USA > Indiana > Indiana Baptist history, 1798-1908 > Part 19
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While it has been said that the Association has been fairly liberal in its benevolence, no layman has,
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as yet, made a large gift to philanthropy, missions or education. One of its choicest young women has gone to the Foreign mission field, and has already made a most excellent record as an intelligent and faithful missionary. She, Miss Bertha E. Davis, took the full course in Franklin College, graduating in 1896, and soon after graduation was accepted by the Union and appointed to Tharrawaddy station, Burma; she was afterwards sent to Mandalay. Mr. Kelly in his report for 1906 says of Miss Davis: "I wish to acknowledge the important help given in the High school by Miss Davis ; . she took special supervision of the lower classes and the success of the primary depart- ment has followed."
Of the ministers of the Association none has been more efficient than the Rev. J. K. Howard; while the Rev. S. Burton and the Rev. A. J. Essex may have been earlier on the ground, they did not remain very long, but the Rev. Mr. Howard was a worker in and for the Association for more than thirty years. He was born in Boone county, Indiana, in 1839. Having lost both of his parents when he was a mere child, he was reared by an uncle-a Baptist. He was converted in a Methodist meeting and joined the Wolf Creek Baptist church in 1858. He came to Franklin College as a student in 1859 and remained till 1863, when, on account of the suspension of the college, he went to the University of Rochester, New York. Here he was graduated with the degree of A. B. in June, 1864. From his graduation till 1868 he was associated with the Rev. S. Burton in conducting the Mitchell semi-
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nary. Upon leaving the seminary work he moved to a farm near Livonia; while here the convictions that he had long felt as to the duty of giving himself to the work of the ministry became stronger ; and as his brethren were of the opinion that the ministry was his proper work, he was licensed in 1874 and ordained in 1875, and for thirty years served as a pastor in the Association, mainly at Livonia, but also at other churches as Orleans, Mount Pleasant, Lost River, Campbellsburg and Mill Creek. He was not only a good preacher but also a wise and faithful pastor and friend; and so he came to have a breadth and depth of influence in that part of Indiana second to that of no other man. He has always stood for progress in missions and education, and has given his own children the advantages of a college education. He has also stood firm for the distinctive doctrines of the Baptists, and in such a spirit that those who differed from him still respected him most highly-he didn't "throw stones." In 1904 he moved to Indianapolis, and while he is no longer a pastor he is in constant demand for supplies and general denominational work.
INDIANA FREE BAPTIST ASSOCIATION.
This Association was formed in 1887. It is com- posed of five Quarterly Meetings, twenty-five churches, 1,790 members. Its churches are mostly in northern Indiana. The Association has fourteen ordained min- isters. It favors and supports the various helps, in the way of Sunday schools, young people's societies, min- isters' and laymen's conferences, and Mission socie-
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ties. It also founded and supports a school at Ridge- ville. The benevolence for the year ending June, 1907, was as follows: State work, $389.82; Foreign mis- sions, $688.42 ; Home missions, $16.50 ; Woman's mis- sions, $66.50. There were fifty-eight additions to the churches by baptism during the year. The twentieth session was held with the Free Baptist church in Topeka, Indiana, beginning August 29, 1907; the ministers' and laymen's conference was held two days before in the same place.
The names and addresses of the ministers of the Association, so far as could be ascertained from the program of their annual meeting, are as follows: the Revs. R. B. Wood, Wolf Lake; J. E. Steel, To- peka; W. R. Chamberlain, La Grange; F. J. Tucker, Milhousen; B. Ferguson, Rensselaer; T. J. Maw- horter, Wawaka ; I. S. Jones, Rome City ; W. F. Buck- ner, Princeton; J. W. Rendell, Wawaka; G. A. Jack- son, Wawaka ; and J. E. Carson, Brookston.
The Rev. E. E. Cartwright was president of the Association and P. A. Ashley, president of the Young People's Society.
(These data were gathered and kindly forwarded by the Rev. Charles Herring, Lima, Indiana.)
CENTRAL ASSOCIATION-(COUNTIES OF MARION, JOHNSON AND BOONE).
