USA > Kentucky > A history of Kentucky Baptists : From 1769 to 1885, including more than 800 biographical sketches, Vol. I > Part 36
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* I was led into a mistake here. Mr. Steele was pastor of Sulphur Spring church in Simpson county, instead of that in Allen county.
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Isaac Steele.
with his parents to Kentucky in early childhood. He was brought up on a farm, and received a better education than was usual where he was raised. This, however, was very limited. He professed religion in his 16th year, and was baptized into the fellowship of Salem church, at her arm on Middle Fork of Drakes Creek, by John Hightower. He was in the consti- tution of Middle Fork church in Allen county, in 1808, and was licensed to exercise a gift, August 2, 1812. His progress was . so slow that he was kept on probation five years. In January, .1818, he was ordained to the ministry by Zachariah Morris, Benjamin Jackson and Jesse L. Hickman. Soon after his mar- riage, he moved on the line of Tennessee. So that his house stood in Simpson and Logan counties of Kentucky, and Robert- son county, Tennessee. His citizenship was in Kentucky. The churches of which he was pastor longest, were Sulphur Spring, Sulphur Fork and Head of Red River. He was zealous and in- dustrious in his holy calling, and many sinners were led to Christ through his ministry. Among the fruits of his early ministry was the now venerable O. H. Morrow, who has been an eminently successful minister of Jesus Christ about fifty-five years. Late in life as Mr. Steele began to preach, he labored in the gospel ministry fifty years. He was called to his reward in 1862.
Mr. Steele possessed but little genius, and only a moderate intellect. The powers of his mind developed very slowly, and never rose above mediocrity. His fund of knowledge, which was not extensive, was acquired by slow and patient investiga- tion, and was thoroughly digested. He possesed a sound dis- criminating judgment, and his mind was well disciplined. Hc was conservative in his temperament, and never bold or defiant in his address. Perhaps he was cautious and timid to a fault -failing sometimes to declare his matured convictions, lest he should provoke controversy, to which he had a great aversion.
When Drake's Creek Association divided, in 1840, on the subject of missions, the church of which Mr. Steele was a mem- ber, and those of which he was pastor, adhered to the anti-mis- sionary party, and he remained in that connection, the remainder of his life. "But," writes O. H. Morrow, "he was by no means anti-missionary in his feelings or preaching. He had been with his churches so long, and was now getting old, that 26
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it required more nerve to leave them than he possessed." Mr. Morrow continues: "Bro. Steele, was a very acceptable preacher of the gospel. When in his prime, his voice was melodious, and his manner fascinating. Few men in his day could draw out as large congregations. He was deservedly very popular. He would labor freely and successfully among the Missionary Baptists, and was very far from being inefficient in revivals. He was a moderate Calvinist in sentiment. Few men held so strong and lasting a hold on the affections of his brethren and the peo- ple generally. He was a good man wherever he was found, and still lives in the affections of all who knew him."
Mr. Steele was three times married, and raised a respecta- ble family of five sons and seven daughters.
MUDDY RIVER church was the first Baptist organization of the kind within the present limits of Logan county. It was located on the head-waters of the stream from which it derived its name, a few miles north-east of Russellville. It was proba- bly gathered by Lewis Moore, and was constituted in 1798. It probably first united with Mero District Association, then entered into the constitution of Cumberland, and finally, into that of Red River, of which it remained a member as long as it had an existence. It appears never to have become a large church. In 1812, it numbered sixty-four members, in 1830 forty-three, and, in 1832 forty members. It had some able ministers and other prominent men among its members, and was doubtless the mother of several churches which arose around it.
LEWIS MOORE, who was a number of years, (probably from its constitution), pastor of Muddy River church, was early a resident, and most likely, a native of Johnson county, N. C. There he was licensed to preach. He was ordained to the pas- toral care of Reedy Creek church in Warren county of that State in 1786. To this church he preached twelve years. He was also pastor of Sandy Creek church in Franklin county. fourteen years. In 1798, he moved to Kentucky, and settled on Muddy river, in Logan county. There he became a mem- ber and the pastor of Muddy River church, to which he minis- tered at least fourteen years. According to tradition, he was a good, plain, old preacher, and was, for a number of years after he moved to Kentucky, the only Baptist preacher in Logan county
of be ex la
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Leonard Page.
except John Bailey, who moved to the county in 1798, and remained there only two years.
