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Outline history of the Wilderness of Kentucky ; and, The religious movements of the early settlers of our country, and the, Church history of the North Middletown community / by H.C. Smith.

Outline history of the Wilderness of Kentucky ; and, The religious movements of the early settlers of our country, and the, Church history of the North Middletown community / by H.C. Smith. Smith, Henry Clay. 400dpi TIFF G4 page images University of Kentucky, Electronic Information Access & Management Center Lexington, Kentucky 2002 b92-80-27254529 Electronic reproduction. 2002. (Beyond the shelf, serving historic Kentuckiana through virtual access (IMLS LG-03-02-0012-02) ; These pages may be freely searched and displayed. Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically. Outline history of the Wilderness of Kentucky ; and, The religious movements of the early settlers of our country, and the, Church history of the North Middletown community / by H.C. Smith. Smith, Henry Clay. Frank Remington, Printer, Paris, Ky. : [1923] 91 p., [9] leaves of plates : ill. ; 18 cm. Coleman Microfilm. Atlanta, Ga. : SOLINET, 1993. 1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm. (SOLINET/ASERL Cooperative Microfilming Project (NEH PS-20317) ; SOL MN02837.02 KUK) Printing Master B92-80. IMLS This electronic text file was created by Optical Character Recognition (OCR). No corrections have been made to the OCR-ed text and no editing has been done to the content of the original document. Encoding has been done through an automated process using the recommendations for Level 1 of the TEI in Libraries Guidelines. Digital page images are linked to the text file. North Middletown Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Disciples of Christ Kentucky. JUDGE H. C MITH OUTLINE HISTORY Of The Wilderness of Kentucky And The Religious Movements of the Early Settlers of Our Country And The Church History of the North Middletown Community By F C SMITH CONSULTING COMMITTEE W. S. Jones, J. W. Young, Sr., F. M. Tinder, H. C. Smith, appointed by Board of Officers of North Middletown Christian Church Frank Remington. Printer. Paris, Ky. CONSULTING COMMITTEE TO THE MEMORY OF The Church Board and members of the North Middletown Christian Church of the past, who by their faithful performance of Christian duty made possible the beautiful building we have to worship and serve our Savior in to- day; and the fine congregation we have at this date, 1923. The Committee. Preface The Committee appointed by the Board of Officers of the North Middletown Christian Church to write a History of the Church with a request that they go back to the very beginning of Church History, to the pioneer days of our vicinity in religious movements, and bring the annals up to the present date, believe the most satisfactory record we can make is to give an Outline History of the trials, hardships and dan- gers our forefathers and mothers had to and did undergo in settling this beautiful, productive coun- try, wrestling it from the savages and going through so many privations and dangerous experiences, and while it may be but the reminder of what many have read before, there may be some that have not taken the time to become accquainted with what the Committee has gathered up and put in an abbrev- iated form who will enjoy it. And it will be time well spent by all to call their minds back to what the present generation owe in gratitude to those who gave us this beautiful, rich country in which to live, and who have "long since gone to that Country from which no traveler returns." "Gratitude," to our minds, is the most impressive word in the English language, and should be indel- ibly stamped upon the minds of everyone. The Committee thinks the best way to get to the beginning of religious worship in our community is to go back to pioneer times; trace the history of Christian wor- ship from the advent of the Anglo-American upon this continent; trace it across the Alleghany moun- tains, and give a cursory record of it in the wilder- ness of Kentucky and its advancement to our County and Precinct. We have at the close of our Church history made an addenda of the annals and progress of education in our community, from pioneer days when the first school was started up to the present date, being strong advocates that Religion and Education go hand-in-hand in the progress of civil- ization of the world. Either without the other would be a failure. The Committee with gratitude acknowledges the use of many excerpts from the first edition of Col- lins' "History of Kentucky," Johnson's "History of Kentucky," Ellis' "History of the United States," Smith's "History of Kentucky," Thomas Jefferson on "Virginia," John Augustus Williams' "Life of John Smith," and other records we had access to, and most of all to the records of Brother John W. Jones, Sr., (in diary form) of more than thirty years, that made possible the data we have used in this record. CoMMrrrEE: W. S. JoNEs, J. W. YOUNG, SR., F. M. TINDER, H. C. SlrTH. This page in the original text is blank. Outline History of The Wilderness of Kentucky CHAPTER I. In 1763 The Peace of Paris brought to a close the tremendous contest between England and France for the possession and ownership of Canada and the Ohio Valley, with the result that the flag of England waved over the hitherto disputed territory undis- turbed and with none to dispute the sovereignty of England. During the pendency of the war but little had been done in the matter of exploration of the dis- puted territory, and there are no absolutely accurate data covering that period. Very shortly after the close of the war of 1763, King George the Third issued a proclamation declaring the British possess- ions west of the Alleghany Mountains and south of the southern border of Canada should be set apart as an Indian Reservation into which no white settlers should enter, and commissioners were appointed to determine the line of demarcation between the Indian and white territories. The Conmissioners, not regarding very closely the orders of the Crown, made the Ohio River to the mouth of the Tennessee River the northern line of demarcation, thus leaving south and east of the line almost all of what is now Kentucky and exempting it from the restrictions which King George the Third's proclamation imposed upon the reserved district. Thus the territory that is now Kentucky was thrown open to white explorers and settlers, while [7) the other regions west of the Alleghanies were closed by Royal Decree, and to this fact is due, in no small degree, that she became the pioneer colony of the West; for in the valley of the Yadkin in North Car- olina, the prince of pioneers was waiting to head the host which was waiting to invade the "Dark and Bloody Ground" and to make it an inhabited land. Daniel Boone now appears on the great canvass upon which is depicted the early struggles which made Kentucky a bright jewel in the crown of the states which form the American Union. There had been, as has been shown, adventurous spirits who came into the territory before Boone, some of whom were later to join him in the conquest of the land from it's original savage holders who fought so strongly to retain its possession. Whatever others may have done earlier and dur- ing the strenuous after days when Boone was strug- gling for possession of the fair land, he was the hero, "the voice of one crying in the wilderness," who gave Kentucky to the white man, and whose place in song and story of the new land none may take. Kentucky and Daniel Boone are synonymous terms in history. Though he left the new land, finding his holdings too much encroached upon, with the spirit of the true pioneer he journeyed to the Westward in search of more elbow room, and finally laid down the burden of his years in Missouri. Kentucky, mindful of her debt to the brave old pioneer, brought back his remains and those of his faithful, patient old wife, and side by side they sleep in the state cemetery at Frankfort, an appropriate and modest monument marking their last resting place. It is not the purpese of this committee to write [8) the biography of Daniel Boone (for those who wish the history of Boone's life we recommend The Life of Boone, written by John Filson, as the most desirable and accurate), but it is impossible to make an outline history of the early days of Kentucky without fre- quently referring to Daniel Boone, the greatest pioneer of the early settlement of the territory that was afterwards Kentucky; in fact, as stated a few lines above, Kentucky and Daniel Boone are synonymous terms in Kentucky history. So we will frequently have to speak of Boone to get a true out- line of Kentucky history in its earliest settlements. CHAPTER II. Kentucky is an Indian word, and by the best authorities means "The Dark and Bloody Ground;" was given to that region of the wilderness between the Alleghaney Ridge of mountains on the east, the Mississippi River on the west, south of the Ohio River and north of the land inhabited by the southern tribes of Indians: Cherokees, Creeks, Cataw- bas and other tribes. It was heavily timbered with the largest forest trees :oak, chestnut, walnut, poplar, pine, sugar tree and other monarchs of the forests; with cane-brakes ten to fifteen feet high, almost too thick to get through, making it indeed a dark forest. It was the Indian's ideal hunting ground, and some writers have interpreted the Indian word Kentucky to mean "the happy hunting ground," the region abounding with wild game of many kinds: buffalo, elk, bear, deer, wild turkey and other species of game. No permanent settlement existed within its borders. The Indians of the south, the Cherokees, Creek, Catawba and other southern tribes, and the r9] northern hostile tribes of Shawnees, Delawares, Wyandots and other northern tribes, knowingof the abundance of game, made it their hunting ground, and when on hunting trips to these dark forests would sometimes meet, when there would be a bloody battle, each claiming it as their hunting ground by right of discovery-hence the name of Kentucky or "The Dark and Bloody Ground." Each and all of these tribes of Indians on their hunting trips encountered the Anglo-American pioneer and fiercely disputed the settlement of the country. It is certain, however, that these were not the original occupants of the country lying between the Alleghany Ridge of mountains and the Mississippi River. Geological monuments of deep interest speak in language not to be mistaken of a race of men who preceded the rude tribes encountered by Boone and Finley. Their origin, language and history are buried in darkness, which perhaps may never be dispelled, but the scanty vestiges which they have left behind them enable us to affirm with confidence that they far surpassed the rude tribes which suc- ceeded them in art, in civilization and in knowledg- They had certainly worked the copper mines of the west and were in possession of copper tools for work in wood and stone. Their pipes and household uten- sils, elaborately fashioned of clay, are far above the rude and clumsy contrivances of their successors, while their large fortifications, constructed of solid masonry and artifically contrived for defense and convenience, show that they had foes to resist and that they had made considerable progress in the military art. How long they occupied the country, whence they came, whither they have gone or [10] whether they perished within the crumbling walls which alone speak of their existence, the present state of our knowledge does not enable us to decide. The historical facts with certainty to be inferred from the data which exist are few and meager. In relation to time we can only affirm that the fortifi- cations and cemeteries which have been examined are certainly more than nine hundred years old, but how much older they may be can only be conjectured. Time and future investigation may throw some addi- tional light upon the history of this ancient race, but at present we can only say, they lived, they strug- gled against enemies, they made progress in arts and civilization, and "the places which once knew them, know them no more." CHAPTER III. Neglecting the obscure visit of Dr. Walker to the northeastern portion of Kentucky in 1758, and equally obscure but more thorough examination of the country by Finley in 1767, we may regard the com- pany headed by Daniel Boone in 1M and by Knox in 1770 as the earliest visits to Kentuckv worthy of particular attention. Boone's party remained two years in the country and traversed it's northern and middle regions with great attention. The party led by Col. Tames Knox, called the "long hunters," came one year later and remained aboul tne same length of time. Both parties were in the wilderness at the same time but never met. Boone was a native of Pennsylvania but had immigrated to North Carolina. Knox's party was from Holston, on the Clinch River, and thoroughly explored the middle and southern regions of Ken- [11] tucky. Boone's party was harrassed by the Indians and one of their number, James Stuart, was killed. Boone himself at one time fell into their hands but escaped. Daniel Boone's younger brother, Squire Boone, and acompanion, followed him into the wilder- ness sometime after Daniel Boone's party had left the settlement in North Carolina to try to find him and join his party, and by the luckiest of accidents came upon his camp and remained with him. One winter the two brothers were in the wilderness alone, and except the short while when Squire Boone returned to North Carolina for ammunition and then returned to Daniel Boone's camp, was with him until their return to the North Carolina settlement. In 1771 they returned from their long hunting excur- sion and spread throughout the western settlements of Virginia and North Carolina the most glowing accounts of the inexhaustible fertility of the soil. The bounty in lands, which had been given to the Virginia troops who had served throughout the old French war by the Virginia Legislature, were to be located upon the western waters of Virginia terri- tory; and within less than two years after the return of Boone and Knox, surveyors were sent to locate lands south of the Ohio River in 1773. Many surveys were executed in Kentucky and large portions of the country explored with a view of future settlements. In the summer of 1774 other parties of surveyors and hunters followed. During this year James Harrod erected a log cabin upon the spot where Harrodsburg now stands, which rapidly grew into a station, prob- ably the oldest in Kentucky. [12] CHAPTER IV. During this year Col. Richard Henderson pur- chased from the Cherokee Indians the whole of the Indian hunting grounds south of the Kentucky river. His purchase was subsequently declared null and void by the legislature of Virginia, which claimed the sole right to purchase land from the Indians within the bounds of the royal charter of the Crown. But great activity was displayed by Henderson in taking possession of his new Indian purchase and granting land to settlers, before the act of the Virginia legis- lature overturned his scheme. Daniel Boone was employed by him to direct the survey of the country and select favorable and desir- able locations. Early in the spring of 1775 the selec- tion and foundation of Boonesboro was laid under the title of Henderson. Squire Boone was one of Daniel Boone's party on this trip. From the 22nd of March to the 14th of April Boone was actively engaged in constructing the fort afterwards called Boonesboro, during which time his party was exposed to an attack from the Indians. By the middle of April the fort was completed. Within two months from that time his wife and daughter joined him and resided in the fort, the first white woman who ever stood upon the banks of the Kentucky River. From this time Boonesboro and Harrodstown (afterwards Harrodsburg) became the nucleus and support of immigration and settlement in Kentucky. In 1775 the renowned pioneer, Simon Kenton, erected a log cabin and raised a crop of corn in the now county of Mason upon the spot where the town of Washington now stands, and continued to occupy the spot until late fall of that year when he removed [13] to Boonesboro. In the month of September of this year, and three months after the arrival of Mrs. Boone and daughters, the young colony was increased by the arrival of three more white women, Mrs. Denton, Mrs. McGary and Mrs. Hogan, who with their husbands and children settled at Harrodsburg. Early in the spring of 1776 Col. Richard Calloway brought his wife and two daughters to Boonesboro, and in March of the same year Col. Benjamin Logan brought his wife and family to Logan's fort, about one mile west of the present town of Stanford, in now Lincoln County, where he with a few slaves had raised a crop of corn in 1775. CHAPTER V. In the winter of this year the territory given the name of Kentucky by the Indians was formed into a county of Virginia by the Virginia Legislature and called Kentucky County of Virginia. Up to this date the territory was a part of Fincastle County, Virginia, but was so far from the county seat, Fin- castle Court House, over the Alleghany Ridge and by being'given county rights entitled to a separate county court, to justices of the peace, a sheriff, con- stable, courier and militia of officers. Law with it's authority (upon a small scale) for the first time had it's jurisdiction in Kentucky. In the spring of 1777 the court of quarterly sessions held its first sittings at Harrodsburg, attended by the sheriff of the county and it's clerk, Levi Todd. The first court of Kentucky County was composed of John Todd, John Floyd, Benjamin Logan, John Bowman and Richard Calloway. This court only had jurisdiction over petit larceny and misdemeanor cases. The first 17 [14] cases that came before this court a majority of them were for running tippling houses, in modem par- lance, bootlegging. In the winter of 1774-1775 the Virginia Legisla- ture passed a law donating 400 acres of land in Ken- tucky territory to every person who made an improvement, built a cabin, cleared a piece of ground and raised a crop of corn. This opportunity of pro- curing cheap farms brought many adventurous per- sons to Kentucky County in 1775-1776. In the year of 1775 news was received from an Indian runner bv a party of hunters who were encamped on one branch of Elkhorn, that the first battle of the Revolution had been fought at Lexing- ton, in the vicinity of Boston, Massachusetts, between the British and Provincial forces. In commemora- tion of the event they called the spot of their encampment "Lexington." No settlement was then made, but about four years afterwards, in 1779, about April 1, a solitary block house with some adjacent defenses was erected by Robert Patterson upon the spot where the hunters camped four years before, and on that same location the city of Lexington now stands. One of the-most heautiful cities upon the American continent, noted for its educational insti- tutions, both male and female, universities and col- leges. It has the distinction of having the oldest university west of the Alleghany Mountains and ranks with the first cities of the nation as an educa- tional center. CHAPTER VI. In 1776 Colonel Benjamin Harrison, at the head of a party, settled in the northern part of what was [15] afterwards Bourbon County and later southern part of Harrison County, and organized a colony with the building of block houses and a fort for their protec- tion and place of abode near the site where Hinkston Station was located. This station was settled by Col. John Hinkston in April, 1775. It was on the old Buf- falo trace or Indian route from the big spring at Georgetown to the Lower Blue Licks in the present county of Nicholas. There was quite a fierce engagement here with the Indians, shortly after its settlement, Col. Hinkston being in command of the station, and the notorious renegade, Simon Girty, of the Indian forces. The ammunition gave out at the station and Col. Hinkston was forced to surrender himself to the Indians as a hostage, this under prom- ise that the remainder of the men, women and chil- dren should remain at the station unmolested. Col. Hinkston made his escape from the Indians the next night and made his way back to the station. The station was abandoned after this for a few years, most of the parties going back to Virginia. Of the party that came with Col. Hinkston, several had the honor of the streams near their settlement being named for them, Hinkston Creek was named for Col. Hinkston, Townsend Creek for John Townsend, one of their party, and Cooper's Run for John Cooper, another one of the company. The two com- panies referred to above as commanded by Col. Hinkston and Col. Benjamin Harrison were perhaps the first visitors to what is now Harrison County, unless those pioneer hunters, Boone and Kenton had passed through it on hunting excursions. Most of the parties belonging to the companies referred to were driven from their early improvements through [16] fear of the Indians. Many of the settlements were attacked, the settlers captured, the settlements laid waste and the whites either murdered or carried away as prisoners. Ruddles Station was one of the early settlements made in this vicinity. It was upon the site of the improvements made by Hinkston and others who were driven away by the Indians. The occupants of Ruddles Station had to abandon it on account of the frequent and fierce raids of the Indians. Some years later Isaac and James Ruddles, with a few companions, re-settled it, moving from the settlement they had made on Licking River three miles below the junction of Hinkston and Stoner branches of the same stream. About the same time Martin's Station on Stoner Creek, about three miles below where Paris is now located, was established. The Homestead Law, passed by the Virginia Legisla- ture at the session of 1774 and 1775 and given in another part of this history, was the reason for so many adventurers and settlers coming into the new territory and establishing homes where they could get farm lands so cheap. About this time and for two or three years afterwards, many stations were established in this part of the territory and our lim- ited space keeps us from naming many of them. CHAPTER VII. In July, 1776, the two Calloway girls and Daniel Boone's daughter were out in a canoe on the river near the fort of Boonesboro taking a boat ride, and were captured by five Indians; with their prison- ers the Indians started for the hill country and the Ohio River. The girls, by their screams, aroused the occupants of the fort. Boone with a party of eight [17] started without delay in pursuit. The rescue party had no trouble following the trail made by the devices of the girls. The trail passed near where the city of Winchester, the towns of North Middle- town and Little Rock are now located and on towards Upper Blue Licks, where the rescue party came upon the Indians in camp and fired upon them, killing two of the Indians and wounding two others, only one getting back to the Indian settlement. The girls were rescued without harm, except the fatigue of traveling about forty-five miles and the great fright they were in while prisoners of the Indians. The oldest Calloway girl, Elizabeth, who did the greater part of making the trail plain, was in the early fall married to Samuel Henderson, one of the rescue party, the ceremony being performed by Squire Boone, an ordained minister of the Baptist Church. This was the first white marriage in Ken- tucky. The other two girls, though younger, had sweethearts among the rescuers, and sometime after this first Kentucky marriage the other two girls married: Fannie Calloway to Col. John Holden and Jemima Boone to Flanders Calloway, the son of Col. Calloway. The year of 1776 is memorable in the early his- tory of Kentucky County as one of peculiar peril. The woods literally swarmed with the Indians, who seemed excited to desperation by the formation of so many settlements in their old hunting grounds and abandoned themselves to the commission of every species of outrage. Savage ingenuity seemed stimulated to the utmost to devise new methods and modes of annoyance to the settlers. Col. Benjamin Logan deemed it prudent to place his wife and fam- r18] ily behind the more secure defenses of Harrodsburg, where they would be less exposed to danger than in his own remote and comparatively undefended sta- tion. He himself remained with his slaves and attended to the cultivation of his farm. In Decem- ber of that year Col. Logan's oldest son, William, was born at Harrodsburg, the first white child born in Kentucky (ounty. William Logan became one of the most honored citizens of his time, was twice judge of the Court of Appeals of Kentucky, besides filling other high offices of trust. CHAPTER VIII. The year of 1777 had many startling events to transpire in Kentucky County. The first court held in the county, that convened at Harrodsburg, which is recorded in another part of this outline history more fully, had adjourned but a short time when the wilderness seemed alive with Indians. On April 15, a simultaneous attack was made on Boonesboro, Harrodsburg and Logan's Fort with several hundred Indians in each of the attacking parties. The onset was furious but unsuccessful, with the exception of destroying the corn and cattle of the whites. The Indian loss in killed and wounded was so great that they after several days retired with precipitation. On the fourth of July following, Boonesboro was again attacked by 200 warriors. The garrison of less than half the number of the assailants made a vigorous defense, repulsing the enemy with the loss of many warriors killed and wounded. The siege lasted two days and nights when the Indians made a rapid and tumultuous retreat. Boonesboro had still another attack. The red man was now furious at [ is9 the occupation of his beloved Kain-tuck-ee by the "longknife." The incursions into the country by the exasperated foe were frequent and bloody and every station was hotly besieged. Boonesboro sustained three. So great were the assaults that the smaller forts and settlements, McClellan's Fort, on the site where Georgetown now stands, Hinkston's Station, already spoken of, and other small forts and stations, were abandoned and the settlers in great gloom and amidst the lamentations of the women and children, departed for Harrodsburg Station. Simon Kenton (before mentioned), after piloting the settlers that abandoned their settlements and forts to Harrodsburg Station, made his way to Boonesboro. The Indian raids were numerous and in such large parties that Boone (who had been selected a Colonel of Militia) appointed eight spies to watch the Indians and give timely notice of their approach. Their duties were to range by twos up and down the Ohio River and about the deserted stations looking for Indian signs. By this means the settlers had timely notice during the year of the approach of the enemy. But on one occasion Ken- ton and two others were early one morning in the gate of Boonesboro when two men in the field were fired on by the Indians. They fled, not being hurt, but the Indians pursued them and a warrior overtook and tomahawked one of the men within 70 yards of the fort and proceeded leisurely to scalp him. Ken- ton shot the daring savage dead and immediately with his hunting companions gave chase to the oth- ers. Boone, hearing the noise, with ten men has- tened out of the fort to the assistance of his spies. Kenton turned and observed an Indian taking aim at [20] Boone and quick as thought he brought his rifle to his shoulder and pulled the trigger and the red man bit the dust. Boone, having advanced some distance, now discovered that his small party consisting of fourteen men, was cut off from the fort by a large body of Indians, which had gotten between him and the gate. There was no time to be lost. Boone gave the word-"Right about, fire, charge!"-and the intrepid hunters dashed among their adversaries in a desperate endeavor to reach the fort. At the first fire from the Indians seven of the fourteen whites were wounded, among the number the gallant Boone, whose leg was broken, which stretched him on the ground. An Indian sprang on him with uplifted tomahawk, but before the blow descended, Kenton, everywhere present, rushed on the warrior, discharged his gun in his breast and bore his leader into the fort when the gate was closed and all things secure. Boone sent for Kenton, "Well, Simon," said the old pioneer, "you have behaved yourself like a man. Indeed you are a fine fellow." This was great praise from Boone, who was a silent man and little given to compliments. Kenton had deserved the eulogium. He had saved the life of his captain and killed three Indians without time to scalp them, much to his regret. There was little time to spare we may well believe when Kenton could not stop to take an Indian scalp. The Indians, after keeping up the siege for three days retired, this being the third attempt the Indians made to take Boonesboro in this year, failing in every attempt. CHAPTER IX. After these failures of the Indians a short period [21] of tranquility was now allowed to the distressed and harrassed garrison. But early in the year 1778 an event happened that was the most severe calamity that had yet befallen the infant settlements. This was the capture of Boone and twenty-seven of his men at Blue Licks. where they had gone to make salt for the garrison. The prisoners were taken to Chillicothe, in the present state of Ohio, an old Indian settlement, and from there to Detroit, the home of the English Governor, Hamilton. The pris- oners, with the exception of Boone, were sold to Gov- ernor Hamilton, but the Indians would not sell Boone but took him back to Chillicothe and adopted him into an Indian family, showing the high appre- ciation they had for Boone. In the spring Boone accompanied the Indians on a visit to Detroit and Governor Hamilton offered them one hundred pounds (500) for his ransom, but so strong were the affec- tions of the Indians for their prisoner that it was unhesitatingly refused. Several English gentlemen located at Detroit, touched by sympathy for his mis- fortunes, made pressing offers of money and other articles, but Boone steadily refused to receive bene- fits which he could never return. We are unin- formed as to any of the particular incidents which occurred during his captivity; we only know gener- ally that by his equanimity, his seeming patience, his cheerful submission to the fortune which had made him a captive, and his remarkable skill as a woods- man, he succeeded in powerfully exciting the admir- ation and conciliating the good will of his captors. On Boone's return from Detroit to Chillicothe he observed that a large number of warriors had assem- bled, painted and equipped for an expedition against [22] Boonesboro. His anxiety became so great that he determined to effect his escape at every hazard. During the whole of this agitating period, however, he permitted no symptom of anxiety to escape, but continued to hunt and shoot with the Indians as usual until the morning of the 16th of June, when making an early start he left Chillicothe and shaped his course for Boonesboro. This journey, exceeding a distance of one hundred and sixty miles, he per- formed in four days, during which time he ate only one meal. He was received at the garrison like one risen from the dead, his family, supposing him killed, had returned to North Carolina. CHAPTER X. During this year of 1778, Kenton, still acting as a spy, with a companion named Montgomery, made a trip to Chillicothe late in the fall to steal back some of the white men's horses which the Indians had stolen in their raids in Kentucky. They succeeded in getting a number of horses and got back as far as the Ohio River. They found the river had risen so much that they could not get the horses into the river, the wind and waves being very high. The Indians soon discovered the loss of their horses, made an immediate pursuit and came upon Kenton and captured him close to the banks of the Ohio River. Montgomery came to his assistance, fired without effect and fled. Two of the Indians gave chase and in a short time returned with his bleeding scalp. The Indians put Kenton through the greatest of punishments, making him run the gauntlet and whip- ping him with switches and sticks until their arms gave out, abusing him all the while, calling him [23] among other epithets they had picked up from the white settlers "a damn horse steal." Kenton was a prisoner for more than eight months. He was forced to run the gauntlet a number of times and was saved from being burned at the stake by the renegade, Simon Girty, whom Kenton had befriended some years before, when Girty still claimed to be a white man. Kenton, after being a prisoner for more than eight months and being transferred to Detroit, made his escape with two other Kentuckians by the assis- tance of Mrs. Harvey, the wife of an Indian trader, while the Indians were on a big drunken spree. After many hardships and thirty-three days in the wilderness the three fugitives, Kenton, Bullitt and Coffer, arrived at Louisville some time in July, 1779. Boone and Kenton, both prisoners, made 1778 a dis- tressing year for the settlements in Kentucky. Boone, after his return to Boonesboro, June 21, 1778, immediately put all hands to repairing the defenses of the fort to be prepared for the assault that the Indians with the French and English officers had planned. In ten or twelve days after Boone's return, by working day and night, the defenses were all repaired and put in good shape for the defense. At this time one of his companions who had made his escape arrived from Chillicothe and reported that Boone's escape had determined the Indians to delay the invasion for three weeks. So Boone made a select company of nineteen men and invaded the Indian territory, marching against Paint Creek on the Scioto. He arrived very close to the Indian town without discovery. Here he encountered a party of thirty warriors on their march to join the grand army in it's expedition against Boonesboro. r24] This party Boone attacked and routed, killing sev- eral of the Indians without loss or injury to his party, and ascertaining that the main body of the Indians were on their march to Boonesboro he retraced his steps for that place with all possible expedition. He passed the Indian army on the 6th day of their march and on the 7th reached the fort. On the next day the Indians appeared in great force, commanded by French and English officers, well skilled in all the arts of modern warfare. The British flag was dis- played and the fort commanded to surrender. Boone requested two days for consideration, which was granted. At the expiration of this period, having gathered in their cattle and horses and made every preparation for a vigorous resistance, an answer was returned that the fort would be defended to the last. A proposition was then made to treat but failed. The attack immediately commenced by a heavy fire against the picketing and was returned with fatal accuracy by the garrison. The Indians, under the direction of French and English officers, made many attempts, exhausting every known artifice of Indian warfare, and finding their numbers daily thinned by the deliberate and accurate fire from the garrison, they raised the siege on the ninth day after their appearance and returned home. The loss on the part of the garrison was two killed and four wounded. Of the Indians, thirty-seven were killed and a much greater number wounded, who, as usual, were all carried off. This was the last siege sustained by Boonesboro. After the abandonment of the siege the people of the fort picked up near the fort walls one hundred and twenty-five pounds of leaden bullets which had fallen, besides those [25) which had stuck in the logs and palisades. Col. Hamilton, the English Commandant at Detroit, about this time offered a reward of a certain amount to the Indians for every white scalp brought in from Virginia and Kentucky County. Col. George Rogers Clark, in his report to Governor Patrick Henry, of Virginia, in referring to Col. Hamilton, called him the "hair buyer of the west." Hamilton's attempt this year to drive out the white settlers west of the Alleghany Ridge by encouraging the Indians