Interesting? Chaptferil -itf*W. 4N. 0. History .j;
BREVARD-DAVIDSON RIVER CHURCH
OLD PRESBYTERIAN INSTITUTION
By
(JUDGE ROBERT L. GASH)
The recent consolidation of the Bre
tard and Davidson River Presbyter
ian ehuiches makes the history of the
??4d mid historic Davidson River
church of more than usual interest.
The sessional records of the church
jro baek to the reorganization In
iune. 1828 which was made under
the direction of Dr. H. M. Kerr, at
?which time the Rev. Christopher
Biadvhaw was installed as pastor.
T(k> church was organized thirty
rears earlier but the record from
I8D0 to 1828 is only fragmentary and
' o some extent not direct.
T<> understand the early history of
thi* church it is necessary to have a
ftiir knowledge of the early history
?f this section and of the conditions
at the close of the Revolutionary
War. West of the Blue Ridge was
the territory of the Cherokces. The
r.vtrenii settlements of the Whites of
North Carolina were around Old
Port iit the foot of the Blue Ridge on
tl'" Hast. During the Revolutionary
Wiir tlie Cherokces were allied with
tl:" British and the Whites from
X-rth Carolina did not visit them ex
(????it mi occasional trapper or trader,
It ru'diately after peace was made
with Ktigland in 1781 the settlers
c inenced pouring over the Blue
RMge, through the Swannanoa Gap
a- i built their cabins on the upper
Ttitches of the Swannanoa, and it was
only a few vears until the choice por
tions of the valleys of the Swannanoa
French Broad, Pigeon, Tuckaseigee
?nd thi I tittle Tennessee Rivers were
iettli The majority of these earlj
sett I if were of Scotch Irish stock
similar to the settlers in Mecklenbiiri
County, North Carolina, and in Yori
District. South Carolina.
T h e Swannanoa Presbyteriat
{'(lurch was organized about 178M oi
I7HI and the pastor, Rev. Georgi
Newton established preaching point.1
or its they were usually called in thai
time "camp meeting grounds," at va
n'ous other points notably on Reem:
Creek near where Weavervllle is nov
located, on Cane Creek near the pres
vrit sijfht of Fletcher, on Mills Rive:
t"<! on Davidson River. Rcems Creel
?-<is the llrst separate church to tx
?rgnnixed. After Swannanoa, am
from nil the data the writer has beei
iWe to gather, Davidson River wa
tbe second. I have not the date of tin
orgun! Mtton of Reems Creek bu
? now that the Synodlca! records o
the Synod of the Carolinas in 179!
refer to Imth Swannanoa and Reem
Creek Churches, with George Newtoi
?u pastor,
At the close of the Revolutionar;
Benjamin Davidson, one of th
younger members of the Davldsoi
tniuiiy recently settled on the Swan
nunoa. entered and took grant for i
'""'r- 'i-unxlarv of land on both side
?f and including the mouth of David
son River. Davidson River is name*
? r h'ni and the Davidson Rive
Church stands near the center of hi
foundarv, and his old residence wa
across the river and about a quarte
of it mill' from where the church wa
! Greasing
!50c
| Your car thoroughly
Greased at this^price
? and ?
Other work at
Reasonable
Prices
JESS SMITH
AUTO REPAIR
afterward organized. Other settlers in t
ho Immediate neighborhood were Ja- i
nh Wetaell, Robin Orr, Thomas Pat- I
toil. Lambert Clayton, John Tram- c
well. George Davis, Ethan Davis and f
Dunlel Davis and others. t
The early preaching point# or camp 1
meeting grounds were usually located j
In a grove and marked by a large ]
roomy shed or "tabernacle" where t
pleaching could be held In rainy 1
weather. There were often a number j
of smaller sheds grouped around, 1
'arge enough to shelter camping par
(ies and live stock. The main preach- ,
;,!(? periods wetfG during the summer |
time, after crops were "laid by" and ,
before harvest. t
The record of the original organi
sation of the Davidson River Church
has been lost but I think that we can (
filirlv place the organization as hav- ,
ing been affected during the summer ,
of the year 1800. The synodleal rec- ,
ovds for the year 1709 do not mention :
the Davidson River Church. I have
not had access to the records for the
year 1800 but The Swannanoa Church
granted church letters or letters of
dismissal to the Davidson River
; Church in 1800. In 1800 Rev. Daniel
, Davis lived in the Davidson River
, Valley on a tract of land adjoining
the Ben Davidson land on the West.
! In October, 1800, the Presbytery of
. Greenville was organized enibrasmng
the territory now contained in West
ern North Carolina, West of the Blue
! Ridge, and East Tennessee, East of
; the Cumberland Mountains, which Is
, practically the present boundary of
the Synod of Applachia. except Ab
| bington Presbytery in Virginia. This
: record, while not giving any details of
the Davidson River Church names
Daniel Davis of Davidson River as
\ one of the four preachers taking part ,
1 in that organization. The other North
? Carolina preacher taking part was
I Rev. George Newton of Swannanoa
' and Reems Creek. This clearly gives
the implication that Davidson River
s was organized as a separate church
' and with a resident pastor. This same
" Rev. Daniel Davis was on the roll of
r the church as one of the members but
* not as the pastor when the church
5 was reorganized twenty-eight years
jj late in June, 1828.
B A side reference pointing in the
,, I'time direction is found in the diary
t of Francis Asbury, the great Evan
f irelistlc Bishop of the Methodist
a Church, under dutc of Thursday, No
l vt niber 18, 1800. The bishop In his
own peerless way writes in his diary
.?is follows: "We crossed the French
Broad to Davidson's whose name
y names the stream. The aged mother
c and daughter insisted on giving no
" ticc for a meeting; in consequence
' thereof, Mr. Davis, the Presbyterian
s minister and several others came to*
* gctlter. Brother What' at was taken
j with the bleeding of the nose so that
in cesslty was laid upon me to lec
r tu re. My subject was I.uke XI: 17."
s ("Every kingdom divided against it
s self is brought to desolation; and the
r house divided against the house fall
9 eth.") From this we learn thut Da
- vidson River then had u resident pas
tor.
John Murray was an early member
jof Davidson River Church anil was
'made an elder at the reorganization
I of the church in 1828. From hh< obit
uary published in the Asheville Mes
senger long before the Civil War we
gather some information about this
church. It is there stated that John
Murray united with the Duvidson
River Church by profession in 1802
and was active in the church work un
til the church became dormant, and
I that when the church was reorganiz
ed in 1828 he was made one of the
ruling ciders.
. The original camp meeting ground
was on the East bank of Davidson
River and the "tabernacle" or large
shed stood In the open space near the
present church. As the work of the
church progressed the question imme
diately arose as to where, when And
how to put up a permanent church
building. The old camp meeting
ground was on the grounds of Ben
Davidson. The pastor lived across
the valley some half mile or so West.
In 1820 a tract of about four acres
adjoining the lands of the pastor was
conveyed to trustees for a church site.
This location would havo been much
? more convenient for the pastor but
ipwwvwwwwvwwwwww^^
I': *V> ? , ly. , ? .
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for
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IPNT W^V^tBe.
THE FINGER WAVE You Simply Adore
Price. -J5-00 $.00 $1000
? In fact any thing you want in the
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THE NOBBY SHOP 1
BEAUTY PARLOR Ladies READY-TO-WