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by Elder John Alderson, Jr. |
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by Elder John Alderson, Jr. |
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Good evening, I am Elder John Alderson, Jr. It is indeed an honor to address such an impressive gathering. Since some of you no doubt represent eastern churches, I must explain the reason for my rifle. The Indian threat is still very real here in the mountainous regions. It is just such a threat that also explains my dress. I have but one proper coat and as I was crossing a stretch of the Greenbrier, somewhat hurriedly because I sensed the Indians were about, my pack came untethered, and my coat and traveling provisions floated down the river. I would have gone after the pack and recovered it, but feared I would be late for this meeting and since I was scheduled to speak, I felt the pack could wait. I would however, request a couple of the young men to accompany me to the Greenbrier at first light to follow it down river and recover the pack.I have been asked to speak on the history of the founding of this Association and this church. I would like to begin by telling you something of the history of my family. When my father, John Alderson Sr., was a young man in England studying for the ministry, he fell in love and was engaged. My grandfather, also a minister and also named John Alderson, disapproved of the young lady, although no reason for his disapproval has come down to me. To discourage this relationship, grandfather Alderson gave my father a full purse and a horse and encouraged him to take time off from his studies and travel through England. It seems my father, wound up in Liverpool, the purse was empty, and there he made the acquaintance of a ship’s captain bound for America. He signed on for the trip, and not having money for passage, as was the custom of the day, the captain sold his services to a New Jersey farmer, one Mr. Curtis. And so my father, John Alderson Sr. emigrated to America in 1719 from England under somewhat unusual circumstances.
Father proved himself to be an industrious and trustworthy servant for Mr. Curtis, much as Joseph, son of Jacob, in the OT did both as a servant of Potiphar, chief of the guard and later to Pharaoh. After the required indenture, Father married Mary Jane Curtis, daughter of Mr. Curtis. Following the marriage He became a member of a Baptist church and was soon Called by God to become a minister. He was ordained a Baptist minister, a fact which delighted Grandfather in England. He sent Father a collection of three theological books as an ordination gift with the request that they become a family heritage.
Father, mother, and I, moved from New Jersey to the Philadelphia area and within the strong Philadelphia Baptist Association, he began to preach. The Philadelphia Association, organized in 1707, being the oldest Baptist Association in America.
Some time later, we moved to Rockingham County, Virginia, and on August 6, 1756, Father organized the Smith and Linville Baptist Church. It was shortly after moving to Rockingham County that I made my first visit to this region. Being around seventeen years of age at the time, 1 was filled with an adventurous spirit. I dare say I ventured perhaps far beyond reason into the mountains, going as far west as Charleston. On that journey I made an odd and to some frightening discovery of “the burning Spring”.
I returned home and worked on the farm, until, at age 21, I married Mary Carroll. We were soon faced with the tragic death of our only daughter. Following closely upon that tragedy, I was stricken with a severe illness. My father was a close comfort and strong influence during my recovery. My early education had primarily been “the Bible and the Baptist catechism” and my parents had protected me “from all gross immoralities.” I believe God used this background and these tragedies, to prepare my heart for a deeper understanding of Him, which my Father was very willing to supply. “By an expression dropped from my Father after I had recovered ... I was solemnly impressed. After passing through a painful and tedious law-work, in which I would make resolutions and then break them, I became more deeply concerned. I sought the Lord with my whole heart, and ultimately obtained comfort, great comfort, by reflection on these words: ‘Ye are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the corner-stone.” My Father then baptized me at Linville Church and I immediately saw his need for help in preaching to the many scattered settlers in the area.
“After many doubts as to my conversion, I began at last to be exercised about preaching. At first I thought it impossible that so weak a creature as I could be called to preach; but being persuaded, at last, by many Divine tokens, that it was the will of God, I entered upon the solemn work.” In 1775, I was ordained and became the pastor of Linville Creek Baptist Church, my Father moved to Botetourt County, where he continued to preach until he was called home to the LORD in 1781. I continued to pastor the Linville church for a couple of years, until 1777, when I felt called of God to take the gospel to the people west of the mountains into this Greenbrier river area.
Having made this resolution, as soon as the weather broke, we began our journey into the wilderness. On reaching Jackson’s River, our travel was halted upon hearing news that the home of Col. James Graham, on the Greenbrier, had been attacked by Indians. In this raid, one member of the Graham family was killed and another member carried off a prisoner. I felt it best to wait there at Jackson’s river for a short time to let things settle a bit.
