USA > North Carolina > Edgecombe County > History of Edgecombe County, North Carolina > Part 42
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44
Petitions had been sent from North Carolina to the Synod of Philadelphia as early as 1744 with the records showing that the supplications came "from many people." The records, however, do not give any indication as to the locality of the people. In re- sponse to this inquiry two missionaries were sent to visit Virginia and North Carolina in 1753. There is no record of where they went. It is unfortunate that, like Bishop Asbury and others, these pioneer ministers did not keep diaries. In 1754 a few Presbyterian settlers came to Edgecombe, and four ministers were sent to Virginia and North Carolina, and like their predecessors no account of them is preserved.
The known activities of the Reverend McAden are of consider- able interest. His first trip touching the county followed the principal road leading from Richmond, Va., to Wilmington, N. C. From Richmond he came by the way of what is now Weldon, where he crossed Tar River. This would cause him to pass through the northern and western borders of the county. This section was, with a few isolated exceptions, sparsely settled. Reverend McAden was a Pennsylvanian by birth, his people com- ing from the north of Ireland. He attended school at Nassau
458
TARBORO PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
459
PRESBYTERIANS AND SONS OF TEMPERANCE
Hall and sat at the feet of the famous instructor, John Blair, of New Castle Presbytery.1 He was graduated in 1753, was licensed 1755, and was ordained by the Presbytery in 1757. In 1759 he was transferred from his Presbytery to the Hanover Presbytery in the South. The memoranda of his early life was destroyed by British soldiers in January, 1781, while he was living in Caswell County. The journal of his first missionary tour, which lasted several months, was the only document preserved.
In August, 1755, Mr. McAden preached on Eno River, which runs through Durham and Wake counties. It was probably in the nearest point of Granville County that he was then ministering. There was also a house of worship on Eno River built by the Pres- byterians of Granville County. The people in the vicinity of Tar River heard of him and "earnestly entreated" him to visit them. Mr. McAden states in his journal that he started the same evening, Tuesday, August 12th, with his guide and went as far as Bogan's on Flat River that day. He had journeyed twenty miles south. The following morning he commenced his trip and rode to "old" Sherman's on Tar River. He preached that after- noon to a small company "who seemed generally attentive, and some affected."
The next day he proceeded to Grassy Creek, where he preached to a congregation in a Baptist meeting house. Following his preaching here he began a trip to Fishing Creek, and was accom- panied by his host "old" Mr. Lawrence.2 Here Mr. McAden relates of going with Mr. Lawrence to Fishing Creek, to the Bap- tist yearly meeting, and on Saturday and Sunday preached to large and interested audiences. "Here," said Mr. McAden, "I think the power of God appeared something conspicuous and the word seemed to fall with power." He was persuaded to preach again Sunday evening, and on Monday he preached again.
The early association of Mr. McAden with the Baptists was not uncommon nor unusual. In many respects their doctrine was identical, especially that of the doctrine of predestination. He speaks highly in favor of his friend Mr. Lawrence.
The following April Mr. McAden made a trip to the Pamlico River, making his way upward. On the 7th of this month he
1 This school later became Westminister College.
" Evidently Joshua Lawrence's father.
460
HISTORY OF EDGECOMBE COUNTY
reached Edgecombe County again, but this time from the South. He rode to Mr. Barrow's home near Red Banks, where he preached to "a pretty large company of people of various sorts, but very few Presbyterians." The same evening he rode up the Tar River to Mr. Mace's, "who was a man of considerable note, and a Presbyterian." This is the first actual account of a Presbyterian in the county who was mentioned by name. Mr. Mace was the father of William Mace, a large planter and slave owner. His name is mentioned on the Inferior Court Records at Tarboro as having been summoned to appear in a test case of valuation of slaves. An incident of slave killing is also mentioned in connec- tion with his name elsewhere in this volume.
Mr. McAden remained here until Sunday, April 11th, and preached in the vicinity. On Tuesday he rode a considerable dis- tance to Mr. Toole's, on Tar River, where Bishop Asbury had mentioned stopping frequently. The next day he reached Edge- combe courthouse and in all probability held services there. Tar- boro, it will be remembered, was only a small village, and the courthouse was at Redman's Old Field.
