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HAPPY ZION AND SILVER CREEK (BAPTIST) CHURCH
BY REV M J SEARS.
ON THE THIRD SATURDAY IN AUGUST 1819 BEFORE MISSOURI WAS A
STATE OR RANDOLPH WAS A COUNTY A NUMBER OF THE EARLY SETTLERS MET
TOGETHER AND WERE ORGANIZED INTO A BAPTIST CHURCH AND GAVE IT THE
NAME OF HAPPY ZION.AND ON THE SECOND SATURDAY IN THE FOLLOWING MONTH
UNITED WITH THE MT PLEASANT ASSOCIATION ORGANIZED AT MT
PLEASANT CHURCH HOWARD COUNTY JUST ONE YEAR BEFORE.THE
DELEGATES CHOSEN BY THE CHURCH TO BEAR THEIR PETITIONARY LETTER TO THE
ASSOCIATION WERE,THOMAS HENSON,WILLIAM HARVEY,AND ASA KIRBY.
AT THE AUGUST MEETING OF 1827 THE NAME OF THE CHURCH WAS CHANGED
TO SILVER CREEK.UP TO THIS DATE AND FOR MANY YEARS LATER ALMOST
THE ENTIRE SETTLEMENT WAS MADE UP OF BAPTISTS AND THEIR FAMILIES AND
THE CHURCH ENJOYED TO A VERY LIBERAL DEGREE THE BLESSINGS OF THE LORD,
REPORTING PEACE AND PROSPERITY IN ALL THE LETTERS WHICH WERE ANNUALLY
SENT UP TO THE ASSOCIATION DOWN TO THE YEAR 1835.YET THE MEMBERSHIP
PHERHAPS NEVER AT ANY ONE TIME NUMBERED OVER 75 OR 80
PERSONS FOR OTHER BAPTIST CHURCHES WERE ORGANIZED INTO THE SURROUNDING
COUNTRY AND DREW LARGELY UPON THE PRESENT BODY FOR MEMBERSHIP.
AMONG WHICH WE MENTION MT HARMON,MT ARARAT,PLEASANT GROVE,DOVER
(FIRST CALLED TURNERS PRAIRIE),AND LITTLE UNION LOCATED IN THE
NORTH SUBURBS OF NORTH HUNTSVILLE ALL OF WHICH HAVE BECOME EXTINCT.
THE DIFFERENT PASTORS WHO SERVED THE CHURCH UP TO DATE ABOVE MENTIONED
WERE ELDERS THOMAS HENSON,CHARLES HARRYMAN,JAMES RATCLIFF,
THOMAS FRISTOE,AND WILLIAM SEARS.ALL EXCEPT ELDER FRISTOE
COMMENCED THEIR MINISTRY IN AND WERE ORDAINED IN SILVER CREEK CHURCH.
AMONG THE INFLUENTIAL CITIZENS WHO WERE PROMINENT MEMBERS
OF THAT CHURCH WERE WILLIAM HARVEY,DR WILLIAM FORT,HARDY SEARS,AARON KING,
JOHN WHELDEN,WILLIAM AND JOSEPH MARROW,AMBROSE HALLIBURTON,BLANDERMIN
SMITH,
ABRAHAM GROSS,ASA KIRBY,ISAIAH HUMPHREY,BASIL MCDAVITT SR,WILEY SEARS SR,
DAVID CREWS,CHARLES FINNELL,WILLIAM CAVENS, BENJAMIN HARDISTER,
AND RICHARD BRADLEY.THESE AND MANY OTHERS WHOSE
NAMES ARE NOT AT HAND ALL OBTAINED A GOOD REPORT THROUGH FAITH AND
HAVE GONE FROM FAITH TO SIGHT IN THE GLORY LAND.
