USA > Virginia > Virginia Baptist ministers. 5th series, 1902-1914, with supplement > Part 9
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to preparing himself for the work of the ministry." His first pastorate, which was to last forty-five years, began, with Bethcar Church, in 1847. His ministry at Rapidan covered some thirty-five years, while his service at Good Hope and Thornton's Gap was not so protracted. In this day of short pastorates, what thoughts does such a record of long years of service awaken? His wife, who was Miss Mary Stark, and to whom he was married in 1851, bore him eight children, all of them living to be grown. The necessity of caring for his own family and that of his mother kept him in the store and schoolroom so closely that he did not attend the general denomina- tional gatherings as much as doubtless otherwise he would have done. "He was especially successful as a builder of churches-a number now standing as memo- rials of his tact, zeal, and perseverance." For a short season he was a missionary of the State Board, doing good work. "Though not a practiced platform debater, he delighted to contend for his views around his own fireside," and his home was open in generous hospitality to his friends. Close to the beautiful "blue wall," and far from the hurry of the busy world, what seasons of fellowship were surely enjoyed around this preacher's hearthstone. "He was a man of fine intellect, read much, was a Baptist of the old, regular type, loved the great doctrines well, preached them forcibly, and left his congregation in good condition."
The obituary of this good man, in the General Asso- ciation Minutes, which is unsigned, and from which the foregoing part of this sketch is almost wholly taken, closes thus : "His end came gradually, and though it was not viewed with rapture, there were no enslaving and humiliating desires to remain in the flesh; yielding him- self in all things to Christ, his Redeemer, he fell on sleep.
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Sunday, June 11, was set apart by Bethcar and Rapidan Churches to celebrate his memory; at this service Psalm 37 was read, D. M. Pattie offered prayer, and Rev. Charles A. Hall preached the sermon, his text being I Samuel 2:9-"He will keep the feet of his saints."
JOHN WYATT WARD 1827-1905
Even when the snows of many winters had given to Rev. John Wyatt Ward the hoary head, which is a crown of honor, there shone forth from his eyes a daunt- less courage and the flash of a perpetual youth. It is not hard to see, while looking on such a face, how he could be a good soldier, an inspiring teacher, and a devoted pastor, and he was all three. He was born in Nansemond County, Virginia, January 22, 1827. He was baptized by Rev. J. G. Councill, and united with the Sycamore Church. He graduated at Georgetown Col- lege, Kentucky, in 1856, taking the degree of A. B., Dr. D. R. Campbell being president ; and at Madison, now Colgate University, in 1858. His ordination took place in August, 1858, at Portsmouth, and the first Sunday of the following month he preached his first sermon as the pastor of Mill Swamp Church (Portsmouth Associa- tion). He purchased a farm in the Isle of Wight County and made it beautiful with trees, rare shrubs, and a wealth of flowers. Yet from this lovely home he went forth, at the call of his country, and became chaplain of the 3d Virginia Regiment of Infantry, Kemper's Brigade, Pickett's Division. Upon his return from the War he was married to Miss Cassie Jones, "one of the most beautiful ladies in Southeastern Virginia," whose smile was to be the "light of his home" and her voice "the music of his pathway." Although frail physically, he worked as a pastor for a long series of years, and during a part of this time taught in his home a large school. The churches that he served as pastor were
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Antioch, Smithfield, Mill Swamp, Moore's Swamp, Surry Court House, and Central Hill, in the Portsmouth Association, and Atlantic, Broadway, Modest Town, and Chincoteague, in the Accomac Association. "He was a preacher of ability, clearness, and faithfulness. He possessed evangelistic gifts which he used with great effectiveness. He exhibited the gospel which he preached by a long life of devout living and sincere piety. By his wide culture and happy facility for imparting knowledge he was a blessing to his com- munity."
On the afternoon of May 31, 1905, he preached the funeral of one of the pupils in his school, the text being II Corinthians 5:10. The next morning he was found asleep in death. His widow, two sons, and a daughter survived him.