After leaving the courthouse he went to Fishing Creek, and on the 16th of April rode ten miles up the creek, where he was received "kindly by Baptist friends he had made through the county last fall." Mr. McAden left the county after sowing the first seeds of ministerial work. There is no record of his ever visiting the county again.
There is some probability that Mr. Pattilo, who became pastor of Nut-Bush and Grassy Creek Churches in Granville County, visited the county from 1780 to 1790. The Presbyterians, how- ever, were evidently without any church organization during this time.1 The few of this belief, who were in the county, brought the doctrine from Virginia, New Jersey, and abroad. The area of Edgecombe, according to its geographical location, was in the jurisdiction of the Orange Presbytery, but the minutes of the Synod which met on Fishing Creek in 1801 contain no record of any congregation at Tarboro or elsewhere in Edgecombe.
The period between 1760 and 1866 is blank, so far as the his- tory of the Presbyterians in Edgecombe County is concerned. It
1 In 1810 there were only churches of two denominations, the Baptist and Methodist.
461
PRESBYTERIANS AND SONS OF TEMPERANCE
is probable, however, that visiting ministers made infrequent visits through the county and preached in the public meeting house for the benefit of those who held the Presbyterian faith. At the beginning of the year 1867 the Reverend Mr. Dalton, who was pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Washington, N. C., began his visits to Tarboro. The Methodist Church was opened to him and in his series of visits he preached in this church. Upon his arrival he found three ladies 1 who had been members of the Presbyterian Church and were still loyal to this faith. In 1870 there being no church, a movement began to raise funds to erect a house of worship. By July 15, 1870, $2,500.00 had been raised by popular subscription and a plea for $1,000.00 more was issued with favorable results.
In 1869 verbal permission was given by the commissioners of the town of Tarboro to erect a church for the Presbyterians on the northwest corner of lot 64 in the old burying ground. The church was to pay $1.00 per annum for the use of the lot.
Under the ministrations of Mr. Dalton, the three ladies were induced to carry out the design of a church building. On Febru- ary 15, 1874, a church was organized with fifteen members, with James D. Cummings and Henry A. Walker as elders, and Orren Williams and Edward R. Stamps as deacons.
During, 1861, Miss Anna Ragland Stamps, the daughter of Dr. Thomas Stamps, a reputable physician of Melton, Caswell County, N. C., was united in marriage to the late Judge Howard, of Tarboro. Mrs. Howard was reared in a strong Presbyterian family and directed the energy of Judge Howard, who at the time was not a member of any church, into Presbyterian endeavor. Mrs. Howard became the most prominent supporter of the church movement, and with the assistance of others, succeeded in erecting a church in 1874 on the site of the present building at the corner of St. James and St. Patrick Streets, of Tarboro.
The Orange Presbytery met in Tarboro in the Presbyterian Church in 1874. The opening sermon was preached by Reverend Jacob Doll. A large congregation was in attendance, while eighteen ministers and seventeen ruling elders represented the various churches in the Presbytery.
1 Mrs. Anna Howard, the wife of late Judge Howard, was one.
462
HISTORY OF EDGECOMBE COUNTY
In March, 1878, that part of the town lot that was verbally rented to the church, was conveyed by deed to the Presbyterian Church. The primary and provisional clause of the deed of con- veyance was that it should be used for divine worship and for the use of the ministry and the membership of the Presbyterian Church.
Under the pastorate of Dr. J. N. Howard Summerell the church experienced a rapid growth and increasing influence. His activi- ties were not confined to Tarboro, but his missionary inclinations led him to the various towns in the State. It was through his missionary efforts that the foundation was laid for the Presby- terian churches at Greenville and Falkland in Pitt County. Soon after the beginning of his pastorate Edgecombe began to respond to the doctrines of Presbyterianism. A church was organized at Leggetts, known as Olivet Church. This church grew in number and influence until its membership reached forty active church workers. Theodore Fountain became elder of this church and William Fly and Arthur Fountain were at one time deacons. The church is one of the neatest and one of the best small churches in the county.
In the spring of 1911 the missionary and church endeavor of the Presbyterians resulted in the establishment of a Sunday school at Pinetops. A revival meeting had been held in Pinetops sometime previous to this by Reverend G. W. Beck and the result of the revival showed the good accomplished. In the fall of the same year a church was organized, with Benjamin Brown and E. Y. Lovelace as elders, and L. W. and J. A. Wiggins as deacons. The church enjoys a nice building and has about forty-five members.