After about two or three months, we journeyed on to Jarrett’s Fort on Wolf Creek, and settled there until taking up a tract of 1750 acres on the south side of the Greenbrier. There we made our home, I farmed to provide for my family and preached as God allowed opportunity. Most of my preaching was to settlers living in the various forts and farming nearby. The forts provided safety from the Indians. They would farm by day and return to the fort by evening for safety and comfort. So, from one fort to another, usually accompanied by a small guard of friends, I would make my rounds preaching the gospel, “in season and out of season” as the Apostle Paul instructed. At the forts I was addressed as Elder Alderson since I was not of the “established” church and could not use the title reverend.
This brings me to an important point of Baptist doctrine, Separation of Church and State. Having struggled to preach the gospel in answer to God’s calling, risking life and limb, duly ordained by a lawfully constituted church, and yet unable to use the proper title of reverend because the State determines who can and cannot! I tell you a State sponsored church or any manner of state sponsored religion is an outrage to our Baptist heritage!
Now, where was I, oh yes, the forts; at some “I was received with kindness and heard with attention, but others were not so welcoming. Why there was even the threat to exclude me from the rude defenses of the fort and leave me exposed to the elements and the savages! By God’s grace this threat was never carried out. So, for four years I continued this struggle as a traveling preacher, until November 24, 1781, we gathered together, 12 faithful Baptists and organized the Greenbrier Baptist Church. (Let me see if I can recall the names: Myself, and my wife, Mary, and Thomas Alderson; then John Kippers, John Shepherd, then there was John, Katherine, Joseph and Lucy Scaggs, and the Woods family: Bailey and Ann, and James Woods). Our first official action, as the twelve charter members, was to formulate a church covenant. The heart of the covenant was two sacred duties: “First, our duty to God; Secondly, our Duty to one another.” Our first duty emphasized worship attendance. We were to encourage our families and others to attend. Our duty to each other taught those things necessary to uphold one another in prayer and practice. It also provided for assistance to the poor and care of orphans. This covenant was ratified that same day, 11/24/1781. The following year we aligned ourselves with the Ketocton Association and later entered the New River Association.
You’ll recall that this was also just after the decisive victory of General Washington at Yorktown, Virginia. Indeed, in only a few years the Virginia Legislature had repealed all obnoxious laws of religious oppression. God established this church at a strategic hour in history to be on the front line of the movement of Christianity into the wilderness.
Our first meetings were in homes of members at various locations. “Second Creek Gap, Big Levels, and on New River.” We did however plan a meeting house and in June, 1783, plans were made to build here in Alderson. The following May construction began and in July, our first worship service in the meeting house was held. This was the first meeting house in all these parts. It was about this same time that our first convert, James Ellison, was Baptized into the church.
Our church continued to grow in grace and by the end of the century was well established. Over those years, with the close of the 18th century and the beginning of the nation, the church encouraged me to help in establishing other churches. One such was the Kanawha Church. The founding pastor, brother James Johnstone, had followed me in pastoring the Linville church. Also being called of God to go west into the wilderness, he moved into the area in 1794 and together we established a work for the Lord in the Kanawha Valley. We next helped the folk at Big Levels to organize in 1796 and they ordained Josiah Osborne as their pastor.
About this time it also seemed that we should organize ourselves as an Association. The reason for this was that the New River association was a distance from us, making it inconvenient to attend meetings. Thus, myself, Brother Johnstone of Kanawha, and Brother Josiah Osborne, of Big Levels, were delegated to attend the New River Association. At the meeting held in 1800 we were granted our petition to form a new association, The Greenbrier Baptist Association. We held our first meeting the following year at Indian Creek Baptist Church and were duly constituted with four founding churches: Greenbrier, Kanawha, Big Levels, and Indian Creek.
And so goes a brief account of the founding of this church and this association.
This historical overview of the establishment of the Greenbrier Baptist Association and the Old Greenbrier Baptist Church was presented as part of the second night of celebration of the 200th annual session of the Greenbrier Baptist Association held in Alderson, WV in July 2000. Rev. John Alderson, Jr. was portrayed by Rev. Jon Jennings, Peterstown Missionary Baptist Church. * * * * *