Ocmulgee Baptist Church, Perry County Alabama

In 1820 Pioneer families from the Colonies were settling the wilderness area that is now Perry County. Virtually all were Christian and many were Baptist. Naturally the first order of business was to organize a church. Hardly six months after Alabama became a state the Ocmulgee Church was born in the home of Jonathon Benson and named for the nearby creek known by the Choctaw Indians, as "Oki Mulgis" Ocmulgee is a variation of the two Choctaw words that mean Boiling Water. The creek is now known as Oakmulgee, or to some as Big Oakmulgee.

Ocmulgee was not the first Baptist church in the area. As early as October 3, 1818, The Cahawba Association was constituted and represented by 4 regional churches. The first churches were: Mulberry church in what is now Chilton County, Bethel Church of Bibb County, Union Church in Perry County and Cahawba Church at Cahawba. At an association meeting on June 10, 1820 the Ocmulgee Church was admitted with Reverend Charles Crow as pastor. Reverend Crow had previously been the Pastor of the Bush River Baptist Church in Newberry County of South Carolina. Charter members of Ocmulgee Church were Clark Crocker, Charles Warren, Elizabeth Traylor, Poly Scott, Thomas Lowe, Jonathon Benson, Alsey Jackson, Tabitha Dunn, Reddick Simms, Winiford Lowe, Andrew Mayse, and Nancy Mayse. By the end of 1820 the Ocmulgee membership had grown to 38.

Charles Crow served as pastor of the Ocmulgee church from its charter in 1820 until July 1821 and again from 1829 until his death in 1845. Pastor A.G. McCraw replaced him. Charles Crow also served as Moderator of the Cahawba Association and President of the Alabama State Baptist Convention.

Ocmulgee Church’s first known meeting house was planned in 1820 as a log cabin measuring 36 ft by 30 ft. and was completed in July 1825 behind the present building on land previously owned by William Greer. By 1835 a new building was constructed on 2 1/2 acres of adjoining land donated by Levy Martin. The present sanctuary building was erected by 1893. It has been added to and remodeled several times.

The cemetery was started in 1821. The first burial was Stephen McCraw who died April 12, 1821. Additional land for the cemetery was purchased in 1970. A complete list of headstone inscriptions can be found at Genweb Alabama Cemeteries

In the early 1800's the southern religious communities had no contradiction between Christianity and slavery. It was considered both beneficial and Christian to include slaves in the church services. Baptist Churches provided special sections or balconies for the seating of the slaves. Some of the Ocmulgee members and pastors were slave owners.

Slave ownership became a large controversy between the Northerners and Southerners and in 1845 the Southern Baptist churches split away and formed the Southern Baptist Convention. After the Civil War many of the freed slaves remained in the Ocmulgee Church but were still listed on separate rolls and held their own meetings. These members were assigned a white minister and were subject to a white committee. On September 20, 1880 the "colored" members were requested to withdraw and join other churches of the same faith. The Southern Baptist Convention of 1995 voted June 20 to adopt a resolution renouncing its racist roots and apologizing for its past defense of slavery. A list of Ocmulgee Church’s black and slave members can be found at Rootsweb.

In the early years the Ocmulgee church held a position of prominence. It was the site of the state convention meeting in 1835 and again in 1839. The Cahawba association met there frequently. Today it is still a vibrant part of the community. Ocmulgee Church is situated just off Perry county road 6 near Alabama highway 219 and Oakmulgee Creek. Thanks to the practice of good record keeping the rich history of this church is brought into the present. It is now listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

Visit The Ocmulgee Baptist Church Official Website.

References:
Church publication, Ocmulgee Baptist Church by Allen Dunkin.
USGenWeb Archives Perry County Alabama.



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