang the re-
vivals which swept in succession over the South for
more than twenty-five years after the close of the
Revolutionary War.

The unremitting endeavors of the Baptist minis-
try of this early period were not a little stimulated
hy the presence of Methodist circuit riders in all

130 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the settlements of the South. Bold, active, enter-
prising, and aggressive, these early Methodist min-
isters ardently disputed every inch of ground with
the Baptist missionary. During the Revolution the
Methodists had not proved steadfast as dissenters,
and in the efforts of the Baptists to undermine the
Establishment, they were oftener than otherwise in
sympathy with the supporters of the crown. This
operated with no little eifect against the Methodists
after the close of hostilities, but they were unchecked
in sturdy effort. Baptists were more than a match
for them in the rural districts, but in the centers of
population the Methodists, for a period, gained a
firmer footing. Popularity of method, coupled with
an accommodation of requirement for church-mem-
bership, did much to favor the progress of the Metho-
dists in the growing towns of the South. There is
little doubt that the aggressive front of this Revo-
lutionary rival in the field of evangelism contributed
in no small measure to the weldiuo^ tog-ether of the
two divisions of the Baptists of the South.

CHAPTER Y

EDUCATIONAL, WORK

THE phenomenal growth of the Baptist denomi-
nation in the South in the early periods of its
history, suggested to a few of the most prominent
among them the importance of providing for a better
equipped ministry with which to organize and direct
this great host which had enlisted under the de-
nominational banner. With rare exceptions the
ministry of the Baptists of the South at this period
was composed of illiterate, but earnest and devout
men. Among them were a few educated leaders
who were the first to formulate methods by which
the intellectual standard of the Baptist pulpit might
be elevated. On account of several particulars this
was a most formidable undertaking, which was as-
sumed by a few courageous spirits, for it was mani-
fest from the outset that such a praiseworthy enter-
prise would be resisted by the unlearned ministry.
Some among the illiterate ministers seemed to re-
gard such a suggestion as a reflection upon their
ability to preach ; others considered it as an im-
pious hint that the divine call to the ministry was
not complete without the patchwork of men ; while
others still looked upon such a proposal as a dispo-

131

132 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

sition to pander to individual and public pride.
Thus it came to pass that a suggestion which was
capable of the greatest good became, in the hands
of the unenlightened and prejudiced ministry, a
cudgel to be used against pious and progressive
leaders.

Themselves illiterate, these very preachers, many
of them in their opposition, found hearty support
in the great uneducated masses which had been
brought into the churches.

The Baptist denomination in the South, after the
close of the extraordinary revival periods which dis-
tinguished the early years of the century, was a
great unorganized, undisciplined mass, the dominat-
ing purpose of wdiich seemed to be to do just as
they might wish. If they were to accomplish the
results for which, as a denomination, they seemed
providentially destined, then efficient organization
was necessary. But such organization was not pos-
sible without intelligent direction, and intelligent
direction must necessarily begin with the local pas-
toral leaders. Thus the more progressive of the
Baptist ministry thought in the beginning of the
present century. But how was such a project to
become operative when it was resisted largely by
the class of men whom it sought to benefit? These
men, sustained by the rank and file of the denomin-
tion, placed almost insuperable barriers in the way
of this disinterested plan of denominational pro-
gress.

EDUCATIONAL WORK 133

There was nothing of malice in the opposition
shown by an unschooled ministry against intellect-
ual development. Men were never sincerer than
they. Herein lay the greatest factor of strength
on the part of the opposition. Ignorance is the
parent of prejudice, and prejudice is the foe of pro-
gress. United with religion this combination, in
which religion usually forms a subordinate part, is
generally resolved into a sublimated superstition.
These honest, though unlettered men, ignorant of
the laws of mental development and regardless of
the total absence of divine promise to support their
views, insisted that if called of God to preach there
would be supernatural provision for the duty as
occasion might require. This they honestly be-
lieved and earnestly advocated in the presence of
assembled multitudes as ignorant as their reputed
leaders themselves, if not more so. Undaunted by
these grave odds and realizing the immensity of
their undertaking, such men as Furman and Pelot,
of South Carolina, and Holcombe and Mercer, of
Georgia, together with a few others throughout the
South, resolved ujDon the creation of means for the
better equipment of the Baptist ministry. Without
concert of action these men, in widely separated
States, were moved by the same impulse because the
conditions were everywhere the same throughout
the States of the South. As a beginning, means
were raised with which to purchase books, and
wherever practicable ministers were gathered into

134 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

classes and taught. In the course of time these
small beginnings were suggestive of ampler pro-
visions and finally of schools for the better training
of the Baptist ministry. From these crude orig-^
inal plans grew the denominational colleges now to
be found in all the Southern States.

The earliest associational and conventional organ-
izations in the South were founded upon a dual idea,
denominational extension and the education of the
ministry. This work began as far back as the pas-
toral administration of Oliver Hart in Charleston
prior to the Revolution, for it was he who first
moved in the matter of constituting a distinct As-
sociation. Into this original organization three
churches entered — the First Church of Charleston,
Ashley River, and Welsh Neck. This action took
place as early as 1751. The chief agents in this
progressive movement were the pastors of the
churches named — Oliver Hart, John Stevens, and
Philip James. Early the following year they were
greatly reinforced by Francis Pelot, pastor of Eu-
haw Church, who was a man of ample means, for
according to Morgan Edwards, he " owned three
islands and about three thousand seven hundred and
eighty-five acres on the continent, with slaves and
stock in abundance."

In 1775 John Gano became an evangelist of the
Charleston Association. One of the chief cares
with which he was charged was that of seeking
out gifted young men called of God to preach and

EDUCATIONAL WORK 135

to recommend them to the Charleston Association.
In 1756 an educational fund was raised by the
Charleston Association amounting to one hundred
and thirty-three pounds. Among those who be-
came the beneficiaries of this fund were Evan Pugh,
Samuel Stillman, and Edmund Botsford. These
early South Carolina pastors were liberal contribu-
tors to Rhode Island College during the presidency
of Dr. Manning, with whom Mr. Hart was inti-
mately acquainted.

These incipient efforts in education were cut short
by the Revolution. Manifestly the least possible
in educational matters had been done in the South
when the period of hostile agitation came. Con-
sidering that which had been accomplished, it is re-
markable that denominational progress in the South-
ern States up to the close of the Revolution was
due to the work of an uneducated ministry. The
success achieved during these trying times by men
untrained in the schools remained for a long period
a barrier to enlarged ministerial and pastoral devel-
opment.

In 1788 President Manning addressed a letter to
the Virginia Baptists through the general commit-
tee, urging them to take steps to establish a semi-
nary of learning. The only action taken, in conse-
quence of this communication, was the adoption of
a resolution to appoint a committee " to forward the
business respecting a seminary of learning." The
matter dragged its slow length along until 1793,

136 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

when it was revived and committed to the hands of
Rev. John Williams and Mr. Thomas, who sub-
mitted a plan which was at the time deemed prac-
ticable, but was subsequently dropped, the question
being dismissed. The subject was revived in 1809,
when it seems that the only two subjects before the
General Meeting of Correspondence of the Virginia
Baptists were " the religious education of children
and the establishment of some seminary or public
school to assist young preachers to acquire a liter-
ary knowledge." The question which related to
the establishment of an institution of learning Avas
referred to a committee of two " to acquire infor-
mation and digest a plan for such a seminary." But
nothing came of all this until many years later.
The utmost that was accomplished by such action
was to keep the subject before the mind of the de-
nomination. In order to meet the deficiency, every
kind of makeshift was resorted to. The general
plan in a given section of country was to establish
a ministerial library by means of a common fund
and lend the books to such young ministers as might
be desirous of improvement. In not a few instances
the most learned of the ministry would assume the
task of the voluntary instruction of such as were
willing to accept it.

Among those who rendered valuable service to
young ministers should be named Dr. John M.
Roberts, pastor of the High Hills of Santee Church,
South Carolina. For a number of years this

EDUCATIONAL WORK 137

scholarly preacher gave gratuitous instruction to
the beneficiaries of the Education Fund of the
Charleston Association.

During the first quarter of the present century
much time and thought was devoted by South-
ern Baptists to the matter of education. To the
need of the times, growing more imperatively mani-
fest every year, were added the fervid injunctions
of Luther Rice, whose devotion to the sacred cause
was equally divided between missions and educa-
tion. Nothing was more manifest than an increas-
ing need of preachers of ability and influence to
occupy the pulpits of the growing centers of popu-
lation ; but there was not sufficient unanimity of
sentiment in any of the States of the South to de-
vise a plan for denominational instruction. Reso-
lutions abounded, committees were appointed, and
reports were adopted without number ; but no prac-
tical shape was given to the matter. Added to the
difficulties, already named, was another which was a
silent barrier to the general plan of creating insti-
tutions of learning, that of the rapid develojmient
of the virgin resources of the new States of the
South. This brought general prosperity to the
entire region, and individual fortunes to thousands.
Among the favored ones were many Baptist preach-
ers who would come into the possession of lands
and slaves which gave to them both means and
leisure to prosecute their studies privately. The
most active and wide-awake in the management of

138 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

temporal affairs, they were, as a class, the most pro-
gressive, ambitious, aud talented of the ministry.
Their interest in the matter was largely neutralized
by their failure to appreciate the emphatic necessity
of an institution for the betterment of the ministry
generally/

In the revival of the spirit of denominational
education in the South near the close of the first
quarter of the present century, we find South Caro-
lina again in the lead. The same cause which led
to the constitution of Associations after the multi-
plication of churches, now operated to induce the
organization of State Conventions when Associations
had been greatly increased — that of giving stability,
regularity, and uniformity to denominational enter-
prise. Foremost in this work was Dr. Richard
Furman, who was instrumental in procuring an
assembly of delegates from the Charleston, Savan-
nah River, and Edgefield Associations, in the city
of Columbia in 1821. The result of this meeting
was the formal organization of the Baptist State
Convention of South Carolina, with Dr. Furman as
president. An address was prepared by the dis-
tinguished president to be submitted to the Baptists
of the State, in which address great emphasis was
laid upon the importance of an educated ministry.
Anticipating objections that might be raised against
this suggestion. Dr. Furman disposed of them, one
by one, in a most masterly way. Time was needed
1 Semple, pp. 116-117.

EDUCATIONAL WORK 139

for this sentiment to take root. The year following,
Dr. \y. B. Johnson, who succeeded Furman as
president of the body, took up the same subject and
discussed it more fully still.

In order to ultimate success, and for reasons of
economy, the Baptists of South Carolina were de-
sirous of co-operating with those of Georgia in the
establishment of an institution of learning in
common, for the denomination in both these States
was agitating the question of providing means for
the better equipment of the ministry. The question
of ministerial education was that which underlay
all the denominational male colleges founded by the
Baptists in the South and to every one was there a
theological department attached until the institution
of theological seminaries in the country. The plan
for establishing a co-operative institution between
the Baptists of Georgia and South Carolina was
settled upon and negotiations entered into with
every indication of success ; but the obstruction of
State lines could not be overcome and the under-
taking fell through.

Consequently, in 1826 the Convention of South
Carolina established a school at Edgefield Court-
house and called it the Furman Academy and
Theological Institution, and Prof J. A. Warne was
placed in charge of it. The books which had been
gathered for the use of ministerial students by the
General Committee of the Charleston Association
formed the nucleus of a librarv for the new insti-

140 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tiition. But the enterprise was short-lived, per-
ishing after the second year. Still the better
training of the ministry remained a burning ques-
tion. What should be done under the stress of
circumstances ? A practical answer to this question
was undertaken by the retention of the theological
department of the extinct institution, over which
was placed Rev. Jesse Hartwell, after its removal
to High Hills. In 1829 Mr. Hartwell was form-
ally elected principal of the Furman Theological
Institution. During the following year, Samuel
Furman, a son of the late Charleston pastor, was
associated with Mr. Hartwell as co-principal. After
a struggle for life extending through two or three
years, the institution perished. Still the urgent
necessity of such an institution remained. In 1835
another effort was made in Fairfield district, where
there was associated with scholastic training the
idea of manual labor. For a period of years this
was a favorite scheme in the South — this union of
mental and manual labor — and yet no theory ever
failed more signally to eventuate in practical result.
Under the principalship of Prof. W. E. Bailey, late
of Charleston College, the mongrel institution,
manual, classical, and theological, was begun. It
was not without tokens of success. New buildings,
a well-equipped faculty, and encouraging patronage
gave to the young enterprise much assurance of
success; but the buildings were burned in 1837,
Professor Bailey resigned a year later, and the

EDUCATIONAL WORK 141

school suspended in 1840. Subsequent enterprises
were undertaken with varying fortunes during the
next decade, with which, at different times, were
conspicuously connected Dr. Hooper, late of the
University of North Carolina ; Professor Maginnis,
who was afterward connected with the institutions
at Hamilton and Rochester, N. Y. ; and Rev. J. L.
Reynolds and Prof. Jeremiah Chaplin, Jr. From
these efforts and struggles was finally developed
Furman University which was established in 1851.
The Baptists of no State have made a better re-
cord in matters educational than those of Georgia,
nor have the Baptists of any State been more highly
favored with gifted leadership. One of the fore-
most promoters of education in Georgia was Dr.
Henry Holcombe, who was originally a Revolution-
ary officer. Born in Virginia and reared in South
Carolina, he entered the American army while quite
a young man and rose to distinction. Being led to
a study of the New Testament he was convinced of
his duty, and promptly mounted his horse and rode
twenty miles from camp in order to be baptized.
Returning he delivered a sermon to his command
while still sitting astride his horse. In 1785 he
was ordained to the ministry, and at once took a
conspicuous place in the denomination of his adopted
State, Georgia. He was chosen a delegate to the
State Convention which adopted the national consti-
tution. Afterward he became pastor of the Euhaw
Church, South Carolina, and later became pastor at

142 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Savannah. It seems that the Baptist meeting-house
at Savannah was being rented by the Presbyterians
at the time of Mr. Holcombe's call. The few Bap-
tists of the city had suggested that a call be made
to Dr. Holcombe to serve jointly the Presbyterians
and the Baptists. Under these peculiar conditions
he accepted the call upon a salary of two thousand
dollars, which was perhaps the largest that had ever
been received by a Baptist pastor up to that time.
In 1 800 he organized a Baptist church with a mem-
bership of ten, which ran up to sixty within two
years more. He was a true yoke-fellow with Fur-
man in devising and prosecuting methods for de-
nominational expansion. Like the pastor at Charles-
ton, Holcombe was magnificent in his physical pro-
portions, being six feet two inches high, and weigh-
ing three hundred pounds. Among his public serv-
ices may be mentioned his origination of the Georgia
penitentiary system and the part borne by him in
founding the Savannah Female Orphan Asylum.

But the most signal services rendered by him
were in conjunction with the efforts of Jesse Mercer
to procure concert of action in the denomination
along the lines of missions and education. Hol-
combe was the first to give distinct expression to
denominational education in Georgia by founding
the Mt. Enon Academy for the education of Baptist
youth. Public interest in denominational education
did not begin to manifest itself in Georgia until
7 1825. Among the items contributed that year by

EDUCATIONAL WORK 143

the Baptists of Georgia was the sum of seventeen
dollars and fifty cents for ministerial education.
Under the inspiration of a sermon preached the fol-
lowing year by Dr. W. B. Johnson, of South Caro-
lina, the sum of one hundred and eight dollars was
collected " for the education of pious young men."
A beneficiary was adopted in consequence, and the
executive committee was instructed "to prepare
some plan by which a fund for bestowing a theo-
logical education upon beneficiaries might be pro-
vided." This was the first step in the direction of
denominational education taken by the Baptists of
Georgia. The same conditions prevailed in Georgia
which existed elsewhere throughout the South — the
majority of the Baptist ministers were unlearned but
consecrated men, while some of them were very ig-
norant. Exceptional instances were found in such
men as W. T. Brantley, Sr., Jesse Mercer, Adiel
Sherwood, Henry J. Ripley, Iverson L. Brooks, J.
P. Marshall, B. M. Sanders, and J. H. T. Kilpat-
rick. These led in the first movement to establish
an institution of learning of high grade. While
many supported such a project, many more opposed
it.

The retirement of Holcombe from Georgia to
accept a call from Philadelphia left Jesse Mercer
the acknowledged leader of the Baptists of the State.
Henceforth he became the zealous apostle of de-
nominational progress, stoutly resisting the opposi-
tion which arose formidably from many quarters.

144 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

While those whose names have been furnished gave
hira substantial aid and sympathy, his truest yoke-
fellow was perhaps Adiel Sherwood, who was both
a preacher and an educator. While pastor at Eaton-
ton he was principal of the academy at that place
and did excellent service in a variety of ways for
the denomination. He was an enthusiastic assistant
of young men looking to the ministry, and was in-
strumental in the preparation of a number for their
work, among whom was Jesse H. Campbell.

The Baptists of Georgia manifested their interest
in general educational matters during the twenties
by liberally contributing to Columbian College in
response to the appeals of Luther Rice, through
whom and Jesse Mercer they contributed not less
than twenty thousand dollars to that institution.
This liberality was in large measure due to the fact
that Jesse Mercer was a trustee of Columbian Col-
lege. Among the means employed with marked
success by Mr. Mercer to further denominational
interests was " The Christian Index," the columns
of which he employed with powerful effect in par-
rying the blows of the opponents of education and
missions, and making possible at that time those
interests among Georgia Baptists.

The Georgia Baptist Convention was organized
in 1822. The suggestion of the constitution of
such a body came first from the Sarepta Associa-
tion, but the year following it rescinded its action.
The Georgia Association, together with the Ocmul-

EDUCATIONAL WORK 145

gee, met at Powelton in June, 1822, and formally
organized the body. By degrees other Associations
fell into line and evangelistic and colportage work
was pressed with all the vigor possible. A turn in
the tide of affairs came a little later, however, and
it seemed, from the great opposition encountered by
the supporters of the Convention, that it would go
to pieces. But a most propitious period of the Con-
vention was just ahead, for in 1829 Josiah Penfield
bequeathed to the Convention twenty-five hundred
dollars as the basis of a permanent fund for the
purposes of theological education, to be paid on
condition that an equal sum be raised by the Con-
vention. The sum was speedily raised, Jesse Mer-
cer heading the list with two hundred and fifty dol-
lars. Dr. Cullen Battle following with two hundred
dollars, and others still following with similar
amounts. At the session of the Convention for
1831 it was resolved, "That as soon as the funds
will justify it this Convention will establish in some
central part of the State a classical and theological
school." It was further provided that this was to
be connected with a manual labor department, and
that only those preparing for the ministry should l)e
admitted. Adiel Sherwood promptly pledged him-
self to raise by subscription fifteen hundred dollars
for the purchase of needed lands. In 1832 an
eligible site for the location of Mercer Institute was
purchased in Greene County, and in honor of Josiah
Penfield the village was named for him.

146 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

The rapid progress of the denomination and the
preparations of the Presbyterians to establish a
college of high rank, prompted Jesse Mercer to
undertake greater achievements. He aroused much
popular enthusiasm by proposing the erection on a
magnificent scale of a great institution of learning
at his home at Washington, Georgia, to be known as
" The Southern Baptist College." A charter was
promptly obtained and agents went to work to raise
an endowment fund. One hundred thousand dol-
lars was soon subscribed, and no doubt the plan
would have been realized had a financial crash
not come at that time. As a result the value of
the subscriptions was depreciated, the charter had
to be surrendered, popular enthusiasm cooled, and
before the financial crisis had spent its force the
possibility of reviving the suspended interest had
passed. Such of the subscriptions as could be trans-
ferred to the institution at Penfield were diverted to
that purpose, and thus began Mercer University.
B. M. Sanders became the president, S. P. Sanford
one of the professors, and Adiel Sherwood was
elected professor of theology. Mercer gave to the
institution, including his bequest, about forty thou-
sand dollars. Several efforts were made to remove
the institution from Penfield ; but no change of loca-
tion was effected until 1870, when it was removed
to Macon. The presidents of the institution have
been : Sanders, Smith, Dagg, Crawford, Tucker,
Battle, Nunnelly, and Gambrell.

EDUCATIONAL WORK 147

The avowed purpose of the formation of the Bap-
tist State Convention of North Carolina, was the
creation of means for denominational education. At
the meeting of the Convention in 1832 it was defi-
nitely recommended by the committee on education
and unanimously adopted by the Convention "to
purchase a suitable farm, and to adopt other pre-
liminary measures for the establishment of a Bap-
tist literary institution in this State upon the man-
ual labor principle." During the same year six
hundred and fifteen acres of land were purchased
in Wake County, but the school was not opened
until 1834. It was called AYake Forest Institute,
and Samuel Wail, of New York, was elected prin-
cipal. Beginning with an enrollment of twenty-
five students, the number was soon increased to
seventy.

At first the students were required to perform
three hours of manual labor daily ; this, however,
was soon reduced to one hour each day. The hoe
and the plow were, however, made the concomitants
of the desk and the blackboard throughout the year.
During the second year the school was blessed with
a revival which planted it deeply and permanently
in the hearts of the denomination. In 1838, by an
amendment of the original charter, the name of the
school w^as changed to that of Wake Forest College.
Ten years later the college was overwhelmed with
a debt of twenty thousand dollars and seemed ready
to sink. The outlook was sufficiently despairing to

148 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

induce both the president of the Board of Trustees
and of the college to resign. At this juncture
Elder James S. Purefoy undertook a voluntary
agency to lift the burden, which he valiantly suc-
ceeded in doing the first year. With this the insti-
tution took a fresh bound forward, so that by 1861
it had an endowment of forty-six thousand dollars,
the raising of which was mainly due to the inde-
fatigable efforts of President Wingate. Wake For-
est College emerged from the wreck of war wdth an
available endowment of only fourteen thousand dol-
lars. By being wdsely administered the endowment
steadily increased, and by the close of 1883 the col-
lege had an endowment of one hundred thousand
dollars, one tenth of which had been a gift of Mr.
J. A. Bostwick, of New York. In 1886 he added
the princely gift of fifty thousand dollars, and yet
again in 1890, being desirous of aiding the college
and at the same time of stimulating the Baptists of
North Carolina to self-help, INIr, BostAvick offered
to add one-half to whatever amount up to fifty thou-
sand dollars might be raised for the endowment by
March 1, 1891. When the time expired there had
been raised twenty-six thousand dollars. The in-
stitution is at present in a most flourishing condi-
tion. The presidents of the college have been
Waite, Hooper, Wingate, Pritchard, Royall, and
Taylor.

The proximity of Columbian College to Virginia
and the interest shared in that institution by the

EDUCATIONAL WOEK 149

Baptists of that State, doubtless had much to do
with the delay of the establishment of a denomina-
tional school in the State. But by the year 1830 it
was seen that Columbian College was inadequate to
the growing demands in Virginia for a better quali-
fied ministry. This consideration led to the found-
ing of the Virginia Baptist Education Society, with
a view of " devising and proposing some plan for
the improvement of young men who, in the judg-
ment of their churches, are called to the work of
the ministry." Of this Society John Kerr became
the president and James B. Taylor the secretary.
A committee, composed of W. F. Broadus, J. B.
Taylor, J. B. Jeter, and H. Keeling, was appointed
to draw up a plan and report upon the expediency
of distinct action relative to providing means for
the more efficient qualification of the ministry. In
its report the committee made declaration of the
fact that it recognized the importance as well as the
obligation of continued loyalty to Columbian Col-
lege. It further stated that in its judgment it was
not deemed expedient to undertake the immediate
establishment of an institution of learning under
the auspices of Virginia Baptists. As far as the
committee would venture was the suggestion of plac-
ing the ministerial beneficiaries " in the families of
experienced ministering brethren whose education,
libraries, and opportunities to give useful instruction
may enable them to render essential service to their
younger brethren." With this was coupled the

150 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

idea of enabling ministerial students to become self-
supporting by laboring in the surrounding regions
of country. But this crude arrangement was neces-
sarily short-lived. Other States were pressing for-
ward in educational work and their young ministers
were being fitted for future labor under the most
encouraging conditions possible. It was soon dis-
covered that if Virginia Baptists were to maintain
the position which they had held for a half-century,
something more was needed to be done than to adopt
a haphazard plan like the one set forth, and none
were more ready to abandon it than the eminent
men who recommended it. That abandoned, the
inevitable plan of a manual labor school was
adopted. A site was bought in the neighborhood
of Richmond ; Robert Ryland, a graduate from Co-
lumbian College, was elected to preside over it ; and
the school was duly named the Virginia Baptist
Seminary. Mr. Ryland discouraged the attempt to
organize a school at once, but the j^opular current
in favor of the prompt opening of such an institu-
tion was too strong to be stemmed. Failing in this
objection he sought to have eliminated from it the
manual labor feature ; but he failed in this also.
While he detected in the existing plan elements of
failure, he wisely surrendered his convictions and
awaited practical demonstrations for a vindication
of his views. Mr. Ryland soon illustrated his prac-
tical knowledge of the science of agriculture by
seeking to enrich a field of corn with salt, placing a

EDUCATIONAL WORK 151

handful at the root of each stalk and — killing it !
He was not without the greatest diligence in seeking
to make the enterprise successful, but he soon found
himself almost alone in his eiForts, as the denomina-
tion left the institution largely to shift for itself.
After an experiment of two years the manual labor
feature was shown to be unpractical, as usual, the
farm was sold, and an attractive property was bought
within the city limits of Richmond. It was not
until 1840 that a college was established by the
Baptists of Virginia. Perhaps, after all, there was
advantage in the delay, as the denomination came to
have a loftier conception of a college at a later
period than it evidently had fifteen years before
Richmond College was founded. Additional advan-
tage was gained by the unsurpassed instruction
given at the University of Virginia, the influence
of which was most stimulating and elevating
throughout the State. The leading denomination
of Virginia with its splendid record could not
afford to establish an institution of inferior char-
acter within so short a distance of the famous uni-
versity.

The Civil War found Richmond College with an
endowment of one hundred thousand dollars, the
most of which was lost in consequence of that great
struggle. Prostrated as the people were by the war,
they rallied anew to the support of Richmond Col-
lege, and in 1866 it was enabled to open its doors
again to students. Like other denominational col-

152 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

leges in the South, Richmond College has been the
recipient of Northern benefactions, without which it
could not have so speedily rallied ; but wdth such
assistance, it has been placed upon a solid basis and
is perhaps the most advanced, in its standard of in-
struction, of all the Baptist colleges of the South.

The Baptists of Kentucky were among the first
of the States of the South to take steps to found a
denominational school. A charter for Georgetown
College, then known as Georgetown Literary and
Theological Institution, w^as procured as early as
1829. Dr. William Staughton, a minister and edu-
cator of distinction, w'ho had been president of
Columbian College, was called to the president's
chair, but died in Washington while on his way to
Kentucky to assume the office to which he had been
elected. In 1830 Dr. Joel S. Bacon was elected to
succeed him. Dr. Bacon at once found himself in-
volved in serious complications with the Disciples,
w^io were at that time breaking with the Baptists
throughout the State, and wdiose claims against the
school were such as to plunge it into litigation.
After struggling against adverse conditions for two
years, he resigned. The institution dropped to the
level of a high school, in which condition it re-
mained until 1838. Rockwood Giddings having
now become president, he addressed himself to the
work of procuring subscriptions for an endowment,
and raised eighty thousand dollars. In 1840 Dr.
Malcom succeeded Giddings as president, and raised

EDUCATIONAL WORK 153

the standard of the college above that which it had
ever enjoyed. Then followed the presidencies of
Drs. Reynolds, Campbell, Crawford, Manly, and
Dudley — the last named being a descendant of the
famous pioneer preacher, Ambrose Dudley. George-
town College is at present presided over by Dr. A.
C. Davidson and is in a most prosperous condition.

Bethel College, in the same State, was projected
by Bethel Association in 1849. Begun as a high
school, it was elevated to the standard of a college
in 1856, when Mr. Blewett became its first presi-
dent. With the exception of two years during the
war, the school has been in successful operation
ever since it began. Its presidents have been
George Hunt, Professor Rust, Noah K. Davis,
LL. D., at present professor of Moral Philosophy in
the University of Virginia ; Leslie Waggener,
sometime president of the University of Texas ;
and Dr. W. S. Ryland, who is the present incum-
bent of the presidential chair. The college enjoys
an endowment of one hundred thousand dollars.

In 1845 the Western Baptist Theological Insti-
tute was located at Covington, Kentucky, and had
the misfortune to be an object of contention as long
as it existed. Located on the border at a time
when sectional passion was highest, it was destined
to be short-lived. It ran a troublous course of ten
years, when the valuable property was sold and the
proceeds were divided between the irreconcilable
elements. The Ministerial Education Society of

154 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Kentucky was constituted in 1844, and as is indi-
cated by its name, its object was " to aid in acquir-
ing a suitable education, such indigent, pious young
men of the Baptist denomination as shall give satis-
factory evidences to the churches of which they are
members that they are called of God to the gospel
ministry." Meagreness of resources limited the
operations of this society, yet in a quiet way it
rendered much valuable aid to young men fitting
themselves for the ministry. The final success of
Georgetown College obviated the necessity of the
continued existence of the society.

Like Kentucky, Tennessee had two institutions
of learning belonging to the Baptists — Union Uni-
versity, at Murfreesboro, and Carson College, in
JeiFerson County. After the accomplishment of
some excellent work under President J. H. Eaton,
and Dr. J. M. Pendleton as theological professor.
Union University became extinct. Its career was
doubtless shortened by the Civil War. In 1873
another institution was founded at Jackson, known
as the Southwestern University, Avhich is now under
the successful management of President M. C.
Savage.

Carson-Newman College, formerly Carson, was
founded near the town of Mossy Creek in 1850.
It was chartered under the patronage of the Gen-
eral Association of the State and derived its name
from its chief benefactor, Hon. James H. Carson,
who bequeathed to the institution fifteen thousand

EDUCATIONAL WORK 155

dollars, the interest of which was to be used in the
education of young ministers. The institution has
of late years come into the possession of a partial
endowment, and is at present presided over by
President J. T. Henderson.

Early in the thirties, the Baptists of Alabama cA-JLa.
began the agitation of the question of establishing a
denominational school, suggested, as in other States,
by the growth of the Baptists and the inefficiency of
their ministry. In resolving to establish such a
school the Baptists of Alabama adopted the manual
labor plan, in spite of its failures in other States.
At this time the leaders of the denomination were
D. P. Bestor, Hosea Holcombe, Alex. Travis, J.
H. DeVotie, and A. G. McGraw. In 1834 pro-
vision was made for the contemplated school to go
into operation as soon as practicable with two de-
partments, literary and theological. W. L, Willi-
ford became the first principal, and D. P. Bestor
was elected to deliver lectures upon theology.
After a brief career the enterprise failed, and in
consequence, the Baptists of Alabama found them-
selves loaded with debt, after wrestling with which
for a period, the denomination sold the property
and for a number of years abandoned the matter of
education altogether. Meanwhile the deficiency was
met as far as was practicable by supplying young min-
isters with theological works. Driven by sheer neces-
sity to establish a school to meet the urgent demands
of the denomination, Howard College was organized

156 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

in 1842. Under the able management of S. S.
Sherman, it was gradually developed into a respecta-
ble collegiate institution. From the period of its
establishment to the outbreak of the Civil War it
was ardently fostered by the Baptists of Alabama.
After an eventful history of almost fifty years, the
college was removed from Marion, its original
location, to East Lake, near Birmingham, where it
now is. At the outbreak of hostilities in 1861, the
college was in the enjoyment of a handsome endow-
ment, which was entirely wrecked by the war.
Efforts to endow the institution within the last
twenty-five years have been unavailing. In spite
of its vicissitudes the college has continued to do ex-
cellent work. Its presidents have been S. S. Sher-
man, H. Talbird, S. R. Freeman, J. L. M. Curry,
J. T. Murfee, B. F. Riley, and A. W. McGaha.
Not unlike that of the other States, the educa-
., J . tional work of the Mississippi Baptists was at first
7'^"* fragmentary and unsatisfactory. The State Con-

vention was founded upon the dual idea of education
and missions. The school which ultimately came
into the possession of the Baptists had rather a
checkered career. Chartered in 1826 as Hempstead
Academy, its name was changed by legislative en-
actment the following year to that of Mississippi
Academy, for the endowment of which the Board of
Trustees was authorized to raise by lottery twenty-
five thousand dollars. For four years the rents
arising from thirty-six sections of the school fund

EDUCATIONAL, WORK 157

donated by the national government to the State
was given to the academy. In 1830 the name of
Mississippi College was given to the institution, and
in 1842 it was transferred to the Presbyterians,
who retained it just eight years. Having been sur-
rendered to the State at a time when the Baptist
Convention of Mississippi was assembled at the cap-
ital, the college was tendered to that body and ac-
cepted. Once in their possession, the Baptists
promptly placed an agent in the field, who raised for
its endowment within ten years one hundred thou-
sand dollars in cash, and thirty thousand dollars in
subscriptions. With the war came a suspension of
operations and the destruction of the endowment.
In 1867 Dr. Hillman became president, and found
the institution encumbered with a debt of ten
thousand dollars, which he promptly liquidated,
placed the buildings in repair, and by 1873 raised
an endowment of forty thousand dollars. The col-
lege is located at Clinton and is a largely attended
and popular institution.

Until a comparatively late period the Baptists of
Louisiana were dependent upon institutions in other
States for the education of their youth. In the
pioneer movement of the denomination in this State
in the matter of education, there was an attempt
made to place an institution upon a higher plane
than had been made in most of the other States of
the South. A full-fledged university, at least in
name, was at first contemplated at Mount Lebanon,

158 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

to be known as the Mount Lebanon University.
This enterprise was projected by Dr. B. Egan, who
was warmly supported by Rev. George W. Bains,
the pastor of the church at Mount Lebanon. For
five years, beginning with 1847, the subject was
agitated. Nor was anything done as late as 1852,
save to determine the establishment of a school of
high grade " with a theological department con-
nected therewith . . , and as auxiliary to the object,
a female seminary." ^

Rev. W. H. Bayless was chosen financial agent
by a newly organized Board of Trustees, and soon
raised one thousand seven hundred and sixty-eight
dollars and twelve cents. A lot was procured and
a building of sufficient capacity to accommodate two
hundred students was arranged for. William E.
Paxton, A. M., was chosen to institute the new
enterprise by opening the school for the preparatory
department. This he did in March, 1853, with an
attendance of about twenty-five students. At a
subsequent meeting of the State Convention in July
the sum of five thousand two hundred and eighty
dollars was subscribed to the theological endowment
fund.

In 1856 the collegiate department w^as organized
and Dr. Bartholomew Egan was chosen as president
with a corps of four professors. Both the president
and the professor of theology agreed to serve gratui-
tously, while the other instructors served in the pre-

1 Paxton's " History of Louisiana Baptists," p. 446.

EDUCATIONAL WORK 159

paratory department. Commendable zeal was mani-
fested by all engaged in the struggling enterprise,
and by the close of 1857 a fund equal to twenty-five
thousand dollars had been raised. The services of
Rev. Jesse Hartwell, d. d., as president, were pro-
cured in 1858. Strangely enough, in 1859 the Bap-
tist State Convention of Louisiana memorialized the
legislature for aid, and received as a donation from
the State treasury ten thousand dollars.^

President Hartwell dying about this time. Rev.
W. Carey Crane was secured to succeed him at the
head of the college. The collegiate year of 1861
closed with one hundred and twenty-seven students
enrolled. The Civil War checked the growth of
the enterprise, and finally the school was suspended.
The building was impressed by the Confederate
authorities into service as a hospital and was thus
used until the close of the war. Ineifectual efforts
were made to revive the school after the close of the
struggle, under the less pretentious title of a high
school, but in the chaotic condition of the country it
collapsed and was finally abandoned.

In avoiding the Scylla of a manual labor school,
which was for many years a favorite project in so
many of the States of the South, the Baptists of
Louisiana had foundered in the Charybdis of a uni-
versity enterprise.

With less success and far less business sagacity
was another university undertaken by the Baptists,

^ Paxton's " History of Louisiana Baptists," p. 480.

160 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

at Shreveport, in 1870. The Helm School property,
embracing seventy acres of land, was purchased in
the suburbs of Shreveport, with a view of establish-
ing a university. Unfortunately, alike for the pro-
jectors and the Southern Life Insurance Company,
policies were taken in that corporation in favor
of the university, and the insurance company ad-
vanced the money with which to erect a college
building. The school opened in 1871. Three years
later no building had been erected, the railway
which was to connect the school with the city was
yet unbuilt, business depression came, the yellow
fever ravaged the city, the money panic of 1874
swept on apace, the insurance company by whose
generous aid the institution was to be set upon its
feet failed, all of which was succeeded by the
mechanics' liens and the foreclosure of the mortgage
created for the money already borrowed. Thus
ended the short but eventful career of Shreveport
University.

The chief institution of the Baptists of Louisiana
at present is Keachi College, a co-educational school.
The Keachi Female College and the Keachi Acad-
emy for boys were united in 1879, with Rev. J. H.
Tucker as president. Dying in 1881, President
Tucker was succeeded by Rev. T. N. Coleman, who
was followed by Rev. C. P. Fountain, and he in
turn by Rev. C. W. Tomkies, the present incumbent
of the administrative chair.

The Baptists of Florida were reduced to divers

EDUCATIONAL WORK 161

makeshifts for education until 1887, when Mr.
John B. Stetson, of Philadelphia, founded at Deland
"The John B. Stetson University." Though the
youngest of the denominational schools of the States
of the South, it has made a most honorable record
since it was founded. John F. Forbes, A. m., ph. d.,
is the gifted and progressive president of Stetson
University.

Columbian University, Washington, D. C, has had
a unique history. It was conceived by Luther Rice
as a National Baptist institution, which should derive
great importance from its surroundings in the na-
tion's capital. The chief purpose of the devoted
founder was to link into closest intimacy the great
interests of education and missions in such way that
they might mutually aid and supplement each other.
The original conception of such a plan was doubtless
due, in part, to the missionary enthusiasm aroused
by the enlistment of American Baptists in foreign
mission work in Burma and partly to the vast ad-
vantages arising from the availability of educational
appliances at Washington. With consuming zeal
Rice undertook to press the claims of these great in-
terests in conjunction, but the public mind failed to
grasp them in their dual capacity. Such enthusiasm
was aroused in behalf of the national Baptist uni-
versity that it became a rival of foreign missions
rather than a twin sister. For three years the de-
nomination. North and South, was stirred by ap-
peals in behalf of Columbian University. Local

1G2 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

societies were organized throughout the country in
the interest of the national university, and large
sums of money were raised before the meeting of the
Triennial Convention for 1820. At the session of
that body the matter of a practical union of educa-
tion and missions was maturely considered, and it
was decided that education in America and missions
in Burma lay so far apart that they could never be
associated in a practical plan for the furtherance of
both, and a disjunction of these interests promptly
followed. Financial embarrassments soon menaced
the college and led to the suspension of its work in
1827, only to be revived, however, the following
year under the new administration of Dr. Stephen
Chapin as president, who was its presiding officer
for fifteen years, and who not only cancelled the in-
debtedness, but revived the institution.

