USA > Mississippi > Lowndes County > Columbus > A history of Columbus, Mississippi, during the 19th century > Part 10
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Rev. Father Laurent, of Baltimore, an eloquent and gifted divine, is holding a series of meetings in the Catholic church at this time.
THE JEWISH CHURCH.
The Jews began to settle in Columbus as early as 1840 and finding the town to be a profitable place for business, and its citizens liberal to all sects and nationalities, have continued to come until they now number more than two hundred persons and are among our most highly respected and patriotic citizens.
NOTE-From July, 1902, Hippel; June, 1908, Rev. P. Sylvester Yoerg, O. S. B .- EDITOR,
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The first Jews who came to Columbus were the Hoffmans and Crusmans who came in 1840. These were followed by Nathan, Gross, Lorsch, Schwartz and Rowtch.
The Jews had no regular Rabbi but were served occasion- ally by two of their laymen, Messrs. Katz and Wolfe, until April 9th, 1881 Rabbi J. Herz took charge of the congregation. He soon succeeded in establishing the present elegant and modernly finished synagogue in which services are regularly held and the customs and tenets of the Jewish church are conformed to. Subsequently the Jewish congregation pur- chased and handsomely remodeled the brick church built by the Methodists in 1844.
Rabbi Herz is a preacher of ability and is most highly esteemed on account of his great liberality and kindness to the people of Columbus. The ministers of the different churches take great pleasure in acknowledging assistance from him in their ministerial labors.
The Jews of Columbus have exhibited their patriotic spirit by enlistment as soldiers in the Columbus companies and doing their full duty in camp and on the battle field.
BAPTIST CHURCH.
[NOTE-The writer desires to express his sincere thanks to Mr ' E. C. Chapman, Clerk of the Baptist Church, for the extract below' taken from its records, and also to Mrs. Ann Franklin for permission to use her well written and highly endorsed " Reminiscences of the Baptist Church."
Columbus, Miss., Feb. 9, 1901.]
To the pastor and members of the Baptist church, Colum- bus, Miss .:
Your committee appointed to prepare suitable resolu- tions expressing our thanks for the historical sketch of our church, written by the oldest and one of the most honored members, Sister Ann E. Franklin, beg to make the following report :
Whereas, Sister Franklin being the oldest living member of this church did write a full and correct history of this church from its early history up to the present time, giving in regular line of succession the different pastors serving here.
Resolved, 1st. That this church does thank Sister Franklin for this very valuable paper.
MRS. ANN CAMPBELL FRANKLIN (1822 1905)
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2nd. That a page in our church minutes be set apart, and that paper be inscribed therein.
3rd. That this church does most heartily congratulate our beloved Sister Franklin on her advanced age, her fidelity to this church and her ripened Christian experience, and wish her many years of usefulness in the Master's cause.
4th. That a page in the minutes be set apart for these resolutions and they be a part of the records of this church.
5th. That a copy of these resolutions be sent to Sister Franklin.
R. S. CURRY, JAS. T. HARRISON, MARTIN TREASDALE, Committee.
REMINISCENCES OF THE BAPTIST CHURCH.
The Baptist church of Columbus was organized in 1832. The charter members as far as I remember, were Maj. Thomas G. Blewett, Thomas McGee, the Gibsons, and Warrens.
They were for several years without a house of worship, services being held in the Masonic Temple, which was also used as a school for young ladies, and presided over by Mr. Wright, a Presbyterian minister, the father of Mrs. Laura Eager, so long connected with the Franklin Academy.
The Masonic Temple was situated on the southwest corner of Major Blewett's lot, now General Stephen D. Lee's flower garden.
The other denominations, with the exception of the Metho- dists, who had the only church in town, held their services in the Franklin Academy.
The membership of the church had increased so greatly under Dr. George Tucker, its first pastor, that in 1838 it was decided to build a church, and in the spring of that year the corner stone was laid.
