Ware County Churches Kettle Creek File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Barbara Winge barbarawinge@yahoo.com http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/ware.htm WAYCROSS JOURNAL-HERALD, Waycross, Georgia Monday, April 22, 1974 HISTORIC KETTLE CREEK IS OLDEST IN COUNTY The oldest church in Ware County, historic old Kettle Creek New Congregational Methodist Church, was founded by Scotch settlers in 1828. The first building was designed of logs, erected by early Scotch settlers, but it was later replaced by a frame building, which was blown down in a storm. Immediately after the Wilkes massacre by the Indians, a squad of soldiers were camped on the banks of the creek near the site of the present church yard grounds. While there, they found an iron kettle imbedded in the sands of the creek. Through the desire on the part of the soldiers to memoralized the kettle found in the stream, they named it "Kettle Creek" hence the name of "Kettle Creek Church" came about. In the oldest cemetery in Ware County, many of the early settlers are buried. The first burial took place in 1833, when a Mr. Jones was buried. In this place also rests the remains of William August McDonald [founder in 1881 of the present Kettle Creek Church] and many of his descendants. Names of many pioneer Ware families are associated with Kettle Creek. Among these are McDonald, Robinson, Blackburn, Thomson, Miller, Sweat, Hilliard, Thigpen, Roland, Barber and McQuaig. This place was a show place of the early settlers, the moss covered trees were magnificent, and the aisles between were wide and green. Here among the graves are a generation that had laughed, talked and played among the trees. Another history of Kettle Creek Church state, "Camping on the banks of Kettle Creek, Ware County men, led by Capt. David Miller, left to purge the Indians on an order from the Secretary of War in the early 1780's. Unoticed an iron kettle was left behind by Miller's quartermaster. The community is said to have been settled as early as 1818. The first marble tomb was placed over the grave of Capt. William Miller, a soldier of the Revolutionary War, Daniel J. Blackburn, teacher of the first school organized in 1830 on this spot, is buried in Kettle Creek Cemetery. Other historic graves in the old cemetery are the graves of General Thomas Hilliard, his young wife, Barbara, and her Negro servant girl, Delia, who was so devoted to her mistress that she begged to be buried at her feet. Kettle Creek has many landmarks. One spiral stone is erected in memory of the last graves of the Negroes of the Old South who served their masters who now lie buried nearby in Kettle Creek Cemetery. Obediah Barber, along with his three wives and some of his 18 children, is buried in the cemetery, where an old stage coach once ran and where the Indians ambushed the stages and killed the passengers. Barber is a legendary swamp ioneer and is credited with helping send the Seminoles out ot the swamp and into Florida. It was Capt. Cuyler Hilliard, along with Dr. Daniel Lott, Dr. Benjamin Williams, and William Bailey, all pioneers of Ware County, who secured land grants on which the present city of Waycross is now located. In 1871, Capt. Hilliard, son of a General Hilliard, and these other men, are said to have laid plans for Waycross in the South Georgia swampland. The church has sent out five ministers of the Gospel, M. N. Sumner, W. P. Leggett, W. A. Sedgwick, Oscar McDonald, and B. F. Corley. Pastors of the church who can be remembered include the following: the Rev. Asa Thompson, Jack Thompson, David J. Miller, Randal Cason, Joe Taylor, A. L. Green, B. F. Bryant, M. A. Thigpen, W. L. Sweat, M. N. Sumner, J. S. Taylor, W. A. Sedgwick, Ward Ray, Oscar McDonald, Wallace Jernigan, and Julian Walker, the present pastor who has served the church 13 years. The Church school was reorganized in 1938 with a membership of 17, and several months later, with 75 members, four new church school rooms were added. Presently under construction is a concrete block portion of the church, which will replace the church school rooms and this area will be almost as large as the main construction. [Contributed by Barbara Walker Winge ] ======================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages cannot be reproduced in any format for profit or other presentation. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for FREE access. ==============