Upon the retirement of Dr. Chapin from the pres-
idential office. Professor William Ruggles was placed
at the head of the institution temporarily, for in
1843 Dr. Joel S. Bacon became president. He found
the institution without debt, and equally without en-
dowment. Dr. Bacon remained president until 1854,
when Professor Ruggles was again called, for a sea-
son, to the head of the college. During the admin-
istration of Dr. Bacon the work of endowment was
prosecuted at different times by Drs. A. M. Poin-
dexter and William F. Broadus, of Virginia, the lat-
ter procuring subscriptions to the amount of twenty
thousand dollars, and by that means secured the

EDUCATIONAL WORK 163

fulfillment of a conditional promise of John Withers,
of Alexandria, Virginia, for an equal amount. Rev.
G. W. Samson, d. d., became president in 1859, and
maintained the college with signal ability during the
troublous period of the war. In spite of the diffi-
culties of the peculiarly trying period during which
he was president, both the efficiency and the material
value of the institution were greatly enhanced. Dr.
Samson resigning in 1871, J. C. Welling, ll. d.,
became president. In 1873, Hon. W. W. Corcoran
agreed to give to the university two hundred thou-
sand dollars provided its friends would raise an
additional one hundred thousand dollars. This con-
dition was complied with and the institution entered
upon a new career of prosperity. Rev. B. L. Whit-
man, D. D., is now (1898) the president of the Uni-
versity, and all indications point to an unprecedented
prosperity on the part of the institution.

The institutions for the education of girls and
young women conducted under the auspices, either
directly or indirectly, of the Baptists of the South,
are somewhat numerous.

Some of these schools sustain organic connection
with the State Conventions, while others are the
result of private or local enterprise. The latter
class are Baptist only by virtue of the fact that
their founders, or owners, are Baptists. It is im-
possible, for obvious reasons, to give to these schools
equal prominence with those which have been estab-

164 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

lished directly by the denomination for the other
sex. The schools to which attention has been given
in the present chapter have been founded primarily
for the purpose of affording scholastic advantages to
the young ministry of each State, while the schools
for young women have come in response to a demon-
stration of public sentiment for womanly culture,
and usually irrespective of denominational lines.

It is not practicable in a work of restricted com-
pass like this to enlarge upon the histories of these
valuable schools for young women, but in an appen-
dix, pages 361-363, attention is called to such as
come practically or entirely under the direction of
the denomination in the several States of the South.

CHAPTER VI

DIVEEGENT VIEWS

WHILE essentially one, the Baptists of the States
of the South have never been in sentiment a
unit. There have been differences of views among
them from the beginning. Already occasions have
arisen for calling attention to the divergent views of
the early Baptists of Virginia, the Carolinas, and
Georgia. The original divergence of views came
between the General and the Particular Baptists,
the former advocating the doctrine of the possibility
of universal redemption in contradistinction to the
doctrine of a limited redemption, or the salvation of
the elect as held by the Particulars.

Adherents to both of these views came among
the earliest Baptists from beyond the Atlantic. The
principles and practices of the General Baptists
were characterized by more or less"Taxness. Re-
quiring no experience of grace, nor statement of
doctrine, the General Baptists were reckless in the
administration of the ordinances. They were im-
mersionists, and this was about the only point upon
which they and the Particular BajDtists were agreed.
The easy-going requirements of the General Bap-
tists involving little or no renunciation of one's
' 165

166 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

former life, made them papular. Their most noted
representative in the South, in its earliest history,
was Paul Palmer. Unfortunately but little is
known of this remarkable man, but the indications
are that he came direct from England to North
Carolina. While to him is usually accorded the honor
of being the pioneer Baptist preacher of North Caro-
lina, the strong probability is that he was attracted
to that province by the Baptist churches already ex-
isting, of which we have no definite record. The
remarkable exemption of the Baptists of North
Carolina from persecution possibly served as an in-
ducement to the liberty-loving Palmer, whose great-
est delight was found in preaching. The views
held by Palmer were in entire accord with those
held by the Arminian Baptists of England. Wield-
ing an immense inBuence over the colonists of
North Carolina, Palmer sowed broadcast the seeds
of Arminianism in the early churches of the prov-
ince. But after the advent of Whitefield the tide
was turned toward Calvinism. Alike from two
centers of influence, Philadelphia and Charleston,
there went forth Calvinistic missionaries, and the
result was a rapid and radical change to the stand-
ard of the Particulars.

The next division of sentiment was that which
existed between the Separate and the Regular Bap-
tists, the former being really Calvinistic Methodists,
and composed chiefly of Wiiitefield's followers.
They sprang up in 1750. and were first called New

DIVERGENT VIEWS 167

Lights. Subsequently, however, they were organ-
ized into separate societies by Shubael Stearns, and
because of this independency of organization came
to be called Separates. A year after he originated
this new sect Stearns became a Baptist, as we have
already seen, and most of the Separates followed
him into that denomination. When this great leader
adopted the views of the Baptists, the Separates as
a sect became extinct. They, however, carried their
distinctive views with them into the Baptist fold,
which views were that believers are guided by the
immediate teachings of the Holy Spirit, such super-
natural indications being regarded by them as par-
taking of the nature of inspiration, and above,
though not contrary to, reason. The Separate Bap-
tists were by far the most conspicuous opponents of
the establishment during the period of persecution
in Virginia. It was the representatives of the
Separate Baptists who were imprisoned in the jails
of Virginia, who were whipped, and who, in spite
of these dire persecutions, preached from their
prison windows. In 1787 a union was effected be-
tween the Separate and Regular Baptists upon a
basis mutually satisfactory, and both designations,
as independent branches, were discontinued.

But the denomination was destined to still greater
distractions and fiercer internal dissensions than
were produced by original divisions. As has
already been shown there was much local evangeli-
zation accomplished by the Baptists during the

168 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

pioneer period of Southern history. In the upper
and older regions of the South the Separate Baptists
carried with fervid zeal the gospel in the most re-
mote settlements. With increase of numbers, es-
pecially in the populous centers, came a desire for
improvement in ministerial qualifications, pastoral
/ compensation, and enlarged ideas of missionary
operation. The advocacy of such views aroused
opposition which manifested itself in a general anti -
missionary spirit which did much to impede the
progress of the Baptists in the South. This class
of opponents threw themselves directly in the way
of all efforts to develop the denomination along
educational lines. It required a hard and protracted
struggle to establish a school of learning of any
character in the South. While ministerial educa-
tion was regarded by the most prominent among the
Baptists as being imperative, it was this which ex-
cited the most strenuous opposition on the part of
^ the ignorant.

It is not difficult to see that the logical conse-
quence of all this was the factious and fiery opposi-
tion subsequently raised against all agencies for the
spread of the gospel. If human agency was ob-
jectionable in the equipment of the sacred ministry,
it was equally so in the creation of means for dis-
seminating the sacred gospel. Hence Sunday-
schools, Bible societies, and mission Boards were
ranked in the same objectionable category with min-
isterial education. It was at this point that the

DIVERGENT VIEWS 169

fiercest struggle began on the part of the Baptists
of the South, and it may be said that it has been
continued to the present time. As local missionaries
the Baptists have never been surpassed by any other
people in the South. Their ministry has been the
most active and self-sacrificing in giving the gospel
to the destitute regions ; but if the effort were made
by the most progressive to urge the claims of the
remoter portions of the world, firm opposition would
ensue. Planting themselves steadfastly in this posi-
tion, those of more restricted views waged a steady
and relentless war throughout the States of the South
against foreign missions.

The strength of this opposition was increased by
the appearance of two journals upon the scene,
" The Signs of the Times " and '' The Primitive
Baptist." These factious organs came from States
outside the South, and their wild statements were
accepted by the gullible multitude as if they were
oracles. The anti-missionary element of the de-
nomination insisted upon being called " Old Side "
or " Primitive Baptists," the obvious purpose being
to'S-ssumetolKemselves the original principles of the
denomination, and to cast aspersion upon such as
had departed from the faith and practice of the
original standards by the introduction of new-fangled
practices.

The most ridiculous assumptions were entertained
by these anti-eifort Baptists, and fostered by the
organs already named, which found their way at

170 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

, stated intervals into the South. One of these sheets
/ insisted that the money collected by pastors, mission
agents, and others, was never applied to the objects
for which it was claimed to be raised, but was de-
voted to schemes of speculation in the cities of the
North. That was equaled only by the following
piece of vaporing which is a literal quotation from
the Minutes of the Pilgrim's Rest Association of
Alabama :

We view theological schools unwarranted in the word
of God and dangerous to religious liberty. And wher-
ever they have been organized, whether Jewish, Pagan,
Heathen, Roman Catholic, or Christian, they have been
a source of persecution and bloodshed on the church of
Christ.

And this effusion was the product of one of their
leaders. Another of their ministers wrote :

Do not forget the enemy (the missionaries) ; bear them
in mind ; the howling, destructive wolves, the raven-
ous dogs, and the filthy and their numerous whelps.
By a minute observation and the consultation of the
sacred, never-failing, descriptive chart, even their
physiognomy in dress, mien, and carriage, and many
other indented, indelible, descriptive marks, too tedious
at present to write. The wolfish smell is enough to
alarm, to create suspicion, and to ascertain ; the dogs'
teeth are noted, and the wolves for their peculiar and
distinct howl, etc.

Whatever there may or may not be in this jargon,
there can be no doubt of its bitterness and violence

DIVERGENT VIEWS 171

against mission agents. One of their number
asserted on one occasion that if an angel should
come from heaven and declare the missionary cause
was of God he would not believe it. Where igno-
rance, prejudice, and blasphemy were dominant in
such a host as had been gathered into the Baptist
churches throughout the South it is not a matter of
wonder that the development of the missionary
spirit had been slow.

But unawed by these demonstrations, the advo-
cates of missions were firm and pronounced in the
enunciation of their principles. The two wings be-
came more separated as the intensity of sentiment
grew. There was, however, a perceptible growth
of the missionary spirit and a corresponding decline
in that of the opponents of missions. If the in-
crease encouraged and emboldened the one the de-
crease made the other more obdurate and reckless.
An occasional break would occur in the ranks of the
opponents and result in new accessions to the mis-
sionary Baptists. The change of sentiment, when
it came, was favorable to missions. There was,
however, one extraordinary exception to this rule in
Tennessee, where there was a decided reaction against
missions. It seems that Luther Rice, during his
tours of the South, had succeeded in arousing much
zeal in missions among the churches of Tennessee.
But about 1820 the current of sentiment changed
and the reaction assumed a most malignant form.
Indeed, so serious did the opposition become that it

172 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

is said, " not a man ventured to open his mouth in
favor of any benevolent enterprise or action." The
result was that the work of organisation effected by
Rice went to pieces, a deplorably chaotic condition
in the churches followed, the friends of the opposi-
tion rallied, and the cause of missions was for a
long time paralyzed. The influence of this reaction
spread into adjoining regions. Largely in conse-
quence of this the churches of North Alabama almost
without exception became anti-missionary.

The lack of interest in missions has been accounted
for in various ways.

It has been alleged that the illiteracy of the
masses of the people was a serious barrier, which
was enhanced by the fact that their time was so ab-
sorbed in clearing the land and bringing it into cul-
tivation. Further, that the emphasis given to hyper-
Calvinism, which was pushed to such ridiculous
conclusions as to disparage all human effort, was a
serious obstruction to the progress of missions.
Under such an influence as that exerted by a strong-
willed and illiterate ministry, it is easy to see how
the hyper-Calvinists would come to prevail.

Again, the aggressive movements of the Meth-
odists, the Cumberland Presbyterians, and the
Disciples, with their Arminian teaching stiffened the
resistance of the hyper-Calvinistic Baptists, and
thus impaired the possibility of commanding the
necessary means for missionary enterprise. Lastly,
the activity of Daniel Parker, the apostle of opposi-

DIVERGENT VIEWS 173

tion to missions was a most formidable obstruction
to the development of the spirit of missions.

To these may be aptly added that of worldliness,
which grew apace with the development of the
country and the accumulation of wealth. Any pre-
text was welcomed which served to lessen the out-
flow of money from private coffers.

Disorder and dissension reigned among the
churches and Associations of the South until about
1836 or 1838, which time is generally regarded as
the period of " the great split." By this time the
anti-mission forces had become very hostile, and in-
sisted upon a withdrawal from all churches and
Associations which favored missions. This cleavage
was most fortunate. The separation was the dawn
of a better day to the missionary Baptist churches of
the South. The difference between the histories of
the two branches of the Baptist family is most in-
structive. The one has grown with enlightenment
and development, has founded and maintained its
schools of learning, has established a most reputable
denominational press, has produced a type of schol-
arship which is equal to that of the most advanced,
has planted its churches in the most commanding
centers, and has sent its missionaries to the farthest
regions of the globe. The other has steadily kept
itself in the remote rural regions, beyond the con-
fines of enlightenment and progress.

Another most fruitful source of disturbance among
the churches of the South was the promulgation of

174 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the views of Alexander Campbell, who made his
advent as the founder of a new sect during the anti-
missionary agitation. Indeed, as far as he could,
Mr. Campbell appropriated the disturbance to the
furtherance of his own views. He coincided with
the anti-mission elements, both in their opposition
to missions and to pastoral support.. Through his
organ, "The Christian Baptist," a small religious
monthly, which appeared first in 1823, Mr.
Campbell, with an exceedingly pretentious regard
for literal conformity to Bible standards, put him-
self into direct alliance with the opponents of mis-
sions, Bible societies, education societies. Boards,
and, indeed, of all evangelical agencies. Possessed
of a voluble tongue and disputatious spirit, he soon
won his way to local renown as a debater. Making
a preaching tour through the States of Kentucky
and Tennessee as far South as Nashville, Mr.
Campbell created an ovation, and won for himself
considerable distinction.^ This w^as the beginning
of a notable career. Adroit in argument, incisive
in sarcasm and caricature, shrewd in repartee, and
possessed of an overweening confidence in his ability,
Mr. Campbell was a polemic Ajax in the region
where he began the propagation of his tenets. Aban-
doning the beaten tracks of discussion, he invested
his views with a charm and novelty that never
failed to catch the ear of the multitude.

1 Dr. A. H. Newman, "American Church History" (Baptist),
Vol. II., pp. 438, 439.

DIVERGENT VIEWS 175

No season could have been more opportune for
the advent of such a reformer as Mr. Campbell
than the one in which he appeared. The churches
were ripe for a change. Hyper-Calvinistic or au-
tinomian views had been thundered from the pulpits
for many years together. The constant discussion
of so contracted views around the fireside and in
the home circle, as well as from the pulpit, had
worn away the patience of thousands of auditors.
The presentation of dry, dull speculations which
sprang from hyper-Calvinistic views, palled upon
the intellectual taste. The people hungered for
bread and were given a stone.

At this juncture Alexander Campbell flashed into
sudden prominence. To him the prevailing condi-
tions furnished a golden opportunity, and right well
did he improve it. Hundreds flocked to the stand-
ard of " the Reformer," a designation in which he
delighted. Under his direction a sect was gradually
formed which assumed the self-styled name of " Re-
formers," but opprobriously called by their oppo-
nents " Campbellites." The appearance of Mr.
Campbell was the signal for strife, divisions, aliena-
tion, and irritation. His disputatious supporters
were most active in proselyting. With more of
zeal than of propriety they were constantly thrust-
ing their views upon all with whom they met. This
movement came as a great shock to the churches of
Virginia and Kentucky. It rapidly spread into the
adjacent States. In some instances entire churches

176 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

were caught in its toils. This was notably true of
the First Church of Nashville, Tennessee, which
for a season fell completely under the domination
of the Disciples. Doubtless the division between
the followers of Campbell and the Baptists would
have occurred in Kentucky earlier by three years,
but it was stayed by the great revival which begau
in 1827. By the severance of fellowship on the
part of Baptist churches from the adherents of
Campbell, the way to an independent organization
was made easy.

Professing to return to the original principles of
Christianity, the new sect assumed the name of
" Disciples." Accessions were gained to the ranks
of the new organization alike from the Baptists,
Methodists, and Presbyterians ; but the Baptists
furnished the greater number. For a period of
years the sect was very popular. It swept like a
prairie fire over the new West and far into the
States of the South. For a time it seemed that it
would overwhelm every other denomination. Ad-
herents continued to flock to it by the thousand.
In the acquisition of converts the utmost scrupu-
lousness was not always observed. Every means
was laid under tribute to arouse prejudice, engender
discord in churches and communities, and to pro-
duce confusion in the minds of the wavering. Bois-
terous in declamation, and brazen in the assertion
of their views, the followers of Mr. Campbell made
rapid headway with the excited multitudes which

DIVERGENT VIEWS 177

thronged upon their preaching. Whatever else
may be said of this agitation, there is little doubt
that anti-pedobaptism and immersion were greatly
helped by it. The stress vehemently laid upon im-
mersion by the Disciples emphasized to the minds of
thousands of Pedobaptists the importance of a thor-
ough examination of the subject. The result was
the conversion of very many to the doctrine of im-
mersion.

An additional cause of distraction in the Baptist
churches of the South is what is known as " Old
Landmarkism," a term the honor of the authorship
of which is divided between Drs. J. M. Pendleton
and J. P. Graves. They were the first to give ex-
pression to the views which characterized a party of
Baptists who came well-nigh going sufficiently far
in the extremity of their views to form a distinct
sect. This party prevailed mostly in the Southwest.
The movement under Doctors Pendleton and Graves
was an attempted reaction from the growth of con-
servatism in the Baptist denomination South. The
principal features of " Old Landmarkism " were an ' )
insistence of Baptist apostolic succession ; a declara- ^ )
tion of the absolute necessity of properly authorized
administrators of baptism in order to the validity
of the ordinance; the refusal to accept as valid ^^
baptism that which is administered by a Pedobaptist ;
a denial that Pedobaptist organizations are churches, > )
and that their ministers are properly authorized
preachers of the gospel. At a later period Doctor

M

t^

178 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Graves sought to graft upon these views that of non-
intercommuuiou, iu which he denied the scriptural
riglit of a member of a Baptist church to commune
with any other than that of which he is a member.

These views were urged with great energy in the
valley of the Mississippi, finding an expression, for
the most part, tlirough "The Tennessee Baptist,"
of which Doctor Graves had been the editor since
1846. Doctor Graves was a polemicist of no or-
dinary ability, and a speaker of much charming
magnetism. In liim were equally blended the facile
writer and eloquent speaker, so that through word
of mouth as well as through the columns of " The
Tennessee Baptist," he was able to sway multitudes
of those whose eyes and ears he was enabled to
reach. For many years his paper was an engine of
power among the Baptists of the Southwest. Nor
was he without some following throughout the States
of the South. His views boldly urged furnished a
fruitful source of discussion, not altogether un-
attended at times by bitter dissension.

For about a quarter of a century this spirit held
sway chiefly in the region of the great basin of the
Mississippi, but after that time a reaction set in and
enlig-htened conservatism reasserted itself. While
there are still to be found in diiferent portions of the
South and Southwest some who cling to the views of
the original " Landmarkers," they are few in com-
parison with those of a quarter of a century ago.

CHAPTER VII

INTEREST IN MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION

rpHE early Baptists of the South were noted for
-L their zeal in home missions. To this fact,
more than to any other, is due the marvelous ex-
pansion of the denomination during the first half-
century of its history. The early Baptist minis-
try of the South has never been excelled in its un-
quenchable zeal in providing the destitute with the
gospel. Hardy and heroic, these primitive preach-
ers of the South were in the advance guard of
Southern civilization, lured partly by the unexplored
but inviting region which lay toward the setting
sun, and in part by a desire to extend the limits of
Christian evangelization. Along with the redemp-
tion of the wilderness and the waste places was the
reclamation of the multitudes from vice.

These heroic men braved all dangers and endured
every hardship in their determination to preach.
Rarer exhibitions of missionary zeal were not illus-
trated even during the apostolic age. Already occa-
sions have arisen several times for reference to this
spirit of early evangelization.

Resistance to the work of home missions was
never made ; but when the matter of foreign mis-

179

180 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

sions was suggested to the early churches, opposition
was at once aroused. Objections to such a move-
ment became vehement, as it was deemed a clear in-
fringement of the divine prerogative thus to under-
take the evangelization of the peoples of the remoter
portions of the earth.

It seems never to have occurred to these matter-
of-fact, but necessarily contracted, people that the
objections against foreign missions would admit of
equal application to home missions. The eifort to
lead the great mass of Baptists in the States of the
South to view the matter of missions as indivisible
and worldwide has been a protracted one; indeed,
in not a few localities the attempt up to this time
has been utterly without avail. There are thousands
of Baptists in the churches of the South who are
misnamed missionary Baptists.

The first organized effort in the South looking to
evangelization began in the Charleston Association
when John Gano was sent first to the Yadkin dis-
trict of North Carolina, as a missionary. The pre-
cedence of South Carolina Baptists in evangelistic
enterprise has been perpetuated to the present.
From the beginning they enjoyed the pre-eminence
of a distinguished leadershij) — a leadership as de-
voted as it was able. The churches of South Caro-
lina have never receded from the high plane of
beneficence to which they were led by Screven, Hart,
and Furman. Even in advance of the great inter-
est awakened in foreign missions by the conversion

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 181

of Judson and Rice, Dr. Furman had shown com-
mendable zeal in raising funds for the publication of
the Bible translations of Carey and Marshman.
The wisdom of Richard Furman was conspicuous
in coupling with this praiseworthy labor that of
seeking to stimulate, on the part of the pastors of
that early period, a desire for better preparation for
their work. His sagacity prompted him to look
beyond immediate results in connection with this
missionary movement — he desired to see the spirit
becoming an abiding one. In order to that end, he
sought to elevate the ministry while he strove to
gather in contributions. The masterly manipulation
of existing agencies which resulted in the constitu-
tion of the South Carolina Baptist State Convention
in 1821, is an evidence of the splendid leadership
of Richard Furman. The Convention was founded
upon the two-fold idea of ministerial education and
missionary expansion. To the mind of Dr. Furman
they w^ere as inseparable as shadow and substance.
When Luther Rice visited the South, urging with
equal fervor education and missions, he found that
he had been preceded in the advocacy of those asso-
ciated ideas in at least one locality.

Together, as yoke-fellows, Rice and Furman
stood upon the floor of the Triennial Convention in
Philadelphia, in 1817, in advocacy of these insepar-
able interests. No one familiar with the Baptist
denomination can fail to see the wisdom of these men
of God in the equal urgency of the two claims.

182 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Following close upon the organized efforts of the
South Carolina Baptists were those of the denomi-
nation in Georgia. Scarcely any organization was
undertaken before the advent of Jesse Mercer.
Like Furman, in the adjoining State, Mr. Mercer
associated with the evangelization of the world an
enlightened ministry. He was the prime mover in
the formation of the famous Powelton Conferences,
out of which grew the missionary and educational
organizations of the Baptists of Georgia. These
conferences were developed into the General Com-
mittee, which was composed of members from each
district Association in Georgia, with the distinct ob-
ject in view of promoting State missions by organ-
ized itinerant preaching, and to establish a school
among the Creek Indians, who occupied the terri-
tory stretching along the western confines of the
State. These movements gradually led to the con-
stitution of the State Convention and the founding
of Mercer University.

Abraham Marshall was made the chairman of the
General Committee of Georgia, and Henry Hol-
combe, secretary. A general address was issued di-
rected, in part, to the Baptists of the State and
partly to "all gospel ministers not of their order
within this State [who] wish the unity of the spirit
in the bonds of peace." The first portion of the
address related to the Baptist denomination, and was
intended to explain the nature of the movement,
and to invite co-operation in its furtherance. The

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 183

second portion* addressed to the ministry of other
denominations said : " With the greatest respect and
affection, we invite you, Reverend Brethren, to an
investigation in order to a scriptural adjustment of
the comparatively small points in which we differ."
Praiseworthy as this movement was, and sincere as
were its promoters, it was impaired in the outset by
the attempt at denominational union. It failed
equally in commanding the approbation of the Bap-
tists and the members of other denominations. It
really did not represent the prevailing sentiment of
Baptists, and was repelled by the Pedobaptists.
The invitation was responded to at the next meeting
of the committee by two ministers of other denomi-
nations, one a Methodist and the other an Episco-
palian ; but the subject of denominational unity was
never once referred to. Attention was henceforth
devoted to missions and ministerial education.

But the serious blunder committed in the outset
in the attempted fusion of Baptists with other de-
nominations alienated the rank and file of the Bap-
tists throughout the State. Associations passed over
the matter with ominous silence which indicated the
grave suspicion that the Baptist denomination was
being betrayed into the rankest open communionism.
The members of the General Committee were never
able to repair the blunder to the satisfaction of the
denomination. This was followed by a period of
inaction in the churches. But in 1813 there was a
revival of interest in missions, originating in the

184 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Savannah River Association. Under the lead of
Dr. William B. Johnson advanced steps were taken
in home evangelization, and it was also resolved,
'^ That the churches be exhorted to use their best
endeavors toward the support of foreign missions."
This was immediately followed by the organization
of a Baptist Foreign Mission Society in Savannah,
of which Dr. William T. Brantley became the cor-
responding secretary. A circular letter addressed
to the Baptist Associations throughout Georgia suc-
ceeded in arousing much missionary enthusiasm. It
at once became manifest that if anything was to be
accomplished there must be a more compact organ-
ization. This necessity was so universally recognized
that the General Association of Georgia was consti-
tuted in 1822, and this led, five years later, to the
formation of " The Baptist Convention for the State
of Georgia."

Repeated efforts had been made by the Baptists
of Georgia to institute means to Christianize the In-
dians whose tribes lay along both the eastern and
western banks of the Chattahoochee River. At last,
in 1823, an Indian Reform mission and school were
established in the Creek nation at Withington sta-
tion, about thirty miles south of the present site of
Montgomery, Alabama. These interests were as-
signed to the care of Rev. Lee Compere.

These struggling efforts, however, do not represent
all that was being accomplished by the Baptists of
Georgia for during, this entire period, extending from

MISSIONS PKIOR TO THE SEPARATION 185

the opening years of the century to 1827, and much
later, they were generous contributors to the mission-
ary enterprises of the denomination at large. Much
skill was needed to generate a disposition to aid in
the causes fostered by the denomination, but this
was not wanting on the part of such leaders as
Holcombe, Brantley, Mercer, Sherwood, Marshall,
Sanders, and Kilpatrick.

During the earlier years of the century, and
within the period which folio w^ed immediately upon
the great McGready revival, the condition of affairs
was peculiar in North Carolina. From about 1812
to 1832 there was a stagnant spirit among the
churches of that State. They were possessed of
sufficient energy and vitality, however, to resist the
progress of missions, either local or foreign. During
the period named, embracing not less than twenty
years, there were not more than six thousand mem-
bers added to the Baptist churches of North Carolina.
An attempt was made about 1815 to arouse the
churches from their stupor, and to effect an organ-
ization for systematic missionary effort, but without
avail. Josiah Crudup and Robert T. Daniel, the
recognized leaders of that time, were unable to arouse
the slightest interest in missionary endeavor.

Again, in 1826, an effort was made to create zeal
in behalf of missions, which effort culminated in the
constitution of a struggling organization known as
the Baptist Benevolent Society, which in turn led to
the formation of the North Carolina Baptist State

186 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Convention. This organization was effected in a
large barn, near the town of Greenville, on March
20, 1830. The enterprise was the result of the
wise direction and untiring zeal of Rev. Thomas
Meredith, who prepared the constitution in advance
of the meeting, and who had the satisfaction of
seeing it adopted substantially as it came from
his pen.

The purpose of the young organization was
plainly but forcibly presented in the second article
of the constitution :

The primary objects of this Convention shall be the
education of young men called of God to the ministry
and approved of by the churches to which they respec-
tively belong, the employment of the missionaries within
the limits of the State, and co-operation with the Bap-
tist General Convention of the United States in the pro-
motion of missions in general.

A mere handful constituted this original body
with full knowledge that such action would en-
counter stout opposition. The means with which
the proposed work was to be accomplished had yet
to be created. Within the State there were at that
date about fifteen thousand Baptists of all shades of
belief. They received the announcement of the
formation of the Convention with an indifference
well-nigh appalling. But the courage wdiicli had
nerved to the constitution of the body impelled to
the establishment of plans for the consummation of
the purposes proposed. With the utmost delibera-

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 187

tion twelve men were appointed to canvass the
State in the interest of the proposed objects of the
Convention. Without compensation these men were
to traverse the State in every direction and urge the
claims of the Convention in the face of a most de-
termined opposition. Mr. Meredith prepared an
address which was to be sent to the Baptist churches
throughout North Carolina, setting forth the object
of the Convention and appealing for co-operation.
The struggle was a severe one and the progress
made not at all encouraging. But the promoters of
the movement were prepared for the worst, and
hence were not daunted by the resistance encountered.
The step proved the starting-point of the develop-
ment of the denomination in North Carolina, which
development has continued until the State has be-
come the third in numerical strength of the States
composing the Southern Baptist Convention. From
the churches of North Carolina have come many of
the wisest and ablest of Baptist leaders, among
whom may be named the Mercers, the elder Brant-
ley, the elder Basil Manly, John Kerr, R. B. C.
Howell, and" A. M. Poindexter.

The struggles of the Virginia Baptists both before
and after the Revolution served to sink out of view
their minor differences and to make them more
cohesive. But the progress of the missionary spirit
of that State was not unchecked by those opposed
to missions.

188 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

After the subversion of the Establishment under
the auspices of the General Committee, another body-
was organized in 1800, known as the Committee
of Correspondence. This last-named organization
served somewhat as a Board in arousing interest in
the matter of missions and the general direction of
denominational affairs. The Committee of Corres-
pondence lasted until 1823, when the General Asso-
ciation of Virginia was organized. While the few-
ness of numbers entering into this organization must
not be altogether attributed to opposition to organ-
ized effort in evangelistic enterprise, yet it was sig-
nificant. Only fifteen delegates coming from a few
Associations entered into the constitution of the Gen-
eral Association. At the period of this organization
there were not less than forty thousand Baptists
and twenty district Associations in Virginia. R. B.
Semple was chosen as the first president of the Gen-
eral Association, and J. B. Jeter and Daniel Witt
were appointed the first missionaries. These devoted
men sought to accomplish two ends, that of convert-
ing the masses in destitute regions and that of edu-
cating the churches in the matter of missions.

It was about this time that Alexander Campbell
came into prominence as a doughty disputant ar-
rayed against salaried ministers and organized mis-
sionary effort. The public mind was greatly dis-
tracted by the utterances and conduct of Mr. Camp-
bell, who was withstood by Taylor, Jeter, Witt,
and Semple. While Mr. Campbell succeeded in

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 18'J

urging some to the adoption of his views, and in
alienating others, the bulk of the denomination was
brought into sympathy with the general work of
the Baptists of the entire country. The Baptists
of Virginia shared largely in the enthusiasm
aroused by Luther Rice* in behalf of Columbian
College and the Burmese mission, and their leaders
were conspicuous members of the Triennial Con-
vention.

As has been shown, the Baptists of Maryland
have never been numerically strong, but they were
among the first in the States of the South to ex-
hibit a missionary spirit. As early as 1793 the
Baltimore Baptist Association was constituted and
soon put itself upon record as a missionary body.
Eventually, however, there grew up an anti-mis-
sionary spirit which continued to gain ground until
1836, when by a majority of seven the anti-mis-
sionary Baptists came into control of the Baltimore
Association. By a vote of sixteen to nine, the As-
sociation, in 1836, adopted resolutions against " unit-
ing with worldly societies," coupled with a declara-
tion of non-fellowship with such as had done so.
This meant a severance from all such agencies as
missionary organizations, Sunday-schools, and Bi-
ble, tract, and temperance societies. This action
brought about a rupture and terminated the mis-
sionary zeal of the Association. The organization
through which the Baptists have expressed their in-

190 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IX SOUTHERN STATES

terest in missions is the Maryland Baptist Union
Association, which was organized as a distinctively
missionary body in 1836. Into this body were
gathered those who resisted the encroachments of
the anti-missionary Baptists, and since its inception
the Maryland Baptist Union Association has been
an enthusiastic missionary body.

At an early period Baptists recognized the ne-
cessity of planting churches in the national capital.
As early as 1802 a church was organized in Wash-
ington, then a town struggling into life, with all
the rude evidences of a frontier settlement, and
with a scattered population of four thousand. Only
six members entered into the constitution of the
First Baptist Church, founded in Washington on
March 7, 1802. For pastoral service and pulpit
supply the infant church was forced to rely upon
Rev. William Parkinson, who was then chaplain of
Congress.

Near the close of the year, an unpretentious
meeting-house was built on the corner of I and
Nineteenth Streets. For five years this struggling
interest was forced to depend upon the chaplain to
Congress for whatever of preaching or pastoral
oversight it enjoyed. But in 1807 Rev. O. B.
Brown assumed pastoral charge of the church and
served it during the remarkable term of forty-
three years. It was into this church that Spencer
H. Cone entered as a member after his conversion
and abandonment of the stage. From this church

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 191

Mr. Cone received his license as a preacher. In
1814, Hon. O. C. Comstock, a member of Congress,
joined the church, was baptized, and licensed to
preach. The location of the church was changed in
1833 to Tenth Street, where a new meeting-house
was built. In 1859 the First and Fourth churches
were united. Its pastors have been Messrs. Brown,
Hill, Cole, Samson, Gillette, Cuthbert, and Stakely.

The Second Church, sometimes called the Navy
Yard Church, was constituted on June 10, 1810, be-
ginning with a membership of only five. The first
place of meeting of this small body was a diminutive
frame building. It was in this little house that
Spencer H. Cone began his career as a preacher.
At that time Mr. Cone was a clerk in the Treasury
Department, from which station he rose to the posi-
tion of chaplain to Congress. The names of Lynd,
Neale, Chapin, Maginnis, Poindexter, Bacon,
Adams, Sydnor, Boston, and Cole, appear in the
roll of the pastors of this church.

These enterprises represent the interests founded
in the national capital during the period now under
review. It was with great difficulty that the Bap-
tists were enabled to gain a permanent footing in
Washington, and but for the loyalty and devotion
of a few zealous men and women. Baptist settlement
in the national capital would have been greatly
delayed.

Other interests than those already named have
come into existence since the period now under con-

192 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

sideration, but of these this is not the place to
make mention. In their associational connection
and missionary work, the Baptist churches of the
District of Columbia are divided in membership
between the Columbia Association and the Potomac
Association, of Virginia.

In the early periods of their history, the Baptists
of Kentucky were a most enterprising folk, espe-
cially in domestic missions. Their interest in gen-
eral missionary work dates from the great revival
of 1800. Prior to that time but little was at-
tempted by the itinerant Baptist preachers of Ken-
tucky beyond the borders of that State. Fired
with the enthusiasm of the great revival of 1800
which shook the State to its center. Baptist mission-
aries extended their labors beyond the Ohio and
into the States of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois on the
north, and Tennessee on the south.

According to Dr. J. M. Peck, Kentucky Baptists
were the first Protestants to enter the State of Illi-
nois. Rev. James Smith was the heroic missionary
who essayed to cross the border into the wilderness
which was afterward developed into that great
State. While thus engaged, he fell into the hands
of the Indians, from whom he was ransomed by his
brethren for the sum of one hundred and seventy-
five dollars. In 1801 the South Elkhorn Church
sent a request to the Elkhorn Association " to send
missionaries to the Indian nations." The matter

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 193

received prompt attention by the appointment of a
committee

of five members to hear and to determine on the call of
any of our ministers, and if satisfied therewith, to give
them credentials for that purpose ; to set subscriptions
on foot, to receive collections for the use of said mission ;
and it is recommended to the church so to encourage
subscriptions for said purpose, and have the monej^
lodged with the deacons to be applied for that purpose
whenever called for by the committee. The following
brethren are appointed : David Barrow, Ambrose Dud-
ley, John Price, Augustine Eastine, and George Smith.

The result was that John Young was sent from the
Elkhorn Association as a missionary to the Indians.

As early as 1816, when the subject of foreign
missions was being pressed upon the attention of
the churches throughout the South, we find in Ken-
tucky six missionary societies which were liberal
contributors to the treasury of the Board at Phila-
delphia.

The churches of Kentucky having been blessed
again with a remarkable revival in 1817, their at-
tention seems to have been turned afresh to the
matter of missions, for it was immediately followed
by the creation of a school for Indian children near
Georgetown. This was the work of the Kentucky
Missionary Society, which gave to the new school
the name of Choctaw Academy. This new interest
prospered through a period of years, and sent out
to the Indians of the far West two missionaries,

N

194 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERX STATES

Samson Birch and Robert Jones. Then came the
period of distraction attendant upon the advent of
Alexander Campbell. In close connection with Mr.
Campbell was the appearance in that region of
Daniel Parker, an illiterate but remarkable man,
whose chief purpose seems to have been the destruc-
tion of the missionary spirit among the churches.
With all the confidence of ignorance he boldly as-
serted the unscripturalness of missions, and chal-
lenged to disputatious combat any who dared con-
trovert his position. While Daniel Parker was
thus engaged he was diligent also in the inculcation
of the two-seed doctrine in the State. The com-
bination of two such agencies as those of Campbell
and Parker came well-nigh destroying the spirit of
missions in the churches of Kentucky. In 1832
the Baptist State Convention of Kentucky was or-
ganized, but it was soon rent in pieces by internal
dissension, and in 1836 was driven to dissolution.
The following year, however, an effort was made to
revive the suspended interest under the designation
of the General Association of Kentucky Baptists,
the organization being distinctively founded upon
the idea of State evangelization. This cautious
proceeding indicates that it was no longer prudent
or possible to press the claims of foreign missions
upon the churches. From being one of the most
progressive of the States of the South in the prose-
cution of missionary work, Kentucky became, for a
period, one of the most actively aggressive States

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 195

against it, so strong was the influence of Campbell
and Parker.

Tennessee shared largely in the same spirit. The
Baptist churches of that State were among the first
warmly to espouse the cause of missions in foreign
parts, but this was followed by a most violent reac-
tion. During the visit of Luther Rice to the State,
the churches were greatly aroused upon missions,
and for a season their zeal was ardent ; but there
came a sudden turn, and the transformation was
complete, the rankest opposition possible to missions
coming to prevail. The churches suffered from this
spiritual paralysis for a long period of years, even
up to the outbreak of the war between the States.
True, there were churches here and there through-
out the State engaged in contributing to missions,
but they were the exception and not the rule. Re-
peated efforts were made to overcome this depres-
sion, but they were unavailing.

In Alabama, as in Tennessee, there was a strug-
gle long and bitter between the missionary and anti-
missionary Baptists, for the ascendency. The con-
test was fiercest in the northern and eastern portions
of the State, but no section was exempt from strife.
The annual meeting of every district Association
was the occasion of intense struggle between those
who favored and those who opposed missions.
Still, the more progressive elements of the de-
nomination were active in local missionary work,
and untiring in their efforts to cultivate benevolence

196 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

on the part of the churches. The period of or-
ganized evangelistic effort in Alabama dates from
1816, when associational missionaries began work.