The first thing was to secure a suitable lot. After some delay in looking around the present site was selected, the price paid was $5,000.00, with nothing on the lot but a little log cabin, which was literally a bower of the old fashioned multiflora rose, and was occupied at that time, as many old citizens will remember, by Miss Maria Morse, who had an
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infant school, and taught many a generation of Columbus their A. B. C's.
The strip of ground between the Baptist and old Metho- dist church (now Concert Hall) was owned by Col. McLaren, a Baptist and wealthy citizen of his day. He made an equal division of the land, giving half to the Baptist and half to the Methodists, which was his wife's church.
Major Blewett was the moving spirit in all that pertained to the upbuilding of the Baptist denomination in Columbus and with his indomitable energy, his vast fortune and princely generosity, he became the ruling spirit of the new church. At the time of its completion his contribution amounted to $18,000.00, and as long as he lived his purse strings were ever open to the Baptist cause.
Major Blewett had many able co-workers: Gov. Whit- field, the Gibsons, Blounts, Armstrongs, Walthalls, and many others. Later on they were joined by Dr. Franklin, who was senior deacon for many years before his death. Isham Harrison, Dr. Thomas Mayo, Dr. Jones, Mr. Marquis, Mr. Whitfield, Sr., Mr. Canfield and John Morgan, Sr., Dr. Tali- aferro and Mr. Krecker, who, with his estimable, wife led the singing for many years before we had an organ.
Our present organ was bought just before the war, when Dr. Teasdale was pastor.
They were two years in building the church, and at the time of its completion it was the largest and handsomest church edifice in Mississippi, if not in the entire South.
Major Blewett presented the old bell that still hangs in the dome. It has pealed the wedding chimes, it has tolled the funeral knell of generations dead and gone, and it but recently chanted the requiem of the dying century.
The magnificent silver communion service, also a gift of Major Blewett, has recently been added to by the gener- osity of Mrs. Eugenia Moore, daughter of the late senior deacon, John Morgan, who was one of the pillars of the church.
At one time in its history the old church was used for another purpose than a place of worship. After the battle of Shiloh, when thousands of our wounded soldiers were brought to Columbus, it was converted into a hospital and hundreds and hundreds of soldiers were cared for there, and
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many a brave soul winged its flight into the eternal realm above from the walls of the dear old historic church.
The elegant carpets that covered the church were taken up and cut into squares to use as blankets for the soldiers.
We had no baptistry until long after the war; we were decidedly river Baptists, baptizing at the foot of Main street, just under the present bridge.
During Mr. Goodwin's pastorate, James T. Harrison, Sr., presented us the much needed baptistry as a token of his love for the Baptist cause.
The following ministers have, since its organization, presided over the destinies of the church successively: Tucker, Bailey, Walthall, Armstrong, Crane, McLeod (a supply preach- er who only filled the pulpit a few months), Tichenor, Russell, Buck, Teasdale, Sears (also a supply preacher who refugeed here after the battle of Donelsonville, and as our pulpit was vacant at that time preached for us during the winter), Bestor, Cason, Goodwin, Battle, Taylor, Dobbs, Johnson, Jones, and our present well-beloved minister, A. J. Miller.
The present corps of deacons are Gen. Stephen D. Lee, F. M. Jacob, J. L. Walker, James T. Harrison, A. A. Wofford, T. O. Burris, B. L. Owen, and J. A. Goree.
The Columbus Association held its sessions here several times and the state convention three times. In 1881, during the pastorate of Henry W. Battle, who was ordained in this church, the Southern Baptist Convention, one of the largest religious bodies in the world, were entertained here most roy- ally. There were about eight hundred delegates in attendance, all the churches were thrown open for their deliberations and all the private homes for their entertainment.
I have given this little history of the church just as I recol- lect it through the changes and vicissitudes of sixty-nine years, it being ten years my junior, and if I haven't things just as they were, I can't find any one old enough to correct me.
ANN C. FRANKLIN.
Columbus, Miss., Jan. 27, 1901.
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A DISTINGUISHED BAPTIST LAYMAN.
History cannot make facts. Men make facts and his- tory records them. The brightest pages in history are the records of the deeds of good men. Among the good men who made the historic city of Columbus luminous with his deeds, stands the name of Major Thomas G. Blewett. Major Blewett was not one of those pioneers who sought locations in the rich prairies of Mississippi to make a home and a fortune for himself. He had an old ancestral home and abundant wealth before he left South Carolina, the land of patriotism, statesmanship and nobility.
A young man of fortune, he wisely concluded the ex- hausted sandy plains and hills of his native state were not the place for agricultural success. In the fall of 1832 he came to Mississippi, lured hither by the fame of the rich lands just vacated by the Choctaw Indians, and after examination purchased a large body of land, the homestead and residence of Mashulatubbee, the great Choctaw Chief, and on which grew the famous oak under which was held the great council of the Choctaw chiefs to hear the celebrated warrior of the west, Tecumseh, who urged them to engage themselves in alliance against the whites and especially against the Ameri- cans, who were then at war with the British in the War of 1812.
These lands were situated on the old Military road, cut by the troops of Andrew Jackson in 1815, and in the northern part of Noxubee and southern part of Lowndes county. He spent a year opening lands and building houses for his family and slaves, which were occupied by them in the fall of 1833.
In 1835 Major Blewett moved his family to Columbus, Mississippi, and built for them a residence equal to the best in the town, situated on the square now known as Merchant's Block, and included two-thirds of its eastern portion. He resided here two years. During his residence here began that life of intelligent wisdom and large liberality which placed him foremost among the patriotic citizens and unselfish phil- anthropists of Columbus. In going to and from his planta- tions he found himself and the citizens of Lowndes county inconvenienced by a toll ferry boat on the Luxapalila. He
MAJ. THOMAS BLEWETT.
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asked permission of the county to build a bridge across that stream free to all its citizens, reserving only a right to receive toll from non-residents. The result was a strong, well covered lattice bridge, the model after which the Green Hill bridge was built. In 1837 it was open for public use, with appropriate ceremonies and a sumptuous barbecue, prepared at his own expense and attended by thousands of citizens. This was the first substantial bridge ever built in north Mississippi.
Soon afterwards he grew tired of the encroachments of trade and publicity of his home, and bought from the Rev. David Wright, the square on which he lived until his death, now owned by Gen. S. D. Lee, who married his grand-daughter, Miss Regina Harrison. He did not sell his first residence, but rolled it up to a point on Washington, or College Street, and by adding long wings east and west and south built the Blewett House, a hotel famous in after years for being the rendezvous of the state candidates and politicians. From the steps of its portico three gallant companies of soldiers organized in Columbus, who went to the Mexican war in 1846-7 and to the Confederate war in 1861, received their battle flags from the fair hands of three of Columbus' most gifted women, Misses Bettie Goff, Passie Butler, and Clara Shields.
In 1838, with that fine scholar and educator, Mr. Abram Maer, and a board of trustees composed of the very best and wealthiest citizens of Columbus, he, being president of the board, projected and built the Mississippi Female College, the first college, male or female north of Jackson, in the state of Mississippi.
Maj. Thos. G. Blewett was a devoted Baptist, and that denomination having no place of worship, his great heart was stirred, and by a subscription equal in amount to that subscribed by all others, he projected the erection of a Bap- tist church in his Columbus home. His ambitions and archi- tectural taste aspired to a structure modeled after the classic temples of Greece, and he achieved success in a building second to none in the State.
Its classic portico, supported by its Corinthian columns with chapiter and base, suggests the entrance to the old state
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capitol at Jackson or the St. Charles hotel in New Orleans, while its graceful steeple, like some tall poplar, lifts its aspiring head in beauty against the Heaven's blue dome. He stopped at no expense to make its appointments complete, and to this day the Baptist church stands a monument of what the unselfish and abounding beneficence of one of her citizens has done for his denomination and the city of Columbus.
In 1848 he was again a liberal contributor and trustee to the establishment and support of the Columbus Female Institute. In 1858, when destroyed by fire, he was again the leading subscriber for its rebuilding.
In 1847 he built for himself a spacious and palatial man- sion after an Italian model with brick made by his own masons and lumber wrought by his own mechanics, under his own immediate supervision.
In 1862 his youngest son, Capt. Randle Blewett, having raised a company to take part in the great Confederate war, his noble and patriotic father generously armed, uniformed and equipped the whole company at his own expense, only to see his gallant boy fill a soldier's grave in one of the great battles of Virginia.
He bore the great losses caused by the Confederate war, which included 500 slaves, like a Christian philosopher, and accommodated himself to the changed condition of life without a murmur or complaint.
His vigorous and well preserved constitution resisted the encroachments of disease and age until he was eighty-two years old, and then after a short, severe illness, he met death like a Christian hero with all the confidence and hope of his religious faith.
In an interview with the Rev. George Shaeffer, a warm Methodist friend, just before his death, he said, "Brother Shaeffer, I have shown you how a Baptist could live, and now I will show you how a Baptist can die."
The irreproachable character of Major Thos. G. Blewett in his public and private life and his rigid adherence to honor, honesty, and truth placed him much above the common level of men. His cheerful disposition and genial manners relieved the strictness of his high moral standard, and made him one of the kindest of friends and best of citizens. He was pure
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FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, 1908.
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in heart, upright in life, extravagant in charities, and grand in death. He died in Columbus, Miss., May 2, 1871.
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, 1902.
The First Baptist church was organized in the early 30's, and the present building was constructed at a cost of $28,000 in 1839. It can seat 600 worshippers.
The church has always been well conducted, and was never in a more prosperous condition. All departments are in successful operation. Its membership, which now numbers 377, has invariably included many of the most representative Columbus citizens. The deacons at present are: Gen. S. D. Lee, F. M. Jacob, J. L. Walker, W. W. Wofford, J. T. Harrison (Lieutenant-Governor of Mississippi), T. O. Burris, J. A. Goree, W. N. Puckett. The church is under the efficient pastorate of Rev. A. J. Miller, a pulpit speaker of force, and a consecrated man who numbersn one but friends among the people of Columbus.
E. C. Chapman is treasurer; B. A. Lincoln is clerk, and Miss Annie L. Long, organist.
The flourishing Sabbath school enrolls 190 pupils. The B. Y. P. U. and the junior organization are strong and active, as may be said of the ladies' organization, the Armstrong Society, of which Mrs. Dan Richards is president and Mrs. Bettie Gaston secretary. Two years ago the pastorium, or parsonage was erected at a cost of $2,500 .*
*NOTE-In 1908, during the pastorate of Rev. Mr. Hewett, a com- modious and elegant new church building was erected by the Baptists. -EDITOR.
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CHAPTER XIII. COLUMBUS DURING THE CIVIL WAR.
THE SOLDIERS' GRAVES-LADIES' MONUMENTAL ASSOCIATION -DAUGHTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY.
The history of Columbus, Miss., during the Civil War is unique and interesting-unique in that it was never at- tacked or captured by the Federal army during the entire war. No hostile flag ever floated over its beautiful homes, no house was ever burned or building looted by a conquering foe. It escaped the immediate horrors and ravages of war, which fact was not true of any other city or town of its size in the State of Mississippi, and notwithstanding the further fact that 238 battles were fought on Mississippi soil.
From the very date of secession to the close of the war, Columbus was the scene of great excitement and the bustle and hurry of active warlike preparation. Intensely patriotic, its volunteer companies were among the very first to tender their services to the State and to the Confederacy. On Jan. 11th, 1861, only a few days after the secession of Mississippi, two companies from Columbus and one from Lowndes county, having received sealed orders from Gov. J. Pettus, proceeded by rail to Mobile, Ala. These sealed orders, the departure of the troops, and the Act of Secession, produced the wildest excitement and anxious inquiry in the minds and hearts of her citizens. A few days developed the fact that eight Mississippi companies, located on the Mobile & Ohio Railroad, had been ordered to rendezvous at Mobile and in connection with Alabama and Florida troops to proceed to Pensacola, Fla., and take possession of that place with its navy yard and munitions of war, and, if practicable, the United States forts in its vicinity.
The eight Mississippi companies were as follows: Colum- bus Riflemen, Capt. C. H. Abert; Lowndes Southrons, Capt. Wm. B. Wade; Prairie Guards, Capt. J. T. W. Hairston; Chickasaw Guards, Capt. W. F. Tucker; Noxubee Rifles, Capt. Geo. T. Wier; Lauderdale Rifles, Capt. Constantine
DIVELBISS BOOK
EXCHANGE'
HOME OF GEN. S.D. LEE-COLUMBUS, MISS. .
( Built for Maj. Thomas Blewett in 1844. )
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Rea; Enterprise Guards, Capt. W. O. Ferrall; Quitman Light Infantry, Capt. J. L. Duck.
At Pensacola these companies were organized into a regiment with the following field officers: Capt. C. H. Abert, Colonel; Capt. Wm. B. Wade, Lieut. Colonel; and Lieut. Samuel Butler, Major, thus giving Columbus and Lowndes county all the commanding officers of the regiment. Drs. B. A. Vaughan and C. M. Dickinson were appointed surgeons and -- Brown, Quartermaster, Hugh Topp, Commissary. First Lieut. Wm. E. Baldwin was elected Captain of the Co- lumbus Riflemen with the following officers: First Lieut., S. D. Harris; Second Lieut., J. W. Benoit; Third Lieut., R. A. Bell; First Sergeant, W. O. Worrell; Second Sergeant, C. A. Johnston; Third Sergeant, Rube Willeford; Fourth Sergeant, C. Worrell.
First Corporal, R. W. Harris; Second Corporal, Ed Dun- can; Third Corporal, J. C. Duncan; Fourth Corporal, D. Sap- pington; Fifth Corporal, E. M. Witherspoon.
Geo. H. Lipscomb was elected Captain of the Lowndes Southrons with the following officers:
First Lieut. T. P. Shields; Second Lieut. W. C. Richards; Third Lieut., Jacob Isaacs.
First Sergeant, S. H. Harris; Second Sergeant, J. W. Armstrong; Third Sergeant, C. Murry; Fourth Sergeant, R. H. Riddick; Fifth Sergeant, G. H. Richey.
First Corporal, R. P. Gregory; Second Corporal, Geo. Whitfield; Third Corporal, J. P. Kenny; Fourth Corporal, Harris Field.
The following were the officers of the Prairie Guards: Captaiu, J. T. W. Hairston; First Lieut. A. H. Ledbetter; Second Lieut., J. H. Hairston; Third Lieut. W. H. Gray.
First Sergeant, E. Sanders; Second Sergeant, T. Carr; Third Sergeant, H. B. Thorp; Fourth Sergeant, H. P. Halbert.
First Corporal, J. Henkin; Second Corporal, F. R. Greg- ory; Third Corporal, J. H. Darby; Fourth Corporal, Thos. Roberts; Ensign J. W. Chandler.
This record shows that Columbus and Lowndes county companies were among the very first to obey the orders of the sovereign State of Mississippi, to protect her honor and territory, before the Confederate States of America was
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organized. These companies remained in the State service until early in February, when they were discharged, and on the 8th of that month they arrived in Columbus amid the booming of cannon, the sounds of martial music, the waving of handkerchiefs, and the welcome smiles of their happy mothers and sisters. After an address of welcome by Judge S. A. Brown, they were escorted by the "Reserve Ritlemen," the "Lowndes County Guards" and the "Tombigbee Rangers" to Cady's Hotel where they partook of a sumptuous breakfast prepared for the occasion.
Early after the organization of the Confederate States of America, the first call of the government was made for two regiments of soldiers from each of the States. Under this call "Lowndes Southrons," Capt. Wm. B. Wade, and the "Southern Avengers," Capt. Geo. H. Lipscomb, both companies from Columbus, Miss., tendered their services and were accepted.
The "Lowndes Southrons" were commanded by the following officers: Capt., Wm. B. Wade; First Lieut., T. P. Shields; Second Lieut., W. C. Richards; Third Lieut., J. H. Field; Ensign, R. J. Murry.
First Sergeant, L. L. Goodrich; Second Sergeant, J. W. Armstrong; Third Sergeant, G. H. Richey; Fourth Sergeant, Robert Gregory; Fifth Sergeant, James Winston.
First Corporal, Thos. Edwards; Second Corporal, George Bean; Third Corporal, J. P. Beatty; Fourth Corporal, E. T. Ruffin. Total officers and men, 91.
The "Southron Avengers" were commanded by the following officers: Capt., Geo. H. Lipscomb; First Lieut., T. I. Sharp; Second Lieut., Robert Bell; Third Lieut., G. W. Vaughn.
First Sergeant, T. B. Franks; Second Sergeant, E. T. Benoit; Third Sergeant, J. Pope; Fourth Sergeant, R. W. Harris; Fifth Sergeant, M. M. Burke.
First Corporal H. Kincannon; Second Corporal, George Fisher; Third Corporal, J. Gibson; Fourth Corporal, C. E. Gay. Total officers and men 102.
The time of service for these regiments was one year. They were mustered into the Confederate service at Pensacola, Fla., Mar. 27, 1861, and were assigned to duty as companies
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in the 10th Mississippi Regiment, commanded by the following officers: Col. Moses B. Phillips; Lieut, Col. Joseph R. Davis; Maj. E. H. Gregory; Adjutant, E. T. Sykes; Ass't. Surgeon, W. L. Lipscomb; Ass't. Quartermaster, George W. Whitfield; Quartermaster Sergeant, T. C. Lipscomb.
These two companies with another Mississippi company were assigned to duty in Fort McRae, Maj. E. H. Gregory commanding. They remained at Pensacola one year and were discharged at Corinth, Miss. Ass't. Surgeon W. L. Lipscomb, accompanied the expedition making a night attack on Santa Rosa Island and was captured, being one of the first prisoners of war from the State of Mississippi. He was released on special parole and assigned to duty in New Orleans.
During 1861 the war began in earnest and, the conflict becoming more severe, there was a continuous call of the general government on the states for troops. Columbus re- sponded with her accustomed patriotism and promptness, until companies, aggregating 2201 men from the city and county, were sent to the field. The city was a continued scene of the organization, equipment, drill, and departure of soldiers. The bugle and the drum were rarely missed from the sounds which fell on the ears of the citizens of Colum- bus during 1861 and '62. For an accurate record of the names of these companies, the reader is referred to the list prepared by Lieut. Thomas Harrison and published in the Columbus Dispatch, date May 8th, 1902.
In addition to the above Confederate troops, Brig. Gen. J. V. Harris rendevouzed and organized at Columbus a brig- ade of State troops, which brigade was engaged and captured at the siege of Vicksburg.
Another phase of war which disturbed the quiet and occupied the attention of the citizens of Columbus was the establishment by the Confederate Government of an immense arsenal for the manufacture of arms and the munitions of war. Great buildings of brick and wood were projected and built with such rapidity that the workmen did not cease their labors on the Sabbath day and often extended them far into the night. A thousand or more artisans and mechan- ics were engaged in casting cannon, manufacturing and alter- ing small arms, making cartridges, fuses, percussion caps,
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