JOHN POLLARD 1839-1905
John Pollard was born near Stevensville, King and Queen County, Virginia, November 17, 1839. His father was Colonel John Pollard, a distinguished citizen and attorney of that county, and his mother was Miss Juliet Jeffries, sister of Judge James Jeffries, who for many years presided upon the Circuit Court Bench in Tidewater. His ancestry included many men and women of prominence and worth in the history of the colony and State. Their home has always been within a radius of fifty miles of Richmond, Va., and their names have always been identified with the progress of this part of the commonwealth. He loved his State with the same patriotic ardor of his forefathers, for there was no move- ment for public good which did not receive his hearty and active support.
His father was a man of superlative force in public affairs no less than in home relations. His judgment, intelligence, and unswerving integrity were invaluable in all matters of public and private concern. The same sagacity which distinguished his ancestors in the making of the republic was manifested in Colonel John Pollard, whose mother, Katherine Robinson, belonged to the dis- tinguished Robinson family which produced Christopher Robinson, President of the King's Council, and John Robinson, Speaker of the House of Burgesses. There were five sons and three daughters, who went out from the home well equipped by parental instruction and edu- cation in the best schools. Thomas, the eldest son, chose the ministry, but, after graduation at Columbian College,
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died at Aiken, S. C., while on a trip in search of restored health. John, the second son, took up his older brother's chosen profession at an early age. His gentle- ness, genial spirit, and studious habits suggested that the step was a wise one. He received his early education at Stevensville Academy, and entered Columbian College, Washington, at the age of eighteen. Here he was, gradu- ated before the age of twenty-one with the first honors of his class. Among his classmates were Hon. William L. Wilson, Postmaster-General under President Cleve- land, who was a native of the same county and a lifelong friend; Otis Mason, of the National Museum; T. Edwin Brown, of the Northern ministry, and James Nelson, of the Southern pulpit. While in Washington, during the stirring times from 1857 to 1861, he took great interest in the debates in Congress. His reminiscences of the great men of that day have been a source of pleasure and information to those around him. He was present when Charles Sumner delivered his famous speech on the "Barbarism of Slavery." He also heard Lincoln's inaugural address and saw the oath of office administered by Chief Justice Taney.
Upon his graduation he was elected, in 1860, to a tutorship in Columbian College, where he taught and, at the same time, studied theology under the direction of Dr. George W. Samson, president of the college. In the spring of 1861, Virginia having seceded and war having been declared, the young teacher decided to cast his lot with his native State, so he resigned and returned to Virginia. Hermitage and Clarke's Neck Churches, Middlesex County, having called him, he accepted the call and settled near Saluda. During the Civil War, while not a soldier, Mr. Pollard was frequently at the front, carrying clothing and provisions to the soldier boys of his congregation and community.
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In the summer of 1861 he married Miss Virginia Bagby, daughter of John Bagby, of Stevensville, and sister of Richard Hugh Bagby, George Franklin and Alfred Bagby. Through the fifty years of their wedded life she was a true helpmeet, presiding over his home with firmness and judgment. She survives him.
In 1870 Dr. Pollard moved to Baltimore to become pastor of the Lee Street Baptist Church of that city. At the installation services the distinguished Dr. Richard Fuller, a Baltimore pastor, delivered the charge to the young pastor, and was his colleague for many years. Here he labored with marked success for a decade, and left a church, which had been weak and torn with troubles, strong and vigorous. His successors at this church were Dr. H. M. Wharton, Dr. E. M. Poteat, Dr. E. Y. Mullins, and Dr. Weston Bruner. While in Baltimore he was moderator of the Maryland Union Association.
A call from the Leigh Street Church of Richmond brought him back to his native State. Here for six years he wrought with effectiveness and success, greatly endearing himself to the community, till, in 1886, he was elected to the Chair of English at Richmond College, succeeding the lamented Dr. A. B. Brown. The cause of education was very near his heart, and he was always active for its advancement. He took up his work at the college with the same enthusiasm and devotion that had marked his ministry. He was in these years a member of the Philological Society of this country, and always attended its sessions. He was a lifelong student, and his attainments in history, literature and theology, which were large, but enabled him to serve more efficiently his fellow-men. He served the college for fifteen years, until the summer of 1901, when he resigned to take up the quieter and less strenuous duties of a pastorate in
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the county of Caroline. He ministered to the churches of Bowling Green and Upper Zion on alternate Sundays, and soon became a force for the religious and social uplift of that community which will not soon be for- gotten.
