USA > North Carolina > Mecklenburg County > Charlotte > The history of Steele Creek Presbyterian Church : Mecklenburg County, Charlotte, North Carolina > Part 3
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Second Pastor - The Reverend James McRee (1778-1797)
The second installed pastor at Steele Creek was the Reverend James McRee. Foote's Sketches of North Carolina notes the Rever- end McRee as a licentiate of the Concord Presbytery, but we hold he was the licentiate of Orange Presbytery. This assumption is based on records which show the Orange Presbytery was orga- nized in 1700, and the Presbytery of South Carolina was set off from Orange in 1784. The Orange Presbytery was again divided when Concord Presbytery was set off from it in 1795, this being long after the Reverend McRee commended his tenure at Steele
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Creek.
Foote also records that: "In April, 1778, James McRee was licensed by Concord Presbytery to preach the gospel: and in November following, he was settled in his own house in Steele Creek congregation, as pastor of the church, having been united in marriage to Rachel Cruser of Mapleton, New Jersey". Dr. Sprague says in his writings: "The Reverend James McRee was licensed by the Presbytery of Orange in April, 1778, and became pastor of the congregation of Steele Creek, in Mecklenburg County, in Septem- ber following". On the other hand, the Minutes of the Synod of New York and Philadelphia, 1784, note that the Orange Presby- tery reported ordaining and installing the Reverend McRee at Steele Creek in 1784. The only solution we can offer for the differences is that the Orange Presbytery made no report to the Synod for several years in the early 1780's. There is no doubt that the Reverend McRee did commence his labors at Steele Creek in 1778 and continued as supply or pastor until 1797. He resided some two miles southwest of the church.
The Reverend McRee as a man was described as middling in stature, handsomely proportioned, agreeable in manners, winning in conversation, neat in dress, dignified in the pulpit, punctual, fluent in his delivery, and diligent in his preparations. He was born in Iredell County, North Carolina, May 10, 1752. His parents emigrated from the County of Down, Ireland, in 1730. They were Presbyterians and became active in Centre church. In his manu- scripts the Reverend McRee tells us there was a flourishing classical school kept in the bounds of Centre church. It was here that he pursued his first academic studies. At age twenty-one, he entered the junior class in Princeton College, Princeton, New Jersey, and graduated in 1775. He spent a year as a private tutor in the family of Colonel Burwell Bassett in New Kent County, Virginia. In 1776 he began reading theology under the direction of his former teacher and friend, the Reverend Joseph Alexander of
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Bullock's Creek in South Carolina. He was licensed to preach in 1778, thus it appears Steele Creek was his first ministry.
During the Reverend McRee's pastorate the church building was enlarged. One method used to raise money for church purposes in these early years was the renting of pews. A church member was usually appointed each quarter to collect the rents. Thirty-two shillings a year was charged for a single pew; but free seats of some kind were provided for those who could not afford to pay.
Also during the Reverend McRee's pastorate, the subject of psalmody was extensively discussed, particularly in relation to the introduction of Watt's Psalms and Hymns. The Reverend McRee delivered a course of sermons on the subject of psalmody as part of the Christian worship, the substance of which, says Dr. Foote, "he afterwards condensed into an essay of great clearness and force, and has not been surpassed for strength of argument or clearness of expression". No doubt these sermons were partially responsible for the introduction of Watt's Psalms and Hymns into the worship of Steele Creek Church. This change in the order of worship had serious consequences for the congregation as will be noted later.
The Reverend McRee preached more than a thousand times at Steele Creek. Coupled with his duties, he also frequently preached to the surrounding congregations. "Often," says he, "have I ridden in the morning to Bethel (South Carolina), Providence, Sugar Creek, and Hopewell and preached and returned home in the evening of the same day". He attended numerous meetings of the Synod of North Carolina and was a member of the General Assembly in 1802. During his pastorate Steele Creek hosted two meetings of the Synod, in 1792 and in 1794. The Reverend McRee was regarded as a faithful and very acceptable pastor. The church gradually increased and strengthened under his labors. We hear no dissensions or disturbances until about the time he was leaving. There were then some annoyances or indignities shown him, but
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his own slaves were supposed to be the principal agent in producing the conflicts.
After the Reverend McRee resigned as pastor at Steele Creek in 1797, he was without a charge for a year or more. Several calls were received, but he returned to his native congregation at Centre church. He began service there in 1798 and continued about thirty years. Eventually, due to the infirmities of age, he retired and moved to the mountains where he resided with his children. In the year 1839, he said his children, grandchildren and, great grandchildren amounted to eighty.
The Reverend McRee was honored with the degree of Doctor of Divinity from the University of North Carolina in 1810. We do not know that he ever published anything except the essay on the subject of psalmody. He died on March 28, 1840, at the age of eighty-eight; he had spent sixty-two years in the ministry. He had buried his father, his mother, five brothers and two sisters at Steele Creek, and he had expected to rest here, but Providence ordered otherwise. He was buried at Swannanae, far removed from the scenes of his early toils and ministerial labors.
The Early Elders of Steele Creek
The names of those who we believe composed the first ruling elders were given earlier. That the persons listed were ruling elders, there is no doubt, but as to date or chronological order of election we cannot speak with certainty. We have no idea that all were elected at the same time, but they were contemporaries. By this we mean that the labors or office term of the first overlapped that of the second, and thus they were co-workers. Whether the term of office of any of these dates back to the time of the Reverend Robert Henry or the organization of the church or how many served with the Reverend James McRee, we cannot deter- mine for certain.
Noble deeds are often achieved in humble life without challeng-
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ing applause. Hence, it may be said of the first elders, "their titles of renown have not been registered in the imperishable records of humanity".
"Great, noble, generous, good and brave,
Character he did justly claim;
His deed shall speak beyond the grave,
And those unborn, his praise proclaim."
Mr. Zaccheus Wilson, also a signer of the Mecklenburg Decla- ration of Independence, was born in 1730. He moved with his family from Cecil County, Maryland, to Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, where they joined Big Springs Presbyterian Church. Later the Wilson family moved to the Poplar Tent section of Mecklenburg County. They were accompanied by Mr. Wilson's brothers, David and Robert, and his sister, Sara. In a short while David moved on to Tennessee and Robert came to Steele Creek.
In 1767 Zaccheus married Elizabeth Conger Ross. They lived for a few years at Poplar Tent, then moved to Steele Creek. Mr. Wilson was a member of the militia and served in the Battle of Kings Mountain during the Revolutionary War. He was a delegate to the North Carolina Convention in 1780 when the Federal Constitution was ratified, making North Carolina the twelfth state.
After the death of Mrs. Wilson, Zaccheus moved to Sumner County, Tennessee, taking his two younger children with him, leaving his eldest son Isaac Wilson. Isaac married Ann McCord. Of this union, there are descendants remaining in Mecklenburg County. One great-grandson, Thomas Wilson Sadler, is buried in Steele Creek Cemetery.
Zaccheus Wilson died in 1824 and is buried in Gallinton, Tennessee.
Andrew McNeely, another early Steele Creek Elder, moved after some years to the bounds of Sugar Creek Church.
Other elders will be recognized at the time of passing.
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Seceder Churches
Conflicts in opinion over the introduction of Watt's Psalms and Hymns into the worship at Steele Creek was no doubt due to the Reverend James McRee's influence and provided in part an excuse for the organization of the seceder churches, The Associate Reformed and The Associate Church. These became the parent churches of the present congregations of Central Steele Creek, Lower Steele Creek (or Blackstock) in 1794 and Little Steele Creek in 1800.
According to Foote, the break among the congregation at Steele Creek was due to lack of willingness to compromise. Some wished to continue the singing of the psalms they had known so long. Others wished to switch solely to Watt's hymns. Apparently there were no serious dissensions either on doctrine or church order. Those who preferred the "good old ways" were disposed to draw off into more congenial groups. Similar attitudes prevailed in other congregations; therefore, from about 1780 until the early 1800's there were a number of seceder churches in central North Carolina. This increase in number of small congregations added to the woes of the Svnod in obtaining and supporting ministers. The issue of psalmody was no doubt a factor in timing of the Reverend McRee's departure and the delay in obtaining a successor.
In 1772 or 1773, the Reverend William Blackstock arrived from Ireland. He was ordained by the Associate Reformed Presbytery of the Carolinas in 1794 and organized, some eight miles south of Steele Creek, a church called Lower Steele Creek or Blackstock, in honor of its founder. The first elders of this new church were James Grier, James Harris, James Knox, William Ferguson, and Alexander Scott. This congregation united with the churches of Ebenezer and Neely's Creek, York District, South Carolina, for the pastoral labors of Reverend Blackstock. This union lasted but a few years before a division took place over a very trivial issue. It had long been the practice in the Presbyterian church, a habit brought
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from the old country, to have a fast day precede the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and the Monday immediately following was observed as a day of thanksgiving. Those who accepted the liberal sentiments of Dr. John Mason were for setting aside the rules and having the whole church keep a fast whenever the Providence of God should indicate the necessity. To the Burghers, the early Scotch-Irish emigrants most from the County Antrim, Ireland, this was too great an innovation. Some felt the Reverend Blackstock was more Catholic in his leanings than desired, and Dr. Mason was too liberal. A dispute arose which resulted in the withdrawal of several families and two of the ruling elders. This group with the advice and counsel of the Reverend William Dixon organized the society of Little Steele Creek in 1799 or 1800. Their church was established not more than one mile south of Steele Creek Church. James Grier, William Ferguson - former elders in Lower Steele Creek, - and Thomas Moore were elected the first elders in the new church. This church, with the ministers who supplied it, the Reverend Dixon and occasionally the Reverend Peter McMillan, placed themselves in connection with the As- sociate Synod of North America. Their society was small.
The Reverends Dixon and McMillan were the first Associate ministers who came to this part of the country. They came from the north and only preached as occasional supplies. It was not long before the Reverend McMillan was charged with being guilty of an evil habit, not uncommon in those days, of making too free use of the intoxicating cup. His frequent indulgence not only destroyed his standing and usefulness as a minister, but made him a proper subject for church discipline. There was no church court in all this region before which to bring him to trial, but one was formed for the occasion. The Reverend John Anderson and the Reverend William Wilson were sent out from a Presbytery in Pennsylvania, to form a court in connection with the Reverend Dixon, to try the Reverend Peter McMillan. The Reverend McMillan was convicted
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of the charges and suspended from the office and functions of the ministry. Their sentence was neither respected nor kept in good faith by him. He continued to trouble the church. In 1801, the Reverend Ebenezer Henderson was again sent out as a delegate from the north to aid the Reverend Dixon in trying to settle these difficulties; but he accomplished very little more than those who had preceded him. His mission was short, but his stay, together with his labors among the people, so gained on their affections and confidence that they determined to give him a call to become their pastor, which they did. The call was made but never presented as he died at Staunton, Virginia, on his return home.
A little before this time the Reverend Alexander Moore, a seceder minister from Ireland, settled in this neighborhood in 1797. He was not noted as the pastor or stated supply of Little Steele Creek nor any other church in the county, but evidently he served in several congregations until his death in 1797. He was buried at Steele Creek.
In the year 1801, the Reverend Crie supplied Lower Steele Creek congregation for six months. After him, the Reverend White and others ministered to them at different times, and afterwards the Reverends Mushat and Heron, until the church made out their call for the Reverend James Pringle, who accepted the same. He was ordained and installed pastor of the united churches of Lower Steele Creek, Gilead, and Bethany, in April, 1814. He was the first pastor of Lower Steele Creek church. His connection with the church, though pleasant and useful, was short, lasting only about four years. In 1818 he died at the house of Colonel Thomas J. Grier, with whom he made his home. He had never married. He had been born and reared in Ireland, had come to this country when young, and had settled first in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and then moved to Steele Creek, North Carolina. He was considered a fine scholar and a popular preacher, liberal in his views and feelings towards other denominations of Christians
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- quite too much so for the charity of some of his colleagues, who were disposed to look on all others with jaundiced eyes, except those who bore their own name. So much were the feelings of some of his brethren, exasperated against him because of his liberality, that they threatened "to take him up about it." This intelligence came to his ears, and he determined to meet it in the spirit which he thought to be the best and wisest. He accordingly carefully prepared a sermon, in accordance with his feelings, from the text, Jeremiah 7:4: "The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these" and waited his own opportunity to preach it before his less tolerant and offended brethren. Such was its spirit and such the force of truth unfolded in this discourse, that nothing more was ever heard of charges to be preferred against him.
