University of Virginia Library

MT. HOREB BAPTIST CHURCH

Mt. Horeb church was organized as Reed's church in 1773
by Elders Samuel Harris and R. Ford. John Young was then
ordained elder and installed as pastor of this congregation and
continued to serve in this capacity until his removal to Amherst
in 1799. During his ministry at Reed's church he was imprisoned
for six months in the county jail for preaching. He baptized
seventy persons while pastor of Reed's. Upon the retirement of
Elder Young, John Selph was ordained elder and set over the
congregation as pastor. Thos. Kidd and Wm. Kelley were
ordained deacons and Wm. Rawlins clerk.

After a lapse of years Joel Mason, Chas. Atkinson and Joseph
Norment were ordained deacons and in 1835 John D. Hargrave
and Wm. Mason were added to these. The church was served
by Elders Selph, Woolfolk and Hatchett until 1834 when Geo.
W. Trice became pastor and J. D. Hargrave clerk. From 1834
to 1839 there were twenty-seven white persons added to the
membership.

In September, 1839, a series of revival meetings was held in
which Elders M. W. Broaddus, Henry Segar, George W. Trice,
Andrew Broaddus, and Philip Taliaferro of the Baptist church
were assisted by two Methodist ministers with the result that
about one hundred persons dedicated their lives to Christ, sixty
of whom were baptized.

In the year 1840 the church decided to build a brick meeting
house on the old site. The contract was let to Joseph Norment
for the sum of $1,093.00. Shortly after this action another
meeting was held near Concord and by another vote the building
enterprise was defeated.

In April, 1840, W. M. Mason was elected clerk to succeed
J. D. Hargrave. In June of the same year the members of
Reed's church living near Concord desiring to organize themselves
into a separate and distinct congregation were given permission
to do so in a resolution which commended them to God and the
Word of His grace. Elder Trice resigned the pastorate of Reed's
in 1842 and was succeeded by Elder Cole who served the church
two years after, which Elder Trice was chosen pastor for the
second time. Mr. Ed. West was ordained deacon in 1842.

At a meeting of Reed's church in April, 1845 the weak state
of the church was discussed and the matter of disbanding was

put forward for consideration until the next monthly meeting.
In May, after one month's deliberation, the church came together
and decided to disband and unite with neighboring church, but
after a short period, becoming dissatisfied with this decision,
rescinded their action and engaged Elder Hatchett to serve as
pastor.

In September following the church was reorganized and Thos.
Woolard and Winston Atkinson were ordained deacons by Elders
Hatchett and Trice. Elder Hatchett resigned as pastor in 1847
and the congregation was pastorless until 1850 when Elder J. W.
Atkinson was engaged to serve in this capacity. He died in 1851.

In 1851 the erection of a meeting house on a site more conveniently
situated to the members was proposed and a committee,
composed of W. M. Mason, Winston Atkinson and J. R.
Mason, was appointed to dispose of the old property and to take
such measures for the procuring of a new house as they might
deem best. Owing to a defect in the deed to the old property
it could not be sold and the church decided to build without this
assistance. J. R. Mason gave one acre of land on which to
build and agreed to erect the house for $800.00. The house was
built and dedicated on Friday, September 30, 1853. Dr. R. B. C.
Howell preached the dedicatory sermon. The name was changed
from Reed's church to Mt. Horeb and Elder A. Eubank chosen
as pastor. He resigned in 1854 to continue his studies in the
University of Virginia and Elder R. W. Cole was chosen pastor
with R. A. Fox as co-pastor.

On the second Sunday of November 1860, J. E. West and Wm.
Young were ordained deacons by Elders Cole and Fox. In March
1863, Elder Cole resigned and was succeeded by R. A. Fox.
Obedian Atkinson, C. A. Shuman and Wm. T. Taliaferro were
ordained deacons in 1866 and W. R. Peatross and L. M. Hart
in 1867. R. A. Fox resigned as pastor in 1869 and was succeeded
by Elder J. W. Hart. During the pastorate of R. W. Cole,
1854-1863, forty-one white and one hundred and fifteen colored
persons were added to the membership; during that of R. A.
Fox, 1863-69, fifty-seven whites and five colored and during that of
J. W. Hart, 1869-72, eighty-six whites were added. The colored
members of this church, at their own request, were given letters
and constituted themselves into a church, known as Mt. Tabor,
on January 20, 1872. The pastor and deacons of Mt. Horeb
officiated at the organization.

In 1869 a mission Sunday school was established by Mt.
Horeb at Shumansville with a view to establishing a church
there. Mr. C. A. Shuman was made superintendent. On July
13, 1872, twenty-seven members of Mt. Horeb were given letters
for the purpose of entering upon the formation of a new church.
Upon the constitution of the new church Mr. E. Trice was made
deacon. A building was erected near Oakley, the site of the
mission Sunday school, and was dedicated on September 22, 1872,
by Rev. Andrew Broaddus and Rev. N. Short.

Mt. Horeb celebrated its centennial April 13, 1873 and its
one hundred and fiftieth anniversary in 1923. On the former
occasion Rev. A. H. Sands preached the sermon and on the
latter occasion sermons and addresses were delivered by Rev.
Messrs. W. E. Warren, L. M. Ritter, Tyler Terrell and Andrew
Broaddus III.

Pastor J. W. Hart resigned in 1873 and was succeeded by Rev.
Wm. E. Talley. Richard Baughan was made clerk in 1874
and Messrs. J. W. Young, W. Long and M. W. Head were made
deacons in 1877. Mr. W. M. Mason was ordained to the ministry
in 1877, Rev. Messrs. A. B. Smith, H. Satterwhite and J. O. Turpin
acting as presbytery.

The pastoral succession in Horeb church from the time of
Rev. J. W. Hart is as follows: Rev. W. E. Talley, 1877-78; Rev.
S. U. Grimsley, 1878-80; Rev. A. W. Graves, 1881-83; Rev. A. C.
Pugh, 1884; Rev. Mr. Noland, 1885-87; Rev. J. J. Wicker, 188990;
Rev. R. L. Gay, 1890; Rev. W. O. Carner, 1891; Rev. H. H.
Street, 1892-93; Rev. J. W. Hart, 1893-95; Rev. W. C. Foster,
1895-96; Rev. H. T. Musselman, 1896-98; Rev. H. A. Willis,
1898-03; Rev. J. C. Quarles, 1903-04; Rev. J. F. Billingsley,
1905-10; Rev. W. B. Carter, 1911-13; Rev. G. Tyler Terrell,
1913-17; Rev. George Donahoe, 1917-19; Rev. W. D. Bremner,
1920-21, and Rev. W. E. Warren, 1922.

The present building of Mt. Horeb church was dedicated on
December 23, 1890, by Dr. Wm. E. Hatcher, of Richmond, assisted
by Rev. Messrs. R. L. Gay, W. O. Carter and Andrew Broaddus,
III.