LEONARD PAGE was early a minister in Muddy River church. He was a preacher of fair ability, a man of eminent respectability, and a wise and prudent laborer. The distinguished Andrew Broadus of Virginia, speaks of him as the "Honorable Leonard Page," by which it is inferred that he had enjoyed some political distinction in the earlier part of his life.
Leonard Page was the son of John Page, a respectable farmer, and a member of Licking Hole Baptist church in Gooch- land county, Va., and was born September 29th, 1762. He received a common school education. At the age of sixteen years, he entered the Continental army, and continued in active service till the close of the war. Soon after his return home, he married Jenny, daughter of Johnson Hodges, a farmer of Gooch- land county. She had been raised an Episcopalian, but, some- time after her marriage, professed conversion, and united with the Licking Hole Baptist church, then under the pastoral care of Hugh French. Her husband soon afterward followed her example. In this church Mr. Page was ordained to the ministry. Speaking of this church, Mr. Semple says: "In 1804, they enjoyed one of the most heavenly revivals that ever was seen. Four or five hundred were baptized, and among them some very respectable characters indeed. Leonard Page, who was very active and useful in the revival, has since been chosen pastor." In this revival, Mr. Page baptized two of his children. The church continued to prosper under his carc, till 1811, when he resigned his charge and moved to Kentucky.
He settled on Whippoorwill creek, about seven miles west of Russellville, in Logan county. Although this region had been settled nearly twenty years, and there had been some extensive religious revivals among the people, the Baptist cause had been neglected for want of laborers. Mr. Page united with he little church on Muddy river, which was at least ten miles rom his residence.
Mr. Page, though past middle life, went actively to work in his new field. With well defined purpose and much practical xperience directing his efforts, he did not labor in vain. He oon raised up a church at Russellville, and became its pastor. county This organization has been a very prosperous one, and is now
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History of Kentucky Baptists.
one of the leading churches of Bethel Association. Mr. Page continued pastor of this church till 1821, when William Warder settled among them and became their pastor. Mr. Page was instrumental in gathering several other churches, among which were Union, near his home, Mt. Gilead, at Allensville, and Pleasant Grove, in the southern part of Logan county. To these churches he ministered till he became old and feeble, and other ministers were raised up to take charge of them. Near the close of his life, he joined the Campbellites, after which he preached very little. He died from the effects of cholera, by which he had been attacked a year previous, March 28th, 1836. Of his descendants, B. F. Page, a grandson, is a respectable Baptist preacher in Liberty Association.
PHILIP WARDEN was the third pastor of Old Muddy River church. He was a preacher of good gifts, and extraordinary usefulness. He occupied a broad field, lying between Russell- ville and Green river, in which there was no preacher of moderately fair attainments, except himself and the Venerable Benjamin Talbot, for a long period.
Mr. Warden was born in Ireland, in 1763. His parents emigrated to America, while he was in his infancy, and were among the first settlers of Fayette county, Kentucky. Young Philip grew up to be a bold, daring youth, and was possessed of true Irish courage. The Indians did not allow him to want op- portunities to display his bravery. Whenever there was a horse stolen, or a family murdered, by the savages, the enthusiastic young Irishman was " up in arms," and ready for the pursuit. He was in many Indian fights, and among other daring adven- tures of his, he accompanied General Wayne in his Northern campaign, in 1792.
It was probably during the great revival, at the beginning of the century, that Philip Warden was converted and baptized, into the fellowship of Forks of Elkhorn church, in Franklin county, by the famous William Hickman. The laborers in the vineyard were plenty, in that region, and it is not known that Mr. Warden engaged in any public religious exercises while he remained on Elkhorn. But, in 1813, he moved to the Green River country, and setted in the northern part of Logan county. Here he and his wife, Rachel, united with Mount Moriah church, afterwards called Stony Point, which had been consti-
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Philip Warden.
tuted in April of that year. The people were poor and illiter- ate, and had great need of some one to teach them the true Wis- dom. On the 25th of February, 1814, two months after Mr. Warden joined the church, the following item was entered on their book of records :
" The brethren's minds consulted respecting Brother War- den's gift, and it is approved of ; and he is licensed to preach the gospel at home and abroad, and [we] bid him God speed."