In 1823 the State Convention was organized
solely upon the basis of missions, and at once fifteen
evangelists were sent into different portions of the
State. They were everywhere met by hostile de-
monstrations, but were resolute in the prosecution
of their work. The leaders conspicuous at this
period were Travis, Bestor, and Holcombe, the resi-
dence of each of whom was respectively in the
southern, central, and northern portions of the
State. By concert of action they succeeded in
maintaining sufficient organization to hold in check
the opposition, and at tlie same time prosecute their
work.

Mississippi Baptists were among the last to con-
stitute a general State organization. Previous to
such organization, which took place in 1839, just a
few years before the constitution of the Southern
Baptist Convention, missionary work had been pros-
ecuted throughout the State by local Associations.
Considering the rapid growth of the population
after the battle of New Orleans and the subsequent
peace with Great Britain, and the difficulties en-
countered in a new region, a most praiseworthy
work was accomplished by the Baptists of Mississippi
in the cultivation of the home field.

The planting of the Baptist cause in Louisiana

MISSIONS PRIOR TO THE SEPARATION 197

was so entirely due to missionary effort in the midst
of the most forbidding obstructions that it was
natural for those brought into the churches under
such conditions themselves to imbibe the missionary
spirit. For many years identified with the Baptist
organizations of Mississippi, the denomination in
Louisiana at last began to become distinctive in its
own local work.

The constitution of Associations began as early as
1818 when the Louisiana Association was organized.
This was followed by the constitution of similar
bodies on both sides of the Mississippi as the de-
nomination expanded. The Louisiana State Con-
vention was not organized until 1847 — two years
after the constitution of the Southern Baptist Con-
vention.

Thus it will be seen that during the long period
extending from the Revolution to the organization
of the Southern Baptist Convention the denomina-
tion in the South was especially active in the work
of local missions, and along the lines of advanced
missionary effort. The rapid increase of population
in the South made it necessary for much local effort
to be expended. So important, emphatic, and long
continued was this necessary work in the midst of a
raw and incoherent population, that it became more
difficult to divert attention to the equally important
matter of world evangelization. Then it cannot be
denied that the commercialism of the times acted
as a serious hindrance to the fostering of missions.

198 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

It is not easy to enlist the devotion of men in
sacred work, the necessity of which is not visibly
manifest, when these men are engrossed in subduing
the harsher forces of nature, allured meanwhile by
the prospect of great gain. To such the injunctions
and admonitions of the pulpit respecting benevolence
are regarded as being merely functional. These
conditions may favor a spirit of worldiiness and do,
but proportionately they hinder the spirit of be-
nevolence.

CHAPTER VIII

FORMATION OF THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVEN-
TION

THE Southern Baptist Convention was one of the
direct effects of the agitation of the question
of African slavery. Many years before the separa-
tion took place between Northern and Southern
Baptists, the question of slavery had been warmly
discussed in Baptist circles and councils. Many of
the largest owners of slaves in the South were Bap-
tists who were eminent in denominational ranks.
They were as pronounced and sincere in the defense
of the institution of slavery as were the Baptists
of the North in its denunciation. The counter-
sentiment of the two sections grew commensurately
during the last quarter preceding the outbreak of
the Civil War. The agitation of the question in
the columns of the journals both of the secular and
religious press, on the platform, in the pulpit, and
upon the floor of Congress, necessarily widened the
breach between the North and South. As an insti-
tution in the South, slavery assumed three phases —
social, economic, and political. It had spent its
force as a social institution % the year 1835, while
to the end of its existence it continued to affect the

199

^'

200 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

South economically. It was as a political agency
that it was to effect the direst consequences. As
such, it split in twain great ecclesiastical bodies and
finally involved the country in bloody strife.^
■" The sway of wisdom and moderation in the
councils of the Triennial Convention held in abey-
V ance for many years the passions of the less dis-
V, creet. Except that now and then friction was pro-
duced by some injudicious utterance or production,
nothing occurred to mar the general harmony of the
Baptist denomination of the United States until
1844. This was due to the influence of wise and
cool spirits who studiously suppressed all initial
^ manifestations of bitterness. The purpose was
j clearly deliberate on the part of the denominational
[ leaders, both of the North and South, to keep out of
\ sight as far as possible this impending trouble.
Up to 1844, Southern churches vied with those of
the North in their contributions to the treasuries of
the societies maintained by the Triennial Conven-
tion.

To some, however, it seemed clear that dissolu-
tion was inevitable ; to others, it was equally clear
that disruption could be averted. To the latter
class belonged that princely leader, Richard Fuller,
who in 1844 offered in the Triennial Convention
the following :

Whereas, Some misapprehension exists in certain parts
of the country as to the design or character of this Con-

1 " Southern Side Lights," Edward Ingle, p. 262.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 201

vention, and it is most desirable that such misapprehen-
sion should be removed ; therefore, Resolved, That this
Convention is a corporation with limited powers for a
specific purpose defined in its constitution ; and there-
fore that its members are delegated to meet solely for the
transaction of business prescribed by the said constitu-
tion ; and that co-operation in this body does not involve
nor imply any concert or sympathy as to any matters
foreign from the object designated as aforesaid.

The resolution was promptly seconded by Spencer
H. Cone, of New York, and sustained by William
Hayne, of Massachusetts, and J. B. Jeter, of Vir-
ginia. But it was stubbornly resisted by Nathan-
iel Colver, of Massachusetts, who expressed the
desire that he be not handicapped respecting any
matter that might come for consideration before
the body.

After some discussion, the resolution was with-
drawn and the following was oifered and adopted :

Whereas, There exists in various sections of our
country an impression that our present organization in-
volves the fellowship of the institution of domestic
slavery, or of certain associations which are designed to
oppose this institution ; Resolved, That in co-operating
together as members of this Convention in the work of
foreign missions, we disclaim all sanction, either ex-
pressed or implied, whether of slavery or of anti-
slavery ; but as individuals we are perfectly free both to
express and to promote our own views on these subjects
in a Christian manner and spirit.

This evoked from Dr. Fuller upon the floor of the

202 HISTORY or BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

/

/ Convention the expression that he was perfectly

calm and dispassionate respecting slavery. While
he was unconvinced that slavery was a sin, person-
ally he considered it a great evil. He further said
that in this opinion his brethren in the South did
not share. He hoped and prayed that the institu-
tion might be abolished.^

It was claimed by the pro-slavery advocates in
the Baptist denomination in the South that just sub-
sequent to the Triennial Convention for 1844, the
Board of Foreign Missions procured the retirement
from its service of Rev. John Bushyhead, a highly
respected Indian Baptist preacher, because he was
an owner of slaves. This created an impression
throughout the South that slaveholders would not
henceforth be admitted to appointment under the
Board. During the same year, 1844, the famous
controversy on slavery occurred between Way land
and Fuller. The latter replied to certain abolition
expressions which appeared in the columns of the
'' The Christian Reflector," and in doing so quoted
from Wayland's " Elements of Moral Science " to
sustain the Southern view of the question against
that expressed by the journal named. This called
for a reply from Dr. Wayland, and thus the contro-
versy began. The champions were the recognized
leaders of thought in the denomination North and
South. Both the ethical and scriptural grounds of
the great question were passed under review, and
^A. H. Newman, "Am. Church Hist.," Baptist, Vol. II., p. 445.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 203

opposite conclusions were of course reached. The
only good, perhaps, flowing from the controversy
was an exhibition of a courteous and Christian
spirit which distinguished it throughout.

The discussion of the most serious features of
the institution in so calm and courteous a manner
served, for a season, to allay bitterness of feeling.
But this was of brief duration. The secular press
fed the flame of public excitement. The halls of
Congress rang with oratory in the discussion of the
many-sided subject. Occasions for division, though
slight, were often magnified by the advocates of
both sides of this burning question. Arguments
flew to and fro like shots in battle. Any pro-
nounced action on either side repelled at a greater
distance the other. This was shown by the attri-
bution of certain utterances to Dr. R. E. Pattison,
the Home Secretary of the Boston Board, which
utterances intimated that the Acting Board of the \y/^
Triennial Convention would no longer tolerate the
matter of slavery. It was these utterances which y
called forth the famous Alabama Resolutions. The
matter was brought to the attention of the Alabama
Baptist State Convention by a query from the
Tuscaloosa Church, the authorship of which was
attributed to Dr. Basil Manly, Sr. The query was
presented thus : " Is it proper for us, at the South,
to send any more money to our brethren at the
North, for missionary and other benevolent pur-
poses, before the subject of slavery be rightly under-

204 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

stood by both parties ? " This was productive of sharp
and decisive action. This query, together with a
communication addressed to the Alabama Baptist
Convention from the Georgia Baptist Convention,
was referred to a committee of which Dr. Basil
Manly, Sr., was chairman. The result of the com-
mittee's action was embodied in the following reso-
tions :

Whereas, The holding of property in African Negro
slaves has, for some years, excited discussion as a ques-
tion of morals, between different portions of the Bap-
tist denomination united in benevolent enterprise ; and
by a large portion of our brethren is now imputed to
the slaveholders in these Southern and Southwestern
States as a sin at once grievous, palpable, and disquali-
fying ;

1. Resolved, . . . that when one party to a voluntary
compact among Christian brethren is not willing to ac-
knowledge the entire social equality w^ith the other, as
to all the privileges and benefits of the union, nor even
to refrain from impeachment and annoyance, united
efforts between such parties, even in the sacred cause of
Christian benevolence cease to be agreeable, useful, or
proper.

2. Resolved, That our duty at this crisis requires us to
demand from the proper authorities in all those bodies
to whose funds we have contributed or with whom we
have in any way been connected, the distinct, explicit
avowal that slaveholders are eligible, and entitled
equally with non-slaveholders, to all the privileges and
immunities of their several unions ; and especially to
receive any agency, mission, or other appointment
which may run within the scope of their operations or
duties.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 205

It was further insisted that in the event of
the moral character of an applicant being chal-
lenged, such question should be referred for settle-
ment to the church of which he is a member.
The transmission of future contributions to these
societies was made contingent upon the satisfactori-
ness of the answer given to these questions.

The reply of the Foreign Mission Board was
made in a similar strain. It says :

In the thirty years in which the Board has existed,
no slaveholder, to our knowledge, has applied to be a
missionary. And as we send out no domestics or serv-
ants, such an event as a missionary taking slaves with
him, were it morally right, could not, in accordance
with all our past arrangements or present plans, possi-
bly occur. If, however, any one should offer himself as
a missionary, having slaves, and should insist on retain-
ing them as his property, we should not appoint him.
One thing is certain, we can never be a party to any ar-
rangement which would imply approbation of slavery.

The critical reader cannot fail to discover certain
caution and reservation in the deliverances from
both quarters. The language is charged with a re-
served force, and beneath the conventional courtesy
there slumber the fires of determination. The de-
liverance of the Alabama Baptist State Convention
was the most decisive utterance that had up to this
time emanated from either side. It is believed that
the incisive character of the challenge did inuch to
precipitate final separation.

206 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Very soon practical emphasis was given to the
position taken by the Home Mission Society by its
refusal to appoint James E. Reeves, a missionary
within the Tallapoosa Association, of Georgia.
This refusal was made directly to the Executive
Committee of the Georgia Baptist Convention and
was based upon the ground that Mr. Reeves was a
slaveholder. The Executive Committee, composed
of J. L. Dagg, V. R. Thornton, J. B. Walker,
Thomas Stocks, and B. M. Sanders, promptly in-
structed the treasurer of the Convention to with-
hold all funds from Northern societies until fur-
ther instruction. This was followed by an address
to the people of the United States, reciting in de-
tail the action of the Home Mission Society.

The hour for dissolution had come. One by one
the Conventions of the Southern States began to
withdraw. Along with them went the missionary
auxiliary societies which had been such copious con-
tributors to the Boards of the Triennial Convention.
The Board of the Foreign Missionary Society of
Virginia, suggested that the Baptists of the South
be invited to meet in Augusta, Georgia, in May,
1845, to indicate a course of action for the future.
Meanwhile the national anniversaries of the de-
nomination met at Providence, Rhode Island. The
report of the committee appointed the year before
by the American Baptist Home Mission Society to
consider the subject of an amicable dissolution of
said Society, was submitted. It was as follows :

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 207

Whereas, The American Baptist Home Mission So-
ciety is composed of contributors residing in slavehold-
ing States ; and, Whereas The constitution recognizes no
distinction among the members of the Society as to the
ehgibihty of all the offices and appointments in the gift
both of the Society and the Board ; and, Whereas, it has
been found that the basis on which the Society was or-
ganized is one upon which all the members and friends
of the Society are now willing to act ; therefore,

Resolved, That it is expedient that the members now
forming the Society should hereafter act in separate or-
ganizations at the South and at the North, in promoting
the objects which were originally contemplated by the
Society.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed to report a
plan by which the object contemiDlated in the preceding
resolution may be accomplished in the best way and at
the earliest period of time consistently with the preser-
vation of the constitutional rights of all the members
and with the least possible interruption of the mis-
sionary work of the Society.

The submission of tliis report gave rise to a pro-
longed discussion. Prominent in the lead of this
discussion was the able and conservative President
Wayland. He threw the weight of his powerful
influence against precipitate action in the matter of
dissolution ; but extreme abolition sentiments on
the part of Northern members and exacting de-
mands on the' part of members from the South
proved more than a match even for Francis Way-
land. The report was adopted and the hour for
final severance had struck. The Alabama resolu-
tions, to which answer had been made by the Exec-

208 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

utive Committee of the Foreign Mission Board,
were taken up and considered and the action taken
by the committee was endorsed. This was the re-
sult of a report of a committee of which President
Wayland was chairman. The report was one that
breathed conciliation throughout. It said :

1. The spirit of the constitution of the General Con-
vention, as well as the history of its proceedings from the
beginning, renders it apparent that all the members of
the Baptist denomination, in good standing, whether at
the North or South, are constitutionally eligible to all
appointments emanating either from the Convention or
the Board.

2. While this is the case, it is possible that contin-
gencies may arise in which the carrying out of this prin-
ciple might create the necessity of making appoint-
ments by which the brethren of the North would either
in fact, or in the ojoinion of the Christian community,
become responsible for institutions which they could
not, with a good conscience, sanction.

8. Were such a case to occur, we should not desire
our brethren to violate their convictions of duty by
making such appointments, but should consider it in-
cumbent on them to refer the case to the Convention
for its decision.

In the discussion of this vital question, involv-
ing in great measure the benevolence of a large, in-
fluential, and wealthy body of Christians, the ablest
men of the denomination were engaged. It was
not a time for heated or precipitate action. The
utmost prudence and caution were needed. Much
as dissolution was deplored, it seemed unavoidable.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 209

Conservatism was to be found in the ranks of the
representatives of both sections. Could their coun-
sel have prevailed, the rupture might not have
come quite so early. But as it was, no continued
co-operation could be had without a serious impair-
ment of the necessary enthusiasm as well as of the
copiousness of the benevolence on the part both of
the North and of the South. Between the two sec-
tions slavery had become a question of great irrita-
tion. Bitterness was engendered with advancing
time. The disturbing influence of slavery was felt
in every sphere. It was next to impossible, with
the country agitated as it was, for Northern aboli-
tionists and Southern slaveholders to dwell together
in unity. The quietness and wisdom with which
these matters were dealt, and the type of Christian
character displayed during these stormy times, re-
flect the ability and nobility of the men engaged.

Inevitable as the separation was between North-
ern and Southern Baptists, it was, for some reasons,
unfortunate. Had it not come, as it came, in 1844,
it must needs have occurred in 1861. Though if it
could have been delayed until 1861, the probability
is that the dissolution would have been only a tem-
porary one. While both sections have sustained
loss by the severance, it can scarcely be denied that
the South has suffered more. Considered from a
calm and dispassionate point of view, it is clear that
the South has suffered greatly by the loss of the
conservatism which has attended the councils of

o

210 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Northern Baptists. Not that the South has been
without conservatism, for it has measurably pre-
vailed in spite of the tension to which Baptist lib-
erty in the South has been at times subjected.
That which else might have verged upon denomina-
tional dogma in some instances, has been counterbal-
anced by the conservative sentiment of such States
as Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas.
These Atlantic States have, since the formation of
the Southern Baptist Convention, represented the
cool conservatism in the Baptist councils of the
South, and have saved the denomination from the
very extreme from which it theoretically recoils.

May 8, 1845, marks a memorable epoch in the
history of Southern Baptists. In response to the
call made for the assemblage of Baptist representa-
tives from the South, three hundred and seventy-
seven delegates met at the time named, in the city
of Augusta, Georgia, for the purpose of forming
the Southern Baptist Convention. These delegates
were representatives from eight Southern States,
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro-
lina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Kentucky, and
the District of Columbia.

It was an occasion of great enthusiasm. Dr. W.
B. Johnson, who had won distinction as a parlia-
mentary officer in the Triennial Convention, was
chosen president, Hon. W. Lumpkin, of Georgia,
and Dr. J. B. Taylor, of Virginia, were elected
vice-presidents, and Rev. Jesse Hartwell and Jamef-

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 211

C. Crane were made secretaries of the new organ-
ization.

The genius of the body was voiced in a resohi-
tion which was the result of the work of a com-
mittee of two from each State. That resolution
was as follows :

That for peace and harmony, and in order to acenm-
pHsh the greatest amount of good, and for the mainte-
nance of those scriptural principles on which the Gen-
eral Missionary Convention of the Baptist denomination
of the United States was originally formed, it is proper
that this Convention at once proceed to organize for the
propagation of the gospel.

This was unanimously adopted.

An elaborate address was prepared, and appealed
" to the brethren of the United States ; to the con-
gregations connected with the respective churches ;
and to all candid men." The address opens with
the frank statement :

A painful division has taken place in the missionary
operations of the American Baptists. We would explain
the origin, the principles, and the objects of that division,
or the pecv;liar circumstances in which the organization
of the Southern Baptist Convention became necessary.
Let not the extent of this disunion be exaggerated. At
the present time it involves only the Foreign and Do-
mestic Missions of the denomination. Northern and
Southern Baptists are still brethren. They differ in no
article of the faith. They are guided by the same prin-
ciples of gospel order. Fanatical attempts have indeed
been made, in some quarters, to exclude us of the South

212 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

from Christian fellowship. We do not retort these at-
tempts, and believe their extent to be comparatively
limited. Our Christian fellowship is not, as we feel, a
matter to be obtruded upon any one. We abide by that
of our God, his dear Son, and all his baptized followers.
The few ultra Northern brethren to whom we allude
must take what course they please. Their conduct has
not influenced us in this movement. We do not regard
the rupture as extending to foundation principles, nor
can we think that the great body of our Northern breth-
ren will so regard it. Disunion, however, has proceeded
deplorably far. The first part of our duty is to show
that its entire origin is with others.

Then follows a statement of the successive events
which gradually contributed to the formation of the
Southern Baptist Convention. In this was set forth
the charge that the Triennial Convention had broken
with the principles upon which it was founded. The
address declares concerning the original document
which was the basis upon which the Conv^ention Avas
established : " Its constitution knows no difference
between slaveholders and non-slaveholders." The
address further declares that the members of the
Southern Baptist Convention had not severed from
the constitution " of the original union." It further
claims that the founders of the Southern Baptist
Convention had " acted in the premises with liber-
ality " toward " the brethren of the North." Says
the same document, " Thrust from the platform of
equal rights between the Northern and Southern
churches, we have but reconstructed that platform."

SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 213

A little further on the emphatic declaration is
made:

We will not practically leave it on any account, much less
in obedience to such usurped authority, or in deference
to such a manifest breach of trust as is here involved ; a
breach of covenant that looks various ways, heavenward
and earthward. For we repeat. They w^ould forbid us

TO SPEAK unto THE GeNTILES.

Then follows a declaration which involves a firm
purpose to preach the gospel everywhere. Thus is
presented in analytical detail, the causes of the
separation, the principles of the Southern Baptist
Convention, and its objects. The elaborate address
concludes :

In parting with our beloved brethren and coadjutors
in this cause we could weep, and have wept, for ourselves
and for them ; but the season as well of weeping as of
vain jangling is, we are constrained to believe, just now
past. For years the pressure of men's hands have been
upon us far too heavily. Our brethren have pressed
upon every inch of our privileges and our sacred rights,
but this shall only urge our gushing souls to yield pro-
portionately of their renewed efforts to the Lord, to the
church universal, and to a dying world ; even as w^ater
pressed from without rises but the more within. Above
all, the mountain pressure of our obligations to our God,
even our own God ; to Christ, and to him crucified ; and
to the personal and social blessings of the Holy Spirit
and his influences, shall urge our little streams of the
water of life to flow forth ; until every wilderness and
desolate place w^ithin our reach (and what extent of the
world's wilderness, wisely considered, is not within our

214 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

reach ?) shall be glad, even as this passing calamity of
division ; and the deserts of unconverted human nature
rejoice and blossom as the rose.

Two general Boards called the Domestic Mission
Board and the Foreign Mission Board were formed
and located respectively at Marion, Alabama, and
Richmond, Virginia. A vice-president for each of
the two Boards was appointed from each State repre-
sented in the Convention. The meetings were ap-
pointed to be held triennially after the manner of
the original convention of the United States. Rich-
mond, Virginia, was named as the next place of
meeting, and June 10, 1846, as the date. This
done and the first session of the Southern Baptist
Convention adjourned.

Although these devoted men had counted the
cost of such an immense undertaking, the contem-
plation of their grave responsibilities weighed upon
their spirits like the burden of the Lord upon the
prophets of olden time.

CHAPTER IX

WOEK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS

WHEN they set themselves to organize the work
of the new Convention, the founders were
embarrassed with unavoidable complications. It
was not an easy task for the churches, Associations,
and State Conventions to sever at one blow the ties
which bound them to the Triennial Convention, and
at once adjust themselves to new conditions.

It was clear, from the beginning, that the peculiar
circumstances which invested the newly constituted
body would forbid a speedy entrance upon the pro-
posed work. One of the peculiar features was that
connected with the missionaries already upon the
field. Some of these were Southerners, but they
had been laboring under the auspices of the Trien-
nial Convention. Would they be invited to sever
their connection with the parent body, and place
themselves under the care of the new Convention ?
Even should they do so, would the Southern Con-
vention assume the work thus begun by the parent
body? Would this not be an additional occasion
for friction and prolonged disturbance ?

All these suggestions came to the sober-minded
leaders who recognized the necessity of an organiza-

215

216 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tion distinct from the Triennial Convention. These
difficulties had been considered in advance, and were
not discovered after the bridges had been burned.
Relief was sought, so far as the Southern-born mis-
sionaries were concerned, by a proposal to the North-
ern Board to enter into partnership in the work on
foreign fields ; but the Northern Board wisely de-
clined any such possibility of future complication.
Finally the settlement of the question was left to
the foreign missionaries themselves. If they should
desire to remain under the old Board, well ; if not,
they would be cordially received by the Southern
Board.

But slight extrication from prevailing difficulties
was found by the close of the first year of the Con-
vention, At the appointed time the delegates met
in Richmond. The meeting was one of dignity and
decorousness. About one hundred and fifty dele-
gates responded to their names. Representatives
were present from the American and Foreign Bible
Society, The American Sunday-school Union, The
American Baptist Publication Society, and the
General Association of Kentucky, all of which in-
dicated a willingness to fraternize the members of
the new Convention, and as far as practicable to co-
operate with them.

The delegates addressed themselves to work with
a solemnity befitting the occasion. This is indicated
by a series of solemn resolutions offered early in the
session, from which the following is an extract :

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 217

Resolved, That before the final vote upon questions of
vital importance (and at such other times as may be
deemed suitable by the body), the business of the Con-
vention shall be suspended, and prayer offered up to
Almighty God for the guidance of his Spirit.

No little enthusiasm was awakened by the pres-
ence of Rev. J. L. Shuck, missionary to China,
and Yong Seen Sang, a native Chinaman, who had
been converted and had accompanied Mr. Shuck to
America. Mr. Shuck had been in the employment
of the Northern Board, but now accepted appoint-
ment under the Foreign Board of the Southern
Baptist Convention. Thomas Simmons, recently
returned missionary from Burma, was also present
during the session. The China mission was rein-
forced by the appointment of the additional mission-
aries, S. C. Clopton and George Pearcy.

In consideration of the difficulties which invested
them, the members of the Convention found occa-
sion for gratitude in that they had been able to ac-
complish so much during the preceding year. The
provisional Boards, both foreign and domestic, had
done well. The Foreign Board reported collections
to the amount of seventeen thousand seven hundred
and thirty-five dollars, while the Domestic Board
closed the year with thirteen thousand one hundred
and ninety-three dollars, some of which amount
consisted of pledges. In order to facilitate its work
among the churches, the Foreign Board had insti-
tuted an organ of communication known as " The

218 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Southern Missionary Journal," which afterward be-
came "■ The Foreign Mission Journal." In its first
report the Domestic Mission Board showed a com-
mendable spirit of enterprise by proposing to plant
mission stations along the Pacific coast, the shores
of California, and southward into Mexico. That
portion of the report was not adopted, however, for
fear of arousing suspicion of political combinations.
One of the distinctive features of the proceedings
of this session was the proposal to increase the
facilities for Christianizing the Southern slaves.
The belief being prevalent that a white man would
not be able to endure the climate of Western Africa,
it was deemed wise to send thither at least ten
colored missionaries from the South, and to main-
tain such a force all the while. The attitude of the
Baptists of the slave States to the Negro in 1846
may be judged by the following, which was earnestly
adopted :

Resolved, That in view of the present condition of the
African race, and in view of the indications of Divine
Providence toward that portion of the great fiimily of
fallen men, we feel that a solemn obligation rests not
only upon the Convention, but upon all Christians, to
furnish them with the gospel and a suitable Christian
ministry.

The Convention adjourned in the midst of hope-
fulness and enthusiasm, and yet with a profound
sense of the grave responsibility assumed. The
evangelization of a large portion of the American

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 219

Union had been undertaken. A ftiU share of the
work in foreign fields would have to be assumed by
the new body. Vast sums of money would have
to be raised and Avisely disbursed in the accomplish-
ment of these purposes. But the spirit of the Rich-
mond Convention aflForded a guarantee of ultimate
success. A basis was laid for extensive work. A
Foreign Board, duly equipped, was permanently lo-
cated at Richmond, Virginia, and a Board of Do-
mestic Missions was fixed at Marion, Alabama. A
committee was appointed " to consider and report
upon the expediency of organizing Boards of man-
agers for Bible and publication operations."

Steps were at once taken to occupy the destitute
territory of the home field as early as practicable.
Florida and Texas were, at this time, most inviting
fields for missionary endeavor. Into the former of
these States a few Baptists entered as early as the
first quarter of the century, and a Baptist church
was established, the first in the State, as early as
1825, in the county of Jackson. Governmental
liberality and protection gained for these new States
large accessions of population, which were scattered
in widely separated settlements over broad areas.
Toward such regions as these the Domestic Mission
Board directed its energies and resources, leaving
local destitution to be cared for by the district As-
sociations and State Conventions. As rapidly as it
could the Board followed in the wake of the ad-
vancing rank of population as it pressed westward.

220 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Even as early as 1846, Mexico, as a missionary
field, was challenging the attention of Southern
Baptists.

The defined work of the new Convention was
the evangelization of the frontier regions of the
South, giving the gospel to the slaves. Christianizing
the Indians of the Territories, colportage operations,
and the extension of missionary work in foreign
fields. Vigorous activity in the new regions of the
South, which were thickening with a frontier popu-
lation, was not begun too early by the Southern
Baptist Convention. As the Domestic Mission
Board sought to draw to its allegiance the interior
churches of the South, it encountered much diffi-
culty. Church independency was asserted even in
the district Associations, and more vehemently in
regard to the State Conventions, and when it came
to an invited acquiescence with the general Boards
it seemed the nethermost of centralization, and
many openly protested. Indeed, that spirit has not
altogether departed from many interior churches in
the South to this day. The expanding strength of
the Boards of the Southern Baptist Convention is
due to the increasing acquiescence of the churches
of the South, and it is proper to state that this ac-
quiescence has been proportionate to the growing
efficiency of the Southern Baptist ministry.

Through the years, from the formation of the
Southern Baptist Convention to the present, there
has been in progress in the South what is known in

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 221

modern political phraseology as an " educational
campaign." In the presentation of the respective
claims of the two Boards the advantage has been
on the side of the Domestic Board, the visible
achievements of which in the new settlements of
the South have been all along strikingly manifest.
The Foreign Board was forced to await a fuller
development of missionary sentiment for the culti-
vation of which it is in no small measure indebted
to its twin sister — the Domestic Mission Board.

In the early history of the Convention there was
a great demand for patience, energy, sagacity, and
spiritual devotion. The territory covered by the
Convention was vast, embracing fourteen large
States, with an aggregate area of nine hundred and
fifty-five thousand six hundred and sixty-four square
miles, and with a population of eight millions, a
large portion of which was rural in character, and
thoroughly unevangelized. To reach this mass
there were at the period of the formation of the
Convention about two thousand Baptist preachers
of all grades and classes in the States of the South.
Only a few of this number were thoroughly edu-
cated, while many could barely read. Others were
superannuated, aiid hundreds of them were partly
or altogether secularized, and were employed as
teachers, physicians, merchants, farmers, mechanics,
and lawyers. These were unevenly distributed
throughout the South. In the older States they
were more efficient ; in the newer, they were alto-

222 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

gether unequal to the demands of the prevailing
conditions.

Up to the period under discussion, Baptists were
almost entirely confined to the country. Not until
a later period in Southern history, when towns and
cities began to spring up and to grow, did many of
the most select elements of the rural population
begin to resort to these thriving centers. Baptists
being generally the dominant folk in the rural
regions, many representatives of that denomination
removed to the centers to improve their fortunes.
These of course were formed into churches. In the
selection of pastors they sought for those who were
the peers of the occupants of the pulpits of other
denominations. This gave increased emphasis to
the matter of ministerial education, and made neces-
sary the establishment of a theological seminary.
Inasmuch as the Baptists of the South were almost
altogether restricted to the country districts, it was
fortunate that many of their ablest ministers insisted
upon remaining in the country, though often
tempted by city churches, to become their pastors.
Some of these cultured gentlemen were owners of
plantations and large bodies of slaves, and they pre-
ferred the independence of country life to the most
inviting city pulpits. Some, like Andrew Broaddus,
of Virginia, persistently declined the most urgent
and tempting calls to the city, preferring the easy
conventionalities of rural life and worship. One
such man, here and there, was a tower of strength

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 223

in an educational process such as the Southern
churches were at that time passing through. The
circle of the influence of such a man was immense,
and at a time like the one under consideration, most
salutary.

When the detached work of evangelization was
undertaken, it was found that, in some regions of
the South, white inhabitants of matured age had
never heard the gospel preached. Colporters found
white adults of both sexes who had never heard a
sermon nor seen a minister of Christ.

The work of the organization of the incoherent
elements, especially of the new States of the South,
was slow and tedious. The Convention was most
deliberate in its choice of officials for its Boards.
The corresponding secretaryship of the Domestic
Board was first tendered to J. L. Reynolds,
but he declined to accept it. D. P. Bestor was
next invited to the charge of the interest, but he
frankly declined because he did not regard himself
suited to such a position. R. Holman was then
called upon and accepted the position. Upon his
retirement from the service of the Board, Joseph
Walker was chosen to succeed him. When Mr.
Walker resigned, Mr. Holman was recalled to the
office of the secretaryship, and successfully con-
ducted the affiiirs of the Board to the beginning of
the Civil War. M. T. Sumner was the next secre-
tary, and for almost a score of years gave success-
ful direction to the affiiirs of the Domestic Mission

224 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Board. Having resigned, W. H. Mcintosh was
elected secretary, which position he held until the
removal of the Board to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1882,
when I. T. Tichenor became secretary.

The zeal and ability with which the aifairs of the
Southern Baptist Convention were conducted from
the beffinnino' are seen in the results of the work of
its agencies. For instance, during the first thirteen
years of the career of the Domestic Mission Board,
the contributions were seven times greater than
those contributed to the American Baptist Home
Mission Society by the same States during the thir-
teen years just preceding the organization of the
Southern Baptist Convention. The Board served
to give an impulse to every department of denomi-
national work by impressing the churches with a
sense of enlarged responsibility, and by arousing
greater confidence in the possibility of an early
evangelization of the South. Active agencies kept
the matter fresh before the churches, and in pro-
portion to the excitement of interest, the anti-mis-
sionary barriers gave way. Harmonious co-oper-
ation between the Domestic Board and the churches
opened the way to a fair consideration of the claims
of the Foreign Board.

Keeping pace with the tide of population which
moved steadily westward, the Domestic Board was
enabled to establish churches in the inception of
such centers as Houston and Galveston, Texas,
while older cities, like New Orleans, were entered

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 225

and interests were planted. Likewise in Arkansas
and Missouri successful work was accomplished by
the Domestic Board. Southward also, into Florida,
the attention of the Board was directed. Seizing
such commercial points as Key West and Tampa in
that State of growing importance, the interior of
the State was more easily reached. The evangeli-
zation of Florida was largely procured through the
agency of the Domestic Board. In occupying the
State, the Board was fortunate in finding a few or-
ganizations, such as the Florida Association, which
was constituted in 1841, as these furnished a van-
tage-ground for aggressive action. Eventually the
Indians came under the fostering care of the Do-
mestic Board, which still supplies them with mis-
sionaries. A summary of the work accomplished
by the Domestic Board from 1845 until 1861, the
period of the outbreak of civil strife, was, the ap-
pointment of seven hundred and fifty missionaries,
the adding of fifteen thousand members to the
churches, the erection of two hundred meeting-
houses, the constitution of two hundred new
churches, and the collection and disbursement of
three hundred thousand dollars.^

The activity of the Board was, of course, crip-
pled during the Civil War, during which time it di-
rected its attention to the evangelization of the
Southern armies. Here its success was as signal

iDr. A. H. Newman, "Amer. Church Hist., Baptist," Vol.
II., p. 455.

P

226 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

as it had been upon the fields of peace. Among
those whom the Board employed as army evangel-
ists were such distinguished men as I. T. Tichenor,
E. W. Warren, J. B. Hawthorne, R. Holman, W.
C. Buck, A. D. Sears, J. J. D. Renfroe, A. E. Dick-
inson, and J. L. Reynolds.

The Board shared in the general depression
which immediately succeeded the Civil War, and
in its gradual resuscitation had to rely chiefly upon
the border States of Maryland, Kentucky, and
Missouri. New vigor was given it upon its re-
moval to Atlanta. Dr. I. T. Tichenor was induced
to leave the presidency of the Agricultural and Me-
chanical College of Alabama to assume the secre-
taryship of the Board. As an indication of the
fresh vitality infused into the Board there were
thirty-six missionaries employed in 1881-1882, the
year before its removal, ninety-five in 1883, one
hundred and forty-four in 1884, one hundred and
eighty-seven in 1885, two hundred and fifty-five
in 1886, two hundred and eighty-seven in 1888,
three hundred and twenty-four in 1889, and four
hundred and six in 1891. Perhaps in no particular
has the Board rendered more signal service than its
agency in the creation of State mission Boards
throughout the South, for these were the direct out-
growth of the work of the Home Board.' In many
instances, these local organizations have been so ef-

iThe name was changed to that of Home Mission Board in
1873.

WOEK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 227

ficient as to obviate the necessity of further opera-
tion of the Home Board in a number of the States.
A passing alkision has been made to the work of
the Home Board among the Indians of the West,
Fragments of original tribes still linger upon the
western confines of our country to which the Home
Board has been for many years devoted. Astonishing
results have been achieved by the missionaries who
have borne the gospel to the red men. Speaking
of the Indians, Secretary Tichenor says in one of
his reports :

The membership among them in proportion to popu-
lation is now equal to that of our strongest Baptist
States. They have been reclaimed from barbarism.
They support a well-organized government. They have
opened farms, builded houses, established schools, and
are prepared, if they so desired, to enter this great fed-
eration of States as a constituent member. Within the
Indian Territory there are now sixteen Associations and
three hundred and one churches, with a membership of
thirteen thousand eight hundred and forty-four.

What was said of the work of the Board in
Florida may be said equally of Texas. When the
Home Board entered this wild region west of the
Mississippi, there was a thinly scattered and mixed
population in Texas ; to-day the State has a Bap-
tist membership of one hundred and eleven thou-
sand one hundred and thirty-eight.

During the later years of its history the Board
has accomplished remarkable results through its

228 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Cuban Mission. A captain in the insurgent army
during the rebellion of 1868-73 was surrounded by
a body of Spanish troopers upon a tongue of land
that protruded into the waters of the gulf. Prefer-
ring the casualties of the deep to the apprehended
cruelty of the Spanish soldiery, the captain w^ith
his sole companion seized a drifting plank and the
two were borne far out at sea. Through a long
dark night they were the plaything of the billows.
The dawn of day found them still clinging to the
friendly plank. Sick and exhausted the captain's
companion relaxed his hold and rolled into the
waters a dead man. Stretching himself as best he
could across the supporting timber, the captain him-
self sank into unconsciousness and when he awoke
found himself on board a fishing-boat, the crew of
which had picked him up. Being conveyed to New
York in a vessel to which he was transferred from
the smaller boat, he became violently ill of pneu-
monia and was taken to a hospital where his case
w^as pronounced hopeless. The youthful Cuban ap-
pealed strongly to the sympathy of Miss Alice
Tucker, a young Christian woman, who led him to
Christ by means of a Spanish New Testament.
Baptized in the Willoughby Avenue Church, Brook-
lyn, N. Y., Alberto J. Diaz returned to his native
land to preach the newly found truth.

Though rejected at first by kindred and friends,
he continued to preach to the Cubans while he en-
gaged in the practice of medicine, the art which he

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 229

had acquired before leaving New York. In spite
of persecution he laid under tribute every available
agency for the furtherance of the truth on the is-
land. A Baptist mission on the Florida coast at
Key West, established in the interest of refugee
Cubans attracted the attention of Diaz, which re-
sulted in the establishment of a correspondence be-
tween him and Secretary Tichenor. Mutual in-
terest led to the incorporation of Cuba into the
field of the Home Mission Board. This action fur-
nished the occasion of much enthusiasm on the
part of Southern Baptists, which was equaled alone
by the enthusiasm of the Cubans in behalf of their
distinguished young countryman. Taking practi-
cal advantage of the prevailing interest in the Cu-
ban mission throughout the South, Secretary Tich-
enor purchased a large theatre building at Havana,
at a cost of seventy-five thousand dollars, and con-
verted it into a church. In addition to this interest
there have been established by the Board a school
for girls and a hospital for women. The mission in
Cuba was achieving extraordinary results until the
outbreak of the rebellion in 1895. In April, 1896,
Diaz was arrested and no doubt would have been
summarily dealt with but for demonstrations in his
behalf throughout the South and to a large extent
throughout the Union.

