Antioch Landmark Missionary Baptist Church History
History of
Antioch Landmark Missionary Baptist Church
Antioch Landmark Missionary Baptist Church has a long and rich history full of memories for many people and families. Antioch began preaching God’s Word in 1845 and has been preaching God’s wonderful Grace to the present day.
Followed below is the organizational history of Antioch MBC.
The Organization of the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church
In the year 1845, an old Baptist Minister by the name of Henry Cheek, who had been ordained by a Landmark Missionary Baptist Church in Saline County, located in a place called Walnut Bottom, came riding through Walnut Grove Community now called Oak Grove.
This little community boasted of a little 16×16 ft. log school house. As there was no church within miles of the community, the people begged Elder Cheek to preach for them. He agreed, and they liked him so well they asked that he come back and preach again. He agreed, in 1850 he came back, held a revival meeting and 12 people were saved. These people asked him to help them organize a Church. It was done in regular Baptist order with four charter members which were John Price, Mr. and Mrs. Jim Edward and a man by the name of Dean, Elder Cheek officiating.
The church met and worshipped the Lord until the year 1861 when the Civil War began. All the younger men and a lot of the very young boys volunteered for service. That left only the very old men to take care of the women and children, make the crops and tend the live stock, which in those days was a pretty big job for a strong young man.
While the young men were fighting, a gang of war evaders came through the country. They would kill, torture, and plunder. They would ride up to a house and call. If a man came out he was shot down, then the wife was tortured if she failed to tell where gold and other valuables were hidden. My Grandfather, Robert Rankin, was killed in this manner. They burned my Grandmother’s feet because she wouldn’t tell where her husband’s money was. My Grandfather was counted as a man of means in those days, as he owned quite a lot of land, several houses, a saw mill, a grist mill, and a gin. All these atrocities being committed by the Jay Hawkers, as they were called by the law abiding citizens, had reached the ears of the young men at war. My Father, Edd Rankin got a leave of absence from active duty, came home and gathered together a bunch of the young boys who were left behind and went after the Jay Hawkers. A fight ensued, and to their knowledge there was only one of the lawless men who got away. Some years later my Father met and recognized this man.
After the war was over in 1865 and my Father came home, all the church members got together and decided to move the Church to the Antioch Community, where it now stands. My Father, Edd Rankn, told them if they would move the church to Antioch he would take his yoke of oxen and skid cypress logs out of the Brake, which is now Harris Lake. Uncle Andy Whitehead donated one acre of land to build the Church house, and Edd Rankin donated two acres for the cemetery.
The building that now stands is the same original building that was erected shortly after the Civil War, with cypress logs skidded out of the brake with yokes of oxen. The logs were hewn with a broad axe and put together at the corners with wooden pegs or pens, with the hewn side in and the round side out. The roof was made of hand made shingles and the floor was wide, thick rough lumber.
In the erection of this building, Edd Rankin raised the northeast corner, Andy Whitehead the southeast corner, John Wade raised the southwest corner, and George Ussery raised the northwest corner.
Kerosene and gas lights were used for light until the year 1941 when electricity was installed. In 1948 a new floor was put in over the original one. In the spring of 1958 a building fund program was begun to raise money for Sunday school rooms. The women of the church donated materials and labor to make pot holders, dish towels and quilts which were sold and the money put in the building fund. The building program was climaxed by a fund raising dinner held on the church grounds in October of 1958. The men of the Church donated most of the labor in building the three Sunday school rooms which were built on to the back of the Church.
The Church only had half time service until the fall of 1959 when Eld. Floyd Busby of Little Rock was called for full time pastor.
On May 20, 1960 the first church wedding was held in the church. Miss Vida Doughty and Billy Wright were united in marriage by Eld. Floyd Busby.
In the fall of 1960 the church began another building program, by underpinning the church, building a porch, and redecorating the inside.
Our present pastor is Elder Leslie Hepp of Perryville who is a great grandson of the late George Ussery, who helped erect the original building.
Andrew Jackson Ussery was born in 1855 and joined the Antioch Baptist Church in 1870. He was baptized in a creek of water behind the church. He is also Eld. Leslie Hepp’s Granddad.
Signed (cir.1960’s)
Will Rankin, Deacon
Antioch Missionary Baptist Church
History of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church
After one hundred thirty years (130 yr.) the history of the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church has finally been written down by nine men whose names are listed as follows:
- Brother Leslie Hepp
- Brother Gordon Morgan, pastor at time of writing
- Brother Luther Doughty
- Brother Darrell Doughty
- Brother Bill Wright
- Brother Lewis R. Porter
- Brother Charles Doughty
- Brother Billy Doughty
- Brother Norman Doughty