His brother, Francis Pringle, was also a seceder minister, and pastor of a church in Ohio. Being in feeble health Francis came south, on a visit to his brother, James and died a few months after his arrival here. James died the autumn following. Thus the two brothers, with little more than a year's difference in the time of their births, and though their fields of labor were far apart, died under the same roof, in less than a year of each other. Tenderly attached in life, they were not long separated in death. They now lie side by side in the graveyard of Steele Creek, the common burying ground of both the churches.
After the death of the Reverend Pringle in 1818, the pastorate at Lower Steele Creek remained vacant a few years, with only such supplies as the congregation could obtain. In 1821 they made a call for the Reverend Abraham Anderson. He accepted and was ordained as their pastor in October, 1821. He was a strong anti-slavery man, consequently his views caused a stir in the congregation. He resigned in 1833 and returned to a more conge- nial atmosphere in the State of Pennsylvania.
The Reverend Anderson was succeeded in Lower Steele Creek
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by the Reverend Archibald Whyte who remained till the spring of 1840. During his pastoral services, there occurred the separation of the Associate Presbytery of the Carolinas from the Associate Synod on the subject of slavery. After 1850 the church remained vacant with occasional supplies until they called the Reverend James B. Watt, who was ordained and installed pastor of the united churches of Steele Creek and Sardis in November, 1844. During this year, the union was effected between the Associate Presbytery and the Associate Reformed Synod of the South. The two congregations of Steele Creek known as the "Lower" and "Little Steele Creek" which had been separate congregations for forty-five years again united. They united with Sardis in a call for the pastoral labors of the Reverend James B. Watt. He accepted, and remained with them until he withdrew from the seceder body and returned to the Presbyterian church. More will be said of the Reverend Watt in the proper place in this history. He was succeeded by the Reverend James C. Chalmers in September, 1858, and having signified his acceptance, was installed on Octo- ber 29.
The secedings constitute the major breaks which have occurred in Steele Creek's history. The main significance is that it brought to light the strong adherences to certain religious teachings and points out that the Scotch Presbyterians would go to extreme actions in order to worship as they saw fit. Some others seceded from Steele Creek at later times. These will be mentioned as we continue to review our history. This also brings us to the close of the century. The chapter that follows begins with a new century and a new pastor at Steele Creek.
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--
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THE HISTORY
OF
STEELE CREEK CHURCH
Mecklenburg County, N. C.
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CHAPTER IV
Events: 1800-1865
From the time the Reverend James McRee left Steele Creek in 1797 until 1804, Steele Creek was without a regular pastor. The cause for delay is not readily evident. No doubt the circumstances surrounding the Reverend McRee's leaving, and the general unrest is the area over seceder churches did not make the vacancy appealing.
About the turn of the century, the congregation undertook building a new sanctuary which was completed between 1800 and 1802.
Walter Davis, a ruling elder, died December 18, 1800, at age sixty-four and was buried at Steele Creek.
Third Pastor - Reverend Humphrey Hunter (1804-1827)
After a number of years without a resident pastor, the congre- gation called the Reverend Hunter. He accepted and began in 1804 to serve Goshen and Steele Creek churches. At first he divided his time equally, but subsequently he gave three-fourths of his time to Steele Creek. He reserved the fifth Sabbath, when it occurred, for New Hope church, located a few miles from Goshen on the west side of the Catawba River. This arrangement existed until at least 1812 or 1813.
Before coming to Steele Creek, the Reverend Hunter was associated with the Goshen and Unity churches in what was then Lincoln, but now Gaston County, North Carolina. He continued service at Steele Creek until his death on August 21, 1827.
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The Reverend Hunter at times had his heart gladdened by welcoming new members to the congregation. At other times events occurred that discouraged him and no doubt operated against his success with the church. Steele Creek had no manse in those days, so the Reverend Hunter resided in Lincoln County, some eight miles west of the church with the river between. This limited his access to the congregation. Furthermore, a good deal of his time was occupied as a practicing physician. In this profession his labors were more acts of benevolence than for pecuniary gain. A third limitation was the Reverend Hunter's deafness in his later years.