Mr. Warden was now 5 1 years old. But he availed him- self of his license, and literally preached the gospel "at home and abroad." His gift appeared to so great a profit, that he was ordained to the ministry, by Lewis Fortner, John Martin, and William Tatum, in September, 1815. He now had a wide, un- cultivated field to operate in, and he went to work in earnest. He preached the gospel from house to house, with a burning zeal. The Lord gave him great favor with the people, and a mul- titude received the word from his lips, and rejoiced in it.
The first church he was called to, was Ivy in Warren county. In 1820, on the resignation of Daniel Barham, he was called to the care of Stony Point, of which he was a member. Having resigned the care of Ivy, he was called to Bethany and Muddy River in Logan, and Hazel Creek in Muhlenburg. To three of these churches he ministered with abundant suc- cess. But Bethany, to which, in 1826, he, with his family, had moved his membership, was factious and turbulent. They had among them a sort of preacher of the name of Dud- ley Robertson. He was Antinomian in doctrine, and violently opposed to missions. Mr. Warden believed in the sufficiency of the sacrifice of Christ to save all men, and was warmly in fa- vor of sending the gospel abroad, as well as of preaching it to everybody at home. The church soon became divided in senti- ment between the two systems of doctrine. The Robertson party became dissatisfied with Mr. Warden, and determined to reform his doctrine, or silence him from preaching. They soon found an opportunity to test the measure of their authority. It being winter, the church held meeting at a private housc. When Mr. Warden rose up to preach, something like the fol- lowing dialogue took place between him and one of the Anti- missionary members :
Member: "Sit down, Sir, you can't preach here to-day."
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Preacher : " Why so ?"
Member : " Because you are out of order."
Preacher : "There is no charge preferred against me, that Iknow of."
Member : "It's no odds : you are out of order, Sir, and you can't preach here to-day."
Preacher : " I will preach, the Lord being my helper."
Mr. Warden proceeded to deliver his discourse. During the delivery of the sermon the Anti-missionary party collected in one corner of the room, claimed to be Bethany church, and proceeded to the transaction of business. A few days after- wards, two of the leaders in this disgraceful affair were ar- raigned before a justice of the peace, by some friend of law and order. One of them was fined ten, and the other fifteen dol- lars.
On testing the strength of the two parties in the church, it was found that the Missionaries had a small majority. The Robertson party magnanimously proffered to give the Mission- ary party letters of dismission, which they accepted, and imme- diately joined Stony Point church. The magnanimity of the Anti-missionaries, however, turned out to be only a cunning trick ; for when they came together next church meeting, they revoked the act, granting letters to the Missionary party, and formally excluded them from the church. Such is the madness which religious partisanism engenders among an ignorant peo- ple, even when they are well meaning.
Soon after this, Mr. Warden went into the constitution of a new church, called Liberty. This church is located about two miles north of Auburn in Logan county, and was constituted in the summer of 1829. To this church Mr. Warden minis- tered, the remainder of his earthly pilgrimage. It was at the opening of a new house of worship by this church, that J. M. Pendleton preached the sermon which he afterwards expanded into the popular little book, called THREE REASONS WHY I AM A BAPTIST, The late Venerable Robert Woodward was raised up to the ministry in this church, and succeeded Mr. Warden John W. Self was also raised up to the in its pastoral care. ministry, in Liberty church. He began to preach about 1857. Mr. Warden continued to labor faithfully, and with almost universal acceptance, till the Lord called him home. Few men ab th
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Orson Holland Morrow.
were more loved, or exerted a greater influence for good. He died in great peace and strong confidence, at his home in Logan county, on the first day of November, 1843.
Of this good man, Robert Woodward writes: "He was a successful minister, and a man of deep piety and burning zeal. Too much can not be said of his devotion and usefulness. He was no ordinary man. He read his Bible with all the helps he could obtain in his day. Whenever it was said: 'Father War- den is going to preach,' the people said: 'Let us go and hear him; for we will be certain to hear something we never heard be- fore.'" Unlike too many old preachers, he was a student, as well as an active laborer, as long as he lived. By this means he al- ways had some new thought in his sermons. This enabled him to interest the people, and thereby to accomplish good as long as he lived. He was among those that "hold out faithful to the end."
ORSON HOLLAND MORROW first entered the pastoral office at Old Muddy River church, where he was probably the imme- diate successor of Philip Warden. He did not occupy the posi- tion long, before antagonism of doctrine between him and the church induced him to resign.