to commit every crime known to the Indians and even other atrocities known to a low down man like Ham- ilton, this raiding so frequent by the Indians caused the abandonment of all the settlements in this part of Kentucky County except Boonesboro, Harrods- burg and Logan's Fort. Only two new settlements were made in this year. Col. Clarke's invasion and destruction of the Indian towns north of the Ohio in the latter part of this year gave new encouragement to the settlers and a great many home seekers came in the year 1779. So many came that the old forts were repopulated, the abandoned settlements reoc- cupied, and fourteen new forts and settlements estab- lished in this part of Kentucky County and six more in the western part of the County. CHAPTER XI. We, in this outline history, can speak of only a few of those that are nearest to our vicinity; of the Lexington blockhouse and settlement we have spoken in another part of this outline. Martin's Station and Ruddles Station (formerly Hinkston) reoccupa- tion have been spoken of in another part of this work. In this year Bryan's Station was located [26j about five miles northwest of Lexington. It was settled by four Bryan brothers who immigrated from North Carolina, one of whom, William, had married a sister of Colonel Daniel Boone. This was a frontier post and greatly exposed to the marauding hostilities of the savages. The Indians were constantly lurk- ing in the neighborhood, waylaying the paths, steal- ing the horses and butchering the cattle. It at length became necessary to hunt in parties of twenty or thirty men, so as to be able to meet and repel those attacks which were every day becoming more frequent. One afternoon, about May 20th, a year or so after the establishing of the station, William Bryan, accompanied by twenty men, left the fort on a hunting trip down Elkhorn Creek. They moved with caution until they had passed all the points where ambuscades had generally been formed, when, seeing no enemy, they became more bold and divided their company into two parties. One conducted by Bryan, the other by James Hogan, that they might cover more territory and likely find more game, the two parties to meet at night and camp together at the mouth of Cane River. The Hogan party had traveled but a short way when they encountered a party of Indians and fled back to the fort. Very early the next morning they started to the point of meeting. Bryan's party had camped at the point agreed upon and the next morning about daylight, hearing a bell ringing at a distance which was rec- ognized as the one on the pack horse of the Hogan party, supposing their friends to be lost in the fog and unable to find the camp, Bryan, accompanied by Grant, one of his men, mounted his horse and rode to the spot where the bell was ringing. They [27] quickly fell into an ambuscade and were fired upon by the Indians. Bryan was mortally and Grant severely wounded, but both being able to keep their saddle put spurs to their horses and arrived at the station shortly after breakfast. Shortly afterwards Bryan died. Every writer who refers to the early days of Kentucky should refreshen the minds of his readers by speaking of Bryan Station, thereby bring- ing back the hallowed remembrances of the great, heroic deeds of the brave pioneer women on August, 15, 1782. CHAPTER XII. Strodes Station, founded about the same time as Bryan Station,-was situated in what is now Clark County, about two miles from Winchester, on the head waters of Strodes Creek, the largest tributary of Stoner Creek. The Indians besieged it a number of times but failed to take it. During the same year of 1779 General George Rogers Clark located a fort at the falls of the Ohio River where Louisville is now located and the settlement was by an act of the Vir- ginia Legislature in 1780, christened Louisville, in honor of King Louis XVI. of France, whose troops were at the time assisting the Americans in the war against England. General Clark also established a fort at the mouth of the Ohio River where it empties into the Mississippi River and called it Fort Jefferson, in honor of Thomas Jefferson, who at that time was Governor of Virginia. The year of 1779, and for several years afterwards, the great and all-absorb- ing object in Kentucky County was to enter, survey and obtain a patent for the richest sections of land. The surveyors chain and compass were seen in the r28] woods as frequently as the rifle. Indian hostilities were rife during the whole of this period but these only formed episodes in the great drama. The win- ter of 1779 was the most severe the territory had ever experienced and perhaps the worst this section ever knew. Winter set in the first part of Novem- ber and was intensely cold up to the last of Febru- ary, so severe that the wild turkeys and all kinds of animals, deer, buffalo and smaller game, nearly all froze and perished. The settlers were in great dis- tress, many were frostbitten, a number of people were taken sick and some deaths occurred for want of solid food. But the sufferings of this winter did not put to a stop the coming to Kentucky County of those who sought homes and independence. The immigration of 1780 was the largest the new territory had ever known. Six new stations were founded and three thousand people during the spring of this year arrived at Louisville. The English Governor, Ham- ilton, of Detroit, had a Col. Bird, a British officer, to invade the Kentucky territory with six hundred Indian warriors and several pieces of artillery. Col. Bird appeared before Ruddell's Station about the middle of June and by display of the cannon forced its sur- render, promising protection of the English author- ity towards the inhabitants of the fort, that they were prisoners of England and not of the Indians. Every promise of Bird was violated, and the Indians not only took and destroyed all the belongings of the fort itself but claimed and took all the prisoners as their property, and what they didn't murder took away with them as their prisoners. Two of Isaac Ruddell's sons were adopted by Indian families and [29] lived with the Indians a number of years. From Ruddell's Station, Bird with his French and Indian army, proceeded to Martin's Station but a few miles distant, and by exhibiting the cannon the station surrendered without battle; the terms of the surren- der, that the people of the fort were to be prisoners of the English Government, and the property and belongings given to the Indians. The prisoners were kept by the English, and one historian claims it was the positive stand of the French troops that caused Bird to hold the prisoners of Martin's Station and not allow the Indians to have them. This caused the Indians and Bird with their army to return to the Indian country without attempting other attacks on other Kentucky County stations. CHAPTER XIII. In the fall of this Year the Virginia Legislature divided the County of Kentucky into three territories and gave them the names of Fayette County, Lin- coln County and Jefferson County, and in 1781 added Nelson County, thereby giving the counties of Vir- ginia west of the Alleghany Ridge more legal juris- diction, nearer like our Circuit Courts of to-day. In the fall of this year Col. Clarke made a raid with state troops and volunteers into the Indian country of Ohio, defeated the Indians in a pitched battle, laid waste their villages and destroyed their corn fields with inexorable severity in retaliation of Bird's expe- dition in the spring. In the fall of this year Boone went to North Carolina for his family where they, believing him dead, had gone to their kindred. Boone and family returned to Boonesboro before winter. In October of the next year, returning in [30] company with his brother from the Blue Licks where they had been to make salt, they were encountered by a party of Indians and his brother who had been his faithful companion through many years of toil and danger was shot and scalped before his eyes. Boone, after a long and close chase, finally effected his escape, and tradition, which is unwritten history of those early days, gives this scene as transpiring in Little Rock precinct of now Bourbon County, and the body of Squire Boone, the brother of Col. Boone, rests in a grave on Boone Creek in the aforesaid precinct and county. The year of 1781 was distinguished by a very large immigration, by prodigious activity in land specula- tion and by the frequency of Indian inroads in small parties. Every portion of the county was kept con- tinually in alarm and small Indian ambushes were perpetually bursting upon the settlers. Many lives were lost, but the settlements made great and daily advances in defiance of all obstacles. The rich lands of Kentucky were the prizes of the first occupants and they rushed to seize them with rapacity stronger than the great fear of death. The year of 1782 was uncommonly prolific in great events. Indian hostil- ities were unusually early and active. In May a party of twenty five Wyandots invaded Kentucky and committed shocking depredations in the neigh- borhood of Estill's Station, in now Madison County. Captain Estill hastily collected a party of equal force and rapidly pursued them. He overtook them near where Mt. Sterling now stands and a battle ensued in which Captain Estill's party was defeated. Cap- tain Estill and nearly half of his officers and about half of his men were killed and the Indians lost about [31] the same. About the same time, or shortly after- wards, a party of twenty Wyandots who had com- mitted depredations near Strodes Station in now Clark County, encountered Captain Holder at the head of seventeen Kentuckians near the Upper Blue Licks and defeated him with loss. But these small parties were the mere pattering drops of hail which precede the tempest. In the month of August an army of more than five hundred warriors composed of detachments from all the northwestern tribes appeared before Bryan's Station as unexpectedly as if they had risen from the earth. The garrison, although surprised, took prompt measures to repel the enemy. By the daring bravery of the noble, heroic women of the fort who proceeded to the spring outside in full view of five hundred Indian warriors and each brought a bucket of water into the fort thereby supplying the station with water. The decoy of the Indians failing and the assault of the entire Indian force being repulsed by the deadly fire of the garrison, and later in the day arrival of reinforce- mentsfrom Lexington, and after a parley by Girty coming to naught on the second day, the Indians on the following night abandoned the siege and started on their retreat to the Ohio River by the way of Lower Blue Licks. The Indian army, believing they would be pursued and hoping for a battle on grounds of their own selection, made their trail very plain by following the buffalo trace and blazed the trees on the roadside with their hatchets. These strong indi- cations of tardiness made great impressions on Boone and other Indian fighters, The settlers had congre- gated from all the forts around to relieve Bryan Station and followed the Indian army to drive it [32] from Kentucky territory. There were about one hundred and seventy-five settlers. They camped in the woods that night and on the following day reached the Lower Blue Licks. For the first time since the pursuit commenced they came in view of the enemy. As they reached the southern bank of Licking river they saw a number of Indians ascend- ing the rocky ridge on the other side. The Indians halted upon the appearance of the settlers, gazed at them for a few minutes in silence and then leisurely disappeared over the top of the hill. A halt immed- iately ensued. A dozen or twenty officers met in front of the ranks and entered into consultation. Major Hugh McGary, of an irascible disposition, with- out fear and regrettably without discretion, became impatient at the delay, gave a whoop resembling the war cry of the Indians, spurred his horse into the river, waved his hat over his head and shouted aloud "let all who are not cowards follow me." The words and actions produced an electrical effect and the entire army, horsemen and those on foot, dashed into the river and crossed over in an irregular mass. No orders were given, and ignoring Boone's advice about the lay of the land about a mile north of the river, with its adaptability for an ambuscade, the army rushed on to the top of the ridge following the buffalo trace with the same precipitate ardor and rushed without caution or order into the ambuscade. The deadly fire of an unseen foe caused a complete rout of the Kentuckians and the greatest defeat the settlers had ever known. About one-third of the army of one hundred and seventy-five were killed before they got across the river. Without giv- ing the full details of the disastrous battle of Blue [33] Licks, the committee will pass on to other annals of our outline history, feeling satisfied that everyone is well posted on the particulars of the Blue Licks battle. CHAPTER XIV. In this year came news that Lord Cornwallis had surrendered his English army at Yorktown in this state (Virginia). With the surrender of Lord Corn- wallis every one believed the actual hostilities between Great Britain and the American Colonies had ceased and that a treaty of peace would be for- mally ratified in the spring. Peace followed in 1783, as was expected, and Indian hostilities for a time were suspended. The Indians assumed a pacific attitude and the year 1783 passed without hostilities. In the meantime the settlements increased with great rapidity. Simon Kenton, after an interval of nine years, reclaimed his settlement at Washington and in 1781 erected a block house where Maysville now stands. So that the Ohio river became the northern frontier of Kentucky. In this year Virginia made an offer to Congress of all the Northwestern terri- tory embraced within her charter, most of which had been retaken by the Kentucky pioneers from the English and Indians. This offer was accepted by the General Government in 1781, when a formal deed of transfer was made and recorded, thereby giving to the Union a territory from which the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota east of the Mississippi were formed. This immense territory amounts to about 170,000,000 acres, from sales of which the General Government has received over one hundred million dollars. Only Kentucky [34] was reserved. The remainder had been unreservedly donated to the Government. In this year the people had grown so numerous that the fear of Indian invasion materially lessened, and there grew a desire for an organization that should have more force legally and politically. Richmond, the capital of Virginia, was far distant and the difficulties of travel were great. So the people called a convention to meet at Danville on December 27, 1784, to devise, if possible, some way to organize a state. The final result of the deliberations was the adoption of a res- olution providing that the Kentucky delegate to the next general assembly of the Virginia Legislature petition the general assembly of Virginia for an act of separation, and through it to petition Congress for admission into the sisterhood of states. Kentucky had an extremely difficult time in her many attempts to get into the Union of States. Without going into the particulars of each attempt we will summarize. She had nine conventions between December 27, 1784. and July 26, 1790;, each meeting at Danville, and at each convention drafted a memorial and by a com- mittee presented it to the Virginia general assembly and to Congress for admission to statehood. In December, 1790, President Washington strongly rec- ommended to Congress to admit Kentucky into the Union. On the 4th of February, 1791, an act for that purpose had passed both Houses and received the signature of the President, said act to take effect June 1. 1792. CHAPTER XV. In the year 1785 Bourbon Countv was created by the Virginia Legislature, bei ng the fifth county, and [35] the next year Madison County was formed being the sixth county. Bourbon County was formed from the territory of Fayette County and reached to the Ohio river. The first court was convened at the home of Col. James Garrard, May 16, 1786. A new commis- sion of the justices of the peace dated January 12, 1786, to this county directed to James Garrard, Thomas Swearinger, John Edwards, Benjamin Har- rison, John Hinkston, Alvin Mountjoy, Thomas Warring, Edward Waller and John Gregg. James Garrard took the oath of fidelity and oath of office of Justice of the Peace, which was administered to him by John Edwards, authorized in said commission to administer the oath, and then the said James Gar- rard administered the aforesaid oaths to Benjamin Harrison, John Hinkston, Alvin Mountjoy, Thomas Warring, Edward Waller and John Gregg, who took the same respectively. A majority of the justices commissioned being present, John Edwards was appointed clerk of the court of this county. With- out going into the particulars of the orders of this court at its sessions, will note that of this first Board of Justices of the Peace of Bourbon County; James Garrard was twice Governor of Kentucky; John Edwards was the first United States Senator of Ken- tucky after her statehood, and Benjamin Harrison was the first sheriff of Bourbon County, represented Bourbon County in the legislature, and the County of Harrison, formed from the territory of Bourbon County, was named for him. The years of 1786-87- 88-89-90 were so taken up with the settlers' attempts for statehood that but little transpired in the annals that was startling enough to be recorded in this out- line history. In the year 1789 General Washington, r36] President, issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation for Thursday, November 26, "as a day to be set aside for the acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording (the people) an opportunity, peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness, and in particular for the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war." The first Thanksgiving day in America was celebrated by the little band of Plymouth colonies in 1621. As stated before, the first day of June, 1792, Ken- tucky became a full-fledged state, separate from Virginia. The newly elected governor, Isaac Shelby, and the first legislature of Kentucky met at Lexing- ton, June 4, 1792. Alexander Scott Bullitt, of Jeffer- son County, was elected speaker of the Senate and Robert Breckinridge, of Fayette County, speaker of the House. Two days after the convening and organization of the general assembly, Governor Shel- by appeared before a joint session of that body, and following the example of President Washington, read his message, at the conclusion of which he furnished a copy to the Speaker of the Senate and of the House and retired from the chamber. Thus quietly and with proper dignity were the wheels of self-govern- ment first set in motion in Kentucky. James Brown was appointed secretary of state and George Nich- olas, attorney general. The first United States Sen- ators were John Edwards and John Brown. Ken- tucky, when she was admitted into the Union of States, was divided into nine counties, Fayette Lin- coln, Jefferson, Nelson, Bourbon, Madison, Mercer, Mason and Woodford. [37] CHAPTER XVI. We have thus detailed as minutely as our space would permit, the long, vexatious and often baffled efforts of the infant community of the west to organ- ize a regular government and obtain admission into the Union of States. "And it is impossible not to be struck with the love of order, the respect for law and the passionate attachment to their kindred race beyond the moun- tains, which characterized the brave and simple race of hunters and farmers. The neglect of the old con- federation arose no doubt from its inherent imbecil- ity, but never was parental care more coldly and sparingly administered. Separated by five hundred miles of wilderness, exposed to the intrigues of for- eign governments, powerfully tempted by their own leading statesmen, repulsed in every effort to obtain constitutional independence, they yet clung with invincible affection to their government and turned a deaf ear to the siren voice which tempted them with the richest gifts of fortune, to stray away from the fold in which they had been nurtured. The spectacle was touching and beautiful as it was novel in the history of the world. Kentucky, as she is presented, has attractions which are found in but few if any regions of the world. Situated in the very center of the American confederated states, beyond the reach of foreign invasion, she is rich in a pro- lific soil, rich in her agricultural products, rich in her beautiful farms and grazing lands, rich in the magnificent scenery and abundant lores of her moun- tains; and above all and beyond all, rich in a popula- tion at once industrious, enterprising, hospitable, ra38 intelligent and patriotic. The reader, by casting his eye upon the map and viewing round the heads of the Licking from the Ohio and the heads of the Ken- tucky, Dix's River and down Green River to the Ohio, may view in that great compass, more than one hun- dred miles square, the most extraordinary country on which the sun has ever shown." Captain Imlay, an officer of the Revolutionary army and an early witness of the settlement of Ken- tucky, caused to be published in 1793, in New York, a topographical description of the western territory of North America, and sent to a friend in England this description of the county as it was presented to his view in the spring of the year: "Everything here assumes a dignity and splendor I have never seen in any other part of the world. You ascend a consider- able distance from the shore of the Ohio, and when you would suppose you had arrived at the summit of a mountain, you find yourself upon an extensive level. Here an eternal verdure reigns and the bril- liant sun piercing through the azure heavens pro- duces in this prolific soil an early maturity which is truly astonishing. Flowers, full and perfect, as if they had been cultivated by the hand of a florist, with all their captivating odors and with all the var- iegated charms which color and nature can produce here in the lap of elegance and beauty, decorated with smiling groves. Soft zephyrs gently breathe on sweets and the inhaled air gives a voluptous glow of health and vigor that seems to ravish the intoxi- cated senses. The sweet songsters of the forest appear to feel the influence of the genial clime and in more soft and modulated tones warble their tender notes in unison with love and nature. Everything [39] here gives delight, and in that effulgence which beams around us we feel a glow of gratitude for the elevation which our All Bountiful Creator has bestowed upon us. You must forgive what I know you will call a rhapsody, but what I really exper- ienced after traveling across the Alleghany Moun- tains in March, when it was covered with snow, and after finding the country about Pittsburg bare and not recovered from the ravages of the winter. There was scarcely a blade of grass to be seen; everything looked dreary and bore the marks of the melancholy which the rude hand of frost produces. I embarked immediately for Kentucky, and in less than five days landed at Limestone, where I found nature robed in all her charms." The committee has, in a cursory way, tried to give to our readers in this outline history, the annals of the earliest settlements and pioneer days of this territory that is now Kentucky, our home-land; trying to impress upon them the great sacrifice that our forefathers underwent that we, their offspring, should be heirs to this rich inheritance, so beautifully described by John Filson and Captain Imlay, of Eng- land. And above all, that our Heavenly Father, in creating such a land and blessing us with the pos- session of it, makes us infinitely responsible for such vast favors, and our love and gratitude should be too great to be measurable. But we must be indel- ibly mindful that the greater our opportunities, the greater our responsibilities to do all we can for the Blessed Cause. r40] The Religious Movements of the Early Settlers of Our Country And The Church History of the North Middletown Community CHAPTER I. That the Anglo-American pioneer's mind had a trend towards religious worship is evidenced by the early history of that race wherever recorded. The first English settlement in America was at James- town, about forty miles up the James River in Vir- ginia, May 13, 1607, and among the first buildings erected was a church. In 1609, when Lord De-la-ware arrived, being appointed governor by King James I. of England, his first act was to have all the people assemble in the unfinished church and join in thank- ing God for His great mercy. All that remains to-day of Jamestown, the first English settlement planted in America, are the ruins of the church tower and a few tombstones in the graveyard nearby. The second English settlement was the Pilgrim Fathers' landing about 35 miles south of Boston, Mass., and they named the place of landing Plymouth, which to-day is the county seat of Plymouth County, Massachu- setts. The Pilgrim Fathers landed here December 21, 1620. Upon landing, they issued a proclamation: "In the name of God, Amen; we, whose names are underwritten, have undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of Christian faith to establish this colony." We will not put in our record the [41] eccentric, peculiar Puritanic blue laws the Pilgrim Fathers adopted at Plymouth when establishing their church government, and the rules by which as a church they should be controlled. King James I. of England, for whom the first Anglo-American pioneers named their town Jamestown, and the river upon which the settlement was located, James River, suc- ceeded to the throne of England upon the death of Queen Elizabeth, March 21, 1603. He was crowned King of England July 25, 1603. He was a learned but pedantic, weak and incapable monarch of disso- lute habits, and by one of the most learned and able scholars and statesmen in Europe aptly characterized as the "wisest fool in all Europe." What good could be expected from such a ruler Yet the religious discussion that arose in the Church of England (Episcopal Church) which caused a division in the church, the seceding party, called the Separatists, became so noted that King James I., taking great interest in the religious discussion, concluded to and did appoint a commission of the most learned and profound thinkers, and recognized as the most devout and earnest scholars in all Europe, to make the trans- lation of the Bible and revise the heretofore English translations. This commission began work on this translation and revision of the Bible in 1604 and completed their arduous duties in 1611. This trans- lation and revised version of the Bible has been used almost exclusively by the Protestant world up to this time and known as the King James translation of the Bible. So by this one great act he has become more widely known than almost any ruler of England. [42] CHAPTER II. Coeval with the early. pioneer settlers that crossed the Allegheny ridge to establish homes in the wilder- ness of Kentucky came the faithful pioneer ministers of God's word, chiefly from Virginia and North Car- olina, and in a few years churches began to spring up in many places in the wilderness. It was still a time of peril. Before houses of worship were erected the worshipers would assemble in the forests, each man with his gun. Sentinels would be placed to guard against surprise from the Indians, while the minister, with a log or stump for his pulpit, and the Heavens for his sounding board, would dispense the "word of life and salvation." The groves were God's first temples. Ere man learned to hew the shaft, and lay the architrave, and spread the roof above them; ere he framed the lofty vault to gather and roll back the sounds of anthems in the dark woods amidst the cool and silence, he knelt down and offered to the Almighty solemn thanks and sup- plications." The Baptists were the pioneers of religion in the Kentucky wilderness. In 1777 William Hickman, Baptist minister, visited the wilderness and remained some time, preaching to the pioneers, but returned the next year to Virginia. In 1777 other Baptist ministers visited the Kentucky wilderness from Vir- ginia, John Taylor, Joseph Reding and several others, and preached at the forts and settlements. In 1780 many Baptists moved to Kentucky county, chiefly from Virginia. But it was not until the next year that the first church was organized. This was Gil- bert Creek Church, located a few miles east of where the town of Lancaster, Garrard County, is now sit- [433 uated. It was founded by Lewis Craig, of Spottsyl- vania County, Virginia, at Craigs Station, and is supposed to be the first church building erected in Kentucky. Craig was several times arrested and imprisoned for his ultra ideas preached from the pul- pit in Virginia. The prosecuting attorney rep- resented him to be a great annoyance to the county by his zeal as a preacher. "May it please your wor- ships, he cannot meet a man upon the road but he must ram a text of scripture down his throat." When Lewis Craig left Spottsylvania County, Vir- ginia, for Kentucky most of his large congregation there came with him. They were an organized church on the road; wherever they stopped they could transact church business. In 1783 a Baptist Church was organized on South Elkhorn, five miles south of Lexington, by Lewis Craig, principally from members dismissed from Gilbert Creek, perhaps the first church organized in Fayette County. After the close of the American Revolution a flood of Baptists poured into Kentucky, chiefly from Virginia, and churches began to spring up everywhere in the wil- derness. In 1785 three associations were organized, viz: The Elkhorn, comprising all the Regular Bap- tist churches then north of the Kentucky and Dix Rivers; the Salem, comprising all the churches of the same order south of these rivers; and the South Ken- tucky, comprising all the Separate Baptist churches in the State. These distinctive names were imported from Virginia and mean the same as those of Par- ticular and General Baptists in England. The for- mer meaning those who hold to Calvanistic and the latter those holding Arminian sentiments. These associations increased with great rapidity and in a [44] few years had grown to forty-two churches and over 3,100 members, or one member for every 23 inhab- itants of the State. There were more members in the Baptist Church than any other denomination in the State. In 1792 an attempt was made to bring about a union between the Regular and Separate Baptist association which failed of success. The Separate Baptist Association. which included the entire State, under the name of South Kentucky Association, divided the State into two associations and organized the Tate's Creek Association. In 17" James Garrard, a Baptist minister and a member of the Cooper's Run church of Bourbon County, who had been minister of the church from its organiza- tion, was elected Governor of the State, and after serving out his first term was re-elected Governor for a second term. Augustine Eastin became min- ister of the Cooper's Run church and other neigh- boring churches when James Garrard became Gov- ernor. Eastin, who was a minister of considerable prominence in the Baptist Church, began to propa- gate Arian or rather Socinian sentiments, and James Garrard, then governor, a member of Cooper's Run Church and for a number of years before their minister, became tinctured with Unitarian sen- timents. Every effort was made to retain these individuals. The majority of the Cooper's Run Church and several neighboring churches to which Mr. Eastin preached, espoused the doctrines of Garrard and their minister. The Elkhorn Associ- ation attended to the case, but failing to effect their return to the old paths reluctantly dropped. them from connection and correspondence. The Silas Creek Baptist Church is situated in the extreme north- [45] ern part of Bourbon County on Silas Creek. The church was organized August 30, 1800, with twenty members who separated from Cooper's Run Church, and with the assistance of Rev. Ambrose Dudley, the first church building of logs was erected, the same year of the organization, and is known far and wide as "Old Silas Church." The Elizabeth Baptist Church was organized several years later by Rev. Ambrose Dudley, who was the first pastor, and is situated in the southern part of the same precinct on the Hume and Bedford pike. The Stony Point Baptist Church was established about the same year as the "Old Silas Church" by Rev. Ambrose Dudley, and is sit- uated in the eastern border of the Clintonville pre- cinct on the Paris and Winchester turnpike, which is the dividing line between the North Middletown and Clintonville precincts. The first church organization in North Middletown prectnct was the Lower Bethel Baptist Church, and was established in 1789 or 1790, a short diistnce east of North Midcfletown and wor- shipped in the homes of its members, usually at the home of James Sims, in a room large and well suited for that purpose. Several years later they erected a log building, twenty by forty-eight feet, upon a lot donated by John Black, a short distance east of North Middletown on the Prescott turnpike, but we will have more to say about this church anon. The Baptists increased very rapidly and in a score of years from the organization of the three associ- ations the membership had so increased that the State was divided into thirteen associations, and while the State at that time had four hundred thousand inhabitants the Baptist Church had one member for every twenty of the State's inhabitants. The asso- [4bj 0 0. rm X atkg This page in the original text is blank. ciations made a number of efforts to get the Baptist Churches united in doctrine but without success, until the great religious revival that spread over this part of the State in 1800 and continued into 1801, and the climax came in the greatest revival meeting ever known at the Cane Ridge Presbyterian Church in Bourbon County; in August, 1801. At that place upwards of twenty thousand persons, moved by the most intense religious feeling, encamped in the grove and fields for several days and nights. A meeting that all the churches, Presbyterian, Baptist, Metho- dist and others joined. After this great revival the Baptist Associations succeeded in getting together and agreed to drop the names of Regular and Sep- arate Baptists and adopted the name of Union Bap- tists. Thus was consummated the General Union. But the harsh note of discord was heard shortly after, the sweet melody of revival and brotherly love began to subside, and ere they had ceased the schism spoken of in this record of the Cooper's Run Baptist Church, and the schism of the Townfork Baptist Church, a few miles west of Lexington, had its foundation in a personal misunderstanding between Jacob Creath, the pastor, and Thomas Lewis, a member, about a negro trade. Quite a number of ministers in the State and many of the members of the churches to which they ministered declared for the abolition of slavery and withdrew from the General Union of Baptists and formed an association of their own, called "The Baptist Licking Locust Association, Friends of Humanity." The association generally declared it "improper for min- isters, churches or associations to meddle with the emancipation of slavery or any other political sub- f 47] ject" and advised them to have nothing to do with it in their religious capacity. Other schisms coming up in a few years caused a respectable and highly influential portion of the ministers and churches of several associations to withdraw, not only from those bodies but from the General Union of Baptists in the State, and organized the Licking Association of Par- ticular Baptists and adopted the Philadelphia Con- fession of Faith as their creed. All the Baptist Churches in Bourbon County, named heretofore in this record, went with the Licking Associatio of Particular Baptists. The first Methodist meeting house erected in Kentucky was a log one put up at the Masterson station about five miles west of Lexington. The first Methodist Conference held in Kentucky was at this church, April 26, 1790. The first Methodist Church erected in Bourbon County is believed to have been old Mount Gilead Methodist Church, located about thtee miles north of Paris, on the Maysville turnpike, and was built in 1790 of logs, by some claimed to be the first church building in the county. The Cane Ridge Church, which is still standing in the western part of the Little Rock precinct on the Paris and Little Rock turnpike, is believed by many to have been built prior to the old Mount Gilead Church. The first Presbyterian organizations in Bourbon County were those of the old Cane Ridge Church, before mentioned, and the Paris Presbyterian con- gregation, organized about 1789. In 1796 the same minister had charge of the Paris and Stonermouth Presbyterian Churches, and in the same year Barton W. Stone had charge of the Cane Ridge and Concord [48] Presbyterian Churches, the latter church located in Nicholas County. CHAPTER III. We now will take up church history in our vic- inity from the first organization, and by and by on up to the present time. The Lower Bethel Baptist Church, previously spoken of in this record as to when and where located, we then stated would be again noticed in this record. It was organized by Enoch Mason, James Sims, John Black, John Rash and John Campbell and their families, and perhaps others, who took letters of dismissal from the Grassy Lick Baptist Church of Montgomery County, Ken- tucky. As stated, they began to worship in their homes until they built the log church previously spoken of. Enoch Mason, an ordained Baptist min- ister, was their first pastor, and continued to serve them until his death, and was buried, with his wife and daughter, just back of where the old log church stood on the acre of ground donated by John Black. After the death of Elder Mason, Elder William Mor- ton preached for three years and was succeeded by Elder Thomas Parrish, an eminent minister. Elder John Smith was the next minister and proved an excellent pastor. The organization of the Licking Association of Particular Baptists, of which Lower Bethel was a member, took place in 1809, and it was about this time, or shortly afterwards, that there was a great spirit of innuiry and unrest in the relig- ious world in their different religious bodies. In 1807, Thomas Campbell, the father of Alexander Campbell, who had long been a minister of high standing among the leaders of the Presbyterian [49] Church in the north of Ireland, immigrated to America and settled in Washington County, Pennsylvania, where he continued to labor as a minister among the destitute congregations of his own faith and order. Deploring the distracted condition of the religious world and convinced that its divisions were unscriptural and injurious to society, he resolved to make a public effort to restore the original unity of the church. A meeting was called to be held at Buf- falo, August 17, 1809, consisting of persons of differ- ent religious denominations, most of them in an unsettled state as to a fixed gospel ministry. After full conference it was unanimously agreed to form a religious association to be called the "Christian Association of Washington, Pennsylvania." A com- mittee of twenty-one was appointed to meet and confer, and with the assistance of Elder Thomas Campbell, to determine upon the proper means to carry into effect the ends of the association, the result of which conference was the drawing up of a Declaration and Address which was agreed upon and ordered to be printed. This Declaration and Address was not designed to be the constitution of a church but was simply a declaration of a purpose to insti- tute a society of voluntary advocates of church reformation. The sole purpose of this organization was to promote simple evangelical Christianity, and for this end they resolved to countenance and sup- port only those ministers who practiced that simple original form of Christianity, expressly exhibited in the sacred page; who would inculcate nothing of human authority, of private opinion or of inventions of men as having any place in the constitution, faith or worship of the Christian Church; who would, in a r50] word, teach nothing as a matter of Christian faith or duty for which there could not be produced a "Thus sayeth the Lord," either in express terms or by approved precedent. Alexander Campbell, after completing his educa- tion at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, followed his father to America and reached Washington in October, 1809, just in time to read the proof sheets of the Declaration and Address. He heartily joined in the effort to unite the churches on this basis of a single evangelical Christianity. A congregation was soon formed and constituted on the principles set forth in the Declaration. A house of worship was erected and ministerial duties were regularly per- formed conjointly by father and son, who had been duly ordained pastors of the church. The doctrine of weekly communion being acknowledged and prac- ticed in this congregation, its incongruity with the infant church membership became to Alexander's mind more and more apparent. He began to press upon his father's attention also the incongruity of this, demanding an express precept or precedent for every ordinance and yet practicing infant baptism for which neither the one or other could be produced. For some time, however, his respect for his father's judgment held him in abeyance. Finally the subject was formally introduced and discussed. The whole question was examined thoroughly and impartially and Alexander became fully convinced, not only that the practice of infant sprinkling could not be sus- tained by Scripture evidence, but that immersion in water upon a profession of faith in Christ alone con- stituted Christian baptism. He immediately made known to his father the conclusions at which he had [511 arrived and his determination to be immersed. Thomas Campbell now examined the subject with more care and finally yielded the point. On the twelfth day of June, 1812, with several other mem- bers of the Brush Run congregation, they were both immersed by Elder Mathias Luse, of the Baptist community. This occurrence, of course, caused a division in the congregation. Those who were attached to infant baptism or opposed to immersion withdrew from the church; the remainder, as a con- gregation of immersed believers, were received into the Red Stone Baptist Association. It was carefully stipulated at the time, however, that "no terms of union or communion other than the Holy Scriptures should be required." CHAPTER IV. About seven or eight years previous to the change of faith by the Campbells by withdrawing from the Presbyterian Church and uniting with the Baptist Church, quite a number of the members of the Cane Ridge Presbyterian Church, becoming dissatisfied with infant baptism and sprinkling as a mode of bap- tism, determined to be immersed, and in June, 1807, going to Stoner Creek, near Paris, Ky., Barton W. Stone immersed David Purviance and Purviance immersed Barton W. Stone, William Rogers and a number of others of the same church. The Lexing- ton Synod of the Presbyterian Church, in September, 1803, called Barton W. Stone and others to appear before it. When Stone and five others became con- vinced that they and the Synod were far apart in their religious views they drew up a protest against the proceedings and a declaration of their indepen- [52] BARTON WA STONE This page in the original text is blank. dence and a withdrawal from the jurisdiction of that body. Immediately after their withdrawal from the Synod they constituted themselves into a presbytery, which they called the Springfield Presbytery. They had not, however, worn this name one year before they saw that it savored of a party spirit. With the man-made creeds they threw it overboard and took the name Christian-the name given to the Disciples by divine appointment at Antioch. "'From this per- iod," said Stone, "I date the commencement of that reformation which has progressed to this day (1843)." Soon after their withdrawal from the Synod they were joined by David Purviance, William Rogers and a number of others. Meanwhile the subject of bap- tism had begun to arrest the attention of the churches. Many became dissatisfied with their infant sprinkling. The preachers baptized one another and crowds of the private members came and were baptized also. The congregations gener- ally submitted to it and yet the pulpit was silent on the subject. This record, made after an exhaustive and thorough research of the most reliable histories of the religious belief and movements of the pioneer days of this country, indicates clearly without doubt that Barton W. Stone, David Purviance, William Rogers and their co-workers were the first pioneers to blaze the way through the religious wilderness of thought and investigation, and adopt the rules of religious belief and worship by adhering strictly to scriptural teachings as recorded in the Word of God. Seven or eight years later the Campbells, father and son, in a remote part of this large country, far away upon their lake shore habitation, came to the same religious belief and advocated the same doctrine of [53] taking the word of God as their rule and guide of Faith and Practice in religious belief and worship. Yet the Campbells, father and son, knew nothing of the movements of Stone and his co-workers in their religious investigations and conclusions they had arrived at in the frontier forests of Kentucky. In these pioneer days it was almost impossible to get communication from the distant locations. From the records investigated we find the leading ministers most noted for their ability and spirit of investiga- tions in Scriptural study were advocating changes of former interpretations and asking for alterations in the Creeds in many particulars, this naturally making a spirit of unrest in the religious world. This we find the case with all the different denomi- nations, as our record shows the Episcopalians in England in the sixteenth century brought about the King James translation of the Bible; the Presbyter- ians in the Stone and Campbell movement and other movements by which they have the Northern and Southern Presbyterians of to-day; the Methodists had a number of changes in their ritual and of later date movements that have to-day given the religious world the Northern and Southern Metho- dists; the Baptist movements, some of which have already been given in this record and more yet to be given. The Baptists who withdrew from the Union Baptists and formed the Licking Association of Par- ticular Baptists in 1809, and adopted the Philadelphia Confession of Faith as their Creed, in a few years found some of their most noted ministers and many of their churches were dissatisfied and asked for changes in the Creed. By a re-examination of their Creeds and confessions of faith and comparing it with F54] Scriptural Teachings they began to petition their Associations for more comformity of their Creeds to the Sacred Writings. The Lower Bethel or North Middletown Baptist Church was a member of the Boone's Creek Association, formed in 1823 by churches from the Elkhorn, Tate's Creek and North District Associations. At a meeting of the Boone's Creek Association at Friendship Church, in Clark County, they sent messengers composed of James Sims, Thomas M. Parrish, Nimrod L. Lindsay, Charles E. Williams and James N. Cogswell who, with messengers from five others of the Boone's Creek Association, sent up the request in a petition that the Association so amend her Constitution and Creed as to make it more compatible with the Word of God. The Association, having taken into con- sideration the request of the five or six churches for an amended constitution, after mature deliberation was decidedly of the opinion that the Word of God does not authorize or prescribe any form of Consti- tution for an Association in our present organized state, but they did believe that the Word of God authorizes the assembling of saints together for His worship. They therefore recommended to the churches the abolition of the present constitution and in lieu thereof to adopt the following resolution: "Resolved, that we, the churches of Jesus Christ, believing the scriptures of the old and new testa- ment to be the Word of God and the only rule of faith and obedience given by the Head of the Church for its government, do agree to meet annually on the third Saturday, Lord's Day and Monday in Sep- tember for the worship of God, and on such occa- sions voluntarily communicate the state of religion [55] among us by letters and messengers." The question was thus thrown back upon the churches for their consideration. In the meantime the objectional con- stitution was ordered to be printed for the benefit of the people by the Licking Association of Particular Baptists. This constitution of sixteen long para- graphs we will not include in this record. It includes the "Philadelphia Confession of Faith" and a number of other rules by which the Particular Baptist Asso- ciation and churches shall be governed. About this time, in 1825, the Northern District Baptist Associ- ation, looking upon these differences and divisions in sorrow, addressed the following words to the Bap- tist churches: "Schisms and Divisions have done much to impede our progress in Kentucky; short as the period is since the first Baptist Churches were constituted in our State, it has been marked by sev- eral divisions, each productive of widely extended distress. What is the end of these things We now have six kinds of Baptists, most all of which are numerous; they are supplied with preachers and bid fair to extend and increase in numbers." CHAPTER V. In the spring of 1824 Alexander Campbell visited Kentucky on an evangelistic tour, came down the Ohio River by boat to Maysville and then through the several counties and towns, preaching in the towns on the way to Mt. Sterling, Montgomery County, Kentucky, where he preached four sermons, then to Lower Bethel or North Middletown Baptist Church, where he preached two sermons, and then on to Paris and Georgetown. About this time and for several years afterwards, the upheaval in the [56] ALEXANDER CAMPBELL This page in the original text is blank. religious world was becoming spread over the differ- ent states. In the western Reserve of Ohio, by Scott, Bintly, Rigdon and others, "The Gospel as Taught by the Apostles" was proclaimed with so much force and power that many of all the sects obeyed it. Among these were Methodists, Presby- terians, Baptists and others. Two Universalist preachers came forward and were immersed for the remission of their sins, one of them being Brother Aylette Raines, who will be spoken of again in this record. In the spring of 1823 Alexander Campbell began the publication of a periodical in or near Beth- any, on Buffalo Creek, West Virginia, and called it the "Christian Baptist," and afterwards, in 1830, changed the name to the "Millennial Harbinger." In the year 1826, while living in Georgetown, Scott County, Ky., Barton W. Stone began to publish a periodical called the "Christian Messenger," and in two or three years John T. Johnson, who lived in Georgetown, became co-editor with Barton W. Stone, in the "Christian Messenger," which soon had a large patronage and circulation and exerted great influence in the religious world. The publication of these two religious periodicals soon caused great interest among the subscribers and readers of them, and the religious people began to investigate and study their Bibles more thoroughly and with more thought, and to compare the teachings of the two religious jour- nals to see how they conformed to the teachings of their Bibles. Upon close comparison they dis- covered that Campbell and Stone and their followers were very close together in their religious beliefs; that each advocated in their papers the New Testa- ment as their "Rule and Guide of Faith and Prac- [571 tice;" that the "Gospel as Taught by the Apostles" should be proclaimed by the ministers, and while there were some differences in the phraseology used by the editors of the two journals and two or three minor differences, the best thinking readers of the two periodicals saw at once that by getting the editors of the two periodicals together the differences were of such a nature as could be easily adjusted, being principally a matter of opinion. So a move- ment was started with that object in view, and after a correspondence between the Campbell followers and the Stone followers, extending considerably over two years, and quite a number of editorials by the two editors, it finally resulted in getting Campbell followers and Stone with many of his followers to meet in Georgetown, Ky., for four days, includ- ing Christmas Day, 1831, and then four more days in Lexington, Ky., including New Year's Day, 1832. The followers of Campbell and Stone had each organized several congregations, Stone and his followers, as has before been stated in this record, taking the name of "Christians." (See Acts, 11 chapter and 26 verse: "And the Disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." Campbell and his followers, thinking the name Christian not distinctive enough, took the name "Disciples of Christ" to distinguish them from the names of the dif- ferent denominations. This difference was soon adjust- ed in the eight days conference by both sides agree- ing to the name "Christian or Disciples of Christ." Another difference-The Disciples partook of the Lord's Supper on each Lord's Day, while the Chris- tians thought it would be more impressive it not partaken of so often. This difference was soon [58] adjusted by the Christians agreeing with the Dis- ciples to have the Lord's Supper a part of each Lord's Day worship, and while there were some other differences they were matters of opinion, and all were adjusted by a close study of scripture for eight days, each side wishing and insisting on a "Thus sayeth the Lord" for each and every rule adopted. There being a large gathering of religious people, it was agreed that on Saturday, the seventh day of this eight-day conference, a representation of each side should address the congregation in the old meeting house on Hill Street in Lexington, Ky. On this appointed day a multitude of anxious brethren at an early hour filled the old meeting house to full capacity and then many could not be accomodated. John Smith was elected to represent the Disciples and Barton W. Stone the Christians. The two speakers agreed that Smith speak first and Stone to follow. While it would make this record too long to give Smith's and Stone's sermons complete, we feel we must give extracts from both addresses to make satisfactory our record. Smith said: "God has but one people on the earth. He has given to them but one Book, and therein exhorts and commands them to be one family. A union, such as we plead for-a union of God's people on that one Book-must then be practicable. Every Christian desires to stand complete in the whole will of God. The prayer of the Saviour and the whole tenor of His teachings clearly show that it is God's will that His children should be united. To the Christian then such a union must be desirable. To agree to be one upon any system of human invention would be contrary to His will and could never be a [59] blessing to the church or world; therefore the only union practicable or desirable must be based upon the Word of God as the only rule of faith and prac- tice. While there is but one faith, there may be ten thousand opinions, and hence if Christians are ever to be one, they must be one in faith and not in opin- ion. Let us then, my brethen, be no longer Camp- bellites or Stoneites, New Lights or Old Lights, or any other kind of lights, but let us all come to the Bible and to the Bible alone as the only book in the world that can give us all the light we need." After Smith had completed his remarks, Stone arose, his heart glowing with love and every pulse bounding with hope. "I will not attempt," he said, "to introduce any new topic, but will say a few things on the same subjects already presented by my beloved brother." After speaking for some time in a strain of irresistible tenderness and love, in his inimitable way for which he was so much noted and in which he had few if any equals, he said: "I have not one objective to the ground laid down by our beloved Brother Smith as the true scriptural basis of union among the people of God; and I am willing to give him now and here my hand." He turned as he spoke and offered to Smith a hand trembling with rapture and brotherly love, and it was grasped by a hand full of the honest pledge of fellowship and the union was virtually accomplished. It was now pro- posed that all who felt willing to unite on these prin- ciples should express that willingness by giving one another the hand of fellowship. A song arose, and brethren and sisters with many tearful greetings ratified and confirmed the union. On the Lord's Day they broke the loaf together, [60] and in that sweet and solemn communion again pledged to each other their brotherly love. This union of the Christians and the Disciples was not a surrender of the one party to the other; it was an agreement of such as already recognized and loved each other as brethren to work and worship together. It was a union of those who held alike the necessity of implicit faith and unreserved obedience; who accepted the facts, commands and promises as set forth in the Bible; who conceded the right of private judgment to all; who taught that opinions were no part of the faith delivered to the saints. The eight days conference adopted the following: "The churches aforesaid are unanimous in repudi- ating human creeds and unscriptural names; believ- ing that th-e Bible is ordained of God to be the only authoritive, as it is the only infallible rule of faith and practice, and that all unscriptural names and all ecclesiastical organizations, not established by the inspired Apostles, are unlawful and in their very nature sectarian and divisive. Influenced by these views, they call themselves Christians or Disciples of Christ, and feel religiously bound to repudiate all names that are not applied in the New Testament to those "who have been baptized into Christ and have thus 'Put on Christ.'" To believe what God said and to do what He commands they regard as the sum total of human duty. For all purposes of dis- cipline and government, they regard the individual church as the highest and indeed the only ecclesias- tical organization recognized in the New Testament. As for associations, conferences, conventions, etc., presuming to act under the sanctions of a divine warrant or claiming to be a court of Jesus Christ; or 1611 to decide on any matter of conscience; or to do any act or deed interfering with or in opposition to the perfect independence of each individual congrega- tion; or at all legislating for the churches in any dis- trict of the country, they regard as altogether for- eign to the letter and spirit, to the precepts and examples of the law and to the testimony of the Christian books. One and all they profess to be engaged in persevering efforts for the union of all saints, by the restoration of unsectarian Christianity in faith and practices as it is found, pure and unpol- luted, on the pages of the New Testament. At the close of the conference the churches, before adjourn- ment, decided to appoint two evangelists to visit the churches in Central Kentucky; to hold meetings and give account of the proceedings at Georgetown and Lexington, Ky. John Smith, of Mt. Sterling, Ky., and John Rogers, of Carlisle, Ky., were selected and appointed. CHAPTER VI. The next year after the Boone Creek Association meeting at Friendship Church, in Clark County, the Boone Creek Association met at Indian Creek Church, in Clark County, and although the Boone's Creek Association had gone on record at the Friendship Church meeting, advising the six protesting churches and all the churches of the association to abolish the present constitution, the association was decidedly of the opinion that the Word of God does not authorize or prescribe any form of constitution for an associ- ation in our present organized state. "We therefore recommend to the churches the abolition of the pres- ent constitution and in lieu thereof to adopt the fol- (62] lowing resolution: Resolved: "That we, the churches of Jesus Christ, believing the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the word of God and the only rule of faith and obedience given by the Great Head of the Church for its government, do agree to meet annually on the third Saturday, Lord's Day and Monday in September for the worship of God, and on such occasions voluntarily communicate the state of religion among us by letter and messengers." The question was thus thrown back upon the churches for their consideration, and with this advice still fresh in their minds when the parent association, the Licking Association of Particular Baptists, issued their edict, in the form of a constitution of sixteen long paragraphs, including the Philadelphia Confes- sion of Faith and other rules by which the Particular Baptist Churches should be governed, so at the Indian Creek meeting the Boone Creek Association reversed herself, and ignoring the position she assumed at the Friendship Church meeting, she arraigned the six churches, Lower Bethel or North Middletown, Mt. Zion, Mt. Union, Nicholasville, Lib- erty and Friendship, for trial for petitioning the Asso- ciation for a change of constitution at the Friendship Church meeting. The six churches just named, hop- ing and believing the trial would be amicably adjusted, had their messengers present, thinking the six churches would be continued in the Association with their changed belief; but when they all came together it was evident the spirit of complete obedi- ence to the constitution of sixteen long paragraphs, embodying the Philadelphia Confession of Faith and the additions to the former Creed, was the test of membership in the Association, and the proscriptive [633 temper of the rulers of the Association were so evi- dent that some saw no hope of a reconciliation and returned home Saturday in despair. The question was soon raised as to the course that should be pur- sued towards the six churches that had expressed dissatisfaction with the constitution and thus virtu- ally the faith. A proposition to drop them from cor- respondence excited turbulent debate, in the course of which a certain preacher maintained "that all those churches had been led astray by one man, whose bad zeal and false teaching had corrupted many others also." He set forth some of the ruin- ous doctrines which he said John Smith had been preaching to the people of North Middletown and other communities until he had thrown the whole country into a blaze of excitement and desolated many of the churches of God. On Monday, after William Morton and others had withdrawn from the meeting of the Association in disgust and despair, Smith continued in the meet- ing and asked "for the privilege of answering the charges that he had been preaching false doctrine to the people of North Middletown and other commun- ities." But he was vociferously ordered to take his seat. The Moderator said to him: "Brother Smith, I know you are too much of a Christian and gentle- man to speak where brethren do not wish to hear you." "But what sort of religion or courtesy is it," Smith replied, "that falsely accuses a brother then rudely denies him the privilege of speech." "Put him down," many voices cried at once. The Moder- ator remonstrated, "Brother Smith, you see that the brethren do not wish to hear you." "Will you not allow me," said Smith, "to even give a reason why I f64] ought to be heard." "Certainly, you may do that if you will be brief." "Well, then, said Smith, "instead of the doctrine which the brother on Saturday so injustly imputed to us, we teach that Christ tasted death for every man, and after his resurrection from the dead He commanded the Good News to be pro- claimed among all nations and to every creature, with the promise that those who would believe and be baptised should be saved. Now if the people will not believe God's Word as thus declared, neither should they believe though He should speak to them directly by His Holy Spirit. This we believe and teach, and if it is not Good News of the Kingdom I would be glad if the brother would tell me what the Gospel is." "Brother Smith," said the Moderator, "you will now take your seat;" "Brethren," said Smith, if you are determined not to hear me I will submit." The proposition to drop the six anti-creed churches from the Association prevailed. Thus did the Calvinists of the Boone Creek Association rid themselves of the Reformers. The messengers of the six destitute churches, upon returning and ren- dering their report, to their congregations of the pro- ceedings of the Association and the action adopted in regard to the six protesting churches, several of the six destitute churches took action. The Lower Bethel or North Middletown Church, in their deliber- ations adopted a resolution that they would take the name of Reform Baptists, and were willing to affiliate with the Association provided they were admitted with their adopted rules of faith and not required to take the constitution of sixteen long paragraphs, including the Philadelphia Confession of Faith, for their Creed, that the Boone Creek Association at the [65] meeting at Friendship Church the year before had advised all the churches to abolish entirely. If the Lower Bethel or North Middletown Church was ever represented in an Association meeting afterwards we fail to find any record of it in any of the old records we have examined, and we have gone through them very thoroughly, yet that church met regularly and worshipped according to the dictates of their belief under the rules they had adopted. CHAPTER VII. North Middletown is situated in the eastern part of Bourbon County near the Montgomery County line, on the turnpike running from Paris to Mt. Sterling, ten miles from the former and twelve miles from the latter. The first settlers of the vicinity and town came from the fort at Boonesboro and other forts nearby when the Indians had partially ceased from their numerous raids and the people in the forts thought it safe to establish homes outside the forts. The original name of the town was Swinney- town in honor of a prominent early settler of the neighborhood. The name was changed to Middle- town in consequence of its situation between the four county seats, Paris, Winchester, Mt. Sterling and Carlisle, being something like the central point and not much difference in the distance from each; and afterwards the name was changed to North Mid- dletown to distinguish it from Middletown in Jeffer- son County, Kentucky. We have not the exact date of its settlement, but it was about the time of the peace treaty between England and the United States in 1783. The first house built in North Middletown was by William Adair, who kept a tavern in it at an [66] early day. The first store was kept by James Cogs- well. North Middletown has become quite a turnpike center, eleven turnpikes leading into it. It was incorporated as a town in 1818 with the name it now has. The population is five hundred or more. The first church built in the town, by one record is given the year 1823, while other older records, and we think more dependable, give it as built several years later. It was a union church built and used by the Methodists, Presbyterians, Separate Baptists, and New Lights. It was torn down in 1879 and the school district built a brick school house on the lot. The house a few years ago was sold by the school district, converted into and occupied as a dwelling house. The Lower Bethel or North Middletown Baptist Church congregation continued to worship in the old log church several years after they had taken the name of Reformed Baptist and withdrawn from the Boone Creek Association. Elder John Smith was their minister, having charge also of the Somerset, Bethlehem and Sharpsburg Churches. These churches had also taken the name of Reformed Baptist. The Somerset Church was organized by more than one hundred of the members of the Grassy Lick Church taking their letters from the Grassy Lick Church and organizing the Somerset Church on a richly wooded hill that overlooked Somerset Creek, two miles east of Grassy Lick and six miles north of Mt. Sterling, where they built a church in two or three years. In 1831 they discarded the name of Baptist and adopted the name of Disciples, but with that they appointed messengers to the Boone's Creek Association, but as Disciples. That same fallseveral [67] of the six anti-creed churches met at Somerset Church, and after a conference agreed to meet at Sharpsburg in 1832 for another conference, and at that meeting Somerset, Sharpsburg and Bethlehem agreed to adopt the rules that were promulgated at the Georgetown-Lexington meeting and become Christian or Disciples. The following year Elder John Smith, one of the evangelists appointed by the Georgetown-Lexington conference, held a meeting at Lower Bethel or North Middletown Church, in the log church, in October, after the frost and fall freezes had destroyed the germs of the Asiatic chol- era which had been such a plague over this part of the State, quite a number dying in North Middle- town and vicinity and a great many in Paris and other parts of the county. The evangelist preaching of the new doctrine at once caught the ears of the people and they flocked to hear him. His arguments were simple but earnestly enforced. He taught that first, "The Union of Christians is necessary to the conversion of the world." Second, "There is but one faith but many opinions." Third, "A union based on opinions is therefore impossible." Fourth, "The object of Christian faith is not dogmas but a person, and that Jesus Christ." Fifth, "Christians therefore holding different opinions but having faith in Christ and loyalty to him ought to come together in one body, of which He is the only Head." He exhorted the people, while they retained their opinions in free- dom and love, to give up their human creeds as bonds of union and to lay aside their party names, take the Bible as their only creed and Christian or Disciple as their only name. The best thinkers and leaders in the Bethel Church and in the community [68] were delighted. Tired of controversial theology, which no longer interested or benefitted them, they were captivated with the idea of seeing all Christians united and working together in a common faith, in mutual love, and in perfect freedom of opinion. The question at last began to assume a practical form. Citizens who had stood aloof from all the churches on account of their disputations, now learning that they would be accepted as Christians without regard to doubtful disputations, began zealously to advo- cate the cause of the union, and to discuss with ser- iousness the measure suggested by the members of the church board "that the congregation be called together in a business meeting and that the church as a body should, by a simple resolution, adopt as the ground of union the Bible as their only Creed and Christian as their only name." Finally it was agreed to offer such a resolution on the following Sunday. The business meeting of the Bethel Church on that Sunday morning, with practically every member present, was an eventful day in the history of Bethel, as the church had been called from it's earliest organization by the citizens of the neigh- borhood. The subject had been thoroughly consid- ered and the members were fully prepared therefore to drop the old creed and relinquish the old name. On that Sunday the question of the adoption of the resolution was submitted to the congregation and all but two or three voted for the change. These two or three immediately called for letters of dismission, which were granted with prayer and in a spirit of brotherly love. The church agreed, also, as the Scriptures alone were to be henceforth the only rule and guide of their faith and practice, that they [69] would all come together every Sunday with Bible in hand and study its teachings as Disciples in the school of Christ. The church also agreed to accept the proceedings of the Georgetown-Lexington meet- ing, as they were in full accord with the teachings of the