Meanwhile the missionary field of Orange Presbytery, as organ- ized prior to 1801, was more than twice as large as the missionary territory of the four other Presbyteries in the Synod of North Carolina. At a session at Rocky Mount in October, 1888, the Orange Presbytery addressed a letter of relief to the Synod. A convention met immediately afterwards and suggested a redistri- bution of the territory. Subsequently, a new Presbytery, styled the Presbytery of Albemarle was erected, which included Edge- combe.
463
PRESBYTERIANS AND SONS OF TEMPERANCE
In the meantime Dr. Summerell's efforts at Tarboro were re- warded with substantial growth. R. C. Brown, a prominent mer- chant of Tarboro, became an elder, while Orren Williams was superintendent of the thriving Sunday school for many years. He became one of the most active members of the church. One of the strongest and most useful members at Tarboro was F. S. Royster. He also became an elder and devoted his money and time in furthering the interests of the church. He also served as a trustee of Davidson College until 1893. These able men and others with the assistance of Mrs. Anna Howard, Mrs. Anna McNair, and Mrs. Don Williams laid the foundation for a noble work which has been continued by descendants.
W. Stamps Howard and W. A. Hart for several years conducted the Sunday school at Leggetts, while Elder Harry Smith and Deacon C. A. Johnson were active in the Sunday school at Pinetops. The efforts of the laymen of the church have been felt in various sections of the county, and under their inspiration a nice chapel was erected at Runnymede Mills in 1904. R. B. Peters, an elder, . with the cooperation of the earnest ladies of the church, have faith- fully and incessantly labored in the promotion of this Sunday school.
George Howard, W. Stamps Howard and their sisters have, with conscientious efforts, carried out the designs and work which was begun by their mother, Mrs. Anna Stamps Howard. In 1909 the present spacious and beautiful church at Tarboro was erected by them as a memorial to their parents. The building was finished at an approximate cost of $30,000.00 and an organ of unique de- sign at a cost of $5,500.00 was installed. The church in 1914 had a membership of 200 that compares favorably with any church in useful service. George Howard was the superintendent of the Sunday school, and at one time treasurer for the church.
Among the ministers who have served this church were Reverend Dr. W. D. Morton, who was at one time moderator, and J. S. Ballou.
SONS OF TEMPERANCE
The organization known as the Sons of Temperance seems to have been an outgrowth of an agitation for sobriety and the temperate use of liquor. The movement was nonsectarian and as a popular movement received the support of the leading citizens
464
HISTORY OF EDGECOMBE COUNTY
in the county. The earliest day of its existence in the county was in 1840. The agitation began in that year for a better moral com- munity and the elimination of the evil of drink. The organization also had as one of its leading issues the better support of schools and education. Both young and old of all churches and citizens gave the movement hearty support. Many branches of the society were organized in the county. At Temperance Hall in Edgecombe County a large and growing organization held its meeting. In Tarboro there was also another, and in 1853 one reads that the members of Farm Creek Division of the Sons of Temperance "will celebrate their anniversary on Saturday, 28th of May, and that Brother James L. Cotton and others were expected to deliver addresses."
Similar to many other good worthy movements, the organization soon became involved in religious controversies with resultant evil instead of wholesome and effective good. The country then, as in more recent times, was being generally canvassed by temperance lecturers who were employed by the various church organizations in the State. The Temperance Society had enjoyed only a few years' existence before men pronounced in their temperance re- form made their appearance in Edgecombe. It was to be expected as a natural result of things that these men were to be met with opposition. Especially in these days opposition not only came from the confirmed moral wreck, who had drowned his life with degradation and drink, but men of all walks of life had grave doubts as to the wisdom of absolute tetotalism.
The matter would have been ignored had not some visiting lec- turers pronounced a moral and intellectual curse upon the entire county because of the strong opposition met with by many of the people, and especially by the Baptists. These lecturers traveled over the entire South, touching Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and even as far as Kentucky.
In 1852 a criticism was published by one of the lecturers in Alabama which reached the people in the county. In the criticism Edgecombe was defamed and reproached, causing, as one citizen of the county put it, "the blood to chill in the people's veins for a moment and in the next a flush of indignation to rise against the infamy of disappointed and chagrined men." The charge made against the county was both false and malicious. A tem-
1
465
PRESBYTERIANS AND SONS OF TEMPERANCE
perance lecturer then touring Alabama and Mississippi alleged that Edgecombe was one of the most "ignorant, benighted coun- ties" in that she repudiated the school fund until the Order of the Sons of Temperance drove them to take it, that her people were most stupid, indigent, degraded, and the least intelligent of any county, and her society the worst. And that the Old School Baptists were the meanest and most degraded set of drunkards in the State.
The calumny came with bad grace, and from those who were representatives of church organizations.
An attempt to offset the aspersions cast upon the county was made June 26, 1852. An article appeared in the Farmers' Jour- nal, published at Bath, N. C., and edited by John F. Thompkins, in which it was pointed out that Edgecombe, according to the University of North Carolina statistics, led all other counties in North Carolina in graduates who returned to the county to engage in agriculture. The Journal also stated that men from other counties and States were anxious to buy farms in the county for their sons, not that they believed the land better than in other counties, but for the reason that there was in the county a spirit of cooperation and a spirit of enterprise which "was not to be seen in any other State." It was also shown that the Baptists were an intelligent, moral, honest, and patriotic set of citizens.
The Sons of Temperance, realizing the situation, offered a reso- lution to counteract the propaganda carried on by the temperance lecturers. One month after the appearance of the defense of the county there appeared in the Tarboro paper the following: "It was avowed that the Edgecombe Division, No. 202, Sons of Tem- perance Society, declare their determination not to submit to any law either of the National or Grand Division, whereby the advo- cacy of any law similar to the Maine liquor law, or any legislation whatever on the subject, is made part of their creed." A copy of the resolutions was sent to the Spirit of the Age for publication.
It was also stated by Joseph Cobb, of Tarboro, that the principal charges, which resulted in the revising of the local organization's attitude, were due to the temperance lecturers being purohibited from entering Baptist churches. This issue was well aired, and considerable prejudice existed against the organization. Restitu- tion was then made for the proposed plight the people were then 30
466
HISTORY OF EDGECOMBE COUNTY
placed in. J. C. Knight, a magistrate of the county, supported the Baptists and gave ample pretext for lodging a protest when a notice for a Mr. White, a lecturer, to appear in the Baptist churches. The matter was deferred, and, like all nonessential is- sues, harmony was restored and order returned.
The Sons of Temperance subsequently disbanded. In January, 1867, it was revived in Tarboro as the Friends of Temperance. It was composed of the following officers: David Pender, presi- dent; William Howard, assistant president; H. A. Crenshaw, financial secretary; George T. Williams, treasurer; Thomas W. Tolar, conductor; I. B. Palamountain, assistant conductor; Wil- liam R. Ricks, inside sentinel; Henry Williams, outside sentinel, with several additional members. By October, 1867, the society was in a flourishing condition, and became one of the most noted moral and social organizations in the county's existence.
The organization grew in usefulness and advanced the social life of the people, for which Edgecombe has always been remem- bered. By 1875 it had men like F. S. Wilkinson, Frank Powell, W. P. Williamson, P. S. Pender, Reverend F. Swindell, John Mallett, Orren Williams, B. Rodgers, and other men of the mer- chant and professional class as members. The society went out of existence shortly after 1875.
L
TARBORO M. E. CHURCH, SOUTH
CHAPTER XV
METHODIST CHURCH
Prior to the American Revolution there were few Methodists in Edgecombe. The first to arrive in all probability came about 1760. They were evidently emigrants from Virginia and New England, and had the early conceptions of Methodism as taught by the Wesleys and George Whitefield. The number could not have been many, but under the guidance of Providence, it is won- derful how the doctrine spread. We read in Ashbury's Journal of a visit to Edgecombe in 1780. Unfortunately he only mentions the names of persons and creeks, but by referring to the geography of this period, his journey can be easily traced. On June 16th he crossed the Roanoke River on his way from Fluvanna County, Va., to North Carolina. His course was in all probability through Mecklenburg County, Va., thence to Halifax County, where the Roanoke was crossed. He then traveled thirty miles southward, for the next day he says: "We set off in the rain and rode over Fishing Creek to Davis, ten miles." The next day he adds twelve miles to his journey southward and probably reached Edgecombe County on the 22d. On Sunday, July 2d, he continues: "To- morrow, I am going to Tar River." A very vivid account is given of his trip to Tar River. On Monday 3d he relates, "I set out for Tar River. After riding about five miles was told I could not cross Bear Swamp, but by the guidance of a Baptist friend came through that and two very deep creeks." 1 During Bishop As- bury's visit to Gates County Elizabeth Norfleet is mentioned as being one of the first to embrace religion. She was probably of the family of Marmaduke Norfleet. The Norfleets, in the early days, were Methodists, and only withdrew from this church after the Civil War.
