Before the present Baptist Church at Mt. Sterling was organized, there was constituted in 1798 a church which united with South Elkhorn Assn. in 1798 and reported 39 members. Elder David Barrow who had just arrived in Ky. from Va. became pastor in 1798. (See Lulgebrud Church.) It remained in South Elkhorn Assn. until 1804, where it united with North District Assn., reporting 61 members, messengers being Elder David Barrow, Jacob Coons and Wm. Smith.
Owing to his views on the slavery question, Elder David Barrow was expelled from North District Asn. in 1806, and at the same time the Assn. appointed a committee to deal with Bro. Barrow in the church at Mt. Sterling of which he was a member. But at the next annual session of the Assn. in 1807, that body reversed its action against Bro. Darrow, no doubt regretting that she had acted so rashly the previous year.
Though Mt. Sterling Church had not reported to the North District Assn. either by letter or messengers, since 1806, yet we find in the records of that Assn. for 1808 the following entry: "The Association withdraws from the church at Mt. Sterling for denying to the members of the churches which compose the Assn. the privilege to commsurate with said church the death of our lord."
After the unwise expulsion of Bro. Darrow from the North Dist. Assn., Mt. Sterling followed Bro. Darrow into a fraternity of emancipationists, remaining with that body until the death of Elder Barrow in 1819, when the emancipation society ceased to exist.
In 1823 Mt. Sterling Church was again received into North Dist. Assn., at which time she reported 23 members; her messengers being Benjamin Davis and Enoch Smith. About this time Elder "Raccoon" John Smith became her pastor. The church reported every year to the Assn. until 1829 when she had 155 members. In that year, when the separation occurred between the Baptists and Reformers, Mt. Sterling Church lost her identity as a Baptist Church as a result of having taken her stand with the followers of Alexander Campbell.
As far as wwe know, there were no further efforts to constitute a Baptist church at Mt. Sterling until 1870, when the present church was constituted. In as much as this church only affiliated with Boone's Creek Assn. for two years, in 1918 and 1919, the writer has not attempted to give a full history of this church, but merely covers the first two years of her existence and the two years while a member of Boone's Creek Assn.
"Pursuant to an invitation from the brethren at Mt. Sterling, a council composed of Revs. I.W. Boone, George T. Bagby, C. Keys, W.B. Arvin, T.I. Wills and J. Pike Powers and Brethren Sanford Allen, H.I. Baird, F.L. Bosworth, Doc Richart, N.B. Tipton, R. Garnet and Nimrod Wilkerson met Feb. 9, 1870 to take into consideration the propriety of constituting a Baptist Church in the aforesaid place. The council was organized by electing Rev. George T. Bagby moderator and J. Pile Powers as secretary. The letters of those proposing to enter into the organization were called for and the following 8 persons presented letters, viz. L.B. Lancaster, Mrs. S.E. Lancaster, Benjamin P. Drake, Mrs. Virginia Chenault, Mrs. F. Powers, Mrs. C.C. Thornsby, Mrs. N. Bridgeforth and Wm. D. Lancaster. Elder J. Pike Powers was chosen their first pastor in March 1870 and B.P. Drake clerk.
A new brick house was dedicated in Dec. 1871 by Rev. Henry McDonald who preached the dedicatory sermon.
B.P. Drake resigned as clerk and was succeeded by Felix L. Bosworth.
July 28, 1918 the church voted to request of Bracken Assn. a letter of dismissal to units with Boone's Creek Assn. and was received into that Assn. in 1918, at which time Rev. J.S. Wilson was pastor and W.R. Thompson church clerk. The deacons were J.W. Hedden Sr., W.T. Tyler, John H. Blunt, W.R. Thompson, Tandy Chenault, Grover Anderson, Jack Graves, Cecil Green and J.W. Hedden Jr.
Rev. R.C. Goldsmith accepted the pastorate in Sept. 1919; he was succeeded by Rev. Olus Hamilton who is the present pastor (1923).
W.R. Thompson resigned as clerk in June 1919 and was succeeded by W.R. Thompson Jr. as clerk and Miss Anise Hunt asst. clerk. W.R. Thompson Jr. was succeeded by H.A. Babb as clerk, who is the present clerk (1923).
At the annual session of Boone's Creek Assn. in 1920, Mt. Sterling Church requested a letter of dismissal to return to Bracken Assn. which was granted. At this session of the Bracken Assn. she reported 192 members.
J.W. Hedden Sr. is the present moderator of the church. Mrs. Nannie Bridgeforth is the only constituent member of the congregation (in 1923) of 1870 now living; she is 84 years old.
Pastors who served: J.Pike Powers, Green Clay Smith, J. Morgan Wells, D.W. Gwin, E.M. Bonar, Everett Gill, W.J. Bolin, T. Benton Hill, G. Kinnard, James R. Hobbs, J.S. Wilson, R.C. Goldsmith and Olus Hamilton (pastor in 1923). |