Another feature of the Home Mission Board is
that of planting mission stations in such of the
cities of the South as demand them. This is re-

230 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ceiving notable emphasis in New Orleans. Here
it has steadily fostered the work in the midst of
prevailing difficulties and has been instrumental
in maintaining permanent worship at the three
Baptist strongholds of the city — Coliseum Place,
First, and Valence Street Churches. For a num-
ber of years the Board published an organ known
as " The Home Field," which was consolidated
with the "Foreign Mission Journal" in 1895,
under the direction of the Southern Baptist Con-
vention ; but in 1896 the Convention again disso-
ciated the journalistic interests of the two Boards,
and left them to their discretion concerning the
adoption of organs for the future. The result was
that the Foreign Board re-established " The Foreign
Mission Journal," while the Home Board proposed
to adopt the columns of the State denominational
papers as a medium of communication with the
masses of the people. In entering upon its special
work in 1845, the Foreign Mission Board was re-
lieved of much embarrassment by finding a field al-
ready open by reason of the peculiar relations
which certain missionaries in China and Africa sus-
tained to the Baptists of the South. Messrs. J. L.
Shuck and I. J. Roberts, as a matter of choice per-
sonal to themselves, were transferred from the
Northern Board to the Foreign Board of the South-
ern Baptist Convention.

The difficulties encountered by the Foreign Board
in gaining headway in the South have already been

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 231

noticed. Especially in the early stages of its his-
tory, it was largely dependent upon the missionary
enlightenment imparted through the Home Board.
During the first eighteen years of its history, the
Foreign Board sent out twenty-two missionaries,
viz. : Messrs. Clopton, James, Gaillard, Holmes,
Bond, Roberts, Tobey, Whilden, Johnson, Shuck,
Pearcy, Cabaniss, Burton, Yates, Crawford, Schiel-
ding, Hartwell, and Graves, together with Mrs.
Shuck, Mrs. Graves, Mrs. James, Mrs. Whilden,
Mrs. Bond, and Miss Baker. Within the period
named five had died upon the field, Messrs. Clop-
ton, James, Gaillard, Holmes, and Bond. Mrs.
Whilden, Mrs. Shuck, Mrs. James, and Mrs. Bond
had also passed away, and Mr. Roberts had retired
from the service of the Board. Eight had returned
permanently to America, viz., Messrs. Tobey,
Whilden, Johnson, Shuck, Pearcy, Cabaniss, Bur-
ton, and Miss Baker. The China mission would
have been reinforced in 1861 by three others, but
the outbreak of the war interfered with their sail-
ing. During the period named twelve missionaries
were maintained upon the field : Messrs. Yates,
Crawford, Schieling, Hartwell, and Graves, with
their wives, together with Mrs. Gaillard and Mrs.
Holmes. Meanwhile the labors of several native
assistants were being enjoyed.

The first points occupied by the Board were
Canton and Shanghai, to which were subsequently
added the stations of Shin-Hing, Chefu, and Tung

232 HISTOKY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Chow. In addition to preaching the gospel, the
missionaries were engaged in the establishment and
direction of schools, the erection of chapels, and the
distribution of literature. Tours were frequent into
the interior of the empire, where the gospel was
preached to many thousands. During the first
eighteen years of the operations of the Board in
China, more than one hundred converts had been
received, but the faithful labors of the missionaries
were regarded as prospective rather than as imme-
diate in their results.

From 1849 to 1863 there had been appointed
sixteen missionaries to Yoruba, Africa. In 1849
Missionary J. F. Bowen had founded this original
mission in Africa and had o])ened the way for future
operation. Among the earliest of the appointments
of the Board upon the African field was Missionary
Harden, a devoted colored preacher at Lagos, and
Messrs. Goodale and Denmore, together with Mrs.
Denmore, Mrs. Reid, and Mrs. Phillips, who died
upon the mission field in Africa. Of the sixteen
just alluded to, two were prevented from sailing.
This reduced the force of the African Mission to
Messrs. Harden and Stone and their wives, together
with Messrs. Reid and Phillips. Missionary sta-
tions had been established at Lagos, Abbeokuta,
Ijaye, Ogbomishaw, and Awyaw. Up to 1863 the
missionaries upon the African field could number
about fifty converts. Meanwhile an effort was made
to found a mission in Brazil, and J. T. Bowen was

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 233

assigned to that new field, but broken health forced
him to abandon it. Early in the sixties arrange-
ments were made for the establishment of a mission
in Japan, and Messrs. C. H. Toy, Johnson, and
Rhorer were appointed to that new field, but the
Civil War interfered with the sailing of the first
two, and the third perished at sea. The mission
was abandoned until 1889.

The Liberian Mission had been the most fruitful
in its results. It was among the earliest ventures
of the Board, and was conducted almost exclusively
by colored missionaries, though the Board had com-
missioned two white preachers, Messrs. Ball and
Kingdon, as special assistants to the work of the
mission. Mr. Kingdon soon fell a martyr to the
cause, as the African climate was entirely too severe
for his constitution.

Up to 1863 twenty-four stations had been estab-
lished in foreign parts by the Board, and twenty
pastors and twent}'-six teachers had been employed.
Twelve hundred members had been gathered into
all the churches upon the foreign field, and seven
hundred pupils had been brought into the schools.
This indicates the first work accomplished by the
Board, and represents the period up to the closing
of the Southern ports and the consequent suspension
of communication with the outside world. It was
a period of darkness and perplexity to the Board
when, as a result of the great American war, its
missionaries, laboring upon two distant continents,

234 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

could not be communicated Avith, In China the
missionaries were not only perplexed by the sever-
ance of communication with their native land be-
cause of an American War, but were harassed also
by a prevailing Chinese war. With characteristic
courage, Mr. Crawford, one of the devoted mission-
aries, wrote : " War or no war, the mission must go
on. We can live notwithstanding the wars of China
and America." Taking advantage of their positions,
the Baptists of Maryland and of Kentucky trans-
mitted funds, from time to time, to the members of
the Chinese Mission. By means of this help and the
makeshifts which the missionaries in China were en-
abled to adopt, they tided over the period covered by
the years of conflict. The most formidable foe en-
countered by the missionaries of the Southern Board
during this trying period was the Asiatic cholera,
which served greatly to enhance the difficulties aris-
ing from the two wars from which the missionaries
suffered. It was a dismal period for the China Mis-
sion— congregations were scattered, schools broken
up, chapels burned, and one of the most devoted of
the missionaries, J. L. Holmes, was murdered near
Chefu.

With the restoration of peace came the enlarge-
ment of the missionary operations of the Foreign
Board. After mature deliberation, the Board re-
solved upon the establishment of a mission in Italy
in 1870. Dr. W. N. Cote, the son of a converted
Roman Catholic priest, was the pioneer missionary

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 235

to Italy. He succeeded in baptizing twelve con-
verts during the first year of the mission, and near
the close of the year was prepared to organize at
Rome a Baptist church with eighteen members.
Dr. John A. Broadus, who was at that time making
a European tour, and was present at the organiza-
tion of this original church, wrote from Rome in
January, 1871 : " I am thoroughly satisfied that
the Board has acted wisely in establishing this mis-
sion, and I should exclaim vehemently against any
idea of abandoning it." In 1873, Dr. Geo. B. Tay-
lor, of Virginia, was appointed superintendent of
Italian missions. He succeeded in opening a hand-
some chapel in Rome, in 1878, costing twenty-seven
thousand dollars, since which time regular services
have been held in that city. In November, 1880,
Rev. J. H. Eager, of Mississippi, was sent to rein-
force Dr. Taylor. The situation in Italy was por-
trayed thus by Mrs. Eager in 1887 :

Before 1848 there was not one publicly declared Evan-
gelical in the whole of Italy, except in the Waldensian
Valleys. From 1848 to 1859, the gospel was preached
in Piedmont only. Until 1870 not one Eoman dared
proclaim himself Evangelical, and no foreign Protestant
could worship within the Avails of Kome. Now, in 1887,
there are eight thousand seven hundred and eighty-one
church-members, one thousand two hundred and twenty-
two catechumens, four thousand seven hundred and
fifty-eight Sunday-school pupils, eighty-two colporters,
one hundred and ninety-two preachers, two hundred and
fifty-six churches and stations, five orphan asylums, and
nine religious newspapers, either monthly or weekly.

236 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

On leaving America, whither he had come in 1889
to raise money for the erection of chapels in Italy,
Dr. J. H. Eager wrote : " Oh, for the one hundred
thousand dollars spent in the churches of New York
City on Easter Day for flowers ! "

The Brazilian Mission being abandoned in 1860,
in consequence of Missionary Bowen's health, it was
not undertaken again until 1879, when E. H. Quil-
lian was appointed a missionary at Santa Barbara.
In 1881 the Brazilian Mission was reinforced by
the appointment of W. B. Bagby and wife, and the
next year after by Z. C. Taylor and wife, all of
Texas. The mission has been a reasonably prosper-
ous one.

The most fruitful and progressive department of
work under the Foreign Mission Board is that of
the Mexican Mission. The way for the occupation
of that republic by the missionaries of the Southern
Baptist Convention was providentially opened by
the migration of a body of Texans into Mexico.
Establishing a chain of settlements, they organized
churches, and from the beginning received some
accessions from the Mexican population. The
leaders of this movement were the brothers, West-
rup, both of whom had been previously supported
in the State of Coahuila by the Texas Baptist State
Convention. One of these, John O. Westrup, hav-
ing been barbarously murdered by the Mexicans
and Indians, his brother assumed direction of the
entire work. Appealing to the Foreign Board for

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIONS 237

help, he was, in 1882, reinforced by W. M. Flour-
ney and wife. During the same year, W. D.
Powell and wife, of Texas, and Miss Annie J.
Mayberry were appointed to the same work, and
stationed at Saltillo. This was the beginning of a
grand onward march into Mexico. According to a
comprehensive and systematic plan, the region pro-
posed to be evangelized w^as divided into missionary
districts, and the missionaries were stationed at
certain commanding points. In this way, a line of
missions was established from the Rio Grande to the
Pacific Ocean. Between the years 1882-1889, the
following missionaries, together with Senors Car-
denas, Rodriguez, Gomez, and other natives, entered
the field of the Mexican Mission — Misses Tupper
and Barton, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Mr. and Mrs.
McCormick, Miss Cabaniss, Mr. and Mrs. Mosely,
Mr. and Mrs. Watkins, Mr. and Mrs. Chastain,
and Mrs. Duggan. The qualities of leadership
possessed by W. D. Powell made him the acknowl-
edged director of the Mexican Mission. Wise in
conception, resolute of purpose, courageous in execu-
tion, irresistible in energy, and yet gentle in dispo-
sition and consecrated at heart — Powell combines
all the elements of a great missionary leader in a
region like Mexico. From the beginning, his
career in that new field of missions has been dis-
tinguished by the most signal success. He is able
readily to respond to the emergencies which neces-
sarily arise in such a region and amid such a people

238 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

as the Mexicans. In the adohe hnt of the lowly
Mexican, npon the remote ranch, in the crowded
mart, before the frenzied mob, in the presence of the
highest officers of State, or in the most cultured as-
semblage— he is equally the master of the situation.
Fired with a consecrated earnestness, he sways the
Mexican mind with a magical power. Writing of
his work in 1889, he says :

We have carried the Avork from the Texas border to
the Pacific coast. Opposition is waning. I almost uni-
versally meet a warm welcome. The government gives
us full ijrotection. The leading dailies in the city of
Mexico, and throughout the republic, expose Eomanism
and defend our cause. The clergy have lost ground
rapidly during the past two years. All of our churches
and mission stations report progress and prosperity.
Our force of workers is insufficient to occupy the terri-
tory already open to us. We have eighteen American,
and fifteen native, workers. There are eighteen organ-
ized churches and some six hundred members. "Truly
this is the Lord's doing and marvelous in our eyes."
. . . All our central stations liave been established at
fine strategic points.

The youngest of the enterprises of the Foreign
Mission Board is the Japanese Mission. It was
undertaken in 1889 by Missionaries McCollum and
Branson, and their wives. Upon the retirement of
Mr. Brunson, the mission was reinforced by the
appointment of Messrs. Walne and Maynard, and
their wives. Up to this period, the work has been
of a preparatory character, but its progress had been
most encouraging.

WORK UNDER CHANGED CONDITIOXS 239

Amoncr other eiforts made bv the Soathern Bap-
list Convention was the organization, in 1851, of
the Bible Board established for colportage purposes.
Previous to this, eiforts had been made in some of
the States, notably in Alabama and Virginia, to
establish and maintain local Bible Boards, but they
had failed. Nor did this larger and more preten-
tious undertaking succeed. Publication work by a
denomination is invariably attended by more or less
peril. After a struggle of twelve years, the Bible
Board of the Southern Baptist Convention was dis-
continued. The failure was largely due to the fact
that with increased facilities of transportation, the
American Bible Society established its auxiliaries
and its colportage system throughout the South.

The Southern Baptist Publication Society never
had organic connection with the Convention, but
was a private enterprise. It never succeeded. As
the American Baptist Publication Society came t.o
supply the demands for denominational literature
in the South, the other gradually retired and finally
disappeared altogether. In 1863, the Sunday-
school Board of the Southern Baptist Convention
was born. It likewise perished, its span of life
being measured by the period of a single decade.
There was a revival of this suspended interest at the
session of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1891.
This was the result of the agitation of the question
of Sunday-school literature, the Convention decid-
ing to organize its own Board for the publication of

240 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

this matter, but distinctly adopted the conservative
proviso " that the fullest freedom of choice be ac-
corded to every one as to what literature he will use
or support, and that no brother be disparaged in the
slightest degree on account of what he may do in
the exercise of his right as Christ's freeman." Dr.
J. M. Frost, the author of the resolutions reviving
the Board, became its first secretary, but retired
after the lapse of a year, when Dr. T. P. Bell, then
assistant secretary of the Foreign Mission Board,
was elected secretary and treasurer of the Sunday-
school Board. Retiring in the latter part of 1895,
to take charge of the " Christian Index," at Atlanta,
Georgia, Dr. Bell was succeeded by Dr. Frost, who
was called again to the charge of the affairs of the
Board. The headquarters of the Board are in
Nashville, Tennessee. Under its auspices are issued
" The Teacher," the quarterlies of different grades,
leaflets and cards, together with " The Young
People's Leader." The receipts of the Sunday-
school Board for the year ending May, 1896, were
sixty-two thousand eight hundred and forty-one dol-
lars and twelve cents. The contributions to benevo-
lence were made as follows : To the Foreign Board,
two thousand one hundred and seventy-five dollars
and ninety-three cents ; to the Home Board, two
thousand one hundred and thirty-nine dollars and
twenty-one cents ; to Sunday-school Mission work,
three thousand eight hundred and eighty-seven dol-
lars and fifty cents.

CHAPTER X

THE SOUTHEEN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

A S has already been shown, one of the matters of
-^^ chief concern with the denomination builders
of the South was that of preparing the way for a
more enlightened and better qualified ministry.
This subject engaged the attention of the most pro-
gressive of the Baptist ministry of the States of the
South as early as the middle of the eighteenth cen-
tury. With the opening years of the present cen-
tury, the importance of a more intelligent ministry
was emphasized by two imperative considerations —
the growing intelligence of the masses, and the
steady intellectual advancement of the ministry of
other denominations. At this early period plans
were devised for meeting existing demands, but they
were necessarily crude, as has been shown in a pre-
vious chapter. From this desire to possess a more
able ministry has grown all our denominational col-
leges for young men. Indeed this idea was the
germ of most of our denominational advancement,
for it was not dissociated from that of missions in
the minds of the founders of our general denomina-
tional organizations in all the States. While the
denomination was getting in readiness for this on-

Q 241

242 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ward movement, another event occurred in a distant
quarter of the globe which contributed most mate-
rially to the enhancement of its importance. Ado-
niram Judson and Luther Rice decided in India that
it would be necessary for one to return to America
and organize means for the support of the other
who might remain upon the foreign field. The
return of Rice, in whose mind lay the associated
ideas of intellectual advancement and denomina-
tional expansion, was most opportune for the pro-
motion of a cherished purpose which had long en-
raged the attention of the most advanced elements
of the denomination. Every Baptist college in the
South took root in these early plans and endeavors.
Founded originally upon the idea of a better pre-
pared ministry, the earliest Baptist schools were
soon forced to respond to a general demonstration to
provide means for the education of those looking to
other vocations than that of the ministry. This led
to the next stage of development, that of providing
a theological department in connection with a purely
literary course. Provision was made for a single
chair in connection with such a theological course as
was p-iven under such circumstances. This served the
purpose, after a fashion, for a period of years ; but
it eventually became unsatisfactory. Baptist can-
didates for the ministry in search of the most com-
prehensive scholarship attainable, began to go North
in order to avail themselves of the advanced instruc-
tion afforded at Newton, Hamilton, and Princeton.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 243

Among such as sought these better facilities may be
named J. P. Boyce, J. W. M. Williams, S. C. Clop-
ton, H. A. Tupper, Sr., E. T. Winkler, and Basil
Manly, Jr. The impression produced upon their
minds of the incomparable advantages enjoyed in a
theological seminary above those of a theological
annex to a literary institution, made them earnest
advocates of a seminary for the South. They found
ready co-operators in such, men as J. B. Jeter, W.
B. Johnson, and R. B. C. Howell.

The attention which had been devoted to the
general subject for so long a time, and the attempts
which had been made to meet the prevailing defi-
ciency in the denomination, had created a profound
conviction of the necessity of a separate institution
for the training of the Baptist ministry of the South.
Consequently one of the earliest questions con-
sidered, after the organization of the Southern Bap-
tist Convention, was that of the possibility of found-
ing a Southern seminary. At Augusta, Ga., in
1845, a conference of delegates from several States
was held in the interest of the proposed, institution.
The question came up for consideration two years
later, in 1847, at the meeting of the Indian Mission
Association at Nashville, Tenn. Two years later
still. Dr. W. B. Johnson sought to secure a meet-
ing of the delegates to the Southern Baptist Con-
vention from South Carolina, at Aiken, prior to
the meeting of the general body in order to gain
co-operation in urging the claims of the Furman

244 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Theological Institution as a nucleus of such semi-
nary ; but the eifort failed. Similar attempts were
afterward made by other institutions, among which
was Mercer University, Georgia, but without suc-
cess. The question gradually became one of gen-
eral comment, and eventually led to a discussion in
the denominational papers between Drs. R. B. C.
Howell and Robert Ryland. The chief objection
urged by Dr. Ryland against the founding of such
an institution was that it would require an endow-
ment of one hundred thousand dollars, and that
could not be raised.

When the Southern Baptist Convention met at
Charleston, in 1849, Dr. W. B. Johnson, the pre-
siding offcer of the body, presented before an edu-
cational meeting, in a learned and elaborate address,
the claims of a theological seminary. He was sup-
ported by Basil Manly, Jr. Still no practical action
was taken.

In 1854 the General Association of Virginia
proposed that at the meeting of the Southern Bap-
tist Convention for that year, at Montgomery, Ala.,
" the friends of theological education " consider
the claims of a seminary. This is understood to
have emanated from Dr. J. B. Jeter, who was an
earnest advocate of a theological seminary many
years before the consummation of the enterprise.
At Montgomery, resolutions were offered by Dr. A.
M. Poindexter and unanimously adopted to the eifect
" that in the opinion of this meeting it is demanded

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 245

by the interests of the cause of truth that the Bap-
tists of the South and Southwest unite in establishing
a theological institution of high grade." To this
was given the practical sanction of a meeting solely
in the interest of the proposed seminary, to be held
the following April in Augusta, Ga. There came
to this last-named meeting representatives from nine
States and the District of Columbia. A large and
able committee, of which Dr. Basil Manly, Sr.,
was the chairman, reported "that from various
causes they found the subject embarrassed by diffi-
culties at every point, which it is useless here to
discuss, as it is impossible to decide whether they
are insuperable." But this declaration did not
afford satisfaction to many who were intent upon
the establishment of a seminary for theological in-
struction.

Another meeting still was appointed to be held
a year later, and in order to afford ample time for
the consideration of the matter, it w^as agreed to
meet two days in advance of the Convention. To
prepare the way for practical action, a committee,
consisting of B. Manly, Sr., A. M. Poindexter, and
J. B. Jeter, was directed to report to the said meet-
ing at Louisville :

1. What funds exist subject to the control of the Bap-
tists for theological instruction in each of the institutions
of the South and Southwest ; whether the trustees or
other parties holding legal control over these funds
can and will contribute them in any form — and if any,

246 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

what — to the uses of a common theological institution
to be located at any other point within or without the
limits of their own States severally, should the aforesaid
Convention, to assemble at Louisville in 1857, adjudge
such different location best for the common good ;
whether these funds, in case they are limited to a spot,
can and will be placed within the control of such a Board
of trustees as may be appointed by competent authority
agreed upon for a common theological institution.

Besides this the committee was authorized and
requested,

2. To use adequate means for ascertaining what efforts
will be made in favor of any location, already occupied
or not, by the inhabitants and friends thereof, and what
pecuniary subscriptions or pledges will be given as a
nucleus in case such location should be selected for the
common institution ; the object of all these inquiries
being to ascertain, in the fullest manner possible,
whether such a demand is felt for a common institution
as may be a basis and encouragement for future united
action.

The plan thus proposed was the product of the
brain of James P. Boyce. Up to this time, the
hope had been indulged that the departments for
theological instruction connected with the Baptist
institutions throughout the South might be com-
bined into such an institution as was now contem-
plated. But this idea was now given up altogether.

When in July, 1856, the Baptist State Convention
of South Carolina met at Greenville, Prof. James P.
Boyce, of the theological department of Furman

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 247

University, induced the Convention to propose to
the contemplated Educational Convention to be held
at Louisville, Kentucky, to establish at Greenville,
South Carolina, a common theological mstitution,
proposing to turn over the funds, to the amount of
about thirty thousand dollars, then held by the
Board of Trustees for theological instruction, to the
proposed institution. To this amount it was pro-
posed to add such a sum as would make the total
one hundred thousand dollars, to be raised in South
Carolina, provided an additional one hundred thou-
sand dollars could be procured from the other States

of the South.

The matter was now beginning to assume practi-
cal shape, the whole question, however, turning upon
the possibility of collecting seventy thousand dollars
within nine months in South Carolina.

In May, 1857, the Educational Convention which
was to precede the meeting of the Southern Baptist
Convention, at Louisville, Kentucky, was held.
There were present eighty-eight delegates from the
States of Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Geor-
gia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas,
Tennessee, and Kentucky. The proposal which
came from the South Carolina Convention furnished
the occasion for much enthusiasm, especially since
Professor Boyce and others assured the delegates
that the proposal as made by the South Carolma
Baptists would be fully complied with. The inter-
est deepened as the hope of founding a seminary

248 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

grew brighter. At this juncture the executive skill
of James P. Boyce for the first time became con-
spicuous. He formed a plan for the establishment
of the seminary at Greenville, South Carolina, the
following year, provided the sum of one hundred
thousand dollars be raised in that State by May
1, 1858, ready to be placed in the hands of the
Board of Trustees. The interest accruing from
this sum, seven thousand dollars, was to be used for
the support of three professors, for the purchase of
books (not exceeding five hundred dollars annually),
and for paying a proper agency in other States to
raise the additional one hundred thousand dollars ;
provided also, that recitation and lecture rooms
could be secured in Greenville, for a number of
years, free of rent. It was finally arranged that
if the additional one hundred thousand dollars
should not be raised within the period of three
years, then the amount furnished by South Carolina
should revert to Furman University, to be devoted
to theological purposes, and the contributions col-
lected elsewhere, to their respective donors. The
wisdom of such a plan is at once apparent. Here
were checks and balances, bold inspiration and dis-
creet protection at every point. A special educa-
tional meeting was provided for at Greenville, South
Carolina, for May, 1858, to consummate the plans
already indicated, provided the South Carolina Con-
vention should accept the conditions. Committees
were appointed, meanwhile, to prepare a plan of

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 249

organization, to nominate a faculty, secure a charter
from the legislature of South Carolina, provide for
the canvass of the States of the South, and to issue
an address to Southern Baptists. It is a noteworthy
fact that the members of the committee on plan of
organization, named by the venerable president of
the meeting, Dr. Basil Manly, Sr., were afterward
elected to fill chairs in the seminary, viz., James P.
Boyce, John A. Broadus, Basil Manly, Jr., E. T.
Winkler, and William Williams.

It fell to the lot of Dr. Jeter to prepare the ad-
dress to the Baptists of the South. With his
usual vigor of style, he showed that an institution
like a theological seminary was needed, and that
Southern Baptists had been seeking to found such
for a number of years. He further showed the pro-
priety of establishing the seminary at Greenville,
South Carolina, because of its accessibility, health-
fulness, and cheapness of living. In presenting the
plan of organization, he insisted that the seminary,

being free from the shackles imposed by the old systems
and established precedents, and having all the lights and
experience and observation to guide us, we propose to
found an institution suited to the genius, wants, and
circumstances of our denomination, in which shall be
taught, with special attention, the true principles of ex-
pounding the Scriptures, and the art of preaching eflfi-
ciently the gospel of Christ.

Assurance was given that prevailing systems in the
denominational colleges would not be interfered

250 HISTOEY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHEEN STATES

with, but would be encouraged by the proposed
seminary.

The South Carolina Baptist State Convention met
in July following the Louisville meeting, which gave
birth to the seminary. The proposal made to the
South Carolina Baptists to raise seventy thousand
dollars was accepted, and James P. Boyce was ap-
pointed agent to raise the amount. Accompanied
by a driver, he traveled South Carolina over in a
two-horse buggy to raise the quota of that State.
Though the task was a laborious one, it was cheer-
fully undertaken. In August, Messrs. Boyce,
Broadus, and Manly met at the home of the last-
named, in Richmond, to arrange an abstract of doc-
trinal principles to be signed by each professor, to
devise the legal and practical arrangements in regard
to trustees and professors, and to prepare an outline
of a plan of instruction for the seminary.

The year went past and the last of the educa-
tional conventions held in the interest of the estab-
lishment of a seminary, met at Greenville, South
Carolina, on May 1, 1858. Five days were spent
in the discussion of plans proposed for the seminary,
and the result was unanimity of sentiment and of
action throughout. So harmonious was the body,
after carefully reviewing each point, that every fea-
ture was adopted by a unanimous vote. Instead of
the original plan of three professors. Dr. Boyce now
advised the appointment of four. In every detail
of outline and execution the hand of James P.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 251

Boyce was actively guiding. He had raised almost
the entire amount of seventy thousand dollars.
Through his agency, the church building occupied
by the Baptists at Greenville, previous to their
entrance into their handsome edifice in another por-
tion of the town, was procured for the use of the
seminary. This building rendered valuable service
for years, affording space for lecture rooms and a
library. The wisdom of Dr. Boyce was conspicuous
in that he pronounced against the idea of the con-
sumption of funds in the erection of buildings until
an ample endowment for instruction had been se-
cured. Though the temptation was frequent to
swerve from this purpose, Dr. Boyce held firmly to
it, and the wisdom of such a course has been abun-
dantly vindicated by the events of thirty-five years.
In giving sanction to this pronounced expression of
Dr. Boyce, Dr. Thomas Curtis, then the principal of
Limeston (S. C.) Female Institute, said, with sonor-
ous English tones and rolling r's :

The requisites for an institution of learning are three
b's — bricks, books, brains. Our brethren usually begin
at the wrong end of the three b's ; they spend all their
money for bricks, have nothing to buy books, and must
take such brains as they can pick up, but our brethren
ought to begin at the other end of the three b's.

This expression was caught up and was soon spread
all over the country.^

1 Dr. J. A. Broadus, " Memoirs of James P. Boyce," p. 153.

252 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS liS' SOUTHERN STATES

According to the modified plan, four professors
were elected — J. P. Boyce, J. A. Broadus, B.
Manly, Jr., and E. T. Winkler. Two of these,
Broadus and Winkler, declined. This together with
other causes led to the delay of opening the semi-
nary another year. In May, 1859, the Board of
Trustees of the seminary met at Richmond, in con-
nection with the Southern Baptist Convention.
Drs. Broadus and Winkler were again elected to
chairs in the seminary, and again Dr. Winkler de-
clined, whereupon Dr. William Williams Avas
chosen, and in the fall of 1859 the first session was
opened. The leaders in the movement to establish
a seminary, besides those mentioned were, J. L.
Burrows, J. B. Taylor, G. W. Samson, R. Furman,
J. W. M. Williams, J. O. B. Dargan, J. H. De
Votie, D. P. Bestor, J. M. Pendleton, S. L. Helm,
J. L. Dagg, and Samuel Henderson. These men
represented the influential elements of the denomi-
nation throughout the South. From the outset the
system of instruction in the seminary was made
elective, and sufficiently flexible to be easily ad-
justed to the ability of any student who might
desire to take the course. The first session opened
prosperously with twenty-six matriculates. Of
these, ten came from Virginia, nine from South
Carolina, three from North Carolina, two from
Alabama, one from Florida, and one from Missouri.
" This was a far larger beginning than any theolog-
ical seminar}^ in America of whatever denomination

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 253

had enjoyed for its first two years." ^ By a combi-
nation of the influence of the powerful factors
already named, the additional hundred thousand
dollars was secured from the other States of the
South. This, together with the success which
crowned the initial session of the seminary, secured
its permanency. Before the close of the second
session, the Civil War began, and from 1862 to
1865 the work of the seminary was necessarily sus-
pended. The professors were requested to retain
their connection with the institution until the close
of hostilities, to prevent the dissolution of the
seminary. Meanwhile, their salaries were continued,
and were paid in Confederate money, the privilege,
however, being granted them to engage in such
other pursuits as they deemed advisable, while they
should hold official, though nominal, connection
Avith the institution. In consequence of this priv-
ilege, the faculty was dispersed in different direc-
tions. Dr. Boyce becoming chaplain of a Confederate
regiment, and later, a member of the South Carolina
legislature. Drs. Manly and Williams found partial
employment as country pastors in the regions adja-
cent to Greenville, while Dr. Broadus divided his
time between country pastorates, missionary work in
General Lee's army, and the corresponding secre-
taryship of the Sunday-school Board, which was at
that time located at Greenville.

^Dr. John A. Broadus, in " First Thirty Years of the Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary," p. 11.

254 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

During the summer following the capitulation of
the Confederate armies, the members of the semi-
nary faculty met at Greenville to consider the ad-
visability of attempting to resume work in the fall
of 1865. The endowment had been almost totally
destroyed in consequence of the war, five thousand
dollars alone remaining, and that was invested in
Georgia Railroad bonds which could be sold for
nearly par. In order to open the seminary in the
fall. Dr. Boyce generously contributed one thousand
dollars to the available resources of the seminary,
although his own private affairs were critically de-
ranged by the war, and the business outlook of the
country was quite gloomy. Fortunately no incubus
of debt was upon the seminary — a calamity which
had been averted by the sagacity of Dr. Boyce.

With 1865 began, on the part of the seminary, a
protracted struggle for life. Only seven students
were enrolled during the first session after the close
of the war. But the noble men of the faculty stood
at their posts. One of them said, " The seminary
may die, but suppose it be understood that we'll die
first." Fully aware of the arduous and self-sacri-
ficing labors which awaited them, the members of
the faculty cheerfully resumed the direction of the
affairs of the seminary. There was no abatement
of interest nor the slightest indifference to instruc-
tion because of the slim attendance. Professors
met their classes as promptly as they would have
done had the lecture rooms been crowded. Dr.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 255

Broadus gave a pretty full course of instruction in
homiletics to one student during the first session
after the war, and that one was blind. The num-
ber of students slowly increased, year by year, but
the depressed condition of the country suggested
only failure continually. Money was exceedingly
scarce, and the spirit of progress seemed to have
departed from the South. In the midst of these
conditions, these brave and gifted men in the tem-
porary quarters at Greenville were barely able some-
times to keep the wolf from the door. At one time,
the payment of the salaries fell an entire year
behind, and the worst of it was there was no assur-
ance that they would ever be paid. Some of the
professors would ride on horseback considerable dis-
tances across the country to serve rural churches,
and not infrequently return laden with food for their
families. The lesson of rigid economy learned dur-
ing the years of the war was never more valuable
than at this time. Nor were the few students who
strayed through the halls, and occupied the seats of
the lecture rooms, any more fortunate, for they were
frequently reduced to very great straits. In this
extremity, friends were not wanting. Occasionally
the trying tension was relieved by the contribution
of some generous soul. To the frequent appeals
made by Dr. Boyce, favorable responses would now
and then come, but oftener they would not. How-
ever, there were never lacking some who gave of
their hard earnings to the seminary.

256 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

About 1870 a few generous Baptists at the North
began to afford some aid. This was at first given
to defray the personal expenses of some of the
students, but afterward was contributed to the cur-
rent expenses of the institution. As soon as the
condition of the country would justify it, Dr. Boyce
began the organization, at the meetings of the
Southern Baptist Convention, of a general subscrip-
tion for the payment of a given amount each year,
for five years, to meet current expenses. This
course was pursued at two sessions of the conven-
tion, and served the purpose admirably of assisting
to tide the seminary over difficult straits. But it
was evident that this could not long continue. One
of two things soon became necessary — to give up
the seminary altogether, with no probability of re-
viving it for a whole generation, or to endow it.
If endowed, the seminary must be removed. The
idea of endowment suggested that foundation work
was as necessary as when the seminary was first
instituted. It was clear that in order to endow-
ment, the seminary would have to be removed to
some State that woukl be willing to contribute at
least one-half of the endowment fund. In the
deplorable condition in which South Carolina then
was, it would be impossible to realize the amount
necessary for the proposed object. At that time
Furman University was struggling to get upon its
feet, and it stood in urgent need of every dollar
which the denomination in South Carolina could

SOUTHEEN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 257

command. While the question of removal was be-
ing discussed, offers were made by several cities in
different States to secure for themselves the location
of the seminary. It was finally decided to remove
it to Louisville, Ky. South Carolina was being
abandoned only in response to a call of stern ne-
cessity. All the members of the faculty were about
to sunder their connection with their former sur-
roundings, not without great grief. This was espe-
cially true of Dr. Boyce, who w^as devoted to his
native State, and the more so now because of her
prostrate condition. Dr. Boyce preceded the re-
moval of the seminary to Louisville, where he had
been engaged for several years in working up the
endowment.

In 1887 the seminary opened its doors in its new
home in the West. There was an increase in the
attendance from the beginning. This has steadily
continued from year to year. By degrees most of
the great body of Kentucky Baptists came to appre-
ciate the location of the seminary among them, and
personal pledges were given to the amount of three
hundred thousand dollars, of the half-million sup-
posed to be necessary to maintain the institution.

Many of the pledges made by the denomination
in Kentucky and elsewhere failing to be collected,
and the expenses having been materially increased
by reason of removal to a large city, a deficiency of
funds ensued. Really it seemed, for several years
after reaching Louisville, that the seminary might

258 HISTOEY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

after all collapse. Just at this juncture, Gov. Joseph
E. Brown, of Georgia, contributed to it fifty thousand
dollars. This was the occasion of much enthusiasm
among the friends of the institution. Mr. George
W. Norton, one of the leading business men of
Louisville, was the next to act, and in such a way as
to secure gifts, which when added to those already
in hand would yield the increase necessary to sustain
the school. Mr. Norton and his brother, W. F.
Norton, had already been generous contributors to
the seminary, but his plan now was to give in such
a way as to secure two hundred thousand dollars of
invested funds. In order to command the confi-
dence of the business public, and at the same time
to secure any gifts to the seminary against any con-
tingency, Mr. Norton proposed that such changes
be made in the charter as to require that the princi-
pal of all contributions for endowment made subse-
quently to February 1, 1880, be held forever sacred
and inviolate, only the income to be expended, and
if any portion of the principal be used for expenses,
then the whole should revert to the original donors.
In order to give the greatest possible practical force
to this measure, it was further proposed that a finan-
cial Board of the seminary, composed of five busi-
ness men in Louisville, should be elected every year
to invest the principal, hold the securities, and pay
over the income to the treasurer of the seminary.
The purpose was to protect the principal against all
invasions, however urgent the need or grave the

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY '259

crisis. The legislature of Kentucky granted the
amendment to the charter. Having accomplished
thus much, the Norton brothers now proposed to
give each a generous sum toward securing the two
hundred thousand dollars.

From this time the seminary took on new life.
Without delay a vigorous canvass was begun. Dr.
Broadus went North and procured about forty thou-
sand dollars ; and within two years the two hundred
thousand dollars was collected and invested and the
seminary was saved. Up to this time the school
had been quartered in rented buildings in Louisville,
for the same policy was here adopted that had saved
the seminary from wreck at Greenville, which was
that building should not be undertaken until a per-
manent endowment was secured. For a period the
students were quartered in a hotel of moderate
dimensions, and lectures were delivered on the third
and fourth floors of the Library Hall, which space
had been rented for these purposes. The hotel and
the two floors of the Library Hall were rented for
the seminary for a term of years.

A substantial endowment being secured, Dr.
Boyce, in 1884, began to devise plans for building.
The Board of Trustees had appointed a committee
of fifteen, including the faculty and a number of
business men in Louisville, to select a location. A
division of opinion existed respecting the location of
the seminary — some contending for a suburban loca-
tion where the property would gradually enhance in

260 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

value ; others, for a central location which would
give the seminary an independent and respectable
position from the beginning, and bring it frequently
under the observation of its friends and supporters.
Besides, it would give to the students the advantage
of all that was best in the social life of the city, and
place them within easy reach of the churches, Sun-
day-schools, and lecture halls of Louisville. A
central location would enable the students to reach
more readily the surrounding regions, where they
might desire to preach on Sunday, as it would
equally serve to enable them to resume more
promptly their work on Monday. The question
was the occasion of no little concern until President
Boyce found property in the city which could be
purchased at reasonable rates. This he quietly
gained the consent of the committee to purchase.
A judicious investment was made; the difficulty was
at once solved; the seminary was located. So em-
phatically did the location commend itself to the
business public that a number of gentlemen volun-
tarily contributed to the payment for the property.

The choice of location for the seminary was only
the beginning of a new struggle on the part of Pres-
ident Boyce, wdio had now to raise fifty thousand
dollars to pay for the purchased lots. Where should
he look for the amount? Louisville, it would seem,
had been drained of its generosity toward the sem-
inary; the churches had grown weary of appeals,
and the current expenses had still to be met. Mat-

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 261

ters were again brought to a standstill. The heart
even of the great Boyce was sorely tried under such
pressure. He needed twenty thousand dollars with
which to make a payment for the property, and no
means were in sight. Appealing to Mr. W. F.
Norton to start the subscription with twenty-five
hundred dollars Dr. Boyce wrote :

Getting this sum is really going to be fearful work ;
yet it is necessary to get it, if possible. If I can do this
then the hope of buildings in the future may be reason-
ably entertained. Without it, I do not believe I shall
ever see the day when these buildings can be completed.
I do wish before I die to see the seminary fully equipped
and at work. For this I have spent my whole life thus
far, and am willing to spend the remainder, if I can at-
tain the end. But my heart often sinks within me at
the difficulties to be overcome. My ftiith in the enter-
prise fails. I begin to think I must leave it incomplete
for some other man to finish. Oh, that I could get my
brethren to see its possibilities for good, with an ample
endowment ! I know it could do ten times its present
work.

He was overwhelmed with the burden at this junc-
ture because the time had arrived for making titles
to the lots, and the payments due were indispensable.
From here and there the money came, sometimes
from unconjectured sources. A visit from Dr. Ed-
ward Judson to Louisville about this time resulted
in arousing his interest in behalf of the seminary.
Returning to New York, he became the indirect
means of awakening the interest of Mr. John D.

