STANLY COUNTY, NC - HOFFMAN - Bethesda Methodist Church Class Book 1853-1876 --------------¤¤¤¤¤¤-------------- From the Notebook of Lilly Carter Hoffman: In March 1962, my first cousin, Emma Carter Owens and I (LCH) gave the Society Church Book of Bethesda Methodist Church, Stanly County, 1853-1876 to the archives at Raleigh, NC. The Bethesda Society was made up of the members of Bethesda Methodist Church situated two miles south of Albemarle Stanly County,NC. In the beginning of Methodism, John Wesley called his church members " members of the society". Especially those in rural areas, met once a month and an attendance record was kept, along with other records such as "state of life" marked M and S which signified married or single and" state of grace",the meaning of which I'm not sure but I think B was for baptism by immersion and S for sprinkle. The reason is that the people in the Bethesda Community were mostly Baptist by faith when Bethesda Methodist Church was organized in about 1847 with Rev Simpson Jones as first pastor in charge. At that time there were several Methodist Churches in Stanly County all served by one preacher, called a circuit rider, because he traveled from one church to another on hosrseback using saddle bags to store anything he took with him. When the Presiding Elder visited the churches quarterly, he and the pastor together signed a few lines written in the Class Book. It usually read: " Dear Breathren, live in peace and love and the God of love and peace be with you. Remember your fast days preceding each quarterly meeting .Pray for your preachers " There was a separate roll called male and female members remarks after some names meant different things CL meant joined the church by church letter; Removed; the person joined another church; dropped, the person name was removed form the roll; excluded meant the member for some reason was not attending, but could return; expelled meant just that....... The membership was made up of good substantial people and some of their descendants are now prominent in the Methodist Church.DW Holt of Asheboro,NC and Rev DD Holt,a Methodist minister are grandsons of Franklin Rummage who was expelled for drinking. But after he came back from the civil war, he rejoined the church and became one of its leading members. As a teenager I remember the interest he took in the church as a leader. He was highly respected member of the Masonic order and I well remember how he always walked in a masonic funeral procession reverently carrying The Bible.He married my Father's sister, Elizabeth Carter ( not the one marked expelled)My father was Robert Allen Carter marked excluded because he attended Rehobeth's Methodist Church a few miles away and led the singing there , especially at the Camp Meetings. Bethesda had no camp meetings but many of their memebers loaded their wagons with provisionstied a cow to the back and lived in wooden tents for the duration of the meeting.Our grandparents Richard and Nancy Carter whose names are in the class meeting book ususally took their family of thirteen boys and girls and enjoyed the meeting. The church roll became less and less when the most of the men went to civil war Among those that did not return was my father's brother , Richard Carter Jr But many returned and married girls in the church and raised their familiesin the community . This is a copy of the Class Book For Bethesda Society 1853-1876 Bethesda Methodist Episcopal Church South was organized in 1847 with Rev. Simpson Jones as the first pastor in charge. I remember quite well the small, one room frame building located approximately two miles south of Albemarle,NC on the Albemarle-Rocky River, Springs Road. The Congregation was composed of the families who lived in that community. the Carter members were my relatives snd descendants of Samuel and