Obituaries: Rev. James Spencer Ray, 1949, Winn Parish, LA Submitted by Greggory E. Davies, 120 Ted Price Lane, Winnfield, LA 71483 ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** From: June 23, 1949 Winn Parish Enterprise Rev. J. P. Ray, 94, Former Pastor In Winn Succumbs Funeral services for Rev. James Spencer Ray, 94, who served as pastor of several Winn country Baptist churches for nearly 50 years, were held at the Cypress Creek Church near Dodson at 4 p.m. Monday, June 20, with the Rev. T. J. Ratcliff of Jena officiating. Burial was in Cypress Creek Cemetery. Rev. Ray died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Emma Lou Masters, at Nebo, La., June 19, after an illness of several months. Born near Birmingham, Ala., June 13, 1855, Rev. Ray was the son of James Ray and Jane McClum. He united with the Baptist Church when he was 17 years of age. A few years later he came to Louisiana and was married to Mary Alice Barrett in 1877. To this union were born four sons and four daughters. He was ordained as a Baptist minister at the age of 29 and served as pastor of several churches for some 50 years. He helped organize the Cypress Creek Church and preached the first sermon there under an oak tree some time before the church was constructed. He was well known in Winn Parish. At the time of his death he was inactive in the ministry because of ill health and was a member of the Holloway Church near Jena. Surviving are three sons, Luther of Pearl, Texas; Roy of Nebo, La.; Amos of California; and two daughters, Mrs. Lou Emma Masters of Nebo and Mary Ray of California and a number of grandchildren, great grandchildren, and a host of friends.