AT THE OCTOBER MEETING FOLLOWING THE DIVISION IN MT PLEASANT ASSOCIATION
ISAIAH HUMPHREY AND WIFE,BASIL MCDAVITT SR AND WIFE,
WILLIAM CAVENS AND WIFE,AND NANCY WEST WITHDREW FROM SILVER
CREEK CHURCH IN ORDER TO FORM A SEPERATE BODY AND TO BECOME IDENTIFIED
WITH WHAT WAS THEN CALLED THE MISSIONARY PARTY SINCE WHICH
TIME THE CHURCH HAS ENJOYED UNINTERRUPTED PEACE AND A FAIR SHARE OF
PROSPERITY.THE WRITER OF THIS UNITED WITH THE CHURCH IN OCTIOBER
1849 AND BEGAN HIS MINISTRY BEFORE HE WAS 20 YEARS OF AGE.AND AT 21
YEARS OF AGE WAS ORDAINED TO THE PASTORAL CARE OF THE CHURCH.AND
HAS SUSTAINED THAT RELATION TO THE CHURCH TO THIS DAY.FROM 1835 TO
1849 ELDERS WILLIAM SEARS,JOHN BUSTER,AND JOHN MANSFIELD EACH
IN TURN SERVED THE CHURCH AS PASTORS WITH GOOD SUCCESS.THESE WERE
GOOD AND FAITHFUL MINISTERS BUT ON ACCOUNT OF THE DISTANCE THEY LIVED
FROM THE FIELD OF THEIR LABORS WOULD OFTEN FAIL TO MEET APPOINTMENTS.
IN 1840 BROTHER JAMES EARS AND IN 1843 BROTHER WILLIS SEARS NOW AT
CHARITON CHURCH MACON COUNTY LEFT THE MISSIONARIES AND WERE
RECEIVED INTO THE CHURCH UPON THEIR BAPTISM.
SOON AFTER THE UNHAPPY DIVISION OF 1835 A LARG PARCENT OF OUR
MEMBERSHIP EMIGRATED TO MACON COUNTY AND HELPED TO FOUND THE
NOW PROSPEROUS CHURCHES AT CHARITON AND LITTLE ZION IN THAT COUNTY.
AND IN THIS COUNTY THE CHURCHES AT HICKORY AND OAK GROVE
WHICH ARE BOTH PROSPEROUS.BESIDES THE LAST TWO NAMED AND THE
MOTHER CHURCH THERE ARE ALSO PLEASANT HILL AND MOBERLY CHURCHES
MAKING FIVE IN ALL,OF THE PRIMITIVE ORDER IN RANDOLPH COUNTY.
ELDERS W A ROTHWELL MD,JAMES BRADLEY,JAMES P CARTER,
AND THE WRITER ARE THE MINISTERS OF THE PRIMITIVE BAPTIST FAITH IN THIS
COUNTY.THE FIRST NAMED IS A NATIVE OF KENTUCKY,BROTHER CARTER OF
VIRGINIA,BROTHER BRADLEY AND THE WRITER WERE BORN AND RAISED IN THIS
COUNTY.ELDERS JAMES RATCLIFF,WILLIAM SEARS,JAMES BARNES,ARCHIBALD
PATTISON,J W GARSHWILER,JOHN BUSTER,AND JAMES GRISHOLM HAVE ALL BEEN
RESIDENTS OF THIS COUNTY AND IN TURN HAVE SERVED THE OLD
CHURCHES ABOVE NAMED AND HAVE ALL GONE ON TO THEIR REWARD ABOVE TO
REST FROM THEIR LABORS BELOW.ELDER WILLIAM SEARS WAS ORDAINED TO
GOSPEL MINISTRY IN SILVER CREEK CHURCH IN 1836.NO OTHER ORDINATION
IN THE MINISTRY OCCURED IN THE CHURCH UNTIL THE THIRD SUNDAY IN APRIL
1851 WHEN THE WRITER WAS SET APART TO THE IMPORTANT WORK OF PREACHING
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST TO DYING MEN.SINCE THAT TIME THE CHURCH
HAS SET APART ELDER LEWIS SEARS AND ELDER J W BRADLEY (SINCE DECEASED)
AND GRANTED LICENSE TO ELDER P M SEARS WHO WAS AFTERWARD ORDAINED
TO THE MINISTRY AT THE REQUEST OF OAK GROVE CHURCH.
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