This Association was organized in 1888, in conse- quence of a division in the Indianapolis Association. The division was between such churches as supported a certain pastor in the Association who was remarried
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without scriptural grounds for divorce from his for- mer wife, and the churches that opposed him. The churches that went into the new organization were Franklin, Greenwood, Lebanon, Southport, and the following Indianapolis churches: First, College Ave- nue, South Street, Garden and German. The total membership was 2,202; there had been 143 accessions during the year by baptism; and the pastors at the time were the Revs. A. Ogle, J. W. Porter, C. H. Hall, Reuben Jeffery, R. E. Neighbor, W. L. Riley, A. Peterson, T. J. Connor, J. F. Beaman, W. DePoy, and G. H. Elgin. The Rev. A. Ogle was elected mod- erator and U. M. Chaille, clerk. The fifth anniver- sary was held with the University Place church, In- dianapolis; there were fifteen churches, 2,694 mem- bers and a total of $3,511.11 for benevolence, of which amount the women gave $1,068.81. Pastors not hith- erto named were the Revs. A. B. Charpie, E. S. Gar- diner, T. J. Keith, C. L. Doyle, W. F. Taylor, J. F. Williams, A.B.Whitney, G.W.Terry, C.H. McDowell, J. A. Knowlton and W. E. Spear. The tenth session was held with the Southport church ; there were seven- teen churches and 4,005 members; the number of baptisms for the year was 213, the largest number being in the First church, fifty-four; the contributions for benevolence were $2,945.29, and of this the women gave $208.61. The fifteenth session was with the College Avenue church; the Rev. A. D. Berry was moderator and the Rev. O. A. Cook, clerk; there were nineteen churches, three missions and 4,487 members. The total benevolence was $5,023.23. The
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B. Y. P. U. societies reported a membership of 680 Seniors and 304 Juniors. The statistics for 1906 are as follows: twenty-two churches, 5,167 members, B. Y. P. U. enrollment 996, and total contributions for benevolence $8,513.53. The enrollment of mem- bers of some of the larger churches was as follows: Indianapolis First, 950; South Street, 598; Franklin, 514; Lebanon, 511; College Avenue, 399, and River Avenue, 348. The pastors at that time were the Revs. T. C. Smith, P. L. Powell, C. H. Hall, F. E. Taylor, R. D. Licklider, A. E. Bolster, H. N. Quisenberry, C. W. Swift, J. R. Henry, W. H. Harris, J. M. Ken- dall, H. Sellhorn, J. M. Lloyd, L. D. Bass, L. O. Stiening, E. T. Smith, F. G. Kenny, E. S. Riley, R. H. Kent and J. K. Howard (supply).
The tables show that in nineteen years the Associa- tion had grown from twelve churches to twenty- three, from 2,202 members to 5,167, and from $1,447.84 for benevolence to $5,669.77
Central Association is rich in men and women of piety and good works; among the laymen who have already done much for the advancement of the king- dom of God are Deacons J. M. Sutton and G. C. Web- ster of the First church, Indianapolis. They did not have large amounts of money to give, but their ear- nest, godly lives and their rich and faithful instruc- tion in the Sunday school will never be forgotten. Among the business men of the church none was more liberal with his means than Deacon A. A. Barnes -whether the giving was for a new church edifice, a reconstructed college building or an industrial
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school for orphans of Baptist parentage. And what he has done is but the "first fruits" of what he yet in- tends to do. D. M. Parry, also of the First church, is a liberal giver as well as prosperous manufacturer. J. T. Polk, a manufacturer of Greenwood, enjoys giv- ing money for good objects as well as he does the accumulation ; he has no thought of "living unto him- self," and is particularly interested in the welfare of working men. Grafton Johnson of Greenwood, though yet a young man, has shown unusual power as a manager of business, and his disposition to give has ample evidence in what he has already done for his ยท Alma Mater, Franklin College, as well as other worthy causes. He recognizes that all who love our Lord are only stewards of what He has entrusted to us.
Deacon Joshua VanDeman of the South Street church was one of God's noblemen, large of heart and true to his mission as a christian man. While he was not blessed with large means, he was yet a compara- tively liberal giver to missions and education; and in his last illness expressed the wish that $16,000 from his estate might be added to what he had already given to the Missionary Union.
Among the ministers who have belonged to the Association, and who were trusted and loved, might be mentioned the Rev. J. F. Beaman, for eight years pastor of the Lebanon church. He was an industrious and successful soul winner. After a long session of impaired health he was called to his heavenly home in 1903.