In 1772 Joseph Pilmoor made a visit through the eastern coun- ties and is given the credit of having been the first Methodist preacher to visit North Carolina. At the time there seems to have been no church organization nearer the county than at Bath Town, at the mouth of the Pamlico River. By 1775, however, the fire of Methodism spread as a result of a revival held by George Shad-
1 These must have been Swift and Fishing Creoks.
467
468
HISTORY OF EDGECOMBE COUNTY
ford, a celebrated minister of Halifax County, and a few years later took a foothold in Edgecombe. At the Methodist Conference held at Baltimore, 1775, the Baltimore Circuit, already comprising a tremendous area, was enlarged so as to embrace Halifax and Bertie counties in North Carolina. Through the efforts of Ed- ward Dromgoole, the early Irish convert of Baltimore, Methodism increased, and in 1782, Jesse Lee, then a young local preacher in North Carolina, received a letter from Caleb B. Pedicord, preacher in charge of Sussex County, in Virginia, asking him to assist Edward Dromgoole in the area lying north and west of Edenton.
This was really the beginning of Methodism for the county. These two men proceeded to tour the territory around Edenton, passed through Gates, Bertie, Edgecombe, and Warren counties up as far as Norfolk County, Virginia. They traveled for sixteen days, held nineteen meetings, and formed a circuit of twenty-two members for the next conference to receive. In 1784, as a result of these men's activities, Bertie Circuit was formed, and was served by Dromgoole and Ira Ellis until 1786. This circuit was evidently changed to Halifax Circuit in 1787, for Francis Poythress was reported by the conference for that year as serving Halifax Cir- cuit as presiding elder.
The clouds of the Revolution did not seem to check the efforts made by the Methodists to gain a foothold, for in 1780 the county was beginning to feel the influence of Methodism and received in- structions from John Dickens, who had settled in Halifax County that year. Dickens was appointed to the old Bertie Circuit in 1785, which embraced a part of the old Roanoke Circuit. He had a chapel on Fishing Creek near the Halifax and Edgecombe lines, and it is possible that he also lived here. During Asbury's visit to this locality in 1780, he speaks of preaching at Whitakers Chapel near Fishing Creek. John Tunnell, Jesse Lee, and James O'Kelly also deserve credit for fostering early Methodism in the county. These three men, more than any others, laid the founda- tion for the faith that grew to be dear to the hearts of many in Edgecombe from 1800 to the present day. O'Kelly later became the organizer and the leader of the sect known as Christians or the Christian Church, the split of the Methodist Church resulting from the limitation placed upon a minister at a given charge. He labored in Tar River Circuit for some time and received regular appointment here in 1780.1
1 A circuit usually comprised several counties and had more than one preacher.
469
METHODIST CHURCH
The records are searched in vain to find some regular meeting house in Tarboro for the early Methodists. Evidently there had not been one erected. However, all the facts indicate that the faith was growing. Especially was this true after the Revolution. In 1792, Asbury again reports his visit, this time to Tarboro, and says, "I find we have had a good work in the eastern district of North Carolina." He held a conference with thirty-one preachers at Green Hill on January 19, 1792. Eight days later he again passed through Tarboro on his way to Orange County. Again in 1795 he preached at Mr. Clayton's near Halifax, then crossed Tar River and Town Creek and arrived at I. Sheppard's, where he says: "We had all things richly to enjoy. I had my trials and my spirit was greatly afflicted and humbled. I was glad to get alone to pour out my soul unto God."
In 1796 the first positive indication that no church existed was given out by Mr. Asbury himself. On March 8th he held services at the Widow Philip's on Swift Creek with a large congregation. He relates that his text was "awful" Amos vii, 2: "Behold the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of bearing the words of the Lord."
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.