A history of Kentucky and Kentuckians; the leaders and representative men in commerce, industry and modern activities, Volume III, Part 114

Author: Johnson, E. Polk, 1844-; Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 860

USA > Kentucky > A history of Kentucky and Kentuckians; the leaders and representative men in commerce, industry and modern activities, Volume III > Part 114

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"The early history of this church seems to be hid in the depths of antiquity. The first definite information we can gather from the records now in our possession goes back to December, 1780. At this early date we find a church composed of forty-five members, stop- ping for a while on Holston river, with Robert Elkin as pastor.

"Tradition tells us that Daniel Boone, on his second trip to Kentucky, was accompanied by Captain William Bush, of Orange county, Vir- ginia. The said William Bush when on his re- turn gave such glowing descriptions of the then wilds of Kentucky that a colony, composed mainly of Baptists, were induced to start for Boonesboro, near or on the Kentucky river. He went forward to locate lands while the col- ony was in preparation to start. The colony having made ready and started, proceeded as far as Holston, which is near the line between Kentucky and Virginia, arriving there in De- cember, 1780. There they received intelli- gence from Captain William Bush, who was then in the fort, not to proceed any farther.

"The troubles with the Indians at that time rendered it impolitic and unwise to proceed farther. This body arrived at Holston, De- cember, 1780, and having learned that they could not go any farther, held a church meet- ing for the purpose of exercising discipline the following January, 1781.

"They continued at Holston till September, 1783, with Robert Elkin as pastor, at which time they moved from Holston to Cragg's Sta- tion, south side of the Kentucky river, and carried the constitution of the church with them. And now, having arrived in Kentucky and settling on the south side of the river, near Cragg's Station, but through the badness of the weather nothing of importance was done till April 3, 1784.

"They remained at Cragg's Station till No- vember 1, 1785, at which time they moved to the north side of the Kentucky river. They appointed a church meeting at Brother Wil- liam Bush's, November 27, 1785, at which time and place they elected a new clerk and tran- sacted other business.

"The first house of worship built by the church was a log house erected in 1787 on the grounds now occupied by the old stone church, and in the year 1800 the stone church was built on its present site, on Howard's Lower Creek, near this place. The old stone church is still in a fair state of preservation, and is now occupied by the colored Baptists.

"Our present house of worship was built in the year 1873. Providence church has had thirty-two pastors.

"The first, Robert Elkin, began in 1780 and closed his labors in 1822, serving the church forty-two years.

"The next was Richard Morton. He was called in March, 1822, and closed his pastoral work in 1828.

"George C. Boone was called in March, 1828, and served the church five years. Rob- ert Elrod was called in 1833 and continued till 1834, at which time Abner D. Landrum was called and served the church four years; at the close of which time, February 17, 1838, Thomas German was called and served the church till 1842. B. E. Allen was next called and served as pastor till September, 1847, then Edward Darnby was called and continued till October 4, 1848.

"At this point several ministers were called but declined to accept and the church had no regular preaching till September 1849, when B. E. Allen was again called and accepted, but resigned in October, 1850, and the church was without a pastor for one year.

"B. E. Allen was again called in 1851, ac- cepted and preached one year. In January, 1852, P. T. Gentry was called and served the church till September, 1855. Then B. E. Allen was again called and continued with the church until his death, in 1861.

"The church next called R. T. Dillard, and he began his labors January, 1862, and con- tinued till February, 1865. H. McDonald en- tered the pastorate in May, 1865, and left the church the following November. R. T. Dil- lard was again called, and preached for them one month, but then declined the call. In June, 1866, C. E. W. Dobbs entered the pastoral care and continued till October, 1867. W. B. Ar- vin accepted a call in 1868 and labored till 1874. In April, 1874, G. T. Stansbury ac- ·cepted a call and preached six months. George Yeizer supplied the church till March, 1875. In June, 1875, A. F. Baker accepted a call to the pastorate and served the church till May, 1880. In June, 1880, J. Pike Powers accepted a call and preached for one year. In June, 1881, J. Dallas Simmons entered the pas- torate care and continued till December, 1887. In January, 1888, J. Pike Powers was again called and served as pastor of the church till December, 1889.