Dr. Pollard's early ministry was characterized by abounding enthusiasm, industry, and studiousness. These qualities opened the hearts of both young and old to his influence, for he was the happy comrade with the one and the sympathetic friend with the other. Many young men were thus won for Christ and became His heralds. Many of his sons in the ministry are scattered over the country, and they acknowledge him as their guide and counselor in the beginning of life. When he took up city pastoral work his heart went out to the masses that he longed to uplift and enlighten. This was true, although his ministry began when social Christianity was not so much practiced and taught as it is now. He proclaimed the social aspect of the gospel, and was among the first to apply, from the pulpit, the principles of the Christian religion to all matters which concern the welfare of humanity, and he gave himself earnestly to any cause which had such a purpose in view. He fol- lowed his star and proclaimed aloud a gospel for the healing of the nations. He believed he was following in the footsteps of his Master, who said: "He hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recover- ing of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." This passage bore to him a meaning which embraced the physical as well as the spiritual life. The Saviour, he thought, exemplified this in his life on earth-"That they might have life, and have it more abundantly"-the life abundant here and hereafter.
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In 1905, while preaching on a Sunday morning, he was stricken with paralysis, and was soon compelled to lay aside active service. From that time until his death, July 14, 1911, he made his home in Richmond, where the larger part of his active life had been spent, and where there were hosts of friends to love and honor him in his last years of ill- health. Sorrows and joys were strangely mixed in his life, but the greatest sorrow that came was the one that took him from active service, for his was an earnest nature, to whom work and service to others was a joy. In these last years of waiting his patience and faith were wonderfully displayed, and have left a herit- age to those who love him.
His was an active career, for his heart and hand were ever ready for the uplift of the fallen, the enlightenment of the masses, and for the removal of barriers that hin- dered the progress of religion and morality. It was given to him to see more clearly than some others the truth, and he was always in the advance guard for its defense. When others were holding back and fearing, he boldly attacked the strongholds of evil and was at the front defending the banner of truth. He lived to see the final triumph of many causes which he was first to espouse and labor for. He was the author of the docu- ment which petitioned the Legislature to adopt the anti- dueling act, and was also a pioneer in the cause of local option when it was considered almost fanatical even to think of legislation in regard to the liquor traffic. He was able and courageous in debate when aroused on any question, but while firm in conviction, he was large in sympathy and genial in social bearing. His was a life both strong in love and fruitful in service, and he lives still in the hearts of thousands of friends, who honor him for the strength and purity of his earthly career.
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His children are Mary Ellen (Mrs. G. Harvey Clarke ), Rev. Dr. E. B. Pollard, Juliet Jeffries (Mrs. J. W. Willis), Bessie Gray (Mrs. Millard F. Cox), Hon. John Garland Pollard, Annie Maud (Mrs. Robert Lee Tur- man), Lalla Rookh (Mrs. Otho P. Smoot), and Grace Nelson (Mrs. R. H. McCaslin).