The Rev. O. T. Conger, D. D., was born in Indiana,
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but found his mission in serving churches in Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska, as well as Indiana. He was for several years Corresponding Secretary of the Indiana Baptist Convention ; he died in 1903.
In the minutes of 1890 is found an obituary report respecting another minister who was loved not only by his brethren of the Association but also by the Baptists of the whole State. He was the Rev. G. H. Elgin, D. D., and this is the tribute found in that report :
"It was fitting that we pause to give more than a passing notice to our dear brother Elgin, who was taken from us in the midst of his years and of his labors. Brother Elgin was so large and full and round and complete a man that he grew upon us insensibly, and we presume that few of us realized how much he was to us till after he was taken from us. How much his presence has been missed in this gathering-and we presume in all the Associations of the State! He had already reached a high position of honor and influence in the denomination in his own State and was one of the rising young men of the nation. He had genuine sympathy and a large measure of chris- tian courtesy in all his intercourse with his fellow men. He was a clear and strong and forcible speaker and writer. He was a born leader in the realm of thought and action. But more than all this he was deeply religious; he was a man of fervent piety. . "
The Rev. T. J. Connor was born in 1821, was for some years pastor of the River Avenue church, Indian-
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apolis, and endeared himself to his brethren by his gentleness and the maturity of all the christian graces ; he was a wise leader in church development. He moved to Greensburg, and after several years of ministerial service there died in 1898.
Miss Mary Thompson of the Franklin church; going in 1876 she spent several years in missionary work in Swatow, China, but finally in 1885 declining health obliged her to come home. But she was not at rest; when her strength began to return she asked to be appointed as a missionary of the American Bap- tist Home Mission Society, with work in the west. For a time her work was on the west coast for the Chinese ; afterwards she went among the Indians as a missionary. She is not able for that kind of service now, but still she is not idle; she goes over the State sometimes for the Women's Home Mission Society and sometimes for the Foreign Society.
The Rev. Wallace St. John, after serving the Frank- lin church as pastor for several years, felt impressed with the duty of going to the Foreign mission field. Accordingly upon his application he was appointed to Burma, and he and his family sailed for their new home. The work assigned him was that of teaching in Rangoon College. They had not been there a great while till Mrs. St. John sickened and died; the hus- band still remains at his post.
And what shall we say more? Many of those once pastors in the Association have been called to other, and in some cases larger, fields. The Rev. C. E. W. Dobbs, D. D., the exact scholar and effective preacher,
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has gone back to his native south; the Rev. W. C. Taylor, D. D., the genial friend, earnest pastor and able preacher, has also returned to the south; the Rev. D. J. Ellison, D. D., who soon became known as the mighty preacher and evangelical pastor, followed the two last named to the south land; and the Rev. T. J. Villers, D. D., probably the best loved of any minister who ever came into the State, on account of his genial sympathy with men, his absolute adherence to the old gospel and his quiet and easy leadership of his breth- ren in the work of the denomination in the State, was at length called to the Peddy Memorial church, New- ark, New Jersey, and accepted the call. But sorrow soon came to his home ; his wife, the genial companion and friend, for weeks foresaw that her Lord would take her; and when the summons came she was fully ready, for she had made all preparation, even as to minute detail, and died as if she had fallen asleep.
The Rev. E. S. Gardiner resigned the pastorate at Franklin to accept a chair in the college; this he filled with signal ability, and after several years resigned and went to California to accept a chair of the Bap- tist College of that State. He had mastered a very wide field of literature, and was considered one of the best informed men in the west.
MORGANTOWN ASSOCIATION-(COUNTIES OF MORGAN AND JOHNSON ).
This Association was organized in 1892 in Mor- gantown; five churches went into the organization- Amity, Beech Grove, First Mount Pleasant, Morgan-
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town and Mount Zion (Trafalgar). The total mem- bership was 507, the Sunday school enrollment 419, and the total benevolence for the year $478.26. The fifth anniversary was held with the Beech Grove church, J. T. Burton was elected moderator and P. S. Hamilton, clerk. There were five churches, 524 mem- bers, a Sunday school enrollment of 364 and a total for benevolence of $103.05. The names of well- known ministers who have been pastors in the Asso- ciation are the Revs. T. A. Childs, J. C. Rhodes, G. R. Hume, J. W. Ragsdale, J. A. Pettit, T. A. Aspy, E. M. Ryan and W. E. Morris.