"In April, 1890, A. H. Anthony was called and continued till July, 1891. In November, 1891, A. H. Hunt was called and continued with the church till July, 1894, when I. T. Creek was called and served as pastor two years. In January, 1897, H. F. Searcy en-

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tered the pastorate and continued till May, 1898. I. N. Yohannon supplied as pastor from June, 1898, till the following October. In November, 1898, J. S. Wilson accepted a call and labored with the church till January, 1903. E. F. Music supplied the church till December, 1903. T. C. Ecton was called and entered the pastoral care in January, 1904, and continued with the church two years. In January, 1906, A. R. Willett was called and served as pastor till December, 1907. In Jan- uary, 1908, B. J. Davis accepted a call to the pastorate and is serving us at this time. We hope to keep him with us for a long time to come.

"Up to this time one thousand, two hundred and eighty members have been received by ex- perience and baptism, and three hundred and seven by letter, making the total number re- ceived one thousand, five hundred and eighty- seven. Three churches have been constituted out of this church. On August 5, 1790, the church was the subject of a serious difficulty, growing out of a misunderstanding between Robert Elkin and Andrew Tribble. The mem- bership being pretty nearly equally divided, the matter was finally settled by allowing Tribble and his brethren to take letters and constitute a new church, which was called Unity. This church (Unity) was afterwards divided, and a part constituted Indian Creek church, and in the course of time Unity and Indian Creek united and formed what is now called Mt. Olive church.

"In April, 1812, the church called Bogg's Fork was constituted out of this church. This church (Bogg's Fork), was located near Athens, in Fayette county, and afterward was merged in Boone's Creek church at Athens. In 1859 the church at Winchester was consti- tuted mainly out of members of this church. August II, 1830, many members having be- come displeased with the rules and regula- tions of this church, withdrew themselves and are no more of this body. Fifty-four was the number that withdrew. They built them a house of worship now known as Forest Grove. "In reading over the old records I find many interesting instances. The church had its .seasons of refreshing and its troubles then as we do now. March 12, 1796, Robert Grimes was excluded 'for singing vain and worldly songs.' August 13, 1796, John Lile was ex- cluded for 'unhappily drinking too much licker.' July 9, 1803, Mrs. Mary George was excluded for 'scolding her husband.' August 12, 1809. Robert Elkin, Thomas Berry and Robert Didlake were appointed 'Messingers to the Association and authorized to draw from the church fund Six Shillings to assist defray- ing the expenses of the Association.' July 31,

1842, a protracted meeting was begun and lasted till September 3rd. They had seventy- eight conversions. Brother E. J. M. Elkin was one of them, and is the only one that is now living.

"The above is a synopsis of the history of Providence Baptist church taken from the records.

"W. P. Hieatt,

"Clerk of Providence Church."

JAMES H. BARBOUR, M. D .- Numbered among the essentially representative and most venerable members of the medical profession in Pendleton county is Dr. Barbour, who is now living virtually retired in the attractive village of Falmouth, this county, where he was actively engaged in the practice of his profes- sion for more than half a century. He has ever maintained the highest appreciation of the dignity and responsibility of his chosen calling and has labored with all of zeal and self-abne- gation, in the alleviation of human suffering. Through summer's heat and winter's storms he followed the work of his humane calling, and his sacrifices and arduous labors have given to him the generous aftermath of the affection and confidence of the community which has so long represented his home.

Dr. James Hervey Barbour claims the old Buckeye state as the place of his nativity and is a scion of one of its sterling pioneer families. He was born at New Richmond, Logan county, Ohio, on the 29th of February, 1824, and thus, in the records of the calendar, he has been able to celebrate the anniversary of his birth only once in four years. The doctor is a son of Nathaniel and Hannah (Ashburn) Barbour, the former of whom was born in the state of New Jersey and the latter in England. Nathaniel Barbour was reared to maturity in his native state and as a young man he accom- panied his parents and the other children of the family to Ohio. The home was established in Cincinnati prior to the war of 1812, in which Nathaniel and his brother Emley were valiant soldiers. The former became a successful con- tractor and builder in Cincinnati, where he con- tinued to maintain his home for a term of years and where his marriage was solemnized. There he and his wife were members of the Presbyterian church whose pastor was Rev. Joshua L. Wilson, D. D., and which was lo- cated on Fourth avenue, being one of the pi- oneer churches of the "Queen City." Finally Nathaniel Barbour removed with his family to New Richmond, Ohio, where for a time lie was engaged in the general merchandise busi- ness. He then removed to a large farm which he had purchased near that village and he developed the same into one of the valuable places of Logan county. He continued to re-

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side on this homestead until his death, at the age of sixty-six years. His widow survived him by several years and she likewise was about sixty-six years of age when summoned to the life eternal. She was a daughter of Thomas Ashburn, who had been a prosperous manufacturer in England, but when the tariff regulations of America caused his extensive enterprise to prove less profitable, he came to this country and established his home in Cin- cinnati, where he acquired a large property. Later he disposed of the same and purchased an extensive landed estate in Logan county, Ohio, where he passed the residue of his life. Nathaniel and Hannah (Ashburn) Barbour became the parents of four sons and four daughters, of whom Dr. Barbour was the third in order of birth.