ALONZA CHURCH BARRON 1841-1905
While Georgia was the birthplace of Rev. Alonza Church Barron, and while under the soil of North Caro- lina his ashes rest, Virginia gave him his wife and had him within her borders for a number of years as a pastor. Less than two years after his birth, which took place at Columbus, May 3, 1841, his mother was left a widow. Her second husband proved unkind to her children, and so at the early age of nine Alonza was apprenticed to a printer. By reason of a precocious mind and a retentive memory he was already far more advanced in his studies than are most boys at his age. When he was a youth of fifteen a gentleman of means was so attracted to him by reason of his intelligence and his affable manners that he begged for the privilege of educating him for the Episcopal ministry. Although he was thus coveted for the Episcopalian ministry, and although he was named after a Presbyterian minister, nevertheless he became, during his college course, with the consent of his mother and his patron, a Baptist, and in due time a Baptist minis- ter. He was graduated at Howard College, Alabama, which institution, some years later, conferred upon him, almost at the same moment that he was receiving the same honor from Richmond College, the degree of Doctor of Divinity. The Civil War found him a faithful soldier in the Southern Army, where he contracted a disease which made him more or less of an invalid all the remainder of his life. In the last two years of the War he edited a paper in Atlanta, Ga. After some preparation he entered the ministry, and in 1868 became the pastor of
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the Baptist Church of Tuskegee, Ala., from which town he moved, in 1870, to Montgomery, in the same State, to become the pastor of the Second Church of that city. His next charge was in Lexington, Va., one of the col- lege towns of the Old Dominion, where he labored for some three years. In 1876 he became pastor of the Cul- peper Court House Church, where he remained some seven years. His last pastorate in Virginia, at Berry- ville, lasted about two years, and from this town he went, in 1883, to Baltimore. In this city his work was of a twofold nature, for he was pastor of the Fulton Avenue Baptist Church and one of the editors of the Baltimore Baptist. In 1896 he ended his connection with the Balti- more Baptist and gave himself, once more, fully to the work of preaching. The church to which he now went, the Tryon Street Baptist Church, Charlotte, N. C., saw his earthly labors end and wept over his grave. On January 6, 1873, he was married to Miss Addie V. Mason, of Staunton, Va., and in Charlotte, in what he thought was the "prettiest parsonage in the State," he celebrated, with his wife, the thirteenth anniversary of their union. While in Charlotte he heard Dr. Moses D. Hoge, the distinguished Presbyterian divine, in a public address, give to the Baptists the credit of beginning the missionary movement, and, during this pastorate, after a visit of a month to Philadelphia, upon his return bap- tized Rev. Wm. L. Walker, a Presbyterian minister of Piedmont, S. C. Dr. Barron was very much beloved by all the people of the city of Charlotte, being called "The Shepherd of the City." All classes and denominations looked to him in their hours of sorrow and trial, and when his death came, all the stores of the city were closed at the hour of the funeral and the bells of all the churches were tolled. The Supreme Court of North Carolina, which was in session in Charlotte at that time, took a
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recess, entering on its record this statement : "We adjourned at this hour that we might attend, in a body, the funeral of a good man, Dr. A. C. Barron." Not a single member of the Court was a Baptist. Dr. Barron died at the home of his oldest daughter, Mrs. W. C. Graves, Somerset, Va., August 19, 1905. This sketch ought not to close without distinct reference to the genial spirit and deep piety of this man of God. A man may be good, but unless he has a winsome type of goodness he is not apt to receive such tokens of esteem as those that Charlotte gave to Dr. Barron. The secret springs of his life were deep, and "come upon him when you would and you would find him reading his Bible or upon his knees in prayer." In view of this side of his life and of the fact that he had magnetism as a speaker, it is not to be wondered that he had power in evangelistic work.
JOHN THOMPSON RANDOLPH 1825-1905
"Verdant Lawn," a beautiful country home some three miles from Charlottesville, and not far from Carter's Mountain, was for his whole married life, a period of over fifty years, the home of Rev. John Thompson Ran- dolph. He and his wife, who was Miss Annie M. Farish, the only daughter of Rev. William P. Farish, kept up the traditions which had made this country-seat famous for hospitality and the scene of blessed fellowship among many of the most choice spirits of Virginia Baptists. It is not often the case with preachers that they never, for over half a century, change their home, but so it was with Mr. Randolph. His entrance into the ministry was brought about through the development of his gifts as he preached to the colored people, who belonged, in large numbers, to the Charlottesville Baptist Church. The churches to which he ministered, all in the Albemarle Association, Liberty, Effort, Bethany, Mt. Eagle, B. M., and Lime Stone, were within striking distance of his home. In addition to his work at these churches, for many years, on fifth Sundays, he preached in the meeting-house at Milton, "one of the oldest places in Albemarle County, and at one time a rival of Charlottes- ville for the location of the University of Virginia." The salaries that his churches paid him were distinctly small, but in his latter years, when his health failed, many of those to whom he had ministered in spiritual things shared with him their abundance in temporal things.