New Testament Scriptures. "The creed of the church as a body is the comprehensive one con- fessed by Peter, and which was revealed to him by the Father and which Jesus declared to be the rock on which he would build His Church; that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. The sincere profession of faith as expressed in that statement and obedience to His authority is all that we may require of any man in order to membership in the Church of Christ." The evangelist, Smith, was not with them on the Sunday the vote of the church was taken, previous engagements having called him else- where. On the following Saturday he returned to North Middletown. On this second visit, in the even- ing, a number of the leading members of the church called to see him and he held with them a consultation concerning the measures now proper for them to adopt as a congregation of Disciples. He suggested that the congregation select at least two elders or bishops and at least the same number of deacons. "Brother Smith," said one zealous member, "ought we not call a preacher too, to have some one to take charge of our church, to occupy the pulpit on Sun- days and expound the Scriptures" "By all means. I have just suggested that the congregation select two or more elders to take the oversight of the church and teach on Sunday, to expound the word acceptably and profitably to the church. But whether they stand in a pulpit or on the floor must 1701 be left to their taste." "Brethren," continued the evangelist, "if the congregation will to-morrow approve my suggestions, you will soon be in good working order." The church was crowded the next day and the plea for the union of Christians was again presented by the evangelist. At the conclusion, a young lady arose and walked forward with composure and was received by the evangelist, with much cordiality. This young lady was the first to join and make the confession in the Christian Church at North Middle- town, the evangelist taking the confession as follows: "Do you, my daughter, believe with all your heart, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God" "I do," she said with much emphasis. "And are you willing to obey him as your Lord" "I am," she replied. After taking the young lady's confession the evangelist made another appeal. "We ask no one," continued he, "to give up his private opinions, but we do plead with all believers not to suffer those opinions to divide or to distress either church or fam- ily. Come then and stand with this young lady on the same ground of faith in Christ and obedience to his commandments." And the father and mother of the young lady, unable to resist this appeal, pre- sented themselves with much composure. Both were members of denominational churches, one strongly Calvanistic, the other zealously Arminian. Others followed until about a score of members of different churches came forward on the terms proposed and asked to be enrolled as members of what they regarded as an undenominational church. The con- gregation then selected two of its members Elders and two Deacons. It was then announced that the bap- r 71] tism of all that desired it would take place that after- noon. At the evening service several other influen- tial citizens followed the example of those who came forward at the morning service and united with the church, and another memorable day closed. On the following Sunday the church was again crowded, for many were curious to see how a con- gregation would conduct its worship without the aid of a preacher. The two Elders presided in chairs on the floor in front of the pulpit, one on either side of the communion table. After two songs one of the Elders read a practical portion of the Scriptures and the other offered the simple prayer of the morning. The memorial supper was then attended to, of which all Christians present were at liberty to partake. It was understood that it was the Lord's table, spread in memory of Him for His Disciples, whose commun- ion was with Him and not with others. It was accordingly observed with silent meditation, undis- turbed by distracting little sermons at the table. The Deacons collected from each his free-will offer- ing. The Elders in charge then opened the Bible while the Disciples, with Bible in hand, attentively listened to the lesson for the day to be read and then expounded in a conversational manner, any, whether brethren or sisters, asking questions which the Elders, or some one designated by them, endeavored to answer. An hour was thus pleasantly and profitably spent in this social study of the Word. Another les- son was assigned for the following Sunday and a cheerful song of fellowship closed the exercises with a prayer of dismissal to their homes. Such was the order of worship observed every Sunday, and this continued for many years with great satisfaction and [721 profit to the church. We find in the report of one of the oldest and most reliable records of that bus- iness meeting of the Bethel congregation "that they dropped the name of Bethel Reformed Baptist and adopted the name of Christian Church at North Middletown and with more than one hundred and fifty members uniting in this move." Thus was founded the North Middletown Christian Church in October, 1833. This was an eventful year for our community and county. CHAPTER VIII. The Asiatic Cholera plague passed over the county and Blue Grass section during the summer months, causing many deaths in and around North Middletown. In Paris, with twelve hundred people, there were sixty deaths, and in every part of the county were many deaths. In the early fall, after the frost and freezes had destroyed the germ of that terrible death-dealing disease, came the change of the religious faith of a congregation of more than one hundred and fifty members, abandoning the name they had worn for about a half century and taking a new one. Then another unusual event transpired on November 12, the startling spectacle of the meteoric storm. The shower lasted about ten hours, from 11 P. M. to 9 A. M. No such phenomenon had been witnessed since November 13, 1799, and then not so pronounced nor continuing for nearly so long a period. While astronomers claim these showers come about three times in a century, yet history gives no account of so unusual a shower as that of November 12, 1833, spoken of to this day as "the fall- ing of the stars in 1833." [73 1 The congregation worshiping in the old log church, formerly known as Bethel, had just begun under the new order adopted when the ladies of the congregation, by the consent of the members, had a regular house-cleaning of the old log building and had some necessary repairs and improvements made outside and inside. In the meantime some of the most thoughtful and influential leaders of the mem- bers came to the conclusion and advocated that, as there were several of the members of the Bethel Baptist Church who did not go into the new organ- ization, and the land upon which the church stood was donated for a Baptist Church, and the building was erected by the Baptists and for a Baptist con- gregation, and whilst many of them helped in the work, they, by some considered, had forfeited their rights in the buildings and grounds by changing their faith and belief and taking a new name. So they suggested, and thought it would be more satis- factory to all parties, to secure some other building in which to meet and worship. The congregation approving of this motion, a committee was appointed to secure another building in which to meet and wor- ship. A deal was made with a majority of the own- ers of the Union Church, that has been referred to before in this record, by which the Christian Church became the owner of more than half of the building and began their meetings and worship in that build- ing. In a short while after this move the Bethel Church building was neglected, their being too few to keep up the organization, the old building soon going into decay and long ago disappeared. The acre of land donated by John Black is only occupied [74] by the graves of many of the former members inclosed by a rough stone wall. Of the five or six who organized the Lower Bethel, or North Middletown Baptist Church, Enoch Mason developed into a Baptist preacher and preached for this church until his death, in 1824, and with his wife and daughter is buried in the Bethel Church yard; James Sims, in whose house they first wor- shipped, moved to Jefferson County, Ky., before this change of faith and belief. He also took part in the public worship. John Rash, who also spoke in pub- lic meetings, went with the congregation into the new movement and was the first Elder selected, and with Dr. A. Adams were the first two Elders of the North Middletown Christian Church. The first two deacons were Nimrod L. Lindsey and James Cogs- well. Of John Black and John Campbell, of the five or six who organized the Bethel Church, we find no further record. John Campbell, if living, must have gone with the new movement, for his family were among the membership when the congregation made their change of faith and belief and adopted the new name, and three of his descendants have filled the office of Elder. John A. Trimble and John T. Col- lins were very efficient Elders for a number of years, and were in the eldership at the time of their death, and John William Jones has been an Elder for a number of years and to-day is the congregation's most efficient Elder. A number of Campbell's descendants have filled the office of Deacon, three of the Deacons of the present board being his descend- ants, and about a score of the membership of the church to-day being his descendants. 175 1 CHAPTER IX. The Christian Church prospered from the begin- ning in her new quarters in the Union building and increased with great celerity in membership, and in a short time they began to be so crowded in their quarters that they saw that they would soon have to get a more commodious room to accommodate, not only their audience, but the members. They had a conference, and in their wisdom decided to have a protracted meeting and then consider the building of a new church. With Elder Smith's advice, they secured the ser- vices of John T. Johnson, of Georgetown, Ky., a con- temporary of Alexander Campbell and Barton W. Stone, in this great movement, and in the year of 1838 he conducted a protracted meeting in the Union Church that resulted in one hundred and eighty-four additions. The weather was extremely cold and the ice, nearly a foot thick, had to be cut on Stoner Creek to baptize the converts. The meeting was such a phenomenal success that the subject of building a new house of worship was considered. A building committee was appointed to raise the amount neces- sary and select a location for a new church building. The soliciting committee met with good success and soon had subscriptions, in pledges of funds, hauling and labor, to justify starting the new church building. A two-acre lot in the town limits was purchased of John Thomas and Silas Hedges, very conveniently located and well suited for a church building, with an extraordinary fine building site on a high ridge overlooking the town and easy of access. The build- ing committee began without delay to make arrange- ments to have erected a church building of suitable [76] C) H X2 C) z C) 2 n H C H 0 ;a 2 2 This page in the original text is blank. dimensions to accommodate the demands of the community, and decided on a building forty-two by sixty-five feet, and it required such a building, the church book showing a membership of more than three hundred. As soon as the committee reported plans were made for the building, and by early spring the foundation was completed and the new building started. To say it was a stupendous undertaking is not overestimating the job; no turnpikes nor motor trucks in those days; the lumber to be hauled by wagon, and mostly ox wagons, over dirt and mud roads from the mountains, it taking several days to make one trip. But those hardy pioneers were used to such hard work and the word discouraging was unknown to them. By continuous perseverance they had the building completed and ready for occu- pation in the spring of 1840. The best evidence we could find of the date when the new church was completed is the deeds among the records of the County Clerk's office in Paris. We find that James M. Cogswell, on May 15, 1837, sold and deeded to William and Andrew Scott, 206 acres, 2 roods and 17 poles of land, situated on Indian Creek and on the south side of and taking in a part of North Middletown and in the metes and bounds one line runs along the line of the meeting house lot. On October 1, 1840, William Scott sold and deeded to John Thomas and Silas Hedges 12 acres and 35 poles of land for 100 per acre, situated on the south side and taking in a part of North Middletown; included in the same is the New Christian Meeting House. And on January 15, 1842, John Thomas and Silas Hedges had sold and now deeded to the Trustees of the New Christian Meeting House (John Rash, Wil- (77) liam I. Mason, Harvey Kerr, Samuel Black and Elias Darnall) 2 acres of land for 300. Deeded forever, free of all claims, upon which parcel of land stands the newly built Christian Meeting House. When this building was razed in 1919 it was in about as good a state of preservation as when first completed, and the workmanship and material indi- cated the very best of each. In the meantime one of the Elders, Brother John Rash, had moved to Nicholas County, Ky., and the great increase in mem- bership caused the congregation to select other offi- cers to serve them. For Elders, they named Bro. N. M. Lindsey and William I. Mason; Dr. Adams being an Elder by a former selection of officers. For Deacons, James Cogswell, Dr. C. E. Williams and Elias Darnall were selected. Brother John Smith preached once a month from 1839 to 1842, and the Elders conducted the services the other three Sun- days in each month, according to a rule heretofore spoken of in this record. The Methodist Church that owned an interest in the Union Church and worshipped in it, in 1848 completed a new frame building on Main Street, near the centre of the town, and occupied it in the services, leaving the old Union Church building without any organization to occupy it. The Methodist Church of 1848 was destroyed by fire with several other buildings, on the night of March 31, 1903. What became of the old Union Church building has already been stated in this record. The Methodists, not being very strong in numbers from deaths and removals, decided not to rebuild, and in a few years most of its members joined the Christian Church. The Baptists and Presbyterians had many years before disbanded in [78] JOHN W. JONES, SR. An Elder of North Midletown Christin Church For More Than 40 Yena This page in the original text is blank. this community, this move leaving only the Christian Church in the town or within a radius of five miles. After the Christian Church congregation was established in their new building in 1840, they com- menced a second protracted meeting, John T. John- son (see Memoirs of John T. Johnson by John Rogers) conducting the services, this meeting resulting in more than sixty additions. In 1843 Bro. Aylette Raines was called to preach once a month for the church. Bro. Raines was one of the two Universalist ministers spoken of in another part of this record, that joined the new movement under the preaching of Bro. Walter Scott and others in the big Ohio revival of 1828. Bro. Raines preached for the congregation once a month for twenty-two consecutive years, from 1843 to 1865, and one year in 1868. After the afore-mentioned revival the congrega- tion again selected more officers. Brothers Robert McMillen, William Settles and Daniel Talbott were selected for Deacons and Brothers John W. Jones, Sr., and Frank W. Houston were selected for Elders. For twenty years or more the worship and business of the congregation continued on in the even tenor of her way without a ripple or jar. With the "unity of peace in the bonds of brotherly love" having preaching once a month, by the members designated as preaching Sunday; and the Sundays when the meetings were conducted by the Elders, social meet- ings in conformity to the rule adopted by the con- gregation at the organization, by resolution, at the time of entering into the new movement in the old log building in October 1833. Traditional history, that is authentic, tells us that as many attended the [79] social meetings as preaching Sunday, and at every meeting the house was full. The church prospered greatly under this order of worship in a most sub- stantial way. During this period the congregation had a number of protracted meetings. Brothers Benjamin Franklin, Moses E. Lard, John W. McGar- vey, L. H. Reynolds and Dr. W. H. Hopson and per- haps others, holding meetings. During the Civil War (1861-1865) a small dis- affection developed, caused, no doubt, by the exciting times and unsettled condition of the whole nation, the first and only trouble the congregation has ever had since its organization, and this was adjusted by the wise and conservative counsel of the best think- ing members and in the way all such church disturb- ances should be settled-by the Bible. The next period of the church's history, from 1867 to 1892, about twenty-five years, were the most successful in the life of the congregation; the attendance and wor- ship was the largest. Practically all the members felt that the church work and worship was a part of each one's life duty; each was willing at all times to do all they could for the welfare of the church and felt that it was their Christian duty to be in attend- ance on Sunday and at prayer meeting when pos- sible. Nearly all the members had a small copy of the New Testament in their pockets, and when visit- ing each other in their fireside talks it was religion, and any difference of opinion was tested by the Book. Their pocket testaments and its teachings was to them thought more of than their pocketbooks -in those days the church member felt a divine obligation to be an active Christian. The Board of Officers felt they had a great obligation placed on [80] them and were the peers