Dr. Barbour was reared to maturity on the old homestead farm near New Richmond, Ohio, and his memory retains many pleasing recol- lections concerning the scenes and incidents of the pioneer epoch in that section of the Buck- eye commonwealth. He received good edu- cational advantages, including a four years' course at Clermont Academy and one year of study in Miami University, at Oxford, Ohio, an institution that was founded in the year 1824. He taught several terms in the com- mon schools of his native state, including one term in the district school which he himself had attended when a boy. When twenty-two years of age he began the study of medicine under the preceptorship of his elder brother, Dr. Daniel Barbour, who was at that time, 1848, engaged in practice at Falmouth, Ken- tucky. A year later he entered the Medical College of Ohio in the city of Cincinnati, and after a thorough course of lectures in this institution he initiated the practice of his pro- fession at Falmouth, his present residence. He later returned to the college, where he com- pleted the prescribed course and where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1852, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. It is worthy of special note that two of his brothers and two of his sons were likewise graduated in this well ordered medical institution. After his graduation Dr. Barbour returned to Fal- mouth, where for several years he was associ- ated in practice with Dr. James Wilson, a suc- cessful and highly honored physician of Pen- dleton county at that time. Dr. Barbour con- tinued in active professional work at Falmouth for more than fifty years, during which he kept in touch with the advances made in both med- icine and surgery, so that his success was of unequivocal order during the long period of his devotion to his noble profession. He has ministered to the children of those whom he

has ushered into the world, and at the present time there are three generations in Pendleton county who hold him in affectionate regard. Writing, riding and studying, he labored with much of ability and devotion in behalf of those afflicted or distressed, and he well merits the high regard in which he is held in the commu- nity that has so long represented his home. It has been given him to attain venerable age, but right living and right thinking have granted him the benefice of well preserved mental and physical faculties, though he will have attained the age of eighty-seven years by the time this work is issued from the press. He is erect and active, and the years rest lightly upon his shoulders, giving him the ap- pearance and vitality of one much his junior. The Doctor's attractive home has been long recognized as a center of gracious hospitality, and he is never happier than when in the com- pany of his many friends.

During the progress of the Civil war Gen- eral Duke, the well known Confederate offi- cer, was for some time in military control of Falmouth, but this officer gave permission to Dr. Barbour to continue his professional work, although it was well known that he was a . strong Union sympathizer. In a spirited skirmish about this time several soldiers were wounded, and Dr. Barbour ministered alike to the Union and Confederate soldiers who were thus injured. He is at the present time the oldest member of the Pendleton County Med- ical Society and undoubtedly this applies also in his connection with the Kentucky State Medical Society. In former years he was actively identified with the affairs of bothı of these organizations, the sessions of which he regularly attended, and before which he pre- sented numerous papers of interest and value, besides which he contributed much to profes- sional periodicals. He is a man of fine liter- ary tastes and ability, and his writings on general topics have found place in various newspapers and periodicals. He has also pub- lished a book of poems, which are chaste in sentiment and beautiful in diction. Dr. Bar- bour has been affiliated with the Masonic fra- ternity since 1852, and is still connected in an active way with the Masonic bodies in his home. town. He served as master of his lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and has been otherwise honored by his fraters in the order. Loyal, broad-minded and public-spirited, he has ever been ready to do his part in the promotion and support of measures and enterprises tending to advance the general welfare of the com- munity, and while he has never been an as- pirant for public office he is a stalwart advo- cate of the principles and policies for which

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the Republican party stands sponsor. Al- Breckinridge heading the other, John C. Brown though he has retired from active practice, his advice and counsel are frequently sought by the younger members of his profession, the while he finds it difficult to deny the importunities of the many representative families to whom he has so long ministered. The Doctor is a zealous church member, as was also his de- voted and cherished wife.