At the session in 1899 the name of the body was changed to the Johnson County Association, and the remainder of the history will be found under that title.
JOHNSON COUNTY ASSOCIATION-(COUNTIES OF JOHNSON AND MORGAN).
The Association was formed from the Morgantown Association in 1899 and consists of the same churches that formed that body. The statistics of the Associa- tion as found in the Indiana Baptist Annual for 1906 are as follows: Churches, six ; members, 591 ; benev- olences, $228.38 ; pastors, the Revs. W. E. Morris, I. C. Overman, C. H. Wade and Raleigh Smith. The Rev. W. E. Morris was moderator and J. T. Burton, clerk.
DIVISION IV-INDIANA BAPTIST CONVENTION.
THE GENERAL ASSOCIATION-(INDIANA BAPTIST CONVENTION ).
1, ORGANIZATION ; 2, MISSIONS; 3, EDUCATION.
The Association was organized in April, 1833, at a church called Brandywine, in Shelby county. Many churches and a considerable number of Associations had already been formed; and just as a number of Baptists in a community would naturally unite to form a church, so a number of Associations would at length unite to form a General Association to carry forward the general operations of the organi- zation in a more effective and satisfactory a way than could be done without this more general body.
At the time the General Association was formed there were twenty-one Baptist Associations in the State with a combined membership of 11,334. Of these twenty-one the following still exist and are well known for their efficiency: Flat Rock, Laughery, Union, Coffee Creek and Madison. Others sympa- thized with anti-missionism and have become extinct or have joined in forming new Associations, with dif- ferent geographical boundaries. The Rev. T. R. Cres- sey, Corresponding Secretary of the General Asso- ciation, is authority for the statement that the breth- ren who came together when the Association was
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formed came through a misunderstanding; that the real purpose of the call was to settle some difficulties that existed between the Flat Rock and Indianapolis Associations. There is good ground, however, for the conviction that a larger purpose drew the delegates together, for they came from many different parts of the State-from the counties of Shelby, Marion, Johnson, Washington, Dearborn, Ripley, Fayette, Madison, Carroll, Clark, Owen, Hancock, Wayne and Bartholomew. Several brethren were present also from Ohio; and it would seem that those who came together at this meeting knew in advance the purpose of the call, for on the first day, probably at the first session, there was a committee appointed to formu- late and present a constitution.
This constitution as presented, amended and adopted is worthy of study in that it so well sets forth the purpose and method of the Association :
"The object of this Association shall be to unite the Baptists of Indiana in some uniform plan for promot- ing the prosperity of the Redeemer's kingdom, within the bounds of the State, by a more general spread of the gospel."
Let it be noted that the main but not the only pur- pose was to care for the interests of the State; the "general spread of the gospel" would assume also that an active interest is to be manifest far beyond mere State lines. The constituency of the Conven- tion was well planned; all parts of the commonwealth were to be represented and the delegates were to be chosen by those whose will they were to express.
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The usual officers for such an organization were pro- vided for, and the general business that might be necessary in the interim of meetings was committed to a board chosen from all parts of the state, said board to make a full statement of its doings at the next annual session of the Association. Great care was exercised also that all moneys should be ac- counted for, and expended only upon the order of the proper officers. The same care was exercised in providing that all delegates and officers should be in good standing in some Baptist church in the state, and of course as it was a Baptist organization the clear statement was made that "This Association shall never attempt to exercise any authority over any church or particular Association."
The following extracts from the circular letter still further indicate the spirit and hopes of those who entered into the organization :
"Beloved brethren, we have commenced a plan for uniting the energies of the Baptists of Indiana in support of the gospel of Christ. . . The system we have adopted is neither new nor uncommon, . almost every state in the Union has long tested the efficiency of such a system. We consider that the solemn obligation to preach the gospel to every creature, stands in all the imposing force with which it first saluted the ears and hearts of the disciples."