of any church board in the land. The Eldership especially had the good and future of the church at heart, and were as solicitious for the future welfare of the congregation as though it was a part of their individual business or a part of their family. The Elder, who was chairman of the board and served for about forty years, when on his last bed of sickness, in the latter part of this period of the church, said to one of this committee: "It gives me great contentment to know the church will be in good hands." During the most of this period of the church the same plan was kept up of a min- ister for one Sunday of the month and social meet- ings for the other Sundays. The ministers who preached during this period were Bro. Henshall in 1866, Bro. Wilmot 1867, Bro. Raines 1868, Bro. Rick- ets 1869, Bro. M. E. Lard 1870-1871, Bro. R. M. Gano 1872, Bro. M. E. Lard 1873-1876, Bro. Robert Graham 1877-1882, Bro. Tom Arnold 1883-1884, Bro. J. Will McGarvey 1885-1886, Bro. C. M. Arnold 1887, Bro. L. H. Reynolds 1888-1891. During this period the congregation selected additional Elders and Dea- cons at several different times. In 1867 or 1868 Bros. John F. Talbott and T. J. Patterson were selected for Elders, and Bros. Lunceford Talbott, Sr., James Moore, Samuel Dobyns, John A. Trimble and William Trimble for Deacons. In 1875 or 1876 another selection of officers; for Elders-Bros. Thomas J. Evans and John A. Trimble; for Deacons -Bros. Dr. B. E. Bean, J. S. Berry, George Redmon, R. M. Rice and Thomas Helm Clay. About 1883 another selection; for Elder-Bro. H. C. Smith, for Deacons-Bros. William Collins, W. S. Jones, J. W. Young, Sr., Lunceford Talbott, Jr., Charles H. Rice r811 and Dr. R. D. Weaver. During this period pro- tracted meetings were conducted by Bros. Moses E. Lard, John Shouse, John S. Sweeney, John W. McGarvey, Dr. W. H. Hopson, W. S. Keene, John T. Hawkins, Joe Frank, G. W. Yancey, P. H. McDuffey, T. J. Crenshaw and perhaps others. Bros. Lard, Sweeney, McGarvey, Dr. Hopson and Keene con- ducted more than one protracted meeting. The third period, which brings us to the present date, has been continued about thirty years, since 1892. The congregation in that year decided to employ a minister for his entire time, and that auto- matically annulled the social meetings and gave the minister full control of the church. During this period the congregation selected at several different times for Elders-Bros. W. S Jones, J. W. Young, Sr., R. M. Rice, Ed. Rice, John T. Collins, John W. Jones, Jr., Dr. L. R. Henry, H. S. Caywood, James 0. Evans and James C. Bryan, Jr.; for Deacons-J. J. Redmon, John S. Talbott, C. H. Meng, John T. Col- lins (afterwards in the eldership), Jacob Everman, Ben Mark, William McCray, James C. Bryan, Sr., George Roberts, W. A. Thomason, B. F. Sledd, H. S. Caywood (afterwards in the eldership), A. S. Trimble, William Hagan, Clay Thomas, L. D. Mitchell, W. S. Meng, Thomas J. Jones, James 0. Evans (afterwards in the eldership), Robert G. Jones, R. Graham Young, J. W. Young, Jr., Yancey Laughlin, William Redmon, Logan Bryan, Dr. G. A. Cook, Frank Sledd, W. R. Tuttle, Tilden See and Magnus Rash. Under this system the congregation has employed Bros. W. S. Willis 1892-1895, W. T. Donaldson 1896-1898, Rob- ert Elder, 1899 (his health gave out and he gave up the charge); C. W. Dick 1900-1908, J. W. Ligon [82] MO This page in the original text is blank. 1909-1912, John Christopherson 1913-1916; F. M. Tin- der, the present minister, came October 1, 1917-23. During this period the following ministers conducted protracted meetings; Bros. F. M. Tinder (two), Victor Doris, I. J. Spencer, Mark Collis, George Gowen, Hugh McClellan, W. E. Ellis, John Christopherson, E. H. Koch, C. W. Cauble and H. H. Webb, Wm. E. Sweeney, each one. CHAPTER X. In 1911. through the influence of Brother Ligon, the minister, the subject of building a new church was considered and the congregation decided to build. As stated in this record the church building of 1840 was in a good state of preservation and could have been used for worship for a number of years, but the congregation had outgrown the capac- ity of the building, the membership being more than four hundred; the Sunday School about two hun- dred. The building of 1840 had but one room, mak- ing it very inconvenient for Sunday School work, and this committee looked upon the Sunday School as the gateway into the church. "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it."-Prov. XXII.-6. After the movement to build had been adopted a soliciting committee was appointed to visit the members and friends of the movement to canvass for funds to build a new church building. The committee was very successful in its efforts. After their report a building committee was appointed and the plans and specifications for a new building adopted, the contract let and ground broken for the foundation of the new building in the spring of 1912. The work progressed rapidly and the new building was com- 1 831 pleted and ready for dedication and occupation by the early fall of 1913. Bro. W. E. Ellis, of Paris, preached the dedication sermon on October 19. The building was dedicated free of debt, an unusual rec- ord for a church building costing as much as it did. The building has a seating capacity, including audi- torium and gallery, of six hundred; a Sunday School assembly room of three hundred; ten Sunday School recitation rooms, included in this number, the ladies' parlor or C. W. B. M. room, and the pastor's study, used for recitation rooms; choir loft, pipe organ, baptistry, dressing rooms for ladies and men, kitchen and all the modem improvements that any up-to-date church building has. We will not say one word about the faithful work of the building committee, the new church building with its equipment speaks for them. William K. Hagan, an officer of the church, was architect and builder; building com- mitte-H. C. Smith, Chairman; John T. Collins, Sec- retary; John S. Talbott, Dr. L. R. Henry, John J. Redmon, and John W. Jones, Treasurer. While it is not the purpose of this committee to mention the contribution of any, for all contributed generously, we feel the contribution of Bro. John T. Hinton, of Paris, Ky., (since passed to his reward), should be spoken of-the attractive stand upon the pulpit for the Bible, three handsome upholstered chairs of the pulpit, the beautiful com- munion table with the chairs on each side of it. The present Board of Officers-Elders: Bros. W. S. Jones, J. W. Young, Sr., H. C. Smith, John Willie Jones, H. S. Caywood, Dr. L. R. Henry, Jas. 0. Evans, Jas. Carrol Bryan, Jr.; Deacons: J. J. Red- mon, John S. Talbott, Jas. C. Bryan, Sr., William (84] BUILDING COMMITTEE This page in the original text is blank. McCray, W. A. Thomason, B. F. Sledd, A. S. Trimble, Clay Thomas, W. S. Meng, T. J. Jones, J. W. Young, Jr., Robert G. Jones, R. Graham Young, Yancey Laughlin, Logan Bryan, W. R. Tuttle, Tilden See, Frank Sledd, Dr. G. A. Cook, Magnus Rash and Wil- liam Redmon. While our congregation has not only held its numerical strength but increased its member- ship every year, we have lost many members by removals to other towns and cities. We have sup- plied quite a number to the Paris Church and from the number several have been selected to the board of officers; to churches in Lexington quite a number, also to the churches at Winchester and Mt Sterling and other towns, and each of those churches gives our former members good names and say they meas- ure up well with the best of their members. The church has furnished a number of ministers from its members, that have made good as ministers, pas- tors and evangelists. When the United States Government entered the World War on April 6, 1917, almost the entire membership of the young men of the church that were physically able entered the service. Of the Young Men's Bible Class there were twenty-four members and twenty-one entered the service, three being physically disqualified. Of the twenty-one who entered the service eighty per cent were pro- moted to officers and ninety per cent of those who became officers were promoted to commissioned officers, one to field officer. The Church endorsed the young members in undertaking such hazardous service for the sake of civilization and christianity and to protect the world against despotism and to have a free government in the whole world. And a token r 85] of that great spirit was approved by placing in the front lobby a bronze tablet, given by Bro. H. S. Cay- wood, with the name of every member of the church that was in the service on it; and the Housekeeper's Class had placed in their class room a bronze tablet with the name of every War Mother in the church on it. Since the occupation of the new building the growth of the Sunday School has been phenomenal, all the recitation rooms occupied and the Men's Class occupying the auditorium. The enrollment at this date is about four hundred, and the attendance is regular and usually well up to the enrollment. We will not mention the good works and great charities of the "Ladies' Housekeeper Class" and "Everyman's Bible Class" and the Sunday School as a whole, for why See Matt. VI.-3. Since this record was started, or rather after it became known that the Board of Officers had appointed a committee to write a short history of the North Middletown Christian Church and religious matters from the first settlements of the State, County and Precinct, for the benefit of the present members of the congregation, there have been quite a number of requests by persons from a distance, former members of this congregation, for a copy, and the committee has received several communications from persons that have never been to the town, expressing the wish for a copy and giving as the reason that they wished to read the history of a church that has so conducted her religious worship and affairs that she occupies the unique position of being the only church in a town of six hundred peo- ple or in a radius of five miles, in an unusually fine (86] and fertile part of a thickly settled community in the Blue Grass region of Kentucky, with a dozen good turnpike roads leading inte the town from every direction. Perhaps the opinion of others as to what kind of religion the nation and world should have, might give some light to these last requests if they get this record and take time to read it. After giving the expressions of others the committee will try to give the reason from their standpoint. In 1914, the year after the new church was com- pleted, Bro. S. S. Lappin, of Bedford, Indiana, at that time the Editor, or on the editorial staff of the Chris- tian Standard, of Cincinnati, Ohio, delivered an address in the new church, and before the services one of the young officers of the church introduced Bro. Lappin to one of this committee and stated that this brother can give you the information you wish. Bro. Lappin and this member took their seats on one of the front pews and he said "I want you to give me as much of the history of this congregation as we have time for before the services begin." We gave him the information as follows: "Bro. Aylette Raines had been minister for twenty-two years; Bro. Moses E. Lard for six years; Bro. Robert Gra- ham for seven years, and the congregation and the community had the benefit of protracted meetings conducted by John T. Johnson, Benjamin Franklin, Moses E. Lard, Dr. W. H. Hopson, John W. McGar- vey and John S. Sweeney. At this point Bro. Lap- pin, with a hearty laugh, remarked "no wonder you have such a fine congregation here and full posses- sion of the country around." Another we will give, this statement of a lady in the far west, born and [871 lived in the North Middletown vicinity until near middle age, an active member of the church, one of the leaders of the singing. She was visited in her far western city home by the Christian minister of that city, Bro. Frank Talmage, a man of middle age or more. In the conversation he asked her who were the ministers of the North Middletown Christian Church when she was a member, and when she answered that Bro. Moses E. Lard preached for the church for six or seven years, and Bro. Robert Gra- ham about the same length of time, and that Bro. Lard, Dr. W. H. Hopson, Bro. John Shouse, John W. McGarvey, and Bro. John S. Sweeney had conducted protracted meetings in that time, Bro. Talmage exclaimed, "My dear sister, your opportunities have been a rich heritage." The committee believes the system of the officers and members practiced more than fifty years ago, recorded in another part of this history, is the main reason the North Middletown Church to-day occupies the unparallelled position of being the only church in the town or anywhere near in the country around. We think our position is strengthened by this excerpt from an editorial in the Manufacturer's Record, of Baltimore, Md.: "The supreme need of America to-day is the revival of the old fashioned prayer meeting type of religion;" and that from a secular paper, not a religious journal, that can see how little influence the churches exert with the brand of religion that is being practiced in these troublesome times. In the Wall Street Journal, of New York City, representing the street where Mammon is wor- shipped as the only God, in an editorial we find this expression, "The only hope of the world to-day is [88] Christianity." And Lloyd George, the only premier of England that was the peer of Wm. E. Gladstone, in one of his last speeches in the English Parliament, in speaking of the spirit of unrest in Europe since the World War, vehemently declared, "It is Christian- ity or chaos." Bro. John Smith, one of the greatest preachers of his day, the first part of the last cen- tury, frequently spoken of in this record, speaking of the future of the church, said: "You will have one thing to guard against; there will be preachers, by giving them full control, will so hypnotize many of the members of the congregation, that they will con- tend the teachings of their minister are superior to the Precepts of the Christ." CHAPTER XI. The North Middletown community is an educated people. Coeval with the first settlers, and before the establishing of the first church, a school was opened in a log building, east of the town, by James Brown, who was the teacher for a number of years. He and family lived in the town, and he died there and is buried in the cemetery adjacent to the Chris- tian Church yard. He had a grandson who became governor of the State. At an early period there were two seminaries in the town and both with good attendance. In the course of time a very handsome college building was erected and Patterson Institute, a college for young ladies, was established and had an extraordinary attendance from the beginning. After many years the President, T. J. Patterson, sold out and became President of Hamilton Female College, in Lexington, Ky. The grounds and build- ings were purchased by a stock company of the r89] neighborhood and the name changed to Kentucky Classical and Business College, a school for young men, young ladies, boys and girls, and President E. V. Zollars, a noted educator, with a well qualified faculty, were engaged to take charge. This college continued a number of years and was a success from the beginning, until the building was destroyed by fire. In a short time, only a year or so, the people of the town and neighborhood realized the need of a good school and formed another stock company, organized and selected a board of trustees, the con- tract for a new college building entered into and by the next school year a new college building was completed and the college again started under the management of Prof. T. C. Curran and a corps of qualified assistants. After continuing this school a number of years, there were so many colleges in the neighboring towns started up that the stockholders in a meeting decided it was best for the young gen- eration of the precinct to organize a graded school district, so donated the grounds and buildings to the North Middletown Graded School district, and now every girl and boy in the precinct can go through the grades and high school course without cost and have a good useful education, and if any desire a higher education are prepared to enter college or university. Our readers can see, even from this abbreviated statement, the great interest the com- munity has always taken from the earliest days to have educated inhabitants, and we wish to impress upon our readers that from the beginning up to this date the wisest, best thinkers of the neighborhood see to it that we have Christian men and women for instructors, who educate the heart as they do the [90] mind. Perhaps that is why there is such unanimity in religious beliefs. The committee, after a thorough and painstaking investigation of a number of the oldest and most reliable histories of the pioneer times that could be found, is firmly convinced that it has made an accu- rate and reliable record of the progress and growth of the religious movements in the wilderness of Ken- tucky for one hundred and forty years; about one hundred and thirty-three years in the North Middle- town precinct, and more than three hundred years from the first establishment of religious worship in Virginia, when the State of Kentucky was a part of Fincastle County, Virginia. As preliminary to the work we made a short outline history of the wilder- ness, from the earliest visits of the pioneers up to the time when the lines and boundaries were established of the wilderness and up to the date when the Ken- tucky territory was admitted into the union of states. This we did for reasons that have already been given in this record, believing it will make a lasting impres- sion upon the minds of the readers for whom this was written; of the rich lands and fine climate and also of the great struggle and sacrifice to give this home to the present occupants. Another paragraph we will add. The Blue Grass section of Kentucky is the only soil that produces both the blue grass seed, a very remunerative crop, and the Burley tobacco, which many claim the great- est money making crop that is grown. r91

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