He was born in Middlebrook, Augusta County, Vir- ginia, in March, 1825, his parents being John Randolph
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and Mary Frazier. He was a grandson of Thompson Randolph and a great-grandson of Lieutenant John Ran- dolph and Margaret Thompson. His father was a man of affairs and of considerable wealth. It is said that he was related to the famous John Randolph "of Roanoke"; certainly he came of good stock, and there was "a decided streak of the Cavalier in his make-up." While not without his peculiarities and eccentricities, he was gentle, easy of approach, and open to advice. He was a student at the University of Virginia, and for his alma mater to the end of his life he had a most ardent affec- tion, and enjoyed attending from year to year the Com- mencement exercises, not omitting the alumni banquet, which function appealed to his genial and social nature. The excellent library of his father-in-law, which came to him, grew under his hands and was always a joy to him. His ordination to the ministry took place in 1862, and, remembering his bent of mind and his antecedents, it is not surprising that his sermons were often marked by excellent thought; indeed, so good a judge as Prof. H. H. Harris said that he had heard Mr. Randolph preach sermons the subject matter of which would have done credit to Dr. John A. Broadus. His early training in the management of business matters influenced all his subsequent life, helping him, doubtless, to be the enthusi- astic treasurer for years of the Albemarle Association, never absent from its sessions. and a faithful member of the Board of Visitors of the Miller Manual Labor School of Albemarle County. He was half owner, with his cousin, Wm. A. Frazier of Staunton, of the Rock- bridge Alum Springs.
His last years were marked by suffering and distress. The wife of his youth preceded him by two years to the grave. The old homestead was sold and he moved to
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Charlottesville to live with one of his sons. At length, in his eighty-first year, on Sunday, November 26, 1905, in the home of his son, Thos. F. Randolph, while the congregation he had so long loved so well was gathering for the evening worship, he was called away to the con- gregation that never breaks up. Besides the son just mentioned he was survived by these children: Dr. John Randolph, Mr. Walter Randolph. Another son, Dr. W. P. F. Randolph, died before his father.
JOSEPH RYLAND MURDOCH 1873-1906
Not until that day when we shall read the meaning of our tears will it be given us to understand why young men of splendid promise are laid low by the hand of death. Such a young man was Rev. Joseph Ryland Murdoch. He was born in Maryland, April 10, 1873, and died at Ontario, Cal., January 5, 1906. His early life was spent in King and Queen County, Virginia, and at Bruington Church, in this county, he was baptized when he was thirteen years of age, on August 28, 1896, and when twenty-four ordained. On this latter occa- sion the presbytery was made up of the following minis- ters: Dr. Charles H. Ryland, Dr. H. A. Bagby, Dr. B. Cabell Hening, Rev. J. W. Ryland, Rev. Alexander Fleet, and Dr. F. B. Beale. Before this he had studied for two years at Richmond College and then at Crozer Theological Seminary. Rev. W. B. Dulin, who was his roommate both sessions at Richmond College, says of him: "He was so thoughtful of others' interests and so diligent in serving others that his influence was felt in the classroom, on the campus, in the dining-hall, and wherever he went." On June 12, 1901, he was married to Miss Anna B. Gilchrist, of Philadelphia, Pa. After a pastorate of two years at Berlin, N. J., and another of the same duration at Kennet Square, Pa., he took charge of the church at Winchester, Va. Under his care this church prospered greatly, especially along the line of missionary growth, and when, after two years, his fail- ing health made it necessary for him to resign, the flock was sorely grieved. A handsome parsonage had been
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built, and the pastor's wife, faithful and winning, had endeared herself to all by her labors of love. He was pastor at La Junta, Colo., for one year, and then the end came. His life was "marked by strong character- istics-integrity and singleness of purpose; great indus- try combined with cheerful courage; helpfulness with intense concern for the Master's work; all softened by resignation to his Father's will and luminous with the faith and hope of the gospel."
LODOWIC RALPH MILBOURNE* 1855-1906
It was somewhere about 1831 that a majority of the ministers of the Accomac Association adopted the high- est Calvinistic doctrines and taught and preached them whenever occasion permitted, and instead of exhorting sinners to repentance, some of the more advanced, we are told, absolutely refused to preach the gospel to sinners, and opposed all missionary efforts. Among the leading ministers who opposed this higher Calvinism and anti- missionary spirit was the Rev. Levin Dix. He, with Rev. William Laws, laid the foundation for the present prosperity and progress of the Baptists on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.
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