The general officers chosen for the first year were the Rev. J. L. Holman, moderator; the Rev. Ezra Fisher, corresponding secretary; the Rev. Byrem Lawrence, recording secretary, and Henry Bradley,
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esquire, treasurer. The second session was held in October, 1833, and there is evidence that much good had already been done or put under way. $135.35 had been collected for the purposes of the Association in the short interval between the last of April and the first of October. The general spirit of progress and sympathy with the missionary movement is shown in a resolution passed at the third session.
"Whereas, It was resolved by the last General Con- vention of Western Baptists held at Cincinnati on the 7th of November, 1834, that it be recommended to the Baptists of the Mississippi valley to furnish the Baptist Board of Foreign Missions the means requi- site to sustain a Baptist mission in the great empire of China, therefore,
"Resolved, That this General Association cordially respond to such recommendation and earnestly rec- ommend the subject to the consideration and liberal support of the Baptists of the state; and that the members of this meeting pledge their influence and as far as practicable their exertions in behalf of the contemplated Baptist mission in China from the Mis- sissippi valley."
The treasurer's report showed that $238.96 had been collected for the purposes of the Association during the year. The Circular letter spoke of the great encouragement that has resulted from the meet- ing together of so many who are interested in the Baptist cause in Indiana.
The Proceedings of the fourth anniversary indi- cated that the American Baptist Home Mission
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Society had already turned a portion of its attention to this State-had already begun to send and support missionaries. The resolution passed was as follows :
"Whereas, the A. B. H. M. S. has from its first organization turned a portion of its attention to this State and is now sustaining wholly or in part, eight missionaries among us; therefore,
"Resolved, That this Association entertain a grate- ful sense of obligation to the said A. B. H. M. S. for their benevolent efforts in behalf of Indiana, and while we cordially give the right hand of fellow- ship, as a token of our confidence and pledge of our faithfulness, we most affectionately invite the con- tinued co-operation of our brethren till the highest object of our missionary associations shall have been attained."
For many years there was essential co-operation between the General Association and the A. B. H. M. S., in the designation and support of missionaries, some of the missionaries being supported by the Gen- eral Association alone, and others in part only, the rest of the support coming from the Home Mission Society. The records of the latter show that it con- tinued its financial support in constantly decreasing amounts till 1880; but at the annual session in 1851 the matter of the further relations between the Gen- eral Association and the A. B. H. M. S. was dis- cussed, and the following recommendations were adopted :
"Let the great principles of our organization, and our general plans of operation in the General Asso-
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ciation remain as they are. Let our board recom- mend as they did last year, certain brethren to the A. B. H. M. S. for their appointment, as they shall see proper, with a pledge that we will donate to their board a certain amount towards their support, etc. Let it be definitely understood that these brethren are missionaries of the Home Mission Society, and en- tirely disconnected with us except that we nominate them. . . . A committee of the General Association was to make semi-annual reports to the Home Mission Society giving statements as to places of particular need and such facts as the society would be interested in, it being understood that the General Association is to appoint and support its own missionaries as hitherto."
The funds of the Association were constantly in- creasing, and a constantly larger force of missionaries was at work in the State. It has already been said that the contributions of the first full year . were $238.96; in 1845 they were $412.01; in 1850 $1,100 .- 25; and in 1854 $2,728.30. A master spirit ap- peared in the General Association in 1846 when the Rev. T. R. Cressey was elected corresponding secre- tary; before many months had passed every depart- ment of the Association felt the quickening of his leadership. He believed in undertaking great things and expecting great things ; his reports were full and hopeful, and he it was who organized the Village Fund and Common Fund. The givers multiplied many fold and the number of missionaries in the em- ploy of the General Association considerably in-
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creased. In 1848 there were twenty-six missionaries and in 1849 there were forty-eight. Secretary Cres- sey resigned in 1851 and although the interests of the Association lacked his enthusiasm and inspiration, there were no backward : eps. The Proceedings for 1858 show that $1,325.65 was given for Association purposes, and this did not include a considerable sum raised and expended for what was called Domestic Missions-that is missions in the bounds of each Dis- trict Association. In 1860 the treasurer of the Gen- eral Association reported $2,464.23 as the total of collections for general purposes ; and $550.80 was re- ported as having been raised and expended for Do- mestic missions in the Coffee Creek, Elkhart River, Bethel, Friendship, Northern and White Lick Asso- ciations. Thirteen mission stations were under the care of the General Association, and also the school for Indians in connection with the Miami mission.
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