In October, 1852, was solemnized the mar- riage of Dr. Barbour to Miss Emaline Hauser, who was born and reared at Falmouth, and who was a daughter of Samuel T. Hauser, who came to Kentucky from his native state of North Carolina and who was for many years one of the leading members of the bar of Pen- dleton county, where he also served as judge of the county court for some time, continuing to maintain his home at Falmouth until his death. Mrs. Barbour was an invalid for several years prior to her demise, and she was summoned to the life eternal while visiting a sister in Can- ada, in 'August, 1904, her remains being brought back to Falmouth for interment. She was a woman of most gentle and gracious personality and her name is held in reverent memory by all who came within the sphere of her influence. Dr. and Mrs. Barbour be- came the parents of eight children, of whom one son died in infancy. The names of the other children are here entered in order of their nativity : Ashburn, Hervey, George, Ken- neth, Mary, Sue and Louise.

WATERS LOCHIEL BROWN .- A man of ster- ling integrity and worth, Waters Lochiel Brown occupies a position of prominence and influence among the esteemed and honored cit- izens of Shelby county, and is numbered among its more prosperous agriculturists. He was born on the farm which he now owns and oc- cupies, September 9, 1849, a son of John C. Brown, one of the leading men of his day.

John C. Brown and his brother, Archibald Brown, were left fatherless when young, and were brought up by Archibald Cameron, a bachelor, who was the founder of the Mulberry Presbyterian church. Educated in the pioneer schools of his day and trained to agricultural pursuits, John C. Brown embarked in agri- cultural pursuits when young, and subsequently secured possession of four hundred acres of the Cameron estate. Succeeding well as a gen- eral farmer, he bought more land, acquiring title to five hundred and fifty acres, and con- tinued his agricultural operations until his death, at the age of sixty-nine years and six months. He was very active in local affairs, and especially prominent and influential in the Presbyterian church. When the split in the Presbyterian church occurred, Rev. Samuel Wilson leading one faction and Rev. Robert

supported Mr. Wilson, and was the first man to sign the declaration of withdrawal. He be- came one of the leading members of the Mul- berry church, which was established near the Cameron farm, and for fifty years served as one of its elders. He served many times as a delegate to the general presbyteries held in the county, and his home was ever the head- quarters for the Presbyterian ministers from all over the state.

The maiden name of the wife of John C. Brown was Sarah Waters. She was born in Maryland, and came to Shelby county with her parents when a child. Her father owned about six hundred acres of land in George- town, near Washington, D. C., but he sold it, and, with from forty to fifty negro slaves, came to Shelby county and invested in land, buying about five hundred and fifty acres, from which he improved a good homestead. Mrs. Sarah (Waters) Brown died at a comparatively early age, leaving nine children, four of whom are now living.

Waters Lochiel Brown has spent his entire life on his present farm, which is pleasantly located about six miles northeast of Shelby- ville. He has added from time to time sub- stantial improvements on the place, about sev- enteen years ago having erected his well and conveniently arranged residence. He has made a specialty of growing tobacco, and in addition handles immense quantities of that standard production of the state, buying in all sections of Kentucky and handling from one hundred thousand pounds to three hundred thousand pounds annually, at the present writing, in March, 19II, having on hand one . hundred and sixty thousand pounds. Mr. Brown devotes from forty to seventy- five acres of his farm to the growing of this profitable crop, renting it to tenants for that purpose. True to the religious faith in which he was born and bred, Mr. Brown be- longs to the old Mulberry church, near his home, and although not as prominent in its management as was his father, has served as deacon for ten years and is now an elder.

Mr. Brown married Florence Carrick, of Scott county, Kentucky, and they are the par- ents of seven children, namely : Alexander, a practising physician in Lexington, Kentucky ; William, a civil engineer, who has been em- ployed by the United States Government in the Philippines for two years, is now, in the spring of 1911, en route for home, coming by way of Asia and Europe; Florence, wife of Will McMicker, a Shelby county farmer; Helen, wife of Guthrie Goodman, a grocery- man in Shelbyville; Alice, at home; Robert, at home ; and Mary Frances, a student at Ham-

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ilton College, in Lexington, being a member of the class of 1911.