Dr. Hunter, as he was commonly called, was above the ordinary stature, of a robust frame, and of dark complexion. He was also a close observer of man and things, a close reasoner, classic in his style and systematic in his preaching. His congregations were well instructed in divine truth according to the orthodoxy of the Confession of Faith. He was a man of great intrepidity of character, and possessed a talant for refined sarcasm, which, when the occasion called for it, he could use with great power. As a minister he was always distinguished by his evangelical sentiments and orthodoxy according to the standards of the Presbyterian church. His preaching was earnest, unassuming, and at times eloquent. His habits of preparing for the pulpit, like nearly all the men of his generation, were reading, meditating, and writing notes. As he wrote no sermons in full, he, of course, never read his sermons from the pulpit.
The Reverend Hunter was born May 14, 1755, in the vicinity of Londonderry, Ireland. His father was well known in his day as a respectable drapery merchant on the Bleach-green Farm. His paternal grandfather was from Glasgow, Scotland. His maternal grandfather was from Brest, France. His descent is thus traced to the Scotch-Irish and French Huguenots. The blood of the Scotch and the Huguenot was blended in Ireland. At age four he was
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deprived of his father. For economic reasons young Hunter and his mother emigrated in 1759 through the port of Charleston. Mrs. Hunter proceeded to the eastern part of Mecklenburg, now Cabarrus County, where she purchased a small tract of land near the Poplar Tent church. She resided on this farm for the rest of her life. From the time he reached Mecklenburg until he arrived at Steele Creek, little is known of Dr. Hunter. He stated that in his twenty-first vear he attended the convention in Charlotte on Mav 20, 1775. He said he enjoyed the privilege of listening to the reading of the first public Declaration of Independence in the United States. He was in service during the Revolutionary War. A number of noble deeds were credited to him. In the battle at Camden, South Carolina, where our men were surrounded by overwhelming forces, many of our soldiers were taken prisoners, Hunter among them. He and others were soon stripped of most of their clothing and, while standing under guard, he witnessed the death of Baron De Kalb. After being confined seven days in a prison yard in Camden, he was taken along with others to Orangeburg, South Carolina, there to remain until exchanged. The prisoners were kept without hat or coat until the thirteenth of November when, by daring act, Hunter and several others made their escape on a Sabbath night, previous to the day on which they were to be tried for violating the rules of prison life. They mutinied, according to a preconcerted plan, seized and disarmed the guard, and made their escape. To avoid detection and arrest, which would have imperilled their lives, they were compelled to travel at night and conceal themselves by day. During the whole time of their flight, their only means of subsistence was the greenest of the ears of corn they could find in the unharvested fields. On the ninth night after escaping from Orangeburg, they crossed the Catawba River and arrived safely in Mecklenburg. For some years Hunter appeared alternately to lay aside his books and take up arms in defense of his home and country. Soon after his
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first campaign of service under Captain Charles Polk was ended, he commenced his classical education at Clio's Nursery in the western part of Rowan County, now Iredell, under the instruction of the Reverend James Hall. Here he remained for some time; but another emergency arose, requiring his services. It was at this time that the Cherokee Indians began hostilities, and committed numerous murders and depredations on the inhabitants near the sources of the Catawba. In this campaign Hunter acted as Lieuten- ant under Colonel Mebane. After a few skirmishes in which several Indians were killed and many more taken prisoner, the war ended. Following his return from the Cherokee Nation, he re- sumed his studies at Queen's Museum in Charlotte, under the direction of Dr. McWhorter. During the summer of 1780, this institution, having in the meantime assumed the more patriotic name of Liberty Hall Academy, was broken up by the approach of the British army under General Cornwallis. Dr. Mc Whorter sent the youths home to their parents. Hunter's studies were never again resumed at this place.
Notwithstanding the interruptions and hindrances that were constantly being thrown in his way, Hunter renewed his studies with increased zeal and determination to obtain an education. From certificates we find that he pursued classical studies for some years at a school taught by the Reverend Robert Archibald near Poplar Tent. During the summer of 1785, he entered the Junior Class at Mount Zion College, Winnsboro, South Carolina, from whence he graduated in July, 1787. Shortly thereafter he com- menced the study of theology under the care of the Presbytery of South Carolina, most probably under the direction of the Rever- end Joseph Alexander of Bullock's Creek, South Carolina, for he was licensed to preach at Bullock's Creek on October 15, 1789. The first four or five years of his ministerial labors were spent in South Carolina.
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