PIECES OF OUR PAST - BETHLEHEM BAPTIST CHURCH - 200 YEARS

 BETHLEHEM BAPTIST CHURCH, Two Centuries Old

Bethlehem Church was constructed at the Fork Road Meeting House four miles from Dublin, situated on the river road leading from Milledgeville to Darien in Laurens County.  There were thirteen members, eleven white and two colored, all dismissed from Buckeye Baptist Church by letter for the purpose of constituting a Baptist Church at Fork Road Meeting House to be called Bethlehem.  On the 14th day of July, 1821, over 98 years ago.  The thirteen members were organized to constitute a regular Baptist church,  Brethren John Whittle, Benjamin Manning, and Levi Bush, acting as presbytery.  At that time the county was only settled, and in the year 1882 Mr. Solomon Williams made a church a deed to three acres of land at Holmes Cross Roads, the present site.  The settlement went to work to build a small log house of worship, the contract being let to Brother Young Keen, a deacon of the church at the time.  The house was built at a cost of ($69.00) sixty-nine dollars and those who remember it know of the high pulpit which scarcely showed the preacher's head, when he was seated; and must have been uncomfortable in the extreme.

The first pastor to serve Bethlehem was Rev. John Whittle.  The first clerk was George Daniel who served 18 years.  The first deacon was James Kinchen.  The church held monthly meetings, and as time went by this little church in the wildwood gained in membership, and who knows the obstacle that beset this band of faithful followers of the Lord, when the spirit of anti-missionary was strong in the land, education at a low plane and intemperance rife in the land.  The county was thinly settled, many had to ride for miles, braving cold and storm, but they came on horseback, in carts, and other rude vehicles.  Automobiles were unknown and buggies scarcely known.  Some walked, perhaps for miles.

A number of deacons were ordained.  Among them were Brother Richard Graham, father of our present clerk, G.F. Graham.  He made of Rev. Lawrence Keen, a deacons of that time, afterwards ordained to preach the gospel, and for long years, and to a ripe old age, faithfully performed his ministerial duties, beloved by all who knew him.  Pastor after pastor served the church, and we should like to mention them one by one but time and space forbid.  Doubtless along down the years, many gracious revivals were held, and the power of the Holy Spirit manifested.  The fourth pastor was Rev. David Daniel.  Brother Daniel was a man of deep piety, and broad views of the Bible, who instilled into the mind of his hearers, a deeper meaning of, "Go ye into all the world."  The mission leaven began to work.  It was he who gathered  the little children into the first Sunday school of the church, as well as the first organized Sunday school of the county.  Through his loyalty to Baptist principles, and an elevated aim, he lived to see his name placed among the eminent Baptist ministers of Georgia.  In 1872 Rev. L.J. Harrison was called the second time and served three years.  Following him, Rev. J.M. Donaldson, served six years.  These two veterans of the Cross, were dearly beloved, and the church prospered under their leadership.  Following them, our lately deceased brother, Rev. J.T. Smith was ordained a deacon and felt called to preach the gospel, and served as its pastor for three years.  As to the time of this esteemed brother in Christ, the memorial service at the Laurens County Association was within itself was a fitting tribute to his memory.  In 1885 Rev. W.S. Ramsay was called to the pastorate of this church, and served until his death in 1900, serving the church fifteen years.  Brother Ramsay was a scholarly man, of high intellectual character, and a dignified man.  Possessed of a loving personality, he resigned the charge of the First Baptist Church of Dublin in order to accept the call to this church, being urged by a number of its members, who felt that he would be a great help to the service of Bethlehem.  Words are inadequate to express the love and high esteem in which this pastor was held by his people.  During his pastorate, the log house of worship, heretofore spoken of, was found incapable of accommodating the growing congregations and it was decided to build a new one.  In 1887 a large frame building was erected, costing $1,800.  At this time a large and flourishing Sunday school was organized, a woman's missionary society, and church aid society, and held its first meeting on November 27, 1897, with seven charter members, as follows: President -  Mrs. L.B. Linder; Secretary and Treasurer - Mrs. L.H. Linder;   Members - Mrs. H.H. Martin, Mrs. Jane Keen,Mrs. Annie Brett, Miss Nannie Beall Linder, and Miss Latha Graham.

The deacons were loyal to their trust, and strong to defend its principles.  The pastor following Rev. W.S. Ramsay was Rev. B.B. Seals, who filled the unexpired term of Brother Ramsay.  In 1901, Rev. O.O. Williams was called and served five years.  He was much beloved by the church, as a pastor, being zealous for its welfare, charitable, ever ready to lend the helping hand, and largely through his influence the new house of worship was completed.  In 1907 Rev. J.E. Taylor came as pastor, serving seven years.  He was also well beloved, and by his earnestness, his influence was felt, and there are those here today who accepted Christ and were led into the baptismal waters by Brother Taylor.  Rev. J.R. Kelly following two years.  Since 1903 the following deacons have been ordained:

Our present pastor, Rev. W.E. Harville, is the seventeenth pastor to serve Bethlehem.  He began his charge to this church on March 6, 1915.  Brother Harville resigned from Shady Grove Church where he had served as pastor for twenty years, thus showing his love the membership had for him.  We speak with reverential love for Brother Harville.  He has been a great uplift in the advancement of the church, instilling in the heart of its members a broader view of missions, bringing about a closer fellowship and endeavoring in every way to place the membership upon a higher standard of Christian excellence.

From 1866 to the present time only two clerk have served: Brother Jimmie Bush, who served 11 years, beloved by his church, and G.F. Graham, our present clerk, who has served the church faithfully for 42 years.

In 1913 the house of worship was pronounced unsafe, and a new building was erected, the present one.  The last meeting held in the old church was a woman's business meeting for the purpose of arranging committees to get up funds to paint the new church.  From the 13 members of the little log house in the woods have sprung a flourishing church, and as we go down the years, let us not forget to thank God, who has so graciously blessed us, and today in conclusion may it be the prayer of every member of the Bethlehem church, that grace may abound full and free, in the hearts of all, and may we as its members, strive to place Bethlehem Church in the foremost place in the Laurens County Association.

The above sketch of the history of Bethlehem Baptist Church was read by Mrs. Lewis Brothers Linder at the dedication of the new house of worship on Sunday last.  Published in Dublin Courier Herald, June 3, 1920, page 5.