Letitia Morgan Carter. List of Preachers 1) Simpson Jones -1847 2) Thomas W. Postell-1848 3) Abram Nettles-1849 4) Jacky M. Bradley-1850 5) Willis S. Haltom( Holton) -1851 6) Willis S.Haltom-1852 7) Abner Erwin-1853 8) William M. Easterling- 1854 9) William C.Clark-1855 10) Basil G.Jones-1856 11) Daniel May (Way) -1857 12) J.W. Puett(Pruett) -1858 13) J.W.Pruett-1859 14) A.W.Walker and DA Whitlock-1860 15) J.M Cline( James M.Cline) -1861 16) Simpson Jones-1862 17) Simpson Jones-1863 18) John W. Abernathy-1864 19) John W. Abernathy and John C. Harsell-1865 20) J.W. Puett(Pruett) -1866 21) J.W.Pruett-1867 List of preachers from 1867-1890 The order in which they came and years they served may not be correct: JW Pruett-1868 JW Pruett-1869 Daniel Way 1870 JC Hartsell 1871-1872 James Mahoney 1872 JH Guinn 1873 RM Brown TP Richard IT Wyche CM Pepper WT Cutchins TJ Gattis PFW Stamey( Dec 1884-Dec 1886**) JC Rowe LE Stacy **In 1915 I married a grandson of Rev PFW Stamey, pastor of Bethseda 1885-1886 Class Book For Bethesda Society 1853 Dear Brehren, live in peace and love abnd the God of Love and peace be with you. Remember your fast days preceding each quarterly meeting Pray for your preachers (David) D. Derrick PE A. Ervin PC Dear Breathen, live in peace and the love of God shall he with you Remember your fast day Preceding each quarterly meeting Pray for us your preachers A.D. 1853 D. Derrick PE A. Ervin PC Male Members: 1854 1) m EB Nash B CL 2) m Harris Rumage S 3) m Nathan Rumage B CL 4) m Isaac Mabrey B 5) m John B.Simpson B CL 6) s William Marby B 7) m James Hathcock B dead 8) m John F.Stone B CL 9) m Isaac Simpson S 10) m John Simpson S 11) s Thomas A. Simpson S 12) s James Marbry S 13) m Tilman Rumage S 13) s John M. Rumage S 15) s Alfred Hinson B 16) m Steven Saunders S expelled 17) s Franklin Rumage S 18) s Joshua Hinson S 19) s Robert Carter( my father) S 20) s George Hathcock S 21) m James Hinson S 22) m Lindsey Hathcock S 23) m Thomas A. Hathcock S 24) m W.A. Elliot S 25) m DAniel Poplin S 26) m Richard Carter B 27) m John Wesley Biles B Female Members 1854 1) m Nancy Cauble B removed 2) m Rebecca Rumage B ( my great aunt) 3) m Nancy Carter B (my grandmother) 4) m Nancy Hinson B 5) m Dovey Biles B 6) s Fanny Rumage S 7) m Delila Poplin B 8) m Tabitha Marby B 9) m Rutha Rumage B 10) s Elizabeth Carter B (Robert's twin) 11) s Elizabeth Rumage S expelled 6-7-1854 12) s Margaret Ann Rumage B 13) m Sarah Simpson B 14) m Usurla Simpson B 15) m Elizabeth Hathcock B removed ( w/o James) 16) s sarah Ann Hathcock B dead 17) s Elizabeth Hathcock B removed 18) s Demaris Rumage S 19) s Sarah Rumage B 20) m Mary Rumage S 21) m Eliza Cauble B removed 22) m Elizabeth Hathcock B 23) s Laney Hinson S 24) m Nancy Stone B 25) s Minta Lowder S 26) s Mary Ann Morton B removed 27) s Susa Melton B removed 28) s Adeline Hinson S 29) s Lucy Coley B 30) m Sarah Hutson S dropped 31) s Sarah C. Stone B 32) s Ellen Hathcock S 32) s Ellen Hathcock S 33) s Frances Rumage B 34) m Sally Rumage B dead 35) s Mina Simpson S 36) s Adeline Rumage B 37) s frances Marbry S 38) s July Ann Rumage S 39) s Sarah Rumage B 40) s Elizabeth Cress B 41) m Susannah Morton S 42) s Mary H. Stone B 43) m Lucy E. Stone B removed to Albemarle 44) m Dicey Saunders B expelled 45) m Elizabeth Shoffner B 46) s Anna Melton removed 47) s Tabitha Biles 48) m Sarah Simpson 49) m Nancy Hinson S 50) m Mary Hathcock B 51) m Judith Cagle S 52) s Martha Cagle B June 11, 1854 53) m Betty Biles ( a slave) B 54) Elmira Bosworth 55) Dovey Caroline Biles 56) s Mary Susan Carter B June 11, 1854( Robert's sister) 57) s Martha Jane Carter June 11, 1854 ( Robert's sister) [Note: Class Books for other years will be added as separate files.] ___________________________________________________________________ Copyright. 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