262 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Rockefeller, which found substantial expression
somewhat later. Mr. J. A. Bostwick's sympathy
was also quickened in consequence of a visit to
Louisville. This was followed by a visit of Dr.
Broadus to New York, where generous gifts — largely
conditioned upon local liberality in Louisville^ — were
obtained. Notwithstanding his broken health, Dr.
Boyce made gigantic efforts to meet the conditions
named. Unchecked in his zeal even by harsh
weather, which he had to encounter with shattered
health, he toiled as never before. Slight dribbles
gathered here and there gave but little hope of sub-
sequent relief. Finally the amount was raised and
sixty thousand dollars was realized in New York.
Senator Brown, of Georgia, again came to the res-
cue, sending his check for five thousand dollars
more for the contemplated building, and New York
Hall was an assured success.

In 1885 two bequests w^ere made to the seminary
which greatly increased its resources. Mr. D. A.
Chenault, of Madison County, Kentucky, bequeathed
to it fifteen thousand dollars, the interest of Avliich
was to be used in aid of needy students in attend-
ance. W. F. Norton, of Louisville, contributed ten
thousand dollars for the same purpose. On Decem-
ber 28, 1888, Dr. Boyce died at Pan, France, whither
he had gone with the hope of procuring relief from
the gout, from which he was a great sufferer. His
loss was greatly lamented throughout the States of
the South. His had been a career of remarkable

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 263

activity, usefulness, and honor. Endowed with the
highest qualities of intellect ; with courage and a
lofty spirit, a mastery of details which was phe-
nomenal, a quick apprehension and an unerring
judgment, indomitable firmness which never quailed
before the most menacing exigency, promptness,
punctuality, and perseverance which never failed ;
an energy rarely equaled, a capacity for labor which
was herculean, and a poise of character which made
him a prince among his fellows — James P. Boyce
was pre-eminent among the Baptist leaders of the
South.

Those elements in which he may not have been
the peer of others, were compensated for manifoldly
by the possession of other great qualities of which
the owners of special gifts alone never dreamed.
His qualities of mind and character were not only
many, they were great. Jurist, financier, philoso-
pher, theologian — he was all these to a pre-eminent
degree. He was petty in nothing; he was great
in all.

Dr. John A. Broadus succeeded Dr. Boyce as
president of the seminary. Under his administra-
tion the work went successfully on. Side by side
he had labored with Dr. Boyce from the inception
of the great denominational enterprise. His last
years were cheered by the decided progress which
marked the career of the seminary. He had seen it
grow from struggling infancy to the proportions of
a giant; for in 1894 there were in attendance two

264 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

hundred and seventy students taught by eleven in-
structors.

At that time the vahie of the grounds and build-
ings was estimated at two hundred and fifty thou-
sand dollars, the endowment had grown to four
hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars, and the
library was valued at fifty thousand dollars, there
being twenty thousand volumes upon the shelves —
the total valuation being seven hundred and seventy-
five thousand dollars.

On March 16, 1895, Dr. Broadus died. His suc-
cessor to the presidential chair of the seminary. Dr.
Whitsitt, in the historical address delivered at
Washington, D. C, in May, 1895, on the occasion
of the fiftieth anniversary of the Southern Baptist
Convention, said of Dr. Broadus :

This year of our jubilee, with all its light and gladness,
has been sadly darkened by his departure. On the sev-
enteenth of March devout men carried him to his burial,
and made great lamentation over him. The foremost
leader of our history, great in the might of his greatness,
has passed away from us, but his fame and usefulness
shall go and grow throughout the years and ages. When
you, who sit here, shall be aged and feeble men and
women, little children will gather about your knees with
reverence and delight to look upon one who has seen
and heard and spoken with John A. Broadus.

In May, 1875, Prof. W. H. Whitsitt, d. d., ll. d.,
was elected by the Board of Trustees the president
of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The

SOUTHERN BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 265

success of the first session of his administration was
phenomenal, the attendance being three hundred
and eighteen, representing twenty-eight States, the
District of Columbia, and the Indian Territory, to-
gether with one student each from China, England,
Nova Scotia, and Persia, and four from Canada.

CHAPTER XI

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK

INFORMATION respecting the earliest Baptist
Sunday-schools in the South is scant. That
they existed in the earliest years of the present cen-
tury is easily ascertained, but to locate them in
every instance is not so easy. That so valuable an
auxiliary should have been suggested to a people so
alert respecting local evangelization as the Baptists
of the South have ever been, is altogether natural.

In the opening years of the century great rivalry
existed between the Baptists and Methodists of the
South. Their local missionaries and pastors vied
with each other in seeking to be the first upon the
ground in every new settlement, and they were
watchful of each other respecting any means which
might be employed for denominational advance-
ment. Any legitimate means which were laid under
tribute by one, were equally employed by the other
if the cause was thereby promoted. It is a matter
of record that a Sunday-school was organized in
1786, at the suggestion of Bishop Asbury in Han-
over County, Virginia. This is the first school of
that character of which we have an account in the
South. Again, in 1790 a resolution favoring Sun-
266

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 267

day-schools was adopted by the Methodist Confer-
ence, in Charleston, South Carolina. Baptists have
not been so careful to preserve their records as have
other people, only as these records are embodied in
the local proceedings of churches, and are therefore
inaccessible to the general chronicler ; hence we are
left for data to the occasional glimpses that are
afforded through indirect means rather than through
documentary evidence. The first third of the present
century was a period preparatory to the Sunday-
school interest which began to assume commanding
proportions about 1840. The development of the
interest was greatly hindered during the latter half of
the time named, by the perpetual struggle between
the progressive and the unprogressive elements of
the denomination. And yet it must not be inferred
that the young were left uninstructed in sacred
things during this long period. While there were
but few schools that approximated in efficiency the
Sunday-school of to-day, there were organizations in
which sacred instruction was given. In the cen-
ters of population, like Savannah and Charleston,
where presided such denominational representatives
as Holcombe and Furman, the young were regularly
trained in catechetical instruction. During his
Charleston pastorate. Dr. Richard Furman would,
every quarter, assemble the young people of his
charge for the purpose of having them recite from
Reach's Baptist Catechism. Standing over the
closed baptistery (which was then called the font)

268 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the honored pastor, in clerical robes and bands,
having the boys ranged face to face with the girls,
would alternately ply them with questions.^

This exercise was statedly and solemnly conducted
in the presence of the assembled audience, and the
recitation served to excite much interest, especially
on the part of those most concerned in the reciters.
The prominence thus given to the teaching of the
youth of the church preserved a wide-awake interest
in sacred instruction among the Baptist homes of
Charleston. The lessons thus taught were never
forgotten. It was a period of thorough indoctrina-
tion. Under such conditions men and women grew
up robust Baptists. Though superior in many re-
spects, the Sunday-school literature of to-day is
not equal to that of the earlier periods with respect
to denominational culture. At that time but little
disposition was shown to simplify either the terms
or thought of the catechism in accommodation to the
capabilities of the youth. The cardinal doctrines
were presented alike to the mind of the child and
that of the matured theologian. It was not so much
a matter of comprehension — that could be left to
maturer years — it was a cramming process. Ques-
tions relative to the fundamental doctrines would be
as glibly answered by boys and girls in the old First
Church of Charleston, as by the thoughtful preacher
in his study.

1 Dr. 0. F. Gregory, "History of First Baptist Church, Charles-
ton, S. C," subject, Sunday-schools.

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 269

While these examinations in Keach were taking
place quarterly, the Presbyterians, Methodists, and
Baptists would unite in a weekly union Sunday-
school. By degrees, however, each denomination
withdrew and established its own school.

The first regularly organized Baptist Sunday-
school in the South was in the Second Church of
Baltimore. This organization took place in 1804,
at the suggestion of Elder Healy, the pastor, who
had emigrated from England in 1795, and was
doubtless largely influenced by the Sunday-school
activity then prevailing in Great Britain.

The next Baptist Sunday-school of which we
have any record was that of the First Church of
Charleston. It seems that prior to 1816, several
denominations were united in Sunday-school in-
struction, as has already been shown. It was in
1816 that a distinctively Baptist Sunday-school was
organized at Charleston. In 1819 still another was
organized by Dr. Adiel Sherwood at Trail Creek
Church, near Athens, Georgia. Dr. Sherwood had
just removed from New England, where he no doubt
had enjoyed the advantages which he was now seek-
ing to impart to others.

After 1820 Sunday-schools became more numer-
ous in different portions of the South, especially in
the upper tier of the Southern States. Oftentimes
they would continue until the winter months, when
they would suspend until the reopening of spring.
Again, they would be operated successfully for a

270 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

period of months and then gradually become extinct.
In the populous centers schools generally began as
union organizations. The literature was such as
could be gotten from any source, and usually em-
braced a few old catechisms.

The expansion of the denominations, however,
compelled separate organizations to be made for the
different Sunday-schools. Beginning first in the
cities, schools gradually came to prevail in the town
and village churches, and finally in the country. A
Sunday-school in a rural church was rarely heard of
before 1825. This marks the date of the beginning
of the opposition to Sunday-schools on the part of
the anti-missionary Baptists of the South, which
opposition waxed in bitterness until 1838.

In some instances, ministers were silenced for ad-
vocating such institutions, and in others, members
were excluded from the churches for suffering their
J^ ' children to attend them. The temper of the oppo-

^9* ^'^i. .-. nents of Sunday-schools at that time may be judged
i/ jL'*'^ from an extract from the Minutes of an anti-

'*'**. missionary church in Alabama, the record bearing

A I date, 1825 :

Breastwork Church petitioned in her letter that this
Association (the Ahxbama) take into consideration the
propriety or impropriety, and make consideration
thereon, of a declaration made by that church declining
an uncommunion fellowship with the Baptist State Con-
ventions, theological schools, Sunday-schools, Bible so-
cieties, tract societies, and all churches that hold mem-
bers of such societies in fellowship with them.

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 271

The organization of the American Sunday-school
Union in 1824 gave an impulse to the Sunday-
schools in the older States of the South. Agents
were appointed to canvass the most populous sec-
tions, not only to organize schools, but to solicit
funds for the furtherance of the objects fostered by
the Union, as well as to nourish the schools organ-
ized under its auspices. In the rural districts of
the South, these agents were not, at first, cordially
received. Sunday-schools were regarded as an in-
novation, and they were adopted slowly and cau-
tiously. The managers of the Sunday-school Union
displayed great wisdom by appointing some of the
denominational leaders in each of the older States
of the South to represent its interests. For a long
period it was difficult to maintain Sunday-schools
with any degree of permanency outside of the
churches of the cities.

As early as 1830 the North Carolina Baptists
were advocating Sunday-schools through reports
submitted to the general bodies. The Mississippi
Baptist State Convention, as early as 1838, made
this ringing deliverance :

Though the institution of Sabbath-schools is, as it
were, in its infancy, its advantages have been tested by
numberless experiments. It numbers now among its
friends, the statesman, the philanthropist, and the pious
of every name.

And that the great Head of the church regards it
with special favor is evident from the abundant success

272 HISTORY OP BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

with which he has crowned it. Your committee would
recommend it to the warmest sympathies and most
hearty co-operation of this body as promising great good
to the rising generation and the general advancement of
the cause of Christ. We are aware of the discourage-
ments under which its friends must labor in this State.
Few comparatively are experienced in its operations ; it
is difficult to obtain books, and, in many parts, the
population is so sparse as seemingly to forbid its success-
ful introduction. But in every good cause obstacles
yield to resolute perseverance. If we look about our
State, we shall doubtless find that not one-sixth of the
children attend preaching regularly on the Sabbath ; so
that it is to them the most idle day of the seven. It
need not be said here that idleness is the parent of vice.
But could the children be brought into a Sabbath-school,
they would be restrained from profaning the Sabbath
and be employed in a most valuable process of mental
and moral culture.

As an aid to the friends of Sabbath-schools, we would
suggest to the Convention the expediency of establish-
ing a Sabbath-school repository within the bounds of
this State, believing that it would give birth to num-
bers of Sabbath-schools within the present year, be the
means of securing the greater vmiformity in books, and
such books too as are generally approved by our de-
nomination.

This admirable report, which was really a fore-
cast of the system as it was afterward developed,
closed with resolutions of high approval of the
system of Sunday-school instruction, and urged its
immediate attention upon the Baptist pastors
throughout the State.

This report was submitted on the occasion of the

SUNDAY-SCHOOL VVOEK 273

second annual meeting of the Mississippi Baptist
State Convention. A few years later we have the
first expression concerning the Sunday-school, from
the Alabama Baptist State Convention. In 1844 a
report was submitted for the first time, which
report clearly indicates that schools have been for
some time existing in the State, but the writer is
led to regret " the absence of such statistical infor-
mation as would contribute to the usefulness and
interest of the report." In a closing resolution, the
report provides that the "Convention, impressed
with the value of the system of Sunday-schools, ear-
nestly recommended that it claim the immediate at-
tention of pastors, and that they be urged to consti-
tute a scliool in each church as early as practicable."
When, in 1831, Dr. William Vaughn was ap-
pointed the agent of the American Sunday-school
Union in Kentucky, the cause began to excite pub-
lic interest, though the schools were slow in form-
ing. The agitations of that period, arising from the
distractions occasioned by Alexander Campbell on
the one hand and by the anti-missionary Baptists
on the other, had made the Baptists of Kentucky re-
luctant to embrace any new measure. They looked
askant upon the introduction of any innovation or
departure, however great its promise of good results.
This extreme caution delayed denominational en-
dorsement of the Sunday-school for twenty years.
It was not until 1854 that we find the General As-
sociation of Kentucky bestowing the slightest atten-

s

274 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tion upon the institution. Even then the expression
was a feeble and dubious one. A report upon the
subject says: "From the best information we can
obtain, we are of the opinion that Sunday-schools
are not appreciated among our churches ; that a
very small proportion of the churches — probably
not one-fourth — have Sunday-schools, and many of
them in a very sickly condition, scarcely maintain-
ing an existence." No positive action was taken,
no aggressive interest manifested. In 1856, how-
ever, we find the General Association of Kentucky
adopting the following :

Resolved, That we recommend to our churches the im-
portance of organizing Sunday-schools whenever it is
practicable.

Resolved, That pastors of churches use their influence
by presenting to their respective congregations the sub-
ject of Sabbath-schools and aid in organizing a healthy
and efficient system.

This interest being at last aroused, an investiga-
tion of the literature which was being distributed
by the agents of the American Sunday-school Union
was had. The undenominational character of the
literature at once aroused the opposition of the Ken-
tucky Baptists, who were naturally sensitive at this
particular juncture to the slightest evasion of a
positive presentation of the principles of the Bible
as they were held by Baptists. This investigation
led to a vehement denunciation of the diluted char-
acter of the literature of the Sunday-school Union.

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 275

Now that interest was aroused, it was determined
to constitute a new organization to be known as the
Southern Sunday-school Union, which was established
at Memphis, Temiessee, in November, 1858. While
the depository was located at Memphis, the govern-
ing Board was appointed at Nashville. The resolu-
tions which follow emanated from the General Asso-
ciation of Kentucky, and clearly show the sentiments
which controlled the Baptists of the State at that
time.

Resolved, That while we recognize the excellencies of
the Sunday-school Union libraries, in the main we feel
the defect of an entire silence on many points of divine
truth, essential to the duty of Christians and to the
union of God's people.

Resolved, That we approve the principle of supplying
all our libraries with a literature entirely scriptural and
expressive on all points of duty, both of doctrine and
polity.

Resolved, That we recommend the patronage of the
Southern Baptist Sunday-school Union.

This new turn in the tide of aflPairs served to
quicken for a while denominational interest in the
subject. L. B. Fish, becoming the general agent of
the Memphis organization in 1860, succeeded in
arousing more enthusiasm in the work than had pre-
viously existed. This brings fully before us the
varying phases of the work within the territory
under consideration, until the outbreak of the Civil
War. Up to this time no uniformity characterized

276 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the work in the different portions of the South
where it existed. Wlierever a school was estab-
lished it adopted its own methods and its own course
of study. Independent of uniformity of system or
co-operative action, Sunday-schools gradually multi-
plied each year until the establishment of a system
under the auspices of the Southern Sunday-school
Board, There were occasional general expressions
of public interest in the work, such as was had at
Richmond, Virginia, in 1853, when a Sunday-school
convention of the Southern States met in that city.
The most that was accomplished by this meeting
was that it gave increased vigor to the institution.
The subject did not claim the attention of the
Southern Baptist Convention, however, until 1859.
Repeated, but incidental, allusions had been made to
Sunday-schools in the proceedings of the Convention
from its inception ; but they had not become suffi-
ciently prominent to claim official attention until the
session of the year just named. This is perhaps
due to two chief causes — the Convention up to this
period was engrossed in the formation of its plans
for missionary work at home and in foreign fields,
and the cause of Sunday-schools had not assumed
sufficient prominence throughout the States consti-
tuting the Convention to challenge attention. In
his annual report for 1859, as secretary of the
Home Mission Board, R. Holman shows that that
Board had already begun the work of the organ-
ization of Sunday-schools. He reported one hun-

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 277

dred and fourteen schools as organized up to that
date, with six hundred and one teachers and five
thousand five hundred and seventy pupils. The
same report alludes to the work previously done in
the South and claims that as a result of such work
seven hundred and forty-three pupils had been con-
verted and brought into the churches. From this
time forth the Sunday-school interest claimed more
the attention of the Southern Baptist Convention.

From the earliest years of the Convention Basil
Manly, Jr., had been greatly interested in the Sun-
day-school cause. He had made several ineifectual
efforts to bring the matter to the attention of the
general body. At last, in 1863, he procured the
appointment of a committee of seven, composed of
Basil Manly, Jr., Sylvanus Landrum, I. T. Tich-
enor, T. E. Skinner, J. L. Burrows, C. J. Elford,
E. T. Winkler, and W. T. Brantley, to report upon
the expediency of a more vigorous effort in behalf
of Sunday-schools. The result was an able and
elaborate report which emphasized the importance
of the Sunday-school as an auxiliary of church life.
The report raised three questions : (1) Whether it is
expedient for the Convention to attempt anything
in the direction of promoting interest in Sunday-
schools ; (2) whether the present is the proper time ;
and (3) in what way the effort should be made.
The conclusion was finally reached that a concentra-
tion and consolidation of the interest in all the
States of the South would induce economy, uniform-

278 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

ity, and an expansion of salutary results. The out-
come of this action was the creation of a Board in
the interest of the work, which Board was located
at Greenville, South Carolina, with Basil Manly,
Jr.j as president. At the same session of the Con-
vention at which the Sunday-school Board was
formed, the Bible Board Avas abolished. An ar-
rangement w^as subsequently entered into for merg-
ing the Southern Baptist Publication Society, which
sustained no connection with the Convention, into
the Sunday-school Board. Hence the new organi-
zation came to be called the Sunday-school and Pub-
lication Board.

An address was at once issued to the Baptists of
the South defining the object of the new Board, ex-
plaining its plans, and appealing for "voluntary
agents and general help." Though beginning at a
most inauspicious time, the Board began its work
with confidence, and from the outset aroused great
public respect, and soon laid under tribute many
valuable agencies. Funds were raised for the sup-
port of the work of the Board ; such pastors as
could do so devoted much time to its interest ; and
the denominational press of the South rendered it
most efficient aid. The Board was fortunate in
being able to obtain a portion of the time of Dr.
John A. Broadus as its corresponding secretary.
Still the Board was greatly embarrassed because it
had no printing facilities, and no means with which
to obtain such. The Southern ports were now closed

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WOEK 279

by a hostile fleet, and intercourse with the outside
world being cut off, it was next to impossible to
promote the interests of the Board. No literature
was to be had except the remnants of stocks left on
the shelves of the book dealers, together with an
occasional useful book found here and there in a pri-
vate house. But with the scanty material on hand,
and much of that crude, the Board resolved upon
the publication of a number of books.

Ten thousand Sunday-school primers were soon
exhausted, and a second edition was issued ; an
edition of fourteen thousand " Little Sunday-school
Hymn Books " was soon gone, and seventy thousand
more Avere called for. The " Confederate Sunday-
school Hymn Book" was issued in an edition of
three thousand, and afterward in an edition of ten
thousand, and they were rapidly taken. The best
talent in the South was invoked in behalf of the
struggling enterprise and some timely productions
were issued. Among these were the " Infant Class
Question Book," by L. H. Shuck ; " Little Lessons
for Little People" and the "Child's Question Book
on the Four Gospels," by B. Manly, Jr., together
with " A Brief Catechism of Bible Doctrine," by
James P. Boyce.

Just after the constitution of the Board, applica-
tion was made to the brethren at Baltimore to ar-
range for the purchase of twenty-five thousand
Testaments for its work in the South. In response
to this, the American Bible Society at New York

280 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

made a donation of that number. These were sent
under a flag of truce " for the use of the Sunday-
schools of the Southern Baptist Convention." Ko
such contribution had been thought of, but so soon
as the American Bible Society learned of the desti-
tution in the South, it promptly made liberal re-
sponse. The society was informed that " the Board
did not think proper to accept them as a donation,
but informed the donors, with an acknowledgment
of their Christian courtesy, that they M'ould receive
and distribute the Testaments, and would pay for
them as soon as commercial intercourse should be-
come practicable." ^ Even after the Board had come
into the possession of these books, it found it diffi-
cult to distribute them. Mail facilities were in-
ferior and shipment, as freight, was perilous. But
most excellent results were reached by the Board.
By means of a competent Sunday-school missionary
in each State, much interest was aroused throughout
the South. The secular press everywhere lent its
potent aid, and every means possible was made to
do the Board service. Among the active mission-
aries of the Board were : W. E. Hatcher, of Vir-
ginia ; J. A. Chambliss, of South Carolina ; W. T.
Brantley, of Georgia ; and A. W. Chambliss, of
Alabama.

The exigency of the times contributed largely to
the success of the cause, as parents found in the

^ "Report of the Sunday-school and Publication Board," for
1865.

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 281

Sunday-school at least a partial means of education
for their children, now that the secular schools were
closed.

During this stormy period Baptists were alone in
the prosecution of Sunday-school work in the South,
and the schools organized by the agents of the Board
were eagerly patronized by the people irrespective
of name or denomination.

With the capitulation of the Southern armies
came a cessation of the work of the Board. But in
January, 1866, it began, in a limited way, again
issuing the periodical known as "Kind Words."
This was a signal for a great demand upon the
Board for Sunday-school literature. Appealing to
the churches, the Board was able to get but meagre
response, because of the prostrate condition of the
country. Unwilling to lose its hold upon the people,
it promptly bought up what books it could from the
Sunday-school Union, the American Baptist Publi-
cation Society, the American Tract Society, as well
as from individual publishers. The brave efforts of
the Board under such adverse conditions won for
it sympathy, and efforts were made to restore it to
its position of influence and power for good. When
the Southern Baptist Convention met at Russellville,
Kentucky, in May, 1866, while the South was in
ruins, the following passage occurred in the report
of the Sunday-school and Publication Board :
"Sunday-schools for the colored people have, for
many years past, been conducted in different sec-

282 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tions of the South, particularly in the cities and
towns. Their recent emancipation furnishes in-
creased motives for establishing such schools, and
there can be no longer any disposition to restrict
them to oral instruction." ^ In the same connection
the reasons were shown that it was timely to teach
the Negroes the way of salvation more perfectly be-
cause of their increased responsibility. It was in-
sisted too, that the people of the South were under
obligation, as far as possible, to do this work for the
emancipated black man. It was finally urged that
the obligation was upon the Convention to organize
schools for the Negroes.

The Sunday-school Board now began a wrestle
for life. It had suffered in the common calamities
of the war, and nothing was now left it to fall back
upon but the affections of the people. An appeal
for help was issued, but not a dollar came in re-
sponse. A self-assumed indebtedness of two thou-
sand dollars hung over the Board by reason of its
refusal, in 1863, to accept the twenty-five thousand
Testaments which Dr. Fuller, of Baltimore, had
been instrumental in procuring from the American
Bible Society. Dr. Broadus having retired from the
service of the Board, Rev. C. C. Bitting was elected
to succeed him. With characteristic zeal he began
laying his plans for an extensive work. The in-
debtedness of the Board had first to be wiped out.

1 Some of the States of the South forbade by legal statute the
education of slaves.

SUNDAY-SCHOOL WORK 283

Investigation showed that the Sunday-school Board
possessed, at the time of the receipt of the Testaments,
imperfect knowledge, and influenced by the highest
dictates of Christian honor had assumed the obliga-
tion of making payment for the books. But the
American Bible Society, on the other hand, insisted
that it was a donation and begged that it be so con-
sidered. This led to a formal acknowledgment of
the books as a donation, to which another was added
by the American Bible Society in 1867.

Steps were now taken to enter anew upon the
work of publication and missionary effort. In 1868
the Board was transferred from Greenville, South
Carolina, to Memphis, Tennessee. By the consoli-
dation of the Board with the Southern Baptist
Sunday-school Union, Dr. S. H. Ford became the
president of the new enterprise, and Dr. T. C
Teasdale was made secretary. The embarrassments
of the Board by reason of its crippled condition
were seriously enhanced by the occupation of the
South at this time by the American Sunday-school
Union, the American Bible Society, and the Amer-
ican Baptist Publication Society. Pressed on every
hand for aid. Dr. Teasdale appealed to Dr. Griffith,
of the American Baptist Publication Society, for re-
lief. Dr. Griffith at once responded : " If you re-
ceive more applications than your Board can supply,
encourage the applicants to appeal to us. We will
cheerfully consider each case and make grants as
long as we have anything to grant with."

284 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Internal friction, complications, and inability to
cope with agencies possessed of fertile resources, led
to the extinction of the Sunday-school Board in
1873, by its being merged into the Domestic Mis-
sion Board. This led to the organization of Sunday-
school Boards in some of the States of the South.
Meanwhile the Domestic Board continued the publi-
cation of a cheap series of Sunday-school papers, of
which " Kind Words " was the chief periodical, all
of which were edited by Rev. Samuel Boykin.

With the returning tide of prosperity to the South
came the creation of new enterprises of evangelistic
endeavor. One of these was the State Boards
throughout the States of the South, which Boards
were based upon the Sunday-school work which had
originally been done. These new agencies, without
exception, were dependent upon the American Bap-
tist Publication Society for the supplies necessary
for their work. Without the timely aid of the
Publication Society, Sunday-school and colportage
work in the South would have been most seriously
retarded if not effectually blocked. It was destined
for almost a score of years to sustain the struggling
Sunday-school interests of the South, both of the
whites and of the blacks.

CHAPTER XII

COLLATERAL AGENCIES

THE forces which have contributed to the de-
nominational growth of the Baptists of the
South have been supplemented by yet other forces.
This last class, though subsidiary in character, have
been none the less effective. They have come into
operation, as occasion has demanded, and while the
creature of denominational growth, they in turn
have been productive of yet other means which
have contributed to the same end. One of the
most effective of these agencies in the South is the
Baptist press. The Baptists are thought to be the
pioneers of the religious press in the States of the
South. The first undertaking of journalism as an
engine of power in religious enterprises was by
Henry Holcombe, of Georgia, who established, in
1801, " The Analytical Repository." This was the
first venture of Baptist journalism in the United
States, the second being "The Massachusetts Baptist
Missionary Magazine," which appeared in 1803.
Though it was a most effective agent while it lasted,
" The Analytical Repository " was not long-lived.
To the more advanced and progressive elements of
the denomination in Georgia, it was most stimu-

285

286 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

lative, but it was too far in advance of the condi-
tions of the times to be eifective with the masses of
the denomination. It was doomed by its prema-
turity.

"The Latter Day Luminary" was one of the
projects of Luther Rice for arousing an interest in
foreign missions. The "Luminary" made its ap-
pearance in Washington, D. C, in 1816, first in the
form of a quarterly, but afterward as a monthly.
It ran a useful but brief course, but failed for want
of support. This was followed by "The Colum-
bian Star," which was ultimately resolved into
"The Christian Index," and removed first to Phila-
delphia then to Georgia. In its new sphere it be-
came a powerful factor in the hands of Jesse Mer-
cer, whose position and ability made him the cham-
pion of progress in that early period. At a time
when plainness of speech and uncompromising
principle were needed to turn back the tides of
ignorance and prejudice, Jesse Mercer, with "The
Christian Index," most efficiently rendered the
needed service. More than any other, he aroused
and maintained among the Baptists of Georgia inter-
est in missions and education. In 1840 he pre-
sented the "Index" to the Georgia Baptist State
Convention, and through the subsequent eventful
periods it has served as a great engine of progress,
not in Georgia alone, but in the States adjacent as
well.

For nearly three-quarters of a century "The Re-

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 287

ligious Herald" has rendered inestimable service
to the denomination toward the East. Started in
1828 by William Sands, a practical printer, it has
laid under tribute the ablest pens of the denomina-
tion from that period to this. By its ability im-
pelling the denomination toward the attainment of
the highest development, it has been equally serv-
iceable in restraining it by its 'conservatism. As
an advocate of progress, " The Religious Herald "
has inspired much zeal in the promotion of interest
especially in behalf of education and missions.
After the close of hostilities its tone of conservatism
did much to allay sectional animosity and to restore
a sentiment of co-fraternity between the North and
South.

" The Biblical Recorder " was brought into being
in response to a demand for such an organ in the
progressive period of 1834. Thomas Meredith, the
acknowledged leader of the North Carolina Baptists
of that time, recognized the necessity of a State
organ if he should expect to succeed in the accom-
plishment of the ends at which he aimed ; hence
" The Biblical Recorder." It was a connecting link
between " The Christian Index " on the one hand
and " The Religious Herald " on the other during
a period of years when they were the only denomi-
national exponents along the Atlantic board of the
South. These organs were simply indispensable
during the formative period just succeeding the
constitution of the Southern Baptist Convention.

288 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

To the strong and uncompromising denomina-
tional views of " The Biblical Recorder " are the
Baptists of North Carolina largely due for their
uniform stability and progress.

Among the most useful of the denominational
organs in the western portion of the States of the
South has been " The Western Recorder." It had
its germ in " The Baptist Banner/' Avhich was
begun in 1825, and was therefore the pioneer of
Baptists journals west of the Alleghanies. The
paper did not become " The Western Recorder "
until 1851, being known by different names before
that time, as it was shifted from point to point.
During the troublous periods through which the de-
nomination in that quarter of the South had been
compelled to pass, " The Western Recorder " has
been an invaluable ally to the maintenance of Bap-
tist principles and a pronounced promoter of de-
nominational progress.

Later appeared in the southwest " The Tennes-
see Baptist/' the chief representative of the extreme
views of the Baptists of the South. It was the or-
gan of "Old Landmarkism/' and under the edi-
torial direction of Dr. J. R. Graves, swayed a mar-
velous influence in the Mississippi Basin and in
States bordering upon those watered by the great
river, both east and west. Graves was a born
polemicist, and his challenging tone, coupled with
his ready utterance and forcible diction, won easily
for him the popular eye and ear. He came upon

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 289

the scene at a time when the conditions most favored
his polemical spirit. The incoherent character of
the bulk of the population reached by his paper,
its ringing notes of controversy so congenial to a
bustling and formative state of society, its fervid
declarations against all forms of doctrinal error, at
a time when both the South and the West were be-
ing swept by a storm of controversy, the location
of the " Tennessee Baptist " just where many of
these opposing influences met — these served to give
alike to the editor and to his paper a prominence
which they would not have enjoyed in calmer
times. Indeed, when calmness began to prevail,
the lustre of the editor as well as of his journal be-
gan to grow dim. But extreme as were the views
advocated by J. R. Graves, there can be no doubt
that he rendered some service in giving a proper
setting to Baptist doctrine in a region where, if the
sentiments had been less pronounced, they would not
have been so effective.

" The Southern Baptist," which was published so
long at Tuskegee, Alabama, was a valuable ally to
its denominational contemporaries. It had its origin
at Wetumpka, Alabama, in 1838, where it was
founded by Rev. John D. Williams. Removed to
JNIarion, Alabama, where it was known as the
" Alabama Baptist," and then as the " Alabama
Baptist Advocate" ; thence to Montgomery, where
it became the " Southwestern Baptist " ; and again
removed to Tuskegee, Alabama, the journal did

290 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

much good in counteracting the extreme views of
the " Tennessee Baptist," while it was an able ad-
vocate of the enterprises of the denomination. The
value of its contribution to Baptist interests in this
newer region of the South and Southwest is beyond
estimate ; but it was not a whit less valuable in its
stalwart defense of Baptist principles in a region
where the Methodists were most progressive and
aggressive. The "Southwestern Baptist" was
merged into " The Christian Index/' as a result of
the Civil War. One of the signs of the growth of
denominational spirit in the lower basin of the Mis-
sissippi was the establishment of the " Southwestern
Baptist Chronicle/' by Rev. W. C. Duncan, in 1847.
The paper was ably conducted for three years, but
was discontinued in consequence of the failing health
of Dr. Duncan.

Feeling the need of a local organ in that quarter
of the South, Mr. L. A. Duncan, brother to the
former editor, undertook the establishment of the
"New Orleans Baptist Chronicle" in 1852. This
journal attained a considerable circulation in the
States of Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas, but
the paper was discontinued in 1852. Again in 1855
an effort was made to give the Baptists of the Peli-
can State an organ of intercommunication, hence
Rev. Hanson Lee began the publication, at Mount
Lebanon, of the " Louisiana Baptist." This enter-
prise proved to be more successful than the others,
for the paper attained the rank of one of the ablest

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 291

of the Southern Baptist journals. The paper was
continued throughout the dark days of the Civil
War, even after the death of its gifted editor, in
1863, and was conducted subsequently by Rev. A. F.
Worrell, W. F. Wells, Dr. Courtney, and W. E. Pax-
ton, but in 1869 it was merged into the "Memphis
Baptist," the powerful organ of Dr. J. R. Graves.

Mr. J. L. Furman began the publication of " The
Southern Messenger," a semi-monthly periodical in
1876, but the enterprise was not a success for want
of patronage and was soon discontinued.

The organs already named were the chief journals
of the Baptists in the States of the South until the
revival of interest following the cessation of hostili-
ties. The concentration of resources and compact-
ness of organization which became necessary after
the social revolution Avrought in the South, required
a multiplication of educational agencies. Nothing
could serve so effectually to meet prevailing de-
mands as Baptist newspapers. Hence with the
revival of suspended interests in the South came a
reassertion of denominational spirit, which was
voiced in each State through journals instituted for
the purpose. One after another of the States began
the publication of official organs, until there is one
or more in each of those of the South.

Besides those already mentioned may be named
" The Baptist Courier," of South Carolina ; " The
Baptist and Reflector," of Tennessee; "The Ken-
tucky Baptist," of Kentucky ; " The Alabama Bap-

292 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

tist," of Alabama ; " The Baptist Record/' of Mis-
sissippi ; " The Baptist Chronicle," of Louisiana ;
and " The Florida Baptist Witness/' of Florida.

All tliese have been valuable auxiliaries in de-
nominational development in the Southern States
during the last twenty-five years. In closest con-
nection with the State Boards, these agencies have
acted and reacted most helpfully upon each other,
and for the general promotion of the cause of God.

Besides these, there have been periodicals of a
more distinct character which have been co-opera-
tive with the State journals. Chief among such is,
" The Foreign Mission Journal," issued by the For-
eign Board from Richmond, Virginia. Since its
inception it has commanded a wide circle of readers
throughout the South. It occupies a sphere pe-
culiarly its own. By reason of its vital touch with
the missionaries in foreign parts, it has been able to
present to the churches just that information which
has aroused sympathy and interest in our foreign
mission work.

For a period of years the Home Mission Board
issued a neat organ known as " Our Home Field,"
which sustained the same relation to that Board
that is sustained by " The Foreign Journal " to the
Board of which it is the organ. An attempt was
made in 1895 to unite these interests, but it proved
impracticable and the Boards were left in 1896 to
devise their own means of communication with the
churches.

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 293

In the absence of a review in the South, the
"Seminary Magazine," of Louisville, Kentucky,
somewhat supplies that deficiency. It is issued by
the students of the Southern Baptist Theological
Seminary, and by its elevated tone has done much
to stimulate progress in theological thought in the
States of the South.

Besides the press, there have been other potent
agencies which have been closely allied to the de-
nominational papers in the promotion of Baptist
interests. The most conspicuous among these is
the American Baptist Publication Society. In its
origin, the Publication Society w^as Southern. With
the expansion of the denomination in the South
came, in due time, the suggestion of the imperative
necessity of a general publishing agency, by means
of which there might be presented, as well as per-
petuated, the principles of Baptists. These princi-
ples were extending ; thousands were every year
embracing them, but they were presented almost
exclusively by the preacher's lips.

It was not until 1824 that the matter of creating
a publishing agency took shape. Four years before
that time the subject had been considered in Phila-
delphia, but no definite action was taken. In 1823,
Noah Davis, of Maryland, wrote a letter to his
classmate, J. D. Knowles, of Washington, D. C,
urging the formation of a tract society, to be oper-
ated under the auspices of the Baptists. The idea
was suggested to Mr. Davis by seeing a tract fall to

294 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

the ground from the hat of another. The letter
just referred to suggested that a call be issued for a
meeting to consider the feasibility of establishing a
publishing interest, and the call was made through
" The Columbian Star." In response thereto,
twenty-four persons met at the home of Mr. George
Wood, in Washington, D. C, February 25, 1824.
Among those present were William Staughton and
Baron Stow, the latter being at that time a student
in Columbian College.

A society was formed, George Wood became its
agent, and it began operations at once. The neces-
sity of such an agency was manifest from the readi-
ness with which it was responded to throughout the
States. Two years after its establishment, it was
removed to Philadelphia, where it has since re-
mained.

This is not the place to furnish a history of the
American Baptist Publication Society ; but it has
thriven commensurately with the growth of the
denomination and the prosperity of the country.

During the chaotic days subsequent to the close
of the Civil War, when the Baptist denomination
was seeking to rally its agencies, and when a new
beginning was to be made in the reorganization of
its work, the Publication Society came to its rescue.
The work of the Sunday-school Board of the
Southern Baptist Convention during the war showed
where means would accomplish the greatest good.
The inability of the Southern Board to meet these

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 295

demands left the South in greatest need of supplies
for this important department of Christian labor.
Sentiment in favor of Sunday-schools had been
rapidly growing since 1863. A most remarkable
development of interest had been shown in this
sphere during the ten years following the period just
named. But just when the interest was most
intense, the source of supplies was cut oif by the
necessary extinction of the Sunday-school Board.
At that juncture, the American Baptist Publication
Society turned its attention to the cultivation of the
Sunday-schools in the South. It was a friend in
need. With unstinted hand it gratuitously supplied
hundreds of schools, both of the whites and of the
blacks. Hundreds of Sunday-school libraries also
were furnished in the same spirit. For more than
fifteen years this work was prosecuted by the So-
ciety alone in the States of the South. Coupled
with this was a colportage and missionary system
conducted under the auspices of the Publication So-
ciety.