O. H. Morrow was born in Rutherford county, North Car- olina, November 10, 1800. He was brought by his parents to what is now Simpson county, Kentucky, in 1807. Here he was raised on a farm, going to school in winter, and laboring on his father's plantation the rest of the year. He closed his edu- cational opportunities, with one year at school. After this he studied practical surveying, and was afterward surveyor for Simpson county a number of years. He possessed fine natural capacities, and early formed good business habits, and, although he began life poor, he was never afterward embarrassed by poverty.
On the the first day of March, 1821, he was married to Sally, daughter of Colonel James Hambright. With this young woman he had gone to school. This marriage was blessed with eight daughters, most, or all of whom were married, but all of whom died young.
Mr. Morrow was a gay young man, and very thoughtless about his soul. He engaged in the fashionable amusements of the day with great zest, and was especially fond of dancing. For
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History of Kentucky Baptists.
a short time he was engaged in distilling whisky, of which he professed to be ashamed ever afterward. He named the place where his still-house stood, "Morrow's Folly." In 1827 a small Baptist church was constituted near Mr. Morrow's residence, and named Sulphur Spring. Isaac Steele was chosen its pastor. Mr. Morrow was finally induced to attend public worship at this place. But it was not till 1829, that he became interested about the salvation of his soul. He was, during many wecks, deeply overwhelmed with a sense of his guilt and condemnation before God. He continued to attend meeting, read the Bible and pray. After many weeks it occurred to him that he had not prayed in the name of Christ. He at once began to beseech God for mercy in the name of Jesus Christ. He soon obtained great joy in believing in Jesus. That night he and his wife went to a little neighborhood prayer meeting. On their way he told his wife of the great and happy change he had experienced, but supposed no one else knew of it. During the meeting or rather at its close, he was called on to pray. He was much surprised, but did not hesitate to make the effort. There was much weep- ing, both by himself and the congregation. He soon afterward united with Sulphur Spring church, and was baptized by Isaac Steele. After this he conducted the prayer meetings, and would usually close with an exhortation. A revival ensued, and a number of persons were converted. Mr. Morrow was soon licensed to exercise his gift. In 1833, Muddy River church being without a pastor, called for his ordination. Accordingly on the 13th of September of that year, he was ordained by Benjamin Jackson, Richard Owens, Isaac Steele and Zachariah Morris, and at once took the pastoral care of Muddy River church. He entered upon the duties of his sacred office, and soon built up a good congregation. The church was encour- aged, and several persons were baptized. But his pastorate was destined to be short.
In the fall of 1833, Gideon Blackburn, a Presbyterian min- ister, delivered a discourse on temperance, in Franklin, the county seat of Simpson. Mr. Morrow was present, listened to the arguments in favor of total abstinence from strong drink, and was convinced. He went home and began at once to try to convince his neighbors of the propriety of total abstinence. He also induced a temperance speaker to deliver a lecture in
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Orson Holland Morrow.
the neighborhood, and he and a number of his neighbors, in- cluding several members of Sulphur Spring church, formed a temperance society, by writing their names on a piece of blank paper. The church took up the question as to whether she would tolerate her members in belonging to a temperance soci- ety. The excitement was intense, and pervaded the whole community. Immense crowds assembled to hear the discussion three successive church meetings. Finally the vote was taken and the question was decided in the negative by a small majority. A compromise was effected by which the temperance party was lettered off. Of its members a new church was constituted under the title of the Baptist church at Sulphur Spring, Aug. 2, 1834. It was composed of twenty-one members. William Warder was induced to preach to it a few months, when Mr. Morrow having of necessity, resigned the care of Muddy River church, was called to take charge of it. He was soon afterward called to Lake Spring and Franklin, in Simpson, and Friendship, in Logan county. In 1838, Sulphur Spring church finished a large brick house of worship, and on Christmas day of that year com- menced a meeting which was to continue a week. Protracted meetings were just beginning to come in vogue, and many of the churches were opposed to them. When the meeting at Sulphur Spring had continued a week, the interest was very ex- tensive. Many people were convicted of their sins, and one man had professed conversion. But the influential old mem- bers of the church said the meeting must close. If it should con- tinue longer, it would be "a protracted meeting," and that could not be tolerated. Mr. Morrow determined that the meeting
should go on. He rose up, made a speech to the multitude, in favor of its continuance, and then took the vote of the con- gregation. The people nearly all voted in favor of continuing the meeting. The three preachers that had been laboring in the meeting had gone home. Mr. Morrow continued the meeting without ministerial aid, and ninety persons were baptized.
The four churches to which Mr. Morrow was preaching, now employed him to devote his whole time to the ministry, for one year, or, as they expressed it, "to preach every day." His success in building up the churches of which he was pastor, and in calling sinners from "the hedges and highways," jus- tified the hopes of his brethren. This year's work resulted in
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History of Kentucky Baptists.
the formation of two new churches-Union, in Warren county, constituted of twenty-nine members, November 12th, 1839, and Shady Grove, in Simpson county, which continued an arm of Franklin church till May 15th, 1841, when it was regularly con stituted a church of thirty-four members. To Union church he preached about forty-five years, to Sulphur Spring forty, to Pleasant Grove forty years, and to several others shorter periods.
Mr. Morrow possessed a strong logical mind, and was a close student, especially of the Bible. He occasionally entered into the religious controversy of his day, both orally and with his pen, and was by no means an unworthy contestant with some of the ablest minds of the country. His style, both in writing and speaking, lacked the smoothness of classical train- ing, but it was always strong and convincing. His voice was rather harsh, and he was defective in elocution, but his sermons reached the masses with wonderful power. In person he was tall, well proportioned and commanding in appearance. A judge of men would see at a glance that he was born to be a leader, in whatever occupation he might have followed. His whole character combined the elements of success in an eminent degree. But what is most to be admired in him was that all his powers were honestly consecrated to the service of his beloved Master.
During the first eight years of his ministry he kept no account of his labors. After this, he kept a diary, from which the following paragraph was composed, and was published in the Franklin Patriot in 1876:
"He has been instrumental in organizing and building up seven churches. He has served as pastor, for different periods of time, fourteen churches, preaching to several of them two days in the week once a month. He has served them alone, adding together the years he has preached to each, 112 years, viz : Pleasant Grove, Logan county, 35 years ; Old Union, Warren county, 37 years, and Sulphur Spring, Simpson county, 40 years. He has preached about 3,500 sermons, delivered about 3,000 exhortations, attended about 400 funerals, married about 500 couples, baptized about 2,020 persons, 18 of whom became active ministers of the gospel, and, in doing this work, traveled about 52, 200 miles-more than twice around the globe.
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Beaver Dam Church.
Besides all this, he made scores of temperance speeches, attended well to his temporal and home interest, and has surveyed enough land to make a small State."
Nine years has passed away since the above paragraph was written, and the venerable man of God is still living and labor- ing for the Master.
BEAVER DAM church is located in Ohio county, about four miles south of Hartford, the country-seat. It takes its name from a small tributary of Muddy creek, near which it is situated. It is, by several years, the oldest church between the Green and Ohio rivers, west of Elizabethtown, and is the mother of a large family of similar organizations in that region of the State. There was a very early settlement at Hartford, probably not far from the year 1780. Among these early settlers was a German family, bearing the name that is now spelt Coleman. After spending some time in the fort, near the present town of Hartford, Mr. Coleman moved his family about five miles south, and located on a small stream, to which he gave the name "Beaver Dam," in consequence of the beavers having built dams across it to raise the water over the entrance to their sub- terranean houses. "The first religious awakening of which we have any account," J. S. Coleman informs us, in his very interesting history of Beaver Dam church, "was produced in the mind of Mrs. Coleman through reading Luther's translation of the New Testament, a copy of which she had brought with her from Germany. After some time spent in reading, weep- ing and praying, this German woman found peace and great joy in trusting in Jesus for salvation. But now she saw that the same book, that had led her to the Savior, commanded her to be dipped in the name of the Holy Trinity; for such is the meaning of the word for baptism in Luther's translation. This much perplexed her, for there was no minister of the Gospel in all that region of country. Her conscience could not be at rest till she should have obeyed her beloved Lord. Finally, her course was resolved upon. She walked down to the little stream of Beaver Dam, and dipped herself beneath its waters. Coming up out of the water rejoicing, she met her little son who had followed her to the baptismal stream. He asked her why she dipped herself in the water. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, she preached Jesus to her little son. There the lad
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