J. L. PHYTHIAN, M. D .- The once promi- nent physician and official whose life story it will be attempted here briefly to record came of a family of medical men and handed the traditions of his line down to healers of a later generation. The late John Linton Phy- thian, M. D., of Newport, was born at Johns- town, Pennsylvania, December 7, 1832, son of Charles Cover and Eliza ( Linton ) Phythian. His father, who was a farmer, first saw the light of day in Gloucestershire, England, his mother, a Pennsylvanian, was born at Johns- town. Dr. Charles Glover Phythian was reared and educated in England and there be- came an able physician and surgeon. He was yet a comparatively young man when he lo- cated in the practice of his profession at Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Thence he went to Kentucky, settling at Frankfort, where he was in active and successful practice until his death, which occurred July 18, 1859. His wife, who died in 1855, bore him four sons and a daughter. The daughter died in her in- fancy. The sons all became physicians and surgeons.

Dr. John Linton Phythian was reared and privately educated in Pennsylvania and ac- companied his parents to their new home in Kentucky. He read medicine under his fa- ther's preceptorship and was duly graduated from the medical college at Louisville. He practiced in association with his father until the latter's death, and after that event con- tinued in independent practice. During the Civil war he had charge of Confederate and Federal hospitals at Frankfort. After the war he settled at Newport, where he practiced his profession successfully until February 12, 1896, when he died. For some years he was post surgeon in charge of barracks there. Dr. Phythian married Miss Mary Belle Taylor at Frankfort, Kentucky, September 11, 1856. She was a daughter of Colonel Edmund and Mar- tha (Southgate) Taylor, both of old Southern families. Colonel Taylor was born near the mouth of Harrod's creek, in Jefferson county, Kentucky, June 4, 1799, and died at Frank- fort April 27, 1873. His father, Richard Tay- lor, came to Kentucky from Orange county, Virginia, at a time early in the history of the first mentioned state and was the first United States surveyor who operated in Kentucky. In the Blue Grass state his family grew both numerous and prominent, and President Zach- ary Taylor was a representative of one of its branches, the name of Richard Taylor having been perpetuated in that of President Taylor's son, General Dick Taylor, of the Confederate army. In 1811 Colonel E. H. Taylor located

at Frankfort, where he lived out his remain- ing years. In 1818 he became a clerk in the office of state auditor, John Madison, brother of Governor Madison. Later he was for some years quartermaster-general and keeper of public property of the state. When the old Commonwealth Bank was organized he was appointed its cashier and filled the office till the bank eventually passed out of business by liquidation. When the Bank of Kentucky was founded, in 1835, he became cashier of the Frankfort branch and was continued in the position till his death, thirty-eight years later during which long period he had never been ab- sent from his post at any time for longer than one week. During his protracted residence in Frankfort he enjoyed the confidence and friendship of many of the most distinguished men of the state, among them such men as Crittenden, Clay and Letcher.

Dr. and Mary Belle (Taylor) Phythian had four children: Charles Taylor Phythian, a physician and surgeon of note, who died March 14, 1897; Elizabeth, who is the wife of Nimo Pettis, of Newport; Mattie, the first born, who died in infancy; and John Linton Phythian, Jr., a physician and surgeon well. known at Newport and throughout the sur- rounding country. Mrs. Phythian lives at Newport, making her home with her children.

JOHN LINTON PHYTHIAN, M. D .- That there is much in heredity is demonstrated in this sketch of the antecedents and career of one of the leading physicians in all that part of Kentucky in "the country across from Cin- cinnati." John Linton Phythian, M. D., of Newport, was born at Frankfort, Kentucky, July 21, 1869, son of John Linton and Mary Belle (Taylor) Phythian, the former born at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 1832, the latter at Frankfort, Kentucky, in 1837. Dr. John Linton Phythian, liberally educated, came as a young man to Frankfort, studied medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. Gross, once a famous physician and surgeon of Louisville, and was graduated from the medical depart- ment of the University of that city. When the Civil war came on he was appointed surgeon of a Federal regiment of Kentuckians. In the different hospitals of which he had charge. he ministered to suffering Federals and suffer- ing Confederates with equal skill and devo- tion. One of these hospitals was the original military hospital at Frankfort, another was the hospital created by the conversion of the old state penitentiary buildings to such use. Of his four brothers, three served in the Union army, the other in the Confederate army. Af- ter the war he practiced his profession at Frankfort till 1873, then took up his residence

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A history of Kentucky and Kentuckians; the leaders and representative men in commerce, industry and modern activities, Volume III, Part 114

Author: Johnson, E. Polk, 1844-; Lewis Publishing Company Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 860

Author: Johnson, E. Polk, 1844-; Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 860