So great w^as the demand for Sunday-school and
colportage supplies in the South, that it was deter-
mined in 1887 to establish a Branch House at At-
lanta, Georgia. This was earnestly advocated by
such men as Drs. Henry McDonald and H. H.
Tucker. The enterprise was begun somewhat as a
business venture, but when the receipts from sales for
the first fiscal year amounted to more than thirty-
two thousand dollars the experimental stage was

296 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

passed^ and Atlanta became the center of a great
Sunday-school influence. A few years later, in re-
sponse to a growing demand for the literature which
the Publication Society was dispensing, another
Branch House was located at Dallas, Texas, which,
together with the one at St. Louis, constitutes the
three in the States of the South. A fair estimate of
the Society by Southern Baptists is expressed in an
extract taken from an address delivered by Dr. J. B.
Hawthorne at the opening of the new building of
"The Baptist Witness," at Ocala, Florida, in 1894 :

The corrupting influence of the world's bad books is
opposed by the purifying and the ennobling influence of
millions of volumes in which there is not a taint of im-
purity. In this connection it gives me great pleasure to
say that among the institutions which are providing the
world with a wholesome literature, there is not one that
deserves higher esteem and honor than the American
Baptist Publication Society. It is the one Baptist institu-
tion of which every Baptist in the wide world can afford
to be proud. Into every nook and corner of this great
country its books and periodicals have gone to enlighten
and elevate and save the people. With its magnificent
facilities, directed by many of the brainiest and best men
of the nation, and with the moral and material support of
nearly four millions of Baptists, it is destined to accom-
plish wonderful transformations in this and in other
countries. Working harmoniously with kindred insti-
tutions, it will do much to emancipate this land from the
dominion of an unclean and debasing literature.

Another benevolent agency in the South is the
American Baptist Home Mission Society. Its

COLLATERAL AGENCIES 297

work is chiefly confined to the colored people, and
it is among them that work is most needed. It
has created a spirit of self-respect among Southern
Negroes by means of the establishment of schools.
The Society has rendered the help which could not
have been otherwise extended to the colored
people of the South, and in the most critical
period of their history. During the year 1893
alone it expended twelve thousand five hundred and
sixty-two dollars in mission work among the colored
Baptists of the South. It maintains for that people
in the Southern States twenty-nine institutions of
learning, of which fourteen are high schools and
fifteen secondary. An important feature of the
work of which the South has been a fortunate recipi-
ent from the Society is that of assisting, by gift and
loan, in the erection of houses of M^orship.

The American Baptist Education Society was or-
ganized in 1888, possibly for the purpose of ad-
ministering the educational gifts of Mr. John D.
Rockefeller for the promotion of Baptist schools.
Substantial and timely aid has been rendered to
struggling institutions in the South in the payment
of debts incurred and by the increase of their endow-
ments. The Society serves as an eliciting agency
by conditioning its donations, in almost every case,
upon the raising of several times the amount do-
nated from other and interested sources.

The Southern Baptist Young People's Union has
just begun as an organization. It promises to ac-

298 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

complish much excellent work among the Baptist
churches of the South. Through its Christian Cul-
ture Courses it is affording to the young of the de-
nomination a more exalted and extensive view of
the sacred literature, denominational history, and
the history of missions.

The Southern Educational Conference is an or-
ganization which holds its sessions annually in con-
nection with the meetings of the Southern Baptist
Convention. It was organized at Birmingham,
Alabama, in 1891. At its annual sessions papers
of an educational character are read and discussed
by the representatives who come as Baptist educa-
tors from the schools of the South.

CHAPTER XIII

woman's work

rriHE general organization of Baptist women in
-L the South into co-operative societies for mis-
sionary work, is of comparatively recent date.
Long prior to this movement the women in different
portions of the South were engaged, in numerous
ways, in contributing to the cause of missions. Un-
pretentious local societies would, from time to time,
be formed, and now and then a voluntary contribu-
tion would be made by some devout woman. Even
as early as 1823, women's missionary societies
existed in different portions of the then young State
of Alabama. When the Baptist Convention of that
State was organized, seven of the twenty delegates
were there as representatives of these societies.
These little societies were entirely independent of
any general organization. Among the contributions
made that year by the hands of devout women was,
on the part of one, 9, watch and chain, and, on the
part of another, two pairs of socks "knit with her
own hands." There was a Woman's Missionary
Society in Richmond, Virginia, as early as 1823,
doubtless there were others scattered here and there
through the South.

299

300 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

Even after new interest in woman's work had been
kindled in the South, there was, in many quarters, a
marked demonstration against it. The fears gener-
ally expressed were those of undue organization in
the churches, which would exhaust itself in that
alone, and that separation of the churches into dif-
ferent elements would tend to disintegration. And
the further fear was not disguised that there was
danger of according too great prominence to women
in the churches. Even after the work of organiza-
tion had begun in the South, in some quarters they
were knocking in vain at the doors of Associations
and State Conventions for permission and encourage-
ment to join in the general work of the denomina-
tion. So persistent did these appeals become in
some States, that efforts were made at conciliation
by the adoption of certain complimentary resolutions
as void of meaning as they were intended to be.

Under the inspiration of the new movement
which had been transmitted from the Woman's Mis-
sionary Society of Ncvvton Center, Massachusetts,
of which Mrs. Gardner Colby was the president
and Mrs. Alvah Hovey the corresponding secretary,
Mrs. Ann J. Graves of Baltimore, organized, in
that city, in 1867, a woman's missionary prayer
meeting for the support of native Bible women be-
longing to the Canton Baptist Mission. Mrs.
Graves was the mother of Dr. E,. H. Graves, the
missionary to China. This meeting, certainly un-
pretentious enough, was steadily maintained until

woman's work 301

1869, when Miss Brittan, of Calcutta, India, visited
America, and was invited by Mrs. Graves to be
present at one of the prayer meetings. So profound
was the impression produced by Miss Brittan that
great interest was aroused in behalf of women in
heathen lands. This led to the formation of the
Baltimore Auxiliary of the Woman's Union Mis-
sionary Society, which included a number of earnest
women of the various Christian churches of that
city. This society was constituted in 1870 with
Mrs. J. W. M. Williams, as president, and Mrs.
Ann J. Graves, as secretary. Within a few years,
the contributions of this local society grew from six
hundred dollars to one thousand dollars annually.

In October, 1871, the Woman's Mission to Woman
was organized, with Mrs. Franklin Wilson as presi-
dent, Mrs. F. Crane as treasurer. Miss Jane W.
Norris as recording secretary, and Mrs. Ann J.
Graves as corresponding secretary. This work con-
tinued to grow in interest, which was not a little
heightened by the marriage of Miss Norris and Dr.
R. H. Graves, the missionary to China.

At the same date, October 23, 1871, Rev. John
Stout, pastor of the Baptist Church at Newberry,
South Carolina, organized a Woman's Missionaiy
Society. Mr. Stout was the first in the South to
undertake and to encourage such organization.
Through successive years he was engaged in the
organization of these societies in his native State.

Miss Edmonia Moon, of Virginia, having been

302 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

accepted by the Foreign Mission Board, as a mis-
sionary to China, in 1872, the Baptist women of
Richmond, Virginia, at once organized the Woman's
Missionary Society of that city, for the support of
Miss Moon. The contributions, the first year,
amounted to one thousand two hundred dollars.

In 1872, in his first annual report to the Southern
Baptist Convention at Raleigh, North Carolina, as
corresponding secretary of the Foreign Mission
Board, Dr. Tupper alluded to the importance of
organizing Bible women at our missionary stations
and suggested that the women of our churches
might be aroused to the importance of " redeeming
their sister women from the degrading and destroy-
ing thraldom of paganism."

A report upon woman's work read at the session
of the Convention in 1872, by Dr. J. \y. M. Wil-
liams, appealed to the delegates present to take im-
mediate steps to organize women's missionary soci-
eties. Rev. John Stout was present at this session
of the Convention and was greatly interested in the
woman's movement, as he had shown by his efficient
work in the organization of societies in South Caro-
lina. The work which was done in this direction
for several years afterward was confined almost ex-
clusively to South Carolina and to a single pastor —
John Stout, the originator of the movement in the
South. The matter claimed the attention of the
Southern Baptist Convention again in 1875, when
the work of organizing woman's missionary societies

woman's work 303

was formally commended. In 1876 the South
Carolina Central Committee of Missions was consti-
tuted at the suggestion of Mr. Stout. This was
the first central committee organized in the South.
It received that year the sanction of the South
Carolina Baptist State Convention.

In 1878 the matter was again before the Southern
Convention, which met that year at Nashville, Ten-
nessee. At this time the first positive step was
taken by the Convention respecting this important
work. In a report submitted by Dr. J. W. M.
Williams, of which committee Mr. Stout was a mem-
ber and who no doubt influenced the suggestion, it
was urged that central committees be organized in
each State to co-operate with the two general
Boards, as auxiliary to the Southern Baptist Con-
vention. The following year, 1879, the chairman
of the committee on woman's work was Dr. T. T.
Eaton. The committee emphasized the action of
the one of the preceding year, repeating the impor-
tance of women's organizations.

Meanwhile the work was assuming greater pro-
portions. Under the lead of Rev. John Stout,
South Carolina was greatly in advance of the other
States of the South, in some of which the Conven-
tions declined to give encouragement to the move-
ment. The segregated condition of the societies
which had been formed throughout the South, sug-
gested the propriety of a general co-operative or-
ganization, but it was not effected for several years.

304 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

In 1881, Secretary Tupper, in his annual report,
called the attention of the Southern Baptist Conven-
tion to the movement going on in the South and
stated that so far as could be ascertained, three hun-
dred and fifty of these societies had been organized,
and they had contributed to foreign missions six
thousand two hundred and forty-four dollars and
thirty cents.

Still the Convention was tardy about doing more
than to give verbal endorsement. Resistance to the
movement continued in a number of the Southern
States, and difficulties were overcome only by the
quiet organization of societies in almost all these
States. In 1883 the question was again before the
Southern Baptist Convention, at Waco, Texas.
This time it aroused more interest than had pre-
viously prevailed, which interest found expression
very soon afterward in the organization of central
committees throughout the States of the South,
Organization gave additional strength to the grow-
ing cause. The work grew apace until the occur-
rence of a little episode in the Southern Baptist
Convention, in 1885, at Augusta, Georgia. At that
session a portion of the Arkansas delegation to the
Convention was composed of women. There was
nothing in the constitution of the Convention to
prevent their recognition as delegates. The ripple
of agitation produced by the occurrence, was lulled
by the reference of the matter to a committee of one
from each State, of which Dr. J. William Jones, of

woman's work 305

Virginia, was the chairman. After clue deliberation
the committee reported the following :

Your committee to whom was referred the whole ques-
tion of the eUgibility of women to seats as delegates in
this body, have considered the matter and have unani-
mously agreed to the following : As some doubt has
arisen as to the proper construction of the Constitution,
we recommend the following amendment : In Article
III., of the constitution, strike out the word "members "
in the first line, and insert instead thereof the word
' ' brethren. ' '

The report was adopted, and the matter was set
at rest. Many Baptist women from the South were
present at this session of the Convention not with
the view of being recognized as delegates but to
confer together about the work throughout tlie
South. Holding a meeting, in which the ladies
from Arkansas heartily joined, all these noble
women present at that time sent a communication
to the Convention, disclaiming any purpose to form
a separate and independent organization, and an-
nouncing as their purpose to work directly through
the churches and through all the appointed chan-
nels of the Convention.

Whatever misapprehensions may have previously
existed were removed by this action on the part
of the women at Augusta, and a fresh impulse was
given to the movement in every portion of the
South. Prior to 1890 the general organization for
the South was known as the Executive Committee

306 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

of Woman's Mission Societies. Later, it assumed
the more dignified designation of Woman's Mission-
ary Union.

After the meeting of the Southern Baptist Con-
vention at Augusta, Georgia, in 1885, woman's
work received appropriate recognition. It became
a prevailing custom for the representatives of the
women's societies from each State to assemble at
the same time and place of meeting of the Southern
Baptist Convention. While auxiliary to the Con-
vention, the women hold their meetings separately,
and in another portion of the city. Partly through
modesty, and partly because they wish to transact
their business in a manner satisfactory to themselves,
they forbid the attendance of members of the other
sex. If one enters a meeting of the Union it is
because he is invited to do so. The headquarters
of the Woman's Missionary Union is in the city of
Baltimore. Mrs. A. M. Gwathmey is the president
of the body, and Miss Annie W. Armstrong is the
corresponding se(5retary. Besides the collected
funds which are contributed directly to the treas-
uries of the two general Boards, much valuable serv-
ice is rendered by the union in the distribution of
religious and missionary literature, and in furnish-
ing stores of supplies to the missionaries of the
Home Board laboring upon the Western frontier.
The orranizations in some of the States assume the
support of missionaries upon the foreign field, while
others attend to the education of their children.

woman's work 307

The j^ear 1888 marks the date of the distinct
organization of the woman's movement in the South.
All the efforts which preceded that date were pre-
paratory to a general organization. Within a few
of the States the work had been thoroughly and
efficiently organized long before that time, but the
movement did not become general until the date
named. As the organization increases in numerical
strength, it gains in popularity and multiplies in its
agencies for work. In the larger cities much mis-
sionary work is done, and much benevolence is
expended among the poorer classes.

The following recommendations of the Executive
Committee adopted at Washington, D. C, in 1895,
clearly set forth the spirit and purpose of the
Woman's Missionary Union.

1. Believing that through the influence and power of
the Holy Spirit great things can be accomplished for
the Lord, we suggest that the first week in January,
1895 — the World's Week of Prayer — be observed by the
woman's mission societies Avith special reference to the
guidance of the Spirit in the extension of interest in
missions ; and to make our prayers more specific, that
the Mission (Prayer) Card be more generally used.

3. That the recommendations of the Foreign and
Home Boards asking for total collections from woman's
mission societies of thirty thousand dollars and twenty-
five thousand dollars respectively, be heartily com-
mended ; and we further suggest, to give definiteness,
that these sums be proportioned among the States.

4. Believing that in the young people is our future

308 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

strength, we earnestly recommend that the work of
organizing mission societies and bands among young
women, girls, and boys be vigorously prosecuted. That
central committees appoint one of their number, or elect
one to be of their number, to take charge of this work
in each State.

5. Encouraged by the enthusiasm with which the
week of self-denial was entered upon, and the results
following, it is again recommended that a week of self-
denial be observed by the societies.

6. That mothers' meetings and industrial schools be
organized among foreign populations and colored women
and children ; and that Sunday-schools be instituted for
the Chinese wherever found, whether there be one or
more.

Thus, from a crude and tangled form, doubtful of
its issue in 1888, the woman's movement in the
South has become one of the most efficient arms of
sacred work. Foremost in the establishment of the
success of the union has been Mrs. Ann J. Graves,
Miss M. E. Mcintosh (Mrs. Bell), Miss Annie W.
Armstrong, Mrs. A. M. Hillman, Miss Fannie E.
Heck, Mrs. M. D. Early, Mrs. Geo. B. Eager, Mrs.
John Stout, and Mrs. J. P. Eagle. Many others
there are whose names are known to the Master.
The commendable aim of the union is understood
to be " to make of every Baptist woman an intelli-
gent and active friend of missions, and to induce
in such a regular, systematic habit of remembering
this work both in their prayers and gifts." ^

^The development of woman's work in the South, so far as it
pertains to the contributions of funds, is shown in the following

woman's work 309

table. Totals for home and foreign missions since organiza-
tion :

1888 $21,039.16

1889 30,773.69

1890 31,237.76

1891 38,990.34

1892 44,282.80

1893 (Centennial Year) 62,336.75

1894 45,128.59

1895 48,449.25

Grand Total $322,238.34

CHAPTER XIV

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK

ONE of the most interesting features of denomi-
national history in the South is that of the col-
ored Baptists. The beginning of their spiritual
history antedates their political emancipation more
than a century. True, the enslavement of the
black man was a monstrous evil alike to slave and
owner, and yet there were incidental advantages
springing even from slavery that were incalculable
to the Negro. American slavery is dead, never to
be revived, and there could be no satisfaction de-
rived from a reproduction of arguments in its de-
fense, even if the disposition should exist ; yet
there were advantages incidentally derived from the
institution, without which the colored people must
have remained barbarians. While many thousands
of them were subjected to the most exacting labor,
and oftentimes to cruel treatment, there were yet
many other thousands whose labor was light, who
were exempt from cruel servitude, and who were
favored by being brought into daily contact with
the highest culture of the South. In the capacities
of maids, housekeepers, seamstresses, and nurses, of
hostlers, coachmen, and attendants, they served by
310

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 311

the ten thousand in the most cultured of Southern
homes. Docile, gentle, and impressible, these peo-
ple became the unconscious possessors of innumera-
ble advantages which rendered them excellent serv-
ice when the period of emancipation came.

Associated with the youth of the whites, thou-
sands not only secured the rudiments of an educa-
tion, but many became musicians, speakers, reciters,
and writers, and many were enabled to absorb the
conventionalities of social life. Easily receptive
and deeply emotional, many bright slave boys caught
the spirit of oratory from the numerous rehearsals
of the white youth, and when the restraints of
slavery were lifted, they flashed into sudden promi-
nence as preachers and as public speakers. To
many of them the transition was an easy one from
the incidental benefits of slavery to a response
to the demands made upon them when they were
thrown upon their own resources. Back of much
of the phenomenal advancement of the black man
lay the numerous small advantages enjoyed during
his enslavement, which advantages, in the aggre-
gate, were considerable ; so that the Negro was
not an untutored savage when liberation came.
Many there were who had been imbruted by cruel
masters ; many who suffered from lack of the neces-
saries of life ; many who were degraded by the
most vicious impositions ; still there was a large
favored class whose gain was immense, and without
the enjoyment of which the race would have been

312 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

deplorably helpless when the boon of emancipation
was received.

In recording these facts, there is no desire to rob
the colored man of any merit which justly belongs
to him. That he deserves much credit is true ; that
he deserves the meed of praise for his prompt and
appropriate use of means placed within his reach
the fair-minded will not deny ; and that he has been
able to accomplish so much in the midst of adverse
conditions, is a matter of no small wonder and an
occasion of much commendation.

In order to a proper estimate of the history of
the evangelization of the colored people of the
South, and in order fully to understand the nature
of their work, we shall have to gather up the scat-
tered threads of history and knit them together.

Just before the beginning of the Revolutionary
War a colored man, and a slave, named George
Liele, was converted in Burke County, Georgia,
under the preaching of Matthew Moore, a pioneer
Baptist preacher. Having been baptized, Liele was
permitted to preach, and his efforts were attended
with the happiest results. Liberated by his mas-
ter, Henry Sharpe, about the time of the outbreak
of the Revolution, Liele went to Savannah and be-
gan preaching with great acceptance at Bramton
and Yamacraw, near the city, as well as upon the
outlying plantations. Continuing his work in this
region to the close of the Revolution, Liele accom-
panied the British to Jamaica as the body-servant

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 313

of an English officer. Deeply moved by the degra-
dation of the unchristian masses about him on the
island, Liele began preaching to them. Wherever
he could gather a crowd, whether upon the com-
mons or the race-course, on the streets or in his
own hired house, he earnestly presented the claims
of the gospel. His efforts were rewarded by his
ability to gather a church of four members, who,
like himself, were refugees from America.

He now threw himself with consuming zeal into
gospel work, and while he supported himself, was
enabled within seven years to baptize five hundred
converts. In 1793 he erected the first dissenting
chapel ever built in Jamaica. Meanwhile he was
the victim of much sore persecution, having been
imprisoned and loaded with irons more than once,
and once tried for his life. From Jamaica, George
Liele was instrumental, through correspondence with
Drs. Ryland and Rippon of England, in intro-
ducing the gospel into Africa.

Before leaving America for Jamaica, Liele bap-
tized in the neighborhood of Savannah, Andrew
Bryan, a slave who, nine months after his conver-
sion, began preaching at Yamacraw.

Many converts were the result of his efforts. Ob-
taining permission to preach in a barn at Bramton,
the good work went on until he was interfered with
by some disreputable whites, who attacked the crowd
under the pretense of suppressing sedition. This
disturbance was summarily checked by the slave-

314 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

owners of the community, and the meetings were
encouraged to proceed. During all this time Bryan
w^as not licensed to preach. Thomas Burton, an
aged white minister, having heard of this w^ork of
grace among the slaves, visited them and baptized
eighteen. Later, in 1788, Abraham Marshall, of
Kiokee Church, accompanied by Jesse Peter, a
young colored preacher of Augusta, visited the
Bramton community and baptized forty-five more,
organized a church, and ordained Bryan to the full
work of the ministry. This became the parent of
two other strong colored churches in Savannah.
Bryan died at the age of ninety and was buried
with marked respect by the white Christians of the
city in which he had spent his life as a slave
preacher. Slave though he was, Bryan left an
estate of three thousand dollars when he died.

In recognition of the valuable services of this
slave preacher, the Savannah Association (white) on
the occasion of his death, in 1812, adopted the fol-
lowing resolutions :

The Association is sensibly affected by the death of
the Rev. Andrew Bryan, a man of color, and pastor of
the First Colored Church in Savannah. This son of
Africa, after suffering inexpressible persecutions in the
cause of his divine Master, was at length permitted to
discharge the duties of the ministry among his colored
friends in peace and quiet, hundreds of whom, through
his instrumentality, were brought to a knowledge of the
truth as "it is in Jesus." He closed his extensively
useful and amazingly luminous course in the lively exer-

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 315

cise of faith and in the joyful hope of a happy immor-
tality.

The mantle of Andrew Bryan fell upon his
nephew, Andrew Marshall, who prosecuted with
vigor the work in the midst of the slave population
in Southern Georgia, until his death in 1856.

One of the most notable of the colored Baptists of
the South was Lot Gary, who was the first colored
missionary to go from America to Africa. Gary
was born near the close of the eighteenth century,
and in his early manhood was notoriously corrupt
and vicious. In 1804 he was laboring as a com-
mon slave in a tobacco warehouse in Richmond,
Virginia. Gonverted in 1807, he became a mem-
ber of the First Baptist Ghurch (white), of Kich-
mond, there being at that time no organized colored
churches in the South. ^

From the galleries of the old First Ghurch in
Richmond, Gary heard a thrilling sermon based
upon the conversation of our Lord with Xicodemus.
Here was born in his heart a desire to preach, that
he might tell this thrilling story to others. Finding
a friendly tutor in a young white man, Gary was
soon able to read the New Testament, and was
licensed to preach. He became enthusiastic in his
work among the blacks in Richmond, and was soon

1 When converts among the slaves began to multiply, galleries
and adjoining compartments to the main audience rooms of the
churches were providetl for the accommodation of the colored
people, who attended upon the same services vi'ith the whites.

316 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

a controlling factor among them. His avidity for
reading led him to purchase a small but indiscrim-
inate lot of books which he usually picked up from
the shelves of cheap venders. This scanty and
heterogeneous library he kept within easy reach,
that no opportunity might be lost for mental im-
provement. Every snatch of leisure in the ware-
house was devoted to his books. A passer-by in
the warehouse happened to pick up one of Gary's
books on one occasion and found that he had been
cudgeling his brain with Adam Smith's " Wealth
of Nations." It was a book — something to be
read — and that was sufficient to the enslaved stu-
dent. He had chanced upon it, no doubt, at some
cheap book-stall, or at a miscellaneous auction, and
was seeking to unravel its contents. Like his
namesake, William Carey, he numbered among his
possessions " The Voyages of Captain Cook." Who
can deny that in the unfolding of the life of this
wonderful man God's hand was in the direction of
his tutelage?

By a careful preservation of the bits of tobacco
lying about the floor of the warehouse, which were
given him, and by an economical hoarding of the
generous " tips " of the merchants whom he served
in divers ways, Gary finally accumulated eight
hundred and fifty dollars, with which he purchased
his freedom and that of his children, his wife having
been previously freed by the hand of death. He
had no difficulty in obtaining work, as his reputation

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 317

for honesty was well known in the business circles
of Richmond. He was one of the principal agents
in the formation of the African Missionary Soci-
ety of Richmond, which society was organized in
1815 — one of the first organized in America.
Within five years this society raised seven hundred
dollars, which was made up largely of the con-
tributions of the Christian slaves.

Though the possessor of a pleasant home, which
he had purchased, and though pro.'?}:)erous in business,
Gary felt desirous of going to Africa as a missionary.
His employer having learned of this desire, sought
to dissuade him from such a purpose, and increased
his wages by way of inducement to reconsider ; but
the consecrated preacher could not be moved. He
surrendered his position, sold his attractive home,
and offered himself to the Triennial Convention for
work in Africa. In company with Colin Teage,
another colored preacher, Cary sailed for Africa
in January, 1821. These men began their labors
among the Bassas, at Monrovia, Liberia, in 1822.
After laboring for one year they baptized six, and
the year succeeding nine more were baptized. Of
the wonderful career of these ex-slaves more cannot
be said than that a marvelous work was done in the
conversion of many native Africans and in instruct-
ing them in the principles of government.

The numerical increase of the colored Baptists of
the South is largely due to the interest which was
manifested in the Negro in the early stages of

318 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IX SOUTHERN STATES

Southern history. White missionaries were engaged
by the district Associations to visit the populous
plantations and to preach to the blacks. Many of
our most devoted home missionaries were preachers
to the slaves upon the plantations. Sometimes the
owner of many slaves would engage, upon a stated
salary, the services of such men, and again the
churches and Associations would assign them to
such work. Again, where ministerial gifts were
developed among converted slaves they were some-
times liberated and appointed to labor as mission-
aries. Respectful consideration was not withheld
from the Christian slaves even from the earliest pe-
riods of Southern history. So early as 1793 a
church composed exclusively of colored people in
the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, was admitted
into the Dover Association, and they have continued
all along to send delegates to the annual meetings
of that body.^

In 1828, the Alabama Association purchased a
slave named Caesar, at the cost of six hundred and
twenty-five dollars, and set him apart to the gospel
ministry to labor among his people. This man of
God, though as black as Erebus, was the companion
in labors for many years of James McLemore, a
white evangelist of local note in Alabama. Csesar
was universally respected alike for his piety and his
ability as a preacher, and not infrequently would
address audiences composed entirely of whites.

* Semple, " History of the Baptists in Virginia," p. 12G.

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR AVORK 319

Another slave, Dock Phillips, who was a preacher
of power and of commanding influence among his
people, the Tuskegee Association undertook to pur-
chase in order that he might be appointed a mission-
ary ; but he declined to be severed from his master,
who allowed him whatever time he might desire for
preaching.

At this period there were but few separate organ-
izations of the blacks in the South. In the centers
of population an occasional colored church was to be
met with. In Savannah, Georgia, there were three
such churches, the pastors of which were sustained
by one-third of the Negro population of the city, at
salaries ranging from eight hundred to one thousand
dollars a year.^ At other points colored churches
were presided over by white pastors, as was true
of the Anthony Street Church, Mobile, Alabama,
where Rev. Keidor Hawthorne was pastor. Another
notable instance is afforded by the First African
Church of Richmond, Virginia, of which Dr. Robert
Ryland, then president of Richmond College, served
as pastor. He sustained this relation for a period
of twenty-five years, a fact that denotes devotion and
affection on the part of both, and baptized during
that time not less than three thousand blacks.

The custom of licensing and ordaining colored

ministers was prevalent in the South up to 1825,

after which date the practice was abandoned and in

some of the States of the South, laws were enacted

^ Edward Ingle, "Southern Sidelights."

320 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

forbidding slaves to be taught to read/ Tliis grew
out of the apprehension that if thus taught they
would chafe under the restraint of servitude, and
possibly beget insurrectionary trouble. As has been
seen, these statutes, however moderate or severe,
were utterly ignored in thousands of instances, and
housemaids and butlers were taught to read and
write. The easily impressionable nature of the
Negro has made him readily susceptible to the
gospel, and he is usually a most enthusiastic auditor.
During slavery in the South Negroes attended in
vast throngs services held on the plantations. Their
stentorian melody of praise, unrestrained by conven-
tionality, was often heard at considerable distances as
they would heartily throw their souls into the worship.
When the slaves attended upon the same churches as
the whites, the former generally outnumbered the lat-
ter, and when the Lord's Supper was observed, slaves
communed with their masters. Among the notable
instances of the devotion of colored Baptists to
their principles may be mentioned the fact that,
in portions of Louisiana which were completely
under the domination of the French Catholics
where the religion of the Romanist alone pre-
vailed, the Negro slaves of these people were al-
lowed to engage in no other form of worship than
that of the Roman Catholic.

^ The States of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Caro-
lina, and Virginia had express provisions in their laws against
the instruction of free Negroes.

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 321

After their emancipation the fact became known
that these enslaved people had secretly maintained
Baptist worship for a long period of years. They
had their regular organizations upon the planta-
tions— their preachers, their deacons — all. Under
the cover of darkness in unfrequented quarters these
Baptist slaves would hold their services as noise-
lessly as possible, and observe the ordinances in due
form. One feature of Romish worship greatly im-
pressed these benighted slaves, and that was the
baptism of infants. To the ignorant slave there
was a fetich fascination in this ceremony, and long
after the period of emancipation, colored Baptist
preachers in some portions of Louisiana used the
ceremony of the sprinkling of infants with water as
an act of the consecration of the child to the Lord.

The records of the Baptist organizations in the
South, prior to the Civil War, abound in allusions
to provisions made for Christianizing the Negro.
Believing that more could be accomplished by mem-
bers of their own race in Africa than by white mis-
sionaries, two colored men — J. Day and A. L.
Jones — were sent in 1846, by the Southern Baptist
Convention, to the Dark Continent. These were
followed by others at later periods.

Considered as a body, the colored Baptists of the
South, according to the eleventh census, 1890, con-
stitute the most numerous section of Regular Bap-
tists in the world. Multitudinous as these figures
show the colored Baptists to be, they do not include

322 HISTOEY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

all American Negro Baptists. Many of these reside
in the North and are quite generally members of
white churches and are counted with them without
distinction, in the census aggregate.

There are many others who are not included in
the great national count, because of obscure rural
churches and of Associations of colored Baptists
which were not reached by the census officers.
Many again failed, for divers reasons, to respond
to repeated requests made by the national officials
to clerks or moderators for statistics. It is pre-
sumed that a third or more of the colored Baptist
Associations of the South failed to furnish adequate
statistics of numbers and of property. Notwith-
standing this, we have the figures given below.^

1 Georgia leads with 200,516 colored Baptists ; Virginia, 199,.
871 ; Alabama, 142,437 ; Mississippi, 136,647 ; North Carolina,
134,445; South Carolina, 125,572; Tennessee, 52,183; Kentucky,
50,245 ; Florida, 20,828 ; District of Columbia, 12,717 ; Maryland,
7,750 ; West Virginia, 4,233 ; Louisiana, 68,008. The grand aggre-
gate for the States named, together with the District of Columbia,
is 1,087,445. The following table furnishes additional data of in-
terest respecting colored Baptists :

ORGANIZA.- CHURCH SEATING VALUE CHURCH
TIONS. EDIFICES. CAPACITY. PROPERTY.

Alabama 1,374 1,341 376,839 $ 795,384

District of Columbia.. 43 33 18,600 383,150

Florida 329 295 61,588 137,578

Georgia 1,818 1,800 544,546 1,045,310

Kentucky 378 359 109,030 406,949

Louisiana 865 861 191,041 609,890

Maryland 38 34 12,389 150,475

Mississippi 1,385 1,333 371,115 682,541

North Carolina 1,173 1,164 362.946 705,512

South Carolina 800 836 275,529 699,961

Tennessee 569 534 159,140 519,923

Virginia *1,001 977 356,032 1,192,035

West Virginia 79 50 14,175 59,090

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 323

For reasons already assigned, the colored Bap-
tists of the South were not wholly unprepared to
withdraw from the churches of the whites and to
enter into independent organizations, when the
period of emancipation came. This was clearly
seen to be the wisest step possible on the part of the
blacks, and yet they were not left wholly uncared
for by the whites. Wherever aid was sought, and
it could be extended, it was cordially given to the
struggling blacks. In the work of organization,
both of churches and of Associations, in the ordina-
tion of ministers and deacons, and in the erection
of schoolhouses and church buildings, substantial
aid was cheerfully rendered.

There has been, on the part of the colored Bap-
tists, a most commendable progress in the develop-
ment of church life. So soon as they were able to
do so, they organized themselves into district Asso-
ciations, then into the more general bodies of State
and national Conventions. The colored Baptists of
North Carolina were the first to organize a State
Convention, M'hich was done in 1866, with Alabama
and Virginia following in 1867. Later, there came
in point of time Arkansas and Kentucky, to be fol-
lowed by the other States of the South still later.

As soon as this spirit of organization began to
prevail in the States of the South, representative
colored men came from the North to assist and
direct in the matter of affiliation with the larger
bodies.

324 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

In August, 1866, the twenty-sixth anniversary of
the colored Missionary Convention was held in
Richmond, Virginia, when it was determined to
consolidate all of the general interests of colored
Baptists — the Missionary, Northwestern, and South-
ern Conventions — into one body, which was called
the Consolidated American Baptist Missionary Con-
vention. Eleven years later, this consolidated body
met again in Richmond, when some very decided
diiferences of opinion arose respecting questions of
management and extent of jurisdiction. Disruption
for a time threatened the body, but it was pre-
served. Dissolution ultimately came, however, until
now the field embraced by the States of the South is
included in the Baptist Foreign Missionary Conven-
tion of the United States, which body was formed
in 1880. In 1883, this Convention sent six mis-
sionaries to Africa — J. H. Presley and W. W.
Colley, together with their wives, and J. J. Coles
and H. McKinney.

The American National Baptist Convention was
organized in 1886 in St. Louis. It was a large
representative body of six hundred delegates from
seventeen States. The advancement of the colored
people was indicated by the fact that there were
present " graduates in law, medicine, and theology ;
professors of philosophy, German, French, Latin,
Greek, and Hebrew ; a number of State ex-repre-
sentatives and ex-senators ; two lieutenant-govern-
ors ; editors and teachers, not a few ; a Baptist

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 325

senator from Mississippi ; and a Baptist missionary
from London, England." Rev. T. L. Johnson, one
of the speakers of the occasion said : " Knox lifted
up Scotland ; Luther lifted up Germany ; and it is
for us to lift up the heathen in the land of our
fathers." ^

The genuine orthodoxy of this body was set forth
in 1890, when a resolution was adopted recommend-
ing that the practice of receiving into membership
persons immersed into Pedobaptist churches be
discontinued, on the ground that Pedobaptist or-
ganizations are not churches, and therefore have no
power to administer baptism. The exchange of
pulpits with Pedobaptists was also condemned as
" inconsistent and erroneous." ^

The colored Baptists of all the States of the
South have nearly thirty schools of high grade,
which are largely devoted to the preparation of
preachers and teachers. The first of these to be
organized was that of Roger Williams University,
at Nashville, Tennessee, in 1864. It has a col-
lege property valued at two hundred and five thou-
sand dollars. The next two schools were founded
respectively at Raleigh, N. C, and Washington,
D. C, in 1865; the first, Shaw University, hav-
ing a property valued at two hundred and fifteen
thousand five hundred dollars, and the second,
Wayland Seminary, the property of which is valued

1 Dr. Cook's " story of the Baptists," p. 423.
2 Dr. H. K. Carroll, " The Religious Forces of the U. S.," p. 28.

326 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

at one hundred and thirteen thousand dollars. In
1867, the Atlanta Seminary was founded, and now
it has a property, the total valuation of which is
eighty-five thousand five hundred dollars. The
Benedict College, at Columbia, founded in 1870,
has a property estimated at one hundred and twelve
thousand dollars. In 1873, the Florida Institute
Avas established at Live Oak, and its property valu-
ation is ten thousand and fifty dollars. In Jackson,
Mississippi, is Jackson College, organized in 1877,
and its property is estimated to be worth twenty-
five thousand dollars. The Selma University was
established at Selma, Alabama, in 1878, and it owns
a property valued at twenty thousand two hundred
and fifty dollars. The college of Kentucky for
colored Baptists, is located at Louisville, and is
known as the State University. It was founded in
1879, and owns a property valued at thirty thousand
five hundred dollars. Spelman Seminary, of At-
lanta, Georgia, was instituted in 1881, and owns a
property the valuation of which is one hundred and
fifty-three thousand dollars. Leland University
was established in 1870 at New Orleans, Louisiana,
and possesses a most valuable property, estimated
to be worth one hundred and sixty thousand dol-
lars. These are the principal schools which are
under the management of the colored Baptists in
the Southern States east of the Mississippi. Most
of these schools are the result of Northern bene-
factions, and most of them, as well as others of less

COLORED BAPTISTS AND THEIR WORK 327

note, are maintained by the American Baptist Home
Mission Society.

Among the periodicals owned and conducted by
the colored Baptists of the region of country under
consideration may be named : " The African Expos-
itor," Raleigh, N. C. ; " American Baptist," Louis-
ville, Ky. ; " Baptist Messenger," Jackson, Miss. ;
"Georgia Baptist" and "Weekly Sentinel," Au-
gusta, Ga. ; " Baptist Signal," Greenville, Miss. ;
"The Living Way" and "Memphis Watchman,"
Memphis, Tenn. ; " Richmond Planet " and " Afri-
can Missions," Richmond, Va. ; " West Virginia
Enterprise," Charlestown, W. Va. ; " Baptist Trib-
une," Columbia, S. C. ; " Baptist Leader," Mont-
gomery, Ala. ; and " Baptist Review," Atlanta, Ga.
The most of these are strictly denominational in
character. A large number of papers are issued by
the colored Baptists of the South which are politico-
religious, while others are entirely political. One
of the most promising features of the race is that
they are omnivorous readers.

Allusion has been made to the fondness which
the colored man has for meetings of a religious
character. Coupled with this, was his equal fond-
ness for the diversion afforded by the " shuffle " and
"the breakdown." It was the care of many mas-
ters during the days of slavery that diversions be
had by the slaves on Saturday night. In order to
this, labor was often suspended before the close of
the day. As a result the Negro quarters upon the *

328 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

plantations of the South woukl resound every Sat-
urday night with tlie music of " the fiddle and the
bow/' the clapping of hands, the rattling of bones,
and hilarious laughter. This was responded to by
the shuffle and thump of agile dancers. Often till
the wee sma' hours was this hilarity indulged in.
But all this has changed. One rarely hears now
the tumult of the dancers in the Negro quarters of
the South. The rude frolic of former days has been
almost entirely supplanted by the religious gather-
ing. Instead of the strains of the banjo and violin,
one hears now the song of praise and the voice of
exhortation. The changes wrought in this people,
and the progress made under such conditions, make
them one of the most remarkable races of history.
In their religious inclinations, the Negroes are
Baptists. Even when becoming members of other
denominations they frequently insist upon immer-
sion as the only baptism. In his work entitled —
" Men of Mark — Eminent, Professional, and Eis-
ing," Dr. W. J. Simmons, the well-known colored
preacher, insists with evident satisfaction : " I claim
that there are in the United States, more colored
Baptists than white Baptists, and more colored Bap-
tists than all Pedobaptists together."

CHAPTER XV

CONCLUSION

Having traced the development of the Baptist
denomination in the Southern States east of the
Mississippi, through a period of more than two
hundred years, we are able, from the present ground
of advantage, to review the eventful eras through
which we have come, and to study with interest, and
perhaps with profit, the causes which have contrib-
uted to our growth. Far beneath the movements
of men and communities, of churches and conven-
tions, lie the philosophy of deeds and the instruction
of events

That on the stretched forefinger of all Time
Sparkle forever.

It is a fact worthy of attention that, though in
the beginning the principles of liberty advocated
by Baptist pioneers in America were stoutly resisted
at every step, they have become the fundamental
law of the land. Consistent and meritorious ag-
gression has overborne the most forbidding obstruc-
tions and has contributed, in the largest degree, to
the freedom now enjoyed throughout this broad
land of States. Along with the inculcation of these

329

330 HISTOKY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

principles 'which underlie our national framework,
has been a development of the people who were
their chief supporters in the outset ; and have been
their uncompromising patrons to the present. Nay,
the denomination has vastly outgrown the nation.
While in the United States the population has in-
creased sixteen-fold, the Baptists of the country
have grown fifty-six-fold, or nearly four times as
fast as the population of the country.

Nor can this marvelous growth be attributed to
immigration, for statistics abundantly show that
while other denomiuations have derived great nu-
merical increase from immigration, Baptists have
derived little or no benefit therefrom. In the sec-
tion of States under review in this work, the number
of regular Baptists alone has reached the enormous
figure of one million eight hundred and eight thou-
sand three hundred and seven.

In their relation to the outlying heathen world,
Baptists sustain missionary facilities that do great
honor to the wisdom of the fathers of the denomi-
nation. Systems well constructed and properly
adapted to the evangelization of the heathen have
been founded and are in successful operation. Im-
mense organizations established upon the most im-
proved methods of success for eliciting, combining,
and directing beneficent agencies, are under Baptist
control, and are directed with methodical success.
Missionary representatives are at work in the
crowded centers, the neglected districts, and on the

CONCLUSION 331

remote frontier regions of America — in Mexico,
Cuba, Brazil, China, Italy, Africa, and Japan.

In the early settlement of the country and until
a considerable period after the Revolution, American
Baptists, as a body, were an illiterate folk. Their
ignorance won for them the contempt of ecclesiasti-
cal opponents. But, at diiferent times, there were
developed a few great leaders like Manning and
Maxcy, and later, of Wayland at the North, and
of Furman, Holcorabe, and Mercer at the South,
who combined scholarship with sturdy good sense,
and were denomination builders, on the educational
side. Directing with skill the scanty resources at
command, and marshaling with adroitness every
encouragement developed, these earnest men of God
provided a leverage for the future elevation of the
Baptists of America. While with a great people
who had obtained a popular foothold in every
State, there must needs have been blunders, es-
pecially where so much was undertaken in educa-
tional work, still the close of the second century of
Baptist history finds the denomination with many
institutions of high grade, attaining indeed to the
highest, most widely distributed and deservedly pop-
ular throughout the country.

While in the South many of these interests were
prostrated as a result of the Civil War, most of
them have been revived, and are to-day among the
most powerful and salutary forces of our civiliza-
tion. With the freedom of the slave came the

332 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

establishment of schools for his elevation in the
scale of moral and intellectual excellence. These
give to colored Baptists numerous advantages over
those colored representatives of other denominations
in the States most populous with that race.

Baptists were the first of the denominations of
the South to lay hold of the press as an engine of
strength and progress. As the region has grown in
population and in prosperity, this agency has im-
proved, and its influence has broadened, until it has
become a stupendous factor in the States of the
South.

Among the chief elements of success which have
come into the possession of Baptists is that of wealth.
Prior to the Civil War, many Baptists in the South
were very wealthy ; but with the crash of Southern
institutions came the destruction of most of the
wealth of this section. But there has been a grad-
ual rehabilitation of thousands of estates together
with the production of wealth from many new
sources. In this, Baptists who constitute so large
a percentage of the population have, of course,
shared. By reason of their overwhelming numbers
in some of the States, they own a preponderance of
property as compared with other denominations.
Combined with other advantageous elements, this
gives to Baptists social position.

But the chief source of visible strength to the
Baptists is the firm hold which they have upon the
sturdy middle class of the country. They reach

CONCLUSION 333

and control more of that class perhaps than any
other denomination of Christians on the continent.
From the beginning this has been a basal element
of denominational strength, and to this fact may be
largely attributed Baptist achievements in America.

Such are some of the chief advantages enjoyed by
the Baptists of America. Should denominational
success continue at the same ratio of increase to the
close of the twentieth century, Baptist influence will
be beyond competition.

But while these advantages exist, and they are
considerable, are there no possible drawbacks to
Baptist growth and influence ? Are there no snares
besetting the future? In a land of unparalleled
prosperity there is grave danger arising from a
spirit of worldliness. Baptists have endured the
ordeal of struggle and affliction and have thriven ;
will they be able to thrive with the increasing pros-
perity of the country ?

The solidity of church life has been preserved by
the exercise of a wholesome discipline in the local
organizations. The inroads of worldliness will in-
evitably impair this distinct feature of our churches
and invite decay. One of the direct results of
worldliness is a decline of benevolence. Should
that spirit decline rather than increase with the
material prosperity with which the churches are
blessed, disastrous results will follow. Upon Bap-
tists more than upon others rests the responsibility
of meeting this strain. If so much has been accom-

334 HISTORY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

plished in spite of persecution and opposition, how
much greater should be denominational success with
these obstructions entirely removed, and with im-
mense prosperity at ready command.

Another danger springing from the spirit of the
times is that of superficiality of results. The appre-
hension is not without foundation that as we increase
numerically there is danger of a corresponding spir-
itual loss. Church progress has come to be esti-
mated too much by the enrollment upon the church
register. There is a widespread desire for increased
numbers rather than for increased efficiency. Pas-
tors are sought who " draw " rather than those who
build. In the craze for large accessions, organiza-
tion is neglected, discrimination and caution are not
exercised in the reception of members, and convert
culture goes for naught.

Kruramacher is credited with the saying, " The
Baptists have a future." The statement of the
German theologian is suggestive of the fact that
Baptists are charged with a peculiar mission which
is as yet unfulfilled. They have succeeded as a
people in making their impress upon the world
alone by their fidelity to the sacred trusts com-
mitted to them. Their influence is discovered by
the practical adoption of their view^s by a large
number of Pedobaptist churches. The steady and
consistent observance of the principles held all
along by Baptists has gradually brought into dis-
repute infant baptism ; and in proportion to the

COXCLUSION 335

decline of this practice has been the growth of the
doctrine of immersion. In consideration of their
numbers, influence, resources, and opportunities, the
possibility of future achievement seems boundless.

The story of the Baptists of the South for two
hundred years is one unequaled by that of any
other people in the annals of time. From a few
struggling outposts along the Atlantic, in the begin-
ning scarcely daring the deed of self-assertion lest a
storm of persecution be invoked, they have become
a people multitudinous in number, and of immense
resources. Pitied and despised by an arrogance
that accounted their forefathers the offscouring of
the earth, resisted by an intolerance whose self-
devotion blinded it to the noblest elements of char-
acter, and overridden by a haughtiness whose self-
ishness withheld all suffrage save that doled out by
stinted hands. Baptists have thriven in this goodly
land and have expanded as the garden of the Lord.
Opposition has made them great. The benediction
has come to the reviled and persecuted.

To-day we are confronted by the danger of undue
consciousness of greatness that may be a reversal of
the law by which we have attained the commanding
heights. There is appprehension lest our humility
be transformed into the very intolerance against
which an humble spiritual ancestry strove and
became great. Insidious pride follows fast upon
human success, and multiplies pitfalls in exact
proportion to achievement. The Chaldean mon-

336 HISTOEY OF BAPTISTS IN SOUTHERN STATES

arch was within a single stride of the level of the
grazing herds when puffed with vanity he paced his
capital walls and gloried in his grandeur; while the
Hebrew prophet was greatest in his dungeon with
the command ringing in his ears : "■ Buy the field
that is in Anathoth, for the right of redemption is
thine to buy it."

Kestraint of independent thought and an arbi-
trary erection of barriers against expressed indi-
vidual opinion — barriers as inexorable as the ram-
parts of the sea, saying, "Thus far shalt thou go
and no farther/' is akin to the intolerance that built
the Inquisition.

Questions and problems, grave and complicated,
are destined to be raised in the future as in the
past. These cannot be met with fiery zeal and im-
petuous intolerance. In matters of grave import
the wise counsel of Gamaliel is suited alike to all
times : " If this counsel or this work be of men, it
will be overthrown : but if it is of God, ye will not
be able to overthrow them ; lest haply ye be found
even to be fighting against God." '

iActs5:38, 39., R. V.

APPENDIX A

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES

Besides that great family of Baptists, the history
of which is briefly presented in this volume, there
are others, ten in number, each of which bears a
distinct name, and are expressive of the professed
principles of each. These are : the Seventh Day,
Six Principle, Freewill, Original Freewill, General,
Separate, United, Baptist Church of Christ, Anti-
missionary, and Old Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predes-
tinarian Baptists.

All these agree in two particulars, viz. :

1. That the only subjects of Christian baptism
are those who have been converted and profess per-
sonal faith in Christ, and

2. That the only scriptural baptism is immersion.

It is hardly necessary to say that they reject in-
fant baptism as invalid, and sprinkling or pouring
as unscriptural.

There are still other denominations, akin to the

Baptists, which accept these principles wholly, or in

part, such as the Disciples of Christ, Christians,

Mennonites, and others, but they are not Baptists,

and are never so classified.

w 337

338 APPENDIX A

The Disciples of Christ accept the principles
named, but they also insist that only through baptism
does " divine assurance of remission of sins and ac-
ceptance with God" come. The Christians generally
insist upon the immersion of believers, but will accept
pouring or sprinkling. The Mennonites believe in
pouring and usually adopt this. The Regular Bap-
tists are divided into Northern, Southern, and Col-
ored. In doctrine, they are Calvinistic. The Free-
will Baptists, in both its branches, together with the
General Baptists, and others, are Arminian. The
Anti-missionary Baptists, of which there are two or
three bodies, are hyper-Calvinistic.

The Seventh Day Baptists. — Originally these
were called Sabbatarian Baptists. They appeared
in England in the latter part of the sixteenth cen-
tury. They derive their name from the observance
of Saturday as a sacred day, or as a day of rest.
This body was known as Sabbatarians, or Sabba-
tarian Baptists, until the General Conference of the
body in 1818, when the name was changed to that
of Seventh Day Baptists. The first Seventh Day
Baptist church established in America was founded
at Newport, Rhode Island, in 1671. Stephen Mum-
ford, of England, was its founder. From this colony
have come all the people of that name to be found
to-day in different portions of the United States.
Reaching southward, Philadelphia, and Piscataway,
New Jersey, became other distributing centers.

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 339

They entered the South in 1754, when Rev. John
Gregory led a colony from Pennsylvania and New
Jersey into South Carolina, and they organized a
church on Broad River, in St. Mark's Parish. In
1769 or 1770, eight other families removed from
Chester (now Delaware County), Pennsylvania, and
joined them. A revival of religion followed this
event, when twenty-four members were added to
the church. At that time they were a prosperous
community of eighteen families. This is as far as
trustworthy records can trace them.

From this time they disappear from history.
They were located possibly not far from the present
town of Manning, South Carolina. The principal
families of the colony were named Price, Hughes,
Johnston, Owen, Jackson, Gregory, Nelly, Seymour,
and Noble. Were they absorbed by the Regular
Baptists of that region ?

In 1759 Rev. Richard Gregory led a company of
eight families into the Tuckaseeking region, about
forty miles north of Savannah, and organized a
Seventh Day Baptist church. Richard Gregory
preceded Daniel Marshall at Kiokee about twelve
years. This colony of Seventh Day Baptists left
Kiokee in 1765 and returned across the Savannah
River and settled at Edisto, South Carolina. Other
traces of these people are found in North Carolina,
but they are dim.

The Seventh Day Baptists hold the views gen-
erally held by the great Baptist family, and differ

340 APPENDIX A

from the others chiefly by observing the seventh
instead of the first day of the week, as a sacred day.
" They believe that the seventh day is the Sabbath
of the Lord, that it Avas instituted in Eden, promul-
gated at Sinai, made binding upon all men at all
times and is, in the nature of its relation to God
and to man, irrepealable. They hold that any at-
tempt to connect the Sabbath law and obligation
with any other day of the week is illogical, and
tends to destroy the Institution." ^

These people have suifered persecution in some of
the States for the disregard of Sunday as a sacred
day. This has been true both in Tennessee and in
Georgia.

They have two collegiate institutions, one located
at Milton, Wisconsin, and the other at Alfred Cen-
ter, New York. The denomination is represented
in twenty-four States. Of the States which come
within the compass of treatment in this volume, in
which the Seventh Day Baptists exist, are Alabama,
Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina,
West Virginia, Georgia, and Tennessee, having a
total membersliip in the States named of nine hun-
dred and thirty.

The Freewill. Baptists. — This organization
sprang up in New Durham, New Hampshire, in
1780. Its representatives derive their name from
the doctrine held by them concerning the will. The

1 Dr. H. K. Carroll, " Religious Forces in the U. S.," p. 31.

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 341

founder of the sect, Benjamin Randall was at first
a Congregationalist, but his views undergoing a
change, he became a Baptist. Refusing to accept
the doctrines usually held by the Baptists at that
time, concerning predestination, election, a limited
atonement, and the final perseverance of the saints,
he was accounted unsound and fellowship was
promptly denied him. This occurred in 1779.
The following year he secured ordination at the
hands of two Baptist ministers who coincided with
him in his views. The Freewill Baptist church
which he forthwith organized was, like all others in
New England at the time, spoken of simply as a
Baptist church. Within the next twenty years, the
members of these churches being popularly called
" Freewillers," the distinctive name of " Freewill "
Avas adopted. From New England, the Freewill
Baptists gradually extended into the West. No
doubt headway would have been made in the South
in the early periods of the century, but the founders
of the organization were vehemently opposed to
slavery. This opposition found pronounced expres-
sion in 1835, when the general conference of the
Freewill Baptists put the stamp of condemnation
upon African slavery.

The Freewill Baptist churches multiplied from the
beginning. After the lapse of half a century they
had four hundred and fifty churches, with twenty-one
thousand members. In 1 841 they united mth the
Free Communion Baptists of New York, and their

342 APPENDIX A

numbers were increased by the addition of fifty-five
churches and two thousand five hundred members.
Later, however, the Freewill Baptists sustained
losses by local dissensions through the Adventist
movement. They suffered also as a result of the
war, as both ministers and members largely enlisted
in the Union armies. Having a membership of
sixty thousand in 1845, they had the same number
in 1870. During the intervening quarter of a
century the denomination had grown, and yet, by
varying fortune, it had lost. Since that time, its
numbers have gradually increased until, in 1890,
there were, in the United States, eighty-seven thou-
sand eight hundred and ninety-eight Freewill Bap-
tists. As early as 1791 women began to labor
among this people as preachers. It is a custom
with them to grant ordination to such women as
desire to serve as ministers.

Freewill Baptists hold that while man cannot, in
his fallen state, become a child of God by natural
goodness and personal effort, redemption and regen-
eration are freely provided for him. This admits
of application to every one, for the " call of the gos-
pel is coextensive with the atonement to all men,"
so that salvation is "equally possible to all." They
insist that the " truly regenerate " are " through in-
firmity and manifold temptations " in " danger of
falling," and "ought therefore to watch and pray
lest they make shipwreck of faith." Their position
upon baptism and the Lord's Supper is that they

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 343

hold immersion alone as baptism, and insist upon it
that it is the " privilege and duty of all who have
spiritual union with Christ " to participate in the
observance of the Supper.

AVitli emphasis they declare that " no man has a
right to forbid these tokens to the least of his dis-
ciples." This declaration, of course, indicates that
the denomination advocates what is usually known
as " open communion."

The Articles of Faith provided for the churches
declare that the " human will " is " free and self-
determined, having power to yield to gracious in-
fluences and live, or resist them and perish." They
declare that the doctrine of election is not an " un-
conditional decree " which fixes the future state of
man, but that it is simply God's determination
" from the beginning to save all who should comply
with the conditions of salvation."

The general meetings of the Freewill Baptists are
called conferences. They hold quarterly and yearly
conferences, and a general Conference, which meets
every two years. These are representative bodies.
A quarterly Conference represents a restricted terri-
tory embracing a given number of churches. Its
functions are almost altogether advisory.

The quarterly Conference inquires into the condi-
tion of the churches and is empowered to advise, ad-
monish, or withdraw fellowship from them. It may
not, however, " deprive a church of its independent
form of government, nor its right to discipline its

344 APPENDIX A

members nor labor with individual members of
churches as such " ; to deal with the churches only
as churches and not with individuals, is what is pro-
vided for in the polity of the denomination. The
quarterly Conference selects delegates for the annual
Conference. It sustains the same relation to the
quarterly Conference that the quarterly Conference
does to the individual churches. The general Con-
ference, which has the oversight of all the interests
of the denomination, derives its delegates from the
annual Conference. While it has a general over-
sight of the denomination, its disciplinary jurisdic-
tion is limited to the yearly meeting. It cannot
reach beyond these and interfere with the action
either of the quarterly meeting or of the churches.
It is absolutely without power to reverse the de-
cisions of any of the subordinate bodies. Candi-
dates for the ministry derive licenses, for a year
only, from the quarterly meeting. Ordination is
granted by a council of the quarterly meeting. The
church officers are those of pastor, clerk, and treas-
urer, together with an elected Board of deacons who,
besides attending to the temporalities of the church,
assist at baptism, serve at the Lord's Supper, and
take charge of meetings during the absence of the
pastor. The strength of the denomination is chiefly
in the North and West. Of the States under review
in this volume, the statistics are as follows : Ala-
bama has a membership of eight hundred and forty-
seven ; Florida, a membership of twenty-two ; Ken-

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 345

tucky, a membership of one thousand six hundred
and forty-one ; Maryland, a membership of ninety-
eight ; Mississippi, a membership of one thousand
three hundred and thirty-nine ; North Carolina, a
membership of eleven ; Tennessee, a membership of
two thousand eight hundred and sixty-four ; Vir-
ginia, a membership of four hundred and seventy-
eight ; and West Virginia, a membership of one
thousand six hundred and sixty-eight.

The Original Freewill Baptists. — These
are a remnant of the General Baptists who settled in
North Carolina in the first half of the eighteenth
century. The territory in North Carolina occupied
by them lay contiguous to that which was occupied
by the General Baptists in Virginia.

In each of these colonies they formed an Associa-
tion. In 1787, the General and Regular Baptists
united upon a Calvinistic basis. There were a few
Freewillers who did not go into the coalition.
Eventually they came to be known as Original
Freewill Baptists. Probably the term " original "
carries with it the idea that they precede, in point
of time, the existence of those who afterward came
to be known as Freewill Baptists.

In doctrine they declare that Christ " freely gave
himself a ransom for all, tasting death for every
man " ; that God desires that all come to repentance ;
that " all men, at one time or another are found in
such capacity as that through the grace of God they

346 APPENDIX A

may be eternally saved " ; that those " ordained to
condemnation " are only the unrighteous who refuse
to accept the gospel offer of salvation ; that infants
who die are not subject to the second death ; that
God has not decreed any person to everlasting
death or everlasting life out of respect or mere
choice, only as he appoints " the godly unto life and
the ungodly who die in sin unto death " ; that only
believers are to be baptized, and that immersion
alone is baptism. They also observe foot-washing,
and anoint the sick with oil. Foot-washing and
communion are observed every quarter.

Conference for church business is held quarterly.
Every member is allowed a voice in the transaction
of the business of the church. The officers of a
church are, a pastor, clerk, treasurer, and deacons
who look after the temporal affairs and prepare for
quarterly communion. Besides these, they have a
sort of judicial eldership, the members of wdiicli
are called " ruling elders " whose duty it is to settle
controversies. Discipline is theoretically rigid.
Members of churches are not allowed to frequent
the "race track, the card table, shooting matches, or
any other place of disorder." In the administration
of discipline it is provided that " no person of color
within the pale of the church shall give testimony
against any person " (except one) " of color." Pro-
vision is made whereby only male members shall
hold office in the church. Once a year a general
conference is held for settlement of church difficul-

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 347

ties, for the reception of new churches, and for the
trial and discontinuance of elders, or pastors. This
yearly conference is composed of all the pastors, or
elders, ministers, (ordained) preachers, (licentiates)
in good standing, and of delegates chosen by the
churches.

Besides the work already named, this annual con-
ference alone has power to silence preachers. The
churches of the Original Freewill Baptists are con-
fined to North and South Carolina. In the former,
there is a membership of ten thousand two hundred
and twenty-four ; in the latter, there is a member-
ship of one thousand six hundred and forty.

The General Baptists. — The name of this
body is meant to imply its liberality in contradis-
tinction from the Particular or Regular Baptists
who are Calvinistic. The General Baptists are
Arminian in creed. They have eliminated every
vestige of Calvinism from their articles of faith.

We find General Baptists in New England at the
close of the seventeenth century. Near the begin-
ning of the century following they organized them-
selves into a General Association. A little later, we
find them establishing churches in Maryland, Vir-
ginia, and the Carolinas. A marked revolution was
effected in the last-named States by the visits of
such missionaries as Gano, Van Horn, Miller, and
others. Under the instruction of such men the
most of them became Calvinistic in faith.

348 APPENDIX A

During the first quarter of the present century
the drift of the General Baptists was toward the
West, where they are now concentrated. The first
Association of the General Baptists organized in the
West was the Liberty, of Kentucky, in 1824. They
adopted the practice of open communion in 1830,
and fifteen years afterward so changed one of their
articles of faith as to embrace idiots and infants in
the covenant of grace. It seems that in the creed
formulated at the constitution of the Liberty Asso-
ciation, this specification had been omitted. In
order to give more emphasis to the tone of Armin-
ianism, another article was changed so as to declare
that " he that shall endure to the end shall be
saved" instead of saying, "the saints will finally
persevere from grace to glory." The purpose of
these changes evidently was to wipe out from the
creed the last vestige of Calvinism.

In 1870 they formed a General Association in
which all the Associations of the general body are
represented. The object of such organization is
declared to be that of bringing " into more intimate
and fraternal relation and effective co-operation
various bodies of literal Baptists."

So closely akin are the General and the Freewill
Baptists that each readily receives into its com-
munion and fellowship the churches of the other.
The growth of the General Baptists, has within the
last quarter of a century been rapid. In 1870 they
numbered eight thousand; ten years later, twelve

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 349

thousand three hundred and sixty-seven; and ten
years later still, twenty-one thousand three hundred
and sixty-two.

They are scattered through the States of Indiana,
Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas,
and Nebraska. One fails to discover but slight
diiference between the General Baptists and the
Freewill Baptists from a comparison of the Con-
fessions of Faith. They hold that the Bible is the
only rule of faith and practice; that there is one
God, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ; that man
is "fallen and depraved," and is totally unable to
save himself; that he that endures to the end shall
be saved ; that reward and punishment are eternal ;
that immersion alone is baptism ; that only believers
are proper subjects of baptism ; that none can share
in the benefits of the atonement, though made for
all, except through repentance and faith, save idiots
and infants only.

In Kentucky the General Baptists have four
thousand four hundred and fifty-five members ; in
Tennessee, one thousand and eight members.

The United Baptists. — This is a small body
of communicants who retain the designation as-
sumed when the Separate and Regular Baptists
were united in Virginia, Kentucky, and elsewhere.
But there was such general concession to the prin-
ciples of the Regular Baptists, that the sections thus
combined were eventually called Regular Baptists.

350 APPENDIX A

Later, they were additionally called Missionary
Baptists to distinguish them from the Anti-mission-
ary. Some have persisted in clinging to the name
United Baptists and have preserved a continual ex-
istence in that way.

An additional reason for their independent exist-
ence is found in the fact that in Kentucky the fu-
sion of the Separates and Regulars was not upon a
purely Calvinistic basis. While in their doctrinal
platform they did declare the final perseverance of
the saints, they did not distinctly set forth election
or reprobation. However, the fusionists did stipu-
late that the doctrine of a general atonement, as de-
clared in the fact that "Christ did taste death for
every man," should be " no bar to communion."

As a distinct denomination the United Baptists
are moderate Calvinists. They hold that Christ
" suffered and died to make atonement for sin," but
do not say whether this atonement was general or
particular. They further declare that though the
gospel is to be preached to all nations, and men
everywhere are to be urged to repentance, such is
their opposition to the gospel that they deliberately
and voluntarily choose a state of sin.

They further insist that God in his " mere good
pleasure" elected or chose in Christ a great mul-
titude among all nations, and that through the
operation of the Holy Spirit, God " effectually calls
them " and they " freely choose Christ for their
Saviour." They urge that those who are united to

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 351

God by a living faith are forgiven and justified
" solely on account of the merits of Christ," and
that those who are justified and regenerated will
persevere to the end. On the subject of baptism
their views are in common with all other Baptists —
immersion of believers only. Concerning the Lord's
Supper they claim that it should be " observed by
those who have been regenerated, regularly bap-
tized, and become members of a gospel church."
They also hold to the observance of washing the
saints' feet.

The United Baptists are found in Alabama, Ar-
kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee. There
are in Alabama seven hundred and two members ;
in Kentucky, six thousand four hundred and forty-
three members ; and in Tennessee, three thousand
one hundred and eighty members.

The Baptist Church of Christ. — This is a
small body, the majority of the members of which
are to be found in Tennessee. The first two Asso-
ciations of the Baptist Church of Christ were the
Elk River and the Duck River, both of which were
organized in Tennessee in 1808. They assert that
they are the oldest body of Baptists, and that no
others existed in Tennessee until 1825, "when the
Two-Seed churches came into existence as the result
of what is know as the Antinomian Controversy."

The Articles of Faith of the Baptist Church of
Christ are conservative in tone. They hold that

352 APPENDIX A

" Christ tasted death for every man/' and so con-
ditioned the means of grace as to make it possible
for God to exercise mercy toward all who come unto
him on the terms of the gospel ; that justification is
by faith ; that saints will persevere. They agree
with the entire Baptist brotherhood upon the sub-
ject of immersion, and believer's baptism. They
insist upon three ordinances — baptism, the Lord's
Supper, and washing the feet of the saints. These
are to be observed until the second coming of
Christ. A few members of this body are to be met
with in the States of Alabama, Arkansas, Missis-
sippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, and
Texas. In Alabama there are seven hundred and
eighty-two members ; in Mississippi, three hundred
and sixty-eight members ; in North Carolina, six
hundred and fifty-nine members ; and in Tennessee,
five thousand and sixty-five members.

The Anti-Mission Baptists. — This body of
Baptists is known by a variety of names, such as
"Primitive," -''Old School," "Anti-Mission," and
" Hard Shell." Their tenets are characterized by
narrowness and rigidity. They owe their existence
as a distinct body, to their pronounced opposition,
begun more than fifty years ago, to missions, Sun-
day-schools, Bible societies, and all similar institu-
tions. They denounce them as human institutions,
modern innovations, as unauthorized by the Scrip-
tures, and unnecessary.

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 353

The severance of the anti-effort Baptists from the
missionary organizations was a gradual process. It
found open expression in the Chemung Association,
the churches of which were partly in New York
and partly in Pennsylvania, as early as 1835. It
adopted a resolution insisting that as associational
bodies with which it had been in correspondence
had "departed from the simplicity of the doctrine
and practice of the gospel of Christ, uniting with
the world and what are falsely called benevolent
societies, founded upon a monied basis," and en-
gaged in preaching a gospel "differing from the
gospel of Christ," it declined further fellowship
with them. It followed up this declaration with an
earnest appeal to all Baptists who did not approve
these innovations to withdraw from those hold-
ing them. A year later this was followed by a
similar protest from the Baltimore Association of
Maryland.

Set over against these deliverances was a declara-
tion from the Warwick Association, New York, in
1840. By this time the battle was waxing hot, as
the tenor of the Warwick declaration shows. Ex-
pressing itself in a circular letter, the Warwick
Association, in opposition to the Anti-missionary
element, charges them with entertaining hyper-
Calvinistic doctrines, and insists that such views of
predestination as they held practically relieved man
of any responsibility for his conduct or condition.
It charges upon them that they insist that God ex-

354 APPENDIX A

ecutes his plans " without the least instrumentality
whatever/' and that " all the preaching from John
the Baptist until now, if made to bear on one unre-
generated sinner " could not " quicken his poor,
dead soul."

What was taking place in the East at this time
was also taking place in the West and South. The
separation was finally brought about by the with-
drawal of the Anti-mission elements of the denom-
ination. No objection exists on the part of the
Anti-mission forces to the preaching of the gospel,
but they stoutly hold that God will convert the
world in his own way, and in his own good time,
independent of human agency.

It has been popularly supposed that the inaction
which such views necessarily engender, is leading
to a gradual extinction of this people. This is
corroborated by the fact that the masses of the
Anti-mission Baptists being illiterate, attach no
importance to denominational statistics. But the
supposition of their gradual disappearance is erro-
neous. They are endowed with amazing vitality.
We are indebted to the national census for the in-
formation, which we possibly would not othenvise
have, concerning this peculiar peoj)le. In his ad-
mirable work, " The Religious Forces of the United
States," in the American Church History Series,
Dr. H. K. Carroll conclusively shows that if past
statistics concerning this people are correct, the
census of 1890 exhibits a remarkable increase.

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 355

In their Articles of Faith the Anti-mission Bap-
tists declare that by the fall of Adam " all his pos-
terity become sinners in the sight of God " ; that
the " corruption of human nature " prevents man
by the exercise of his own will and ability from re-
instating "himself in the favor of God" ; that "God
elected, or chose, his people in Christ before the
foundation of the world"; "that sinners are justi-
fied only by the righteousness of Christ imparted to
them"; that the saints will finally persevere and
" not one of them will ever be finally lost" ; that
baptism, the Lord's Supper, and washing the saints'
feet, are ordinances of the gospel, and should be con-
tinued until Christ's second coming ; that " the in-
stitutions of the day are works of man " ; and that it
is " wrong to join them." They further insist that
no fellowship should be had with churches which
fiivor these human agencies. Indeed an article of
the constitution declines fellowship with any church
or churches which support any " missionary, Bible,
tract, or Sunday-school union society, or advocates
State Conventions, or theological schools," or " any
other society formed under the pretense of circu-
lating the gospel of Christ."

As may be readily judged from the foregoing, the
Anti-mission Baptists have no State Conventions or
theological seminaries. They vehemently oppose the
preparation of their ministry for more effectively
preaching the gospel. They are one with all Bap-
tists respecting immersion and the precedence of

356 APPENDIX A

faith to baptism, and that this is a prerequisite to
the Lord's Supper. They further contend that no
minister has authority to administer the ordinances
unless he has been " called of God/' " come under
the imposition of hands by a presbytery," and is
"in fellowship with the church of which he is a
member."

The denomination is distributed through twenty-
eight States. It is strongest in Georgia, Alabama,
Tennessee, North Carolina, and Kentucky. It has
disappeared from almost every Northern State
except Indiana and Illinois. The denomination
aggregates one hundred and twenty-one thousand
three hundred and forty-seven.^

The Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predestinarian
Baptists. — This is the most peculiar and distinctive
of all the bodies called Baptist. They hold no fel-
lowship with any other body of that name. They
entertain the most extreme views upon the subject
of Calvinism, giving great emphasis to the doctrine
of predestination, as their name indicates. Their
conception of good and evil is expressed by the

^ Of the Anti-mission Baptists there are in Alabama a mem-
bership of 14,903; in the District of Columbia, a membership of
34; in Florida, a membership of 1,997; in Georgia, a member-
ship of 18,535 ; in Kentucky, a membership of 10,605 ; in Mary-
land, a membership of 373 ; in Mississippi, a membership of
3,259; in North Carolina, a membership of 11,740; in South Car-
olina, a membership of 531 ; in Tennessee, a membership of 13,-
972 ; in Virginia, a membership of 9,950 ; in West Virginia, a
membership of 2,777.

OTHEE BAPTIST FAMILIES 357

phrase "Two seed." One of these represents good,
and the other, evil. Daniel Parker, of Virginia,
is regarded the founder of this branch. In 1826
he published a pamphlet in which were embodied
the doctrines of this denomination. In 1829 an-
other pamphlet appeared from his pen, entitled
" Second Dose of the Doctrine of Two Seeds."

The following is supposed to embody the views
held by the Old Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predesti-
narian Baptists.

The essence of good is God ; the essence of evil is the
devil. Good angels are emanations from, or particles
of, God ; evil angels are particles of the devil. When
God created Adam and Eve, they were endowed with an
emanation from himself, or particles of God were in-
cluded in their constitution. They were wholly good.
Satan, however, infused into them particles of his es-
sence, by which they were corrupted. In the beginning,
God had appointed that Eve should bring forth only a
certain number of offspring ; the same provision applied
to each of her daughters. But when the particles of
evil essence had been infused by Satan, the conception
of Eve and her daughters was increased. They were
now required to bear the original number, who were
styled the seed of God, and an additional number who
were called the seed of the serpent. The seed of God
constituted a part of the body of Christ. For them the
atonement was absolute ; they would all be saved. The
seed of the serpent did not partake of the benefits of
the atonement and would all be lost. All the manifesta-
tions of good or evil in men are but displays of the es-
sence that had been infused into them . The Christian
warfare is a conflict between these essences.

358 APPENDIX A

This body is known by other names than the one
already given. Some of the representatives call
themselves " Regular," others are called " Regular
Predestinarian," still others designate themselves,
" Regular Two-Seed Predestinarian Primitive Bap-
tists." The Articles of Faith held by these dif-
ferent divisions vary somewhat. One set de-
clares that God is the Creator of all things and
governs all things in righteousness ; that man was
created holy, but by reason of sin fell, and became
corrupted, from which corruption he was unable to
recover himself; that the elect were chosen in
Christ before the world began, and "appointed to
faith and obedience in love " by the Spirit of God
because of the " righteousness, life, death, resurrec-
tion, and ascension" of Christ; that God's elect
will, in due time, be effectually called and regener-
ated, the righteousness of God being imputed to
them ; that they will never finally fall away ; that
good works are the fruits of faith and grace in the
heart, and follow regeneration ; that ministers
should receive " legal authority " through the im-
position of hands of the presbytery acting for a
gospel church, and should be subject to the disci-
pline of the church ; that the " eternal work of the
Holy Spirit " is manifested externally as well as in-
ternally, in experimental religion and the call to
the ministry, and the true church should distinguish
itself from all " false sects " and have no fellowship
with them ; that the church is a spiritual kingdom

OTHER BAPTIST FAMILIES 359

which men in a state of nature cannot see, and it
should therefore receive as members only those who
have hope in Christ and experimental knowledge
of salvation ; that the ceremony of footwashing
ought to be observed, and that the joys of the
righteous and the punishment of the wicked will
be endless.

We have said that the Two-Seed Predestinarian
Baptists are unlike all others. They seem more
nearly to approximate the Anti-mission Baptists in
the doctrine of predestination, and yet they diifer
from them in that which seems to bring them more
nearly together.

The Two-Seed Predestinarian Baptists hold that
God predestined all his children to eternal life, and
the devil and all his spiritual children to the eternal
kingdom of darkness ; that he foreordained all
events whatever, from the creation to the consum-
mation of all things, not suifering, in his infinite
wisdom and perfect knowledge anything to occur to
change his plans. The Anti-mission Baptists do
not go so far. They hold that while God predesti-
nated some to eternal life, his predestination did
not extend absolutely to all things, for this doctrine
would, they insist, blasphemously impute to the
Almighty the existence of evil and do away with
sin and human accountability. Among the claims
of the Old Two-Seed Baptists is that of including
Waldo, Calvin, Bunyan, Wycliffe, and Knox as
" elders " who held the views of the Two-seed

360 APPENDIX A

doctrine. They regard Arminius as a perverter
and corrupter of the faith. Generally the Two-
seed Baptists are opposed to a salaried ministry.
Their interpretation of the all-sufficiency of Christ
is that human agency is not needed to eifect the re-
demption of men. They are purely antinomian in
belief. Their idea of the function of the ministry
is that of comforting Zion, feeding the flock, and
contending earnestly for the faith once delivered to
the saints.

They agree fully with the Anti-mission Baptists
in their opposition to " modern institutions/' by
which are meant Sunday-schools, theological semi-
naries, Bible societies, missionary Boards, as w^ell as
missionary endeavor. They are scattered through
twenty-four States of the Union, but are strongest
in the South. The States in which they are most
numerous are Texas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missis-
sippi, and Arkansas.^

1 In the States represented in the group, the history of which
is considered in this volume, they are numbered as follows :
Alabama has 538 members ; Florida, 39 members ; Georgia, 330
members ; Kentucky, 2,401 members ; Mississippi, 840 members ;
North Carolina, 183 members ; Tennessee, 1,270 members ; Vir-
•ginia, 142 members ; and West Virginia, 806 members.

APPENDIX B

INSTITUTIONS FOR WOMEN AND VALUE OF
PROPERTIES

Hollins Institute, founded in 1842 ; located at Botetourt
Springs; Charles L. Cocke, a. m., president; value of property,
$150,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $2,500.

Roanoke Female College, founded 1859 ; located at Danville ;
C. F. James, d. d., president; value of property, $25,000; value
of library and apparatus, $1,500; number of volumes in library,
1,000.

Southside Female Institute, founded 1888 ; located at Burke-
ville; Rev. R. W. Cridlin, president; value of property, $15,000 ;
value of library and apparatus, $2,000 ; number of volumes in
library, 1,200.

Southwest Virginia Institute, founded 1884 ; located at Bristol ;
Samuel D. Jones, b. l., president; value of property, $150,000;
amount of endowment, $7,500 ; value of library and apparatus,
$1,000 ; number of volumes in library, 712.

Woman's College, founded 1854 ; located at Richmond ; value
of property, $65,000 ; number of volumes in library, 400.

NORTH CAROLINA.

Chowan Female Institute, founded 1848 ; located at Murfrees-
boro ; value of property, $50,000.

SOUTH CAROLINA.

Cooper- Limestone Institute, founded 1880 ; located at Gaffney
City; H. P. Griffith, president; value of property, $.50,000;
value of library and apparatus, $2,000 ; number of volumes in
library, 250.

Greenville Female College, founded 1854 ; located at Green-
ville; Rev. M. M. Riley, d. d., president; value of property,
$20,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $500.

361

362 APPENDIX B

Monroe Female College, founded 1840 ; located at Forsyth ;
value of property, $15,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $600.

Shorter College, founded 1880 ; located at Kome ; A. J. Battle,
D. D., LL. D., president; value of property, $130,000; amount of
endowment, $45,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $3,000 ;
number of volumes in library, 1,500.

Southern Female College, founded 1843 ; located at La Grange ;
G. A. Nunnelly, d. d., president. This school has been located
in the town of La Grange for fifty-two j^ears. For many years
it was conducted by Prof. I. F. Cox, a. m., who had control of the
institution from 1857 to 1887, at which date he died. He was
worthily succeeded by his son, Prof. C. C. Cox, who conducted
the school with signal success until 1895, when he removed with
his faculty and outfit to the handsome college building at College
Park, near Atlanta. The new institution is known as Cox College.
It is a magnificent structure and handsomely equipped.

KENTUCKY.

Bethel Female College, founded 1854 ; located at Hopkinsville ;
Rev. T. S. McCall, a. m., president; value of property, $30,000;
value of library and apparatus, $1,000; number of volumes in
library, 1,000.

TENNESSEE.

Boscobel, founded 1889 ; located at Nashville ; J. G. Patey, a. b.,
president ; value of property, $75,000 ; value of library and ap-
paratus, $1,500 ; number of volumes in library, 1,000.

Brownsville Female College, founded 1851 ; located at Browns-
ville; value of property, $20,000; value of library and appa-
ratus, $500.

Sweetwater Seminary, founded 1886 ; located at Sweetwater ;
William Shelton d. d., ll. d., president; value of property,
$20,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $2,000 ; number of vol-
umes in library, 500.

ALABAMA.

Judson Institute, founded 1839 ; located at Marion ; S. W.
Averett, ll. d., president; value of property, $61,000 ; amount of
endowment, $540 ; value of library and apparatus, $20,000 :
number of volumes in library, 1,400.

MISSISSIPPI.

Blue Mountain Female College, founded 1873 ; located at Blue
Mountain; W. T. Lowry, d. d., president; value of property,

INSTITUTIONS FOR WOMEN 363

$25,000 ; value of library and apparatus, $5,000 ; number of vol-
umes in library, 1,500.

Hillman College, founded 1853 ; located at Clinton ; Walter
Hillman, d. d., president; value of property, $30,000; value of
library and apparatus, $3,000 ; total value of property, $33,000.

In addition to these, there are many schools of a minor grade
such as academies, institutes, and seminaries under the care of
the denominational local bodies in all the States of the South.

INDEX

Alabama : first Baptist settlements
in, 46 ; first church organized in,
47 ; denominational education
in, 155; Judson Inst, in, 362;
anti-missionary spirit in, 70, 195 ;
evangelistic effort in, 196; Con-
vention organized, 196; early
leaders, 196; " Resolutions," 203,
201 ; deliverance upon slavery,
205; "Resolutions" discussed,
206, 207.

Alamance, germ of Revolution, 80.

Alexandria, Va., 163.

Anti-missionary Baptists : their
spirit, 168 ; factious opposition
of, 169, 170 ; assumptions among,
1G9 ; prevalence of, accounted
for, 172 ; unprogressiveness of,
173.

Anti-mission Baptists, The, 352-356.

"Apostolic succession," views on,
held, 177.

Arminianism : Churches infected
with, 19 ; prevalence of, in Ken-
tucky, 37; advocates of, cause
trouble, 127.

Asplund's Register, 39.

Ashley River, 14.

Association : Baltimore, consti-
tuted, 189 ; anti-missionism of,
189 ; Charleston, raises an edu-
cational fund, 135; Concord,
Tenn., formed, 121 ; Cumberland,
formed, 121: Edgefield, men-
tioned, 138 ; Elk River, formed,
121 ; Georgia, 124 ; Green Brier,
49 ; Hepzibah, Ga., 124 ; Holston,
Tenn., formed, 39, 119; Mero,

112; Philadelphia, 17, 19; Red
River, Tenn., formed, 121 ; Sandy
Creek, N. C, 39, 85 ; Sarepta, Ga.,
124, 144 ; Savannah River, 138.

Averett, S. W., ll. d., 362.

Axtell, Lady, 10.

Bailey, Prof. W. E., 140.

Baltimore, First Church of, or-
ganized, 21.

Baptists : General laxness of, in
North Carolina, 24, 161 ; churches
of, few in number, 110 ; heroism
and influence of their ministry,
110, 127; uneducated ministry
among, 131 ; better equipment
provided for, 133 ; Particular,
165, 166 ; found most in rural dis-
tricts, 222; rivalry between, and
Methodists, 266; robust culture
of, 268 ; Anti-Missionar\% opposed
to Sunday-schools, 270 ; in North
Carolina advocating Sunday-
schools, 271 ; entering Louisiana,
44 ; of Mississippi reporting on,
271, 272; attitude of, in Ken-
tucky toward Sunday-schools,
273, 274 ; denouncing undenomi-
national literature, 274, 275 ; ad-
dress to, concerning Sunday-
school Board, 278 ; chief jour-
nals of, 285-293 ; colored,. 310-
328 ; principles advocated by,
now fundamental law, 329 ;
growth of, 330 ; missionary spirit
among, 330; illiteracj' among,
331 ; institutions of learning
among, 331, 332 ; appreciating
365

366

INDEX

press, 332 ; elements of success
among, 332; chief source of
strength among, 332, 333 ; dan-
gers to be encountered by, 333-
336; the future of, 334; the
story of, 335 ; counsel for, 336 ;
The Seventh Day, 338-340; The
Free Will, 340-345 ; The Original
Free Will, 345-347 ; The General,
347-349 ; The United, 349-351 ;
The Anti-Mission, 352-356; The
Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predesti-
narian, 356-360.

Baptists, The Colored : beginning
of their history, 312, 313 ; work
of Bryan among, 313, 314 ; Lot
Cary one of the most notable of,
315, 316 ; numerical increase of,
317, 318 ; churches of, having
white pastors, 319 ; representa-
tives of, sent as missionaries by
Southern Convention, 321 ; sta-
tistics of, 321, 322 ; withdrawing
from whites, 323 ; commendable
progress of, 323 ; organization
of Convention among, 324, 325 ;
scholars among, 324, 325 : schools
possessed by, ,325, 326; periodi-
cals owned by, 327 ; meetings
among, 327, 328; great number
of, 328.

Baptist Church of Christ, The, 351,
352.

Baptist : The Tennessee, 288 ; The
Southern, 289.

Battle, Dr. Cullen, liberality of,
145.

Bestor, D. P., Dr. : mentioned, 155 ;
declines secretaryship of Domes.
Miss. Board, 223.

Blair, Hon. Jno., letter from, 60, 61.

Blake, Humphrey, 9, 13.

Blake, Joseph, 10, 68.

Board of Domestic Missions : lo-
cated at Marion, Ala., 219; diffi-
culties of, 220; removal of, to

Atlanta, 224; zeal and activity
of, 224-226 ; assumes care of
work among Indians, 225 ; work
of, depressed, 226, 227 ; work of.
among Southern armies, 225, 226 ;
its distinguished evangelists,
226 ; agency of, in creating State
Boards, 226; name of, changed,
226 ; Cuba included in its work,
229 ; buys Havana theatre, 229.

Board, Bible, organized, 239.

Board, Foreign Mission: located
at Richmond, 219; dependence
of, on Board of Domestic Mis-
sions, 221 ; mission journal estab-
lished by, 2;i0; difficulties en-
countered by, 230, 231 ; mission-
aries sent by, 231, 233 ; points oc-
cupied by, 231, 232; stations es-
tablished by, up to 1863, 233;
operations of, hindered by
cholera, 234 ; enlargement for,
234 ; most fruitful department of,
236 ; journal issued by, 292.

Boards, Southern Convention :
men chosen as officials of, 223 ;
contributions to, 224 ; new
churches established by, 225 ;
contributions of Sunday-school
Board to, 240.

Board, Sunday-school : organized
and revived, 239; headquarters
of, 240 ; contributions of, to other
Boards, 240; literature of, 240;
receipts of, 240; made Sunday-
school and Publication Board,
278; employing Dr. Broadus as
secretary, 278 ; crippled by war,
279 ; literature issued by, 279 ;
Bibles to, from American Bible
Society, 280 ; active missionaries
of, 280 ; cessation and resumption
of work by, 281 ; its wrestle for
life, 282 ; Dr. Bitting appointed
secretary of, 282 ; removed from
Greenville, 283 ; help to, from

INDEX

367

American Baptist Publication
Society, 283 ; merged in Domestic
Mission Board, 284.

Boone, Daniel, 33.

Boston, first church of, 12.

Bostwick, J. A., gifts of, 148.

Botsford, Rev. E. : mentioned, 29 ;
work of, in Georgia, 122, 135.

Boyce, Dr. J. P. : originating plan
for theological seminary, 246 ;
executive skill of, 248; guiding
hand of, 251 ; chaplain in Con-
federate army, 253 ; devising
plans for seminary buildings,
259; struggles of, for seminary,
260-262; death of, 262; career
and character of, 263.

Brantley, W. T., Sr., 143.

Brazil : effort to found mission in,
232 ; mission abandoned and re-
sumed, 236.

Broaddus, Rev. Andrew, declines
call to city churches, 222.

Broaddus, Rev. W. F., 149, 162.

Broad us. Dr. John A. : writing
from Rome, 235 ; one of com-
mittee on theological seminary,
249 ; one of the professors in
theological seminary, 252; em-
ployment of, during war, 253;
giving instruction to one stu-
dent, 255 ; going North for semi-
nary, 259; becoming president
of the seminary, 263 ; death of,
264.

Bryan, Rev. Andrew, 313, 314.

Burma, 161.

Calvinistic Methodists, 166.

Campbell, Alex. : opposes mis-
sions, 174; edits the "Christian
Baptist,"' 174; begins a notable
career, 174 ; shrewd debater, 174 ;
conditions favoring his advent,
175 ; forms a new sect, 175 ; dis-
rupts churches, 175, 176 ; follow-

ers of, called " Disciples " and
Campbellites, 175, 176; character
of his followers, 176 ; contributes
to anti-pedobaptism and immer-
sion, 177 ; distraction occasioned
by, 188.

Camp-meeting, early, described,
118.

Cardross, Lord, 13.

Carroll, Dr. H. K., 110.

Carson, Hon. J. H., 154.

Cary, Rev. Lot, 315-317.

Chaplin, Prof. Jere, Jr., 141.

Chapman, Wm., 12.

Charleston: First Church in, 11;
population of, in 1700, 13 ; serious
blunder of Baptists in, 67,

Chenault, Mr. D. A., bequeath-
ing fifteen thousand dollars to
Southern Seminary, 262.

China : missionaries appointed
to, 231 ; dismal period for mis-
sion in, 234 ; mission in, hindered
by war, 234.

"Christian Index," 144.

Churches : Baton Rouge, La., 45 ;
Buckhead Creek, Ga., 123 ; Ce-
dar Creek, Ky., 35 ; Chestnut
Ridge, Md., 21 ; Chowan River,
N. C, 23; Coliseum Place, La.,
46; Euhaw, S. C, 29; Pensa-
cola, Fla., 49; Gilbert's Creek,
Ky., 35 ; Green Brier, W. Va., 49 ;
Gunpowder, Md., 21 ; Harford,
Md., 21 ; High Hills of Santee,
S. C, 136; Ketocton, Va., 17;
Kiokee, Ga., 32 ; Meherrin, N. C,
25; Mill Creek, Va., 17; Mill
Swamp, Va., 16; Opecon, Va.,
17; Otterdams, Va., 16; Sandy
Creek, N. C, 84; Sandy Run,
N. C, 25; Saters, Md., 16; Sev-
ern's Valley, Ky., 35 : Simpson's
Creek, W. Va., 49 ; Sulphur Fork
River, Tenn., 120 ; Taneytown,
Md., 21 ; Tuckaseeking, Ga., 29 ;

368

INDEX

Welsh Tract, Pa., 23; Winter
Run, Md., 21.

" Civil grievances," committee on,
94.

Civil War : interfering with mis-
sion work, 233 ; causing suspen-
sion of theological seminary,
253.

Cocke, C. L., A.M., 361.

Clopton, Rev. S. C, foreign mis-
sionary, 217.

Colleges, denominational : germ
of, 134; Bethel, Ky., founded,
and presidents of, 153 ; Carson-
Newman, 154 ; Columbian, 144,
148, 161-163; Georgetown, Ky.,
152, 153, 154 ; Howard, 155, 156 ;
Keachi, La., 160; Mercer Uni-
versity, 146 ; Mississippi, 157 ;
Rhode Island, 135; Richmond,
151 ; J. B. Stetson University,
161 ; Wake Forest, 148.

Committee of correspondence, or-
ganized, 188.

Comer, Jno., 24.

Comstock, Hon. O. C, leaves Con-
gress for ministry, 191.

Cone, Rev. Spencer H. : abandons
the stage, 190 ; position of, on
slavery, 201.

"Constitution of Virginia," 88.

Convention. Southern Baptist: oc-
casion of its formation, 199 ; con-
servative element in, 210; or-
ganized, 210 ; first resolution in,
211 ; addresses Baptists of the
Union, 211 ; charges made by,
212; its Boards, 214; difficulties
of, 215 ; meets in Richmond, 216 ;
devotional spirit of, 217 ; pro-
posed operations of, on Pacific
coast, 218; efTorts of, to Chris-
tianize slaves, 218 ; outline of its
proposed work, 220 ; territory of,
221; conditions afTectiug, 222;
deliberate in choice of officials.

223 ; zeal and ability in affairs
of, 224 ; missionaries of, entering
Mexico, 236 ; Bible and Sunday-
school Boards organized by, 239 ;
claims of theological seminary
advocated before, 244 ; subscrip-
tions at, for seminary, 256 ; Sun-
day-schools claiming attention
of, 276 ; committee of, to con-
sider Sunday-schools, 277 ; con-
sidering women's work, 302 ; at-
titude of, toward women repre-
sentatives, 305 ; women's work
recognized by, 306 ; Negro mis-
sionaries commissioned by, 321.

Cooper River, 9, 10.

Corcoran, Hon. W. W., 163.

Cornwallis, Lord, 93.

Cote, Dr. W. N., pioneer mission-
ary to Italy, 234.

" Council of Safety," 92.

Cox, C. C, 362.

Cruelties to Baptists, 55.

Curtis, R., Sr., 41.

Cuba, Diaz sent as missionary to,
228.

Declaration of principles, 87.

Desecration of Baptist churches,
97.

Determination of Baptists, 86.

Diaz, Rev. A. J. : adventure and
conversion of, 228, 229 ; sent as
missionary to Cuba, 228 ; arrest
and imprisonment of, 229.

District of Columbia, first church
in, 49.

Dobbs, Gov., 82.

Doctrine, laxness of North Caro-
lina in, 25.

Dorris, Eld., removes from North
Carolina to Tennessee, 120.

Dudley, Rev. Ambrose: conse-
crated missionary, 40; in Ten-
nessee, 120.

Duke of York, 9.

INDEX

369

Eager, Dr. J. H. : reinforcing Dr.
Taylor, 235 ; quotations from,
235 ; calling for money, 236.

East Lake, Ala., 156.

Edisto Island, 14 ; Edisto River, 13.

Edwards, Rev. Morgan, 22, 84, 136.

Education : beginning of denomi-
national, in Virginia,136 ; fund of
Charleston Association, 137 ; fail-
ure of project for, in Louisiana,
159.

Ellicott, Col. Andrew, 79.

English : Baptists, 10 ; Act of Tol-
eration, 15, 52; society for the
propagation of the gospel in for-
eign parts, 14, 71.

Episcopalians, irersecute Baptists,
53.

Establishment, hostile activity of.

Financial crisis, 146.

Florida : education in, 160, 161 ;
proposed work in, by Southern
Baptist Convention, 219; first
church in, established, 219 ; As-
sociation organized, 225.

Forbes, Pres. J. F., 161.

Frost, Dr. J. M., secretary of Sun-
day-school Board, 240.

Fuller, Dr. R., resolution of, on
slavery, 200, 201.

Furman, Dr. R. : called to Charles-
ton, 114; gifts and leadership of,
116, 138; zeal and wisdom of,
180, 181 ; founds the South Caro-
lina Convention, 181; precedes
Luther Rice in missionary in-
terest, 181 ; instructing young
people, 267.

Furman, Samuel, 140.

Furman Theological Institute :
founded, 140 ; suspended, 141.

Furman University, established,
141.

Free Will Baptists, The, 340-345.

Gano, Rev. John : in Charleston
Association, 24 ; removes to Ken-
tucky, 117 ; in South Carolina,
134 ; missionary in N. C, 180.

General Association of Virginia :
action of. 86 ; memorializes Con-
vention of province, 87 ; per-
sistency of, 94 ; firm remon-
strance of, 98 ; organized, 188.

General Committee : activity of,
99 ; superseded by committee of
correspondence, 188.

Georgia: first Baptist settlement
in, 27 ; firmness of Baptists in,
75 ; statistics, 124 ; leaders, 141 ;
beginning of denominational
education in, 143 ; Convention
organized, 144 ; schools for girls
in, 362 ; slavery occasions trouble
in. Convention, 206.

General Baptists, The, 347-349.

Gilmore, Rev. J. R., 39.

Graves, Dr. J. R. : one of the found-
ers of "Old Landmarkism," 177;
novel views of, on Communion,
178; editor of the "Tennessee
Baptist," 178 ; ability of, 178.

Great Pedee, 41.

"Great Split, The," 173.

Greenville : theological seminary
proposed to be established at,
248 ; educational meeting held
at, 248 ; seminary established at,
251 ; members of seminary fac-
ulty meeting at, 254 : seminary
removed from, 257 ; Sunday-
school Board removed from, 283.

Griffith, H. P., 356.

Grimball, P., 10.

Hamilton and Rochester, N. Y.,

141.
Hanover Presbytery, 89.
Hart, Rev. Oliver: pastor at

Charleston, 28, 134 ; flight of, 114 ;

mentioned, 135.

370

INDEX

Hawks, Dr., 22, 96, 98.

Hawthorne, Dr. J. B. : quotation
from, 296.

Henderson, Pres. J. T., 155.

Henning, quoted, 54.

Henry, Patrick : advice of, 95 ; op-
position of, to Baptists, 101.

" Herald, The Religious," 286, 287.

Hillsboro, resolutions, 83.

Holcombe, Dr. Henry : conver-
sion of, 141; first pastorate of,
141 ; description of, 142 ; public
service of, 142 ; goes to Philadel-
phia, 143 ; secretary of general
committee of Georgia, 182; his
mistaken zeal, 183.

Holman, Rev. R. : secretary of Do-
mestic Board, 223 ; retires, 223.

Holt, Mre. C'hloe, her heroism, 44.

Hooper, Dr., 141.

House of Burgesses, Baptists ex-
pelled from, 54.

House of Lords, action of, 71.

Howe, quoted, 91.

Indians : depredations of, in Ken-
tucky, 35 ; efforts to Christianize,
184.

Influence of South Carolina Bap-
tists, 92, 93.

Impositions practised, 70.

Imprisonment, Baptist ministers,
59-65.

Jail, attempt to blow up, 65.

Japan: establishment of mission
in, 233 ; mission in, youngest, 238.

Jefferson, Thos., 90.

"Jerks," 115.

Jeter, Rev. J. B. : mentioned,

■ 149 ; local missionary, 188 ; posi-
tion of, on slavery, 201 ; prepar-
ing address concerning theologi-
cal seminary, 249.

Johnson, Dr. W. B. : discussing
education, 139, 143 ; leadership of.

184 ; president of S. B. Conven-
tion, 210.
Jones, S. D., 361.

Keling, H., 149.

Kentucky : Baptists first in, 33 ;
early meeting-houses of, 36 ; pri-
vations in, 37 ; revivals in, 117 ;
interest of, in education, 152;
ministerial education society,
153 ; school in, for girls, 362 ; mis-
sionary zeal of, 192, 193 ; Conven-
tion organized, 194 ; aggressive
opposition in, to missions, 194 ;
attitude of Baptists in, toward
Suuflay-schools, 273-275.

Kiokee Creek, 30.

Kittery, Maine, 10.

" Landmarkism, Old " : author-
ship of, 177 ; decline of, 178.

Lee, Richard Henry, opposition of,
to Baptists, 101.

Leland, Rev. John, letter of, to
Washington, 107, 108.

Liberia, mission established at,
233.

Locke, John, 10.

Lossing, quoted, 82, 83.

Louisiana : Roman Catholicism
in, 44, 45 ; first Baptist preacher
in, 44 ; Baptist churches organ-
ized in, 45; Association organ-
ized, 46 ; education in, 157-160.

Louisville : educational conven-
tion held at, 247 ; theological
seminary removed to, 257 ;
" Seminary Magazine " pub-
lished at, 293.

" Luminary, The Latter Day," 286.

Madison, James: quoted, 67; loy-
alty of, to religious liberty, 88;
allusion to, 109.

Manning, Dr., 135.

Manly, Dr. B., Sr., position of, on
slavery, 204.

INDEX

371

Manly, Basil, Jr., interested in
Sunday-school work, 277.

Marion, Ala., 156.

Marshall, Rev. Daniel : becomes a
Baptist, 17 ; leadership of, in
North Carolina, 26 ; arrested, 30,
31 ; work of, during Revolution,
122, 123 ; an organizer, 123 ; died,
125.

Marshall, Rev. Abraham : allusion
to, 122, 125 ; chairman of the gen-
eral committee, 182 ; blunder of,
183.

Marshall, John, opposition of, to
Baptists, 101.

Maryland : missionaries from, to
Virginia, 16 ; freedom from per-
secution in, 20; numerical
strength of Baptists in, 189;
Baptist Union Association or-
ganized in, 190.

Mason, George, aids Baptists, 101.

McClanahan, Eld., patriotism of,
91.

McGready, Rev. Jas., 113.

Mcintosh, Dr. W. H., 224.

Memorial and remonstrance, 101.

Mercer, Rev. S. : allusion to, 122 ;
character of, 125.

Mercer, Jesse: influence of, 142,
146 ; leadership of, 143, 144 ; was
chief founder of denominational
work in Georgia, 182 ; a prime
mover in the Powelton confer-
ence, 182.

Meredith, Rev. Thos. : able advo-
cacy of education by, 186.

Methodists: alliance of, with Epis-
copalians, 94 ; zeal of their min-
istry, 130.

Mexico: contemplated as a field
for missions, 220 ; establishment
of mission in, 236; names of
missionaries in, 237 ; mission
work in, 238.

Miller, Benj., 19.

Ministers : Anderson, John, 49 ;
Anthony, Joseph, 62; Bedge-
wood, N., 28 ; Brooks, I. L., 143 ;
Brown, O. B., 49; Campbell, J.
H., 144; Canterbury, Jno., 47;
Cartlege, Samuel, 31; Chapin,
Dr. S., 162; Childs, Jas., 59;
Compere, Lee, 184; Courtney,
Jas., 47; Courtney, E., 45;
Craig, Lewis, .59; Cridlin, R. W.,
361 ; Curtis, Richard, Jr., 41 ;
Davidson, Dr. A. C, 153 ; Davis,
Jno., 21 ; DeVotie, Dr. J. H., 155 ;
Egan, Dr. B., 158; Eaton, Dr. J.
H., 154; Gerrard, Jno., 35; Gid-
dings, Rockwood, 1.52; Harriss,
Samuel, .56; Hays, Edmund, 16;
Healy, Jno., 21 ; Hickman, Wm.,
34; Hillman, Dr., 157; Hillman,
W., 363; Holcombe, Hosea, 155;
Holman, R., 46 ; Ireland, James,
65; James, C. F., 361; Keel,
James, 40; Kerr, Jno., 149; Kil-
patrick, J. H. T., 143; Lane,
Tidance, 40; Lowry, W. T., 362;
Lynn, Benj., 37; Malcolm, Dr„
152; Marshall, Wm., 37; Mar-
shall, J. P., 143; McCall, T. S.,
362 ; McGraw, A. G., 155 ; McGee,

Jos., 47 ; Mott, , 40 ; Murphey,

Wm., 40; Murrell, Thos., 40;
Nicholson, Jno., 47; Nordin,
Robt., 16; Nunnelly, Dr. G. A.,
362: Palmer, Wait, 18; Parker,
Jos., 25; Parker, Z., 47; Parker,
Jacob, 47 ; Parkinson, William,
49 ; Peartt, Wm., 14 ; Pugh, Evan,
135 ; Purifoy, J. S., 148 ; Ranold-
son, J. A., 45; Reno, Wm., 40;
Richards, Lewis, 21 ; Riley, M.
M., Dr., 361; Ripley, H. J., 143;
Ryland, W. S., Dr., 153; Sater,
Henry, 20; Scott, Alex., 33;
Shelton, Wm., 362; Skaggs, Jas.,
37; Smith, G. S., 34; Stillman,
Samuel, 135; Stirk, Benj., 28;

372

INDEX

Talbott, , 40; Thomas, ,

133 ; Thompson, Solomon, 33 ;
Tilley, Wm., 14 ; Tomkies, C. W.,
160 ; Walker, Sanders, 33 ; Wal-
ler, Jno., 59; Ware, Robt., 58;

Webber, Wm., 62; White, ,

12 ; White, Thos., 16 ; Whitaker,
Jno., 37; Williams, Jno., 136;
Williams, Robt., 24 ; Yates,
Thomas, 16 ; Reynolds, J. L.,
223, 226 ; Bestor, D. P., 223 ; Hol-
mau, R., 223, 226, 276 ; Walker,
Joseph, 223 ; Sumner, M. T., 223 ;
Mcintosh, W. H., 224 ; Tichenor,
I. T., 224, 226, 229, 277 ; Diaz, A. J.,
228, 229; Frost, Dr. J. M., 240;
Bell, Dr. T. P., 240; Boyce, Dr. J.
P., 243, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250, 251-
253, 262 ; Williams, Dr. J. W. M.,

243, 302, 303 ; Clopton, S. C, 243 ;
Tupper, H. A., 243, 302 ; Wink-
ler, E. T., 243, 249, 277 ; Manly,
Dr. Basil, Jr., 243, 244, 249, 277,
278, 279; Jeter, Rev. J. B., 243,

244, 245, 249; Johnson, Rev. W.
B., 243, 244 ; Howell, Dr. R. C. B.,
244; Ryland, Robert, 244, 311;
Poindexter, Dr. A. M., 244,245;
Manly, Dr. Basil, Sr., 245, 249;
Broadus, Dr. John A., 249, 250,
252, 253, 263, 264, 282 ; Whitsitt, Dr.
W. H., 264 ; Vaughn, Dr. William,
273; Bitting, Dr. C. C, 282; Grif-
fith, Dr. Benjamin, 283; Ford,
Dr. S. H., 283; Teasdale, Dr. T.
C, 283; Graves, Dr. J. R., 288,
289 ; McDonald, Dr. Henry, 295 ;
Tucker, Dr. H. H., 295; Jones,
Dr. J. William, 304 ; Bryan,
Andrew, 313-315.

Ministry, The ; desire for a better
qualified, 241 ; colleges founded
for, 242 ; theological course pro-
vided for, 242; candidates for,
going North, 242 ; necessity of a
separate institution to train, 243.

Missionaries: Shuck, Rev. J. L.,
230; Roberts, Rev. I. J., 230;
twenty-two sent to China, 231 ;
sixteen sent to Yoruba, Africa,
232 ; Cote, Rev. W. N., 234 ; Tay-
lor, Dr. Geo. B., 235 ; Eager, Dr.
J. H., 2;i5, 236; sent to Brazil,
236 ; sent to Mexico, 236, 237 ;
Rice, Luther, 242, 286; Judson,
Adoniram, 242 ; Cary, Lot, 315-
317 ; six, sent to Africa, 324 ; ap-
pointed to different stations, 231,
232, 233; names of, in Mexico,
237 ; of Sunday-school Board, 280 ;
colored, sent to Africa, 321, 324.

Missionaries, zeal of local, 169.

Missions : conflicts of, with educa-
tion, 161 ; zeal of early Baptists
in, 179; folly of objections to,
180 ; fostered before conversion
of Judson and Rice, 181 ; early,
184 ; opposed by commercialism,
197, 198.

Mississippi : Baptists settle in, 40 ;
struggles of Baptists in, 42 ; per-
secutions in, 77-79 ; progress of,
126; steps to found school in,
156; Academy, 156; schools for
girls, 362, 363 ; Convention or-
ganized, 196.

Moore, Rev. M., 123.

Negroes, The : relation of slavery
to, 310-312; not savage when
liberation came, 311 ; work of
Bryan and Cary among, 313-
317 : plantation services among,
320 ; laws against instruction of,
320; amusements and meetings
among, 327, 328.

New England, compared with Vir-
ginia, 113.

"New Lights," 17.

New Orleans, battle of, 121.

New Y''ork, compared with Vir-
ginia, 113.

INDEX

373

North Carolina: lirst Baptists in,
22; couditiou of, described, 72;
persecutions in, 74, 75 ; revivals
in, 113 : increase of members,
113 ; educational movement in,
147 ; schools for girls, 301 ; pecu-
liar conditions in, ISo ; Baptist
Benevolent Society in, 185 ; Con-
vention organized, ISO ; minis-
terial education and missions in,
180.

Norton, Mr. W. F., contributing
ten thousand dollars to Southern
seminary, 258, 201, 202.

Northern benefactions, 152.

Officiatiou at marriages allowed,
99.

Oglethorpe, James, 26.

Original Free Will Baptists, The,
345-347.

Organization : slow and tedious,
223 ; of Bible Board, 239 ; of Sun-
day-school Board, 239 ; of first
Sunday-school, 269; of Sunday-
school Union, 271 : of Baptist
women, 299 ; of Woman's Mis-
sion to Woman, 301 ; of woman's
movement, 307 ; of American
National Baptist Convention,
324 ; other Baptist families, 337.

Palmer, Paul ; from Pennsylvania,
antecedents uni^nown, 166; het-
erodox influence of, 166.

Parker, Daniel : apostle of opposi-
tion, 172; work in Kentucky,
194.

Patey, J. G., 362.

Pearcy, Rev. George, foreign mis-
sionary, 217.

Peck, Dr. J. M., reference to Ken-
tucky Baptists, 192.

Pelot, Rev. Francis: allusion to,
122; wealth of, 134.

Pendleton, Dr. J. M. : a professor

in Union University, 154 ; a
founder of Old Laudmarkism,
177.

Penfleld, Josiali, bequest of, 145.

Persecution : mentioned, 52, 63 ;
results from, 127.

Petitions, immensity of, 98.

Piscataqua River, 11.

Poindexter, Dr. A. M., 162.

Powelton, Ga., Convention organ-
ized at, 145.

Powell, Rev. Dr. W. D., mission-
ary leader in Mexico, 237, 238.

Presbyterian division, 100.

Press, the religious : Baptists first
to establish, 285; early examples
of, 285 ; " The Latter Day Lumi-
nary," 286 ; " The Religious Her-
ald," 287; "The Biblical Re-
corder," 287,288; "The Western
Recorder," 288; "The Tennes-
see Baptist." 288, 289; "The
Southern Baptist," 289, 290;
other examples of, 290-293 :
American Baptist Publication
Society closely allied with, 293-
296; early appreciated by Bap-
tists, 332.

Publication Society, American
Baptist : aid from, to Sunday-
school Board, 283; needed aid
extended by, 284 ; allied to de-
nominational press, 293-296 : aid-
ing work in South, 295; estab-
lishing branches, 295, 296 ; liter-
ature of, helpful, 296.

Ramsey quoted, 69.

Regulators, 82.

Revivals: after Revolution, 112;

" the great," 117.
"Recorder: The Biblical," 287,

288; "The Western," 288.
Revolution, Baptist strength in

beginning of, 110.
Reynolds, Rev. J. L., 141, 223.

374

INDEX

Rice, Luther, 137, 144, 181.

Rights denied, 64.

Roberts, Dr. J. M., 136.

Rockefeller, Mr. J. D. : interested
in Southern seminary, 262 ; giv-
ing to Educational Society, 297.

Ruggles, Prof. W. M., 162.

Ryland, Dr. Robert, 150.

Samson, Dr. G. W., 163.

Sanders, B. M., 143, 146.

San ford, S. P., 146.

Savage, Pres. M. C, 154.

Savannah, First Baptist Church,
142.

Schools, denominational : Furman
Academy, 139: Georgetown Lit-
erary and Theological Institute,
152 ; Hempstead Academy, 156 ;
Mercer Institute, 145 ; Mt. Enon
Academy, 142 ; Southern Baptist
College, 146 ; Wake Forest Insti-
tute, 147 : Women's, 163, 164.

Screven, William, 10, 11.

Seminary, Southern Theological :
steps leading to, 243, 244; claims
of, advocated before Conven-
tion, 244 ; committee appointed
to consider, 245, 246 ; proposal to
establish, at Greenville, 247 ;
plans proposed for, 250 ; estab-
lished at Greenville, 251 ; three
"Bs" concerning, 251; funds
raised for, 251 ; leaders in the
establishment of, 252 ; professors
chosen for, 252; suspended by
Civil War, 253 ; faculty of, meet-
ing at Greenville after war, 254 ;
protracted struggle of, 254, 255 ;
aid from North for, 256 ; removal
of, agitated, 256 ; removed to
Louisville, 257 ; generous dona-
tions to, 258 ; new life for, 259 ;
endowment secured for, 259 ;
choice of location for, 260 ; ad-
dition to resources of, 260-262 ;

removal of Dr. Boyce from, by
death, 262 ; Dr. Broadus becom-
ing president of, 263 ; value of
property of, 264; Dr. Whitsitt,
president of, 264 ; attendance of,
265.

Semple, R. B., 112, 138.

Separates : Stearns, founder of, 167 ;
oppose establishment, 167 ; zeal
of, 168.

Separates and Regulars : fusion of,
111 ; in Kentucky, 119.

Seventh Day Baptists, The, 338-
340.

Sherman, S. S., 156.

Sherwood, Dr. A., 143, 144, 146.

Shuck, Rev. J. L., 217.

Slavery ; factor in denominational
affairs, 199 ; three phases of as
an institution, 199, 200 ; efforts
to avert trouble because of, 200 ;
occasions trouble in Triennial
Convention, 202 ; Foreign Mis-
sion Board of Triennial Conven-
tion upon, 205 ; occasions disso-
lution between Northern and
Southern Baptists, 206 ; irrita-
tion concerning, continues, 209.

Smith, Rev. James, his missionary
zeal and capture, 192.

Somerton, 10.

Society : American Baptist Publi-
cation, 293-296; American Bap-
tist Home Mission, 296, 297 ;
American Baptist Education,
297 ; Woman's Missionary, 299 ;
African Missionary, 317.

South Carolina: first Baptists in,
10 ; growth of denomination in,
after Revolution, 115 ; leads in
education, 138 ; organization of.
Convention, 138; establishes
denominational school, 139 ;
schools for girls in, 361.

"Southern Missionary Journal,"
218.

INDEX

375

Stearnes, S., 17, 26.

Stetson, J. B., 161.

Staughton, Dr. William, 152.

Sumner, Dr. M. T., 223.

Sunday-schools: first, in Mary-
laud, 22 ; information concern-
ing earliest, scant, 266 ; first one
of, organized, 269 ; becoming
more numerous, 269 ; opposition
to, 270 ; impulse to, by Sunday-
school Union, 271 ; advocated by
North Carolina Baptists, 271 ;
deliverance concerning, from
Mississippi Baptists, 271, 272 ; ex-
pressions concerning, from Ala-
bama, 273 ; opposition to, in
Kentucky, 273, 274 ; improved
attitude toward, 274 ; unde-
nominational literature for, de-
nounced, 274 ; claiming atten-
tion of Southern Convention,
276 ; appointment of committee
for consideration of, 277 ; culti-
vated in the South by Publica-
tion Society, 295 ; address con-
cerning, to Baptists of South,
278.

Taylor, Rev. John, 40, 120.

Taylor, Dr. J. B., Sr., 149, 210.

Taylor, Dr. Geo. B., 235.

Tennessee: first Baptists in, 38;
statistics, 121 ; Southwestern
University in, 154; schools for
girls in, 362; reaction against
missions in, 171, 195.

Tensas Settlement, preaching in,
47.

Texas : University of, 153 ; pro-
posed occupation of, 219.

Tichenor, Dr. I. T. : secretary of
Home Mission Board, 224; re-
marks of, quoted, 227.

Travis, Alexander, 47, 155.

Triennial Convention, 162.

Tories, 41.

Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predestina-
rian Baptists, The, 356-360.

Union, Woman's Missionary : con-
stitution of, 305, 306 ; headquar-
ters of, 306; recommendations
concerning, 307, 308 ; women
foremost in establishment of,
308.

United Baptists, The, 349-351.

University of Virginia, 151.

Union University, 154.

Vanhoru, P. P., 19.

Vestry Act, 81.

Vii-ginia : persecution in, 15 ; first
missionary operations in, 16 ;
President Manning's letter to
Baptists of, 135 ; general meeting
of correspondence, 136; Baptist
Educational Society of, 149;
cautionary measures taken in,
149; manual labor school in,
150; Baptist Seminary, 150;
Richmond College founded in,
1-51 ; schools for girls, 151 ; Bap-
tist separation suggested in, 206.

Walker, Rev. J., causes trouble,
125.

Walker, S., ordination of, 126.

Warne, Prof. J. A., 139.

Washington, D. C. : denomination
begins in, 190 ; difficulties in, 191.

Washington, George : opposition
of, to Baptists, 101 ; letter from,
108, 109.

Wayland, Dr. Francis : discussion
of, with Fuller, 202 ; champion
of opposition to slavery, 207.

Welling, Dr. J. C, 163.

Wesley, John, 27.

West Virginia, Baptists enter, 49.

Western Baptist Theological Insti-
tute, 153.

Westrup, Rev. J. 0. and I. W., 236.

376

INDEX

Whitsitt, Dr. W. H., becoming
president of Southern Theolog-
ical Seminary, 264.

Whitefleld, George, 18; Orphan
Home, 27, 28.

Whitman, Dr. B. L., 163.

Wil'.iford, W. L., 155.

Wingate, President, 148.

Winyaw Bay, 12.

Witt, Daniel, 188.

Woolsey, Dr., 52.

Women, Baptist: organization of,
299; feeling against worlc of,
300 ; movements connected with,
300-302 ; report upon work of,

302; work of, considered by
Southern Convention, 302-305 ;
representation of, in Southern
Convention, 305 ; work of, recog-
nized by Southern Convention,
306; movement of, organized,
307 ; recommendations concern-
ing, 307, 308 ; work of, efficient,
308; funds contributed by, 308,
309; institutions for, 361-363.

Young, Rev. John, 194.
Yoruba, Africa: missionaries ap-
pointed to, 232.

Zeal of Baptist ministry, 47.

I. A History of the Baptists in New England.
By Henry S. Burrage, D. D. Published.

II. A History of the Baptists in the Middle
States.
By Prof. Henry C. Vedder. Published.

III. A History of the Baptists in the Western

States East of the Mississippi.
By Justin A. Smith, D. D. Published.

IV. A History of the Baptists in the Southern

States East of the Mississippi.
By Prof. B. F. Riley. Published.

V. A History of the Baptists in the Trans-
Mississippi States.
By Lemuel Moss, D. D., LL. D.

These volumes are uniform in style and price,
12mo, 320 pp. (or more). Price per volume, $1.25.
Price per set, $4.50 (net).

The volumes are independent histories. Each is
complete in itself, with index, etc. At the same
time they form a complete history of the denomi-
nation down to the time of publication.

Date Due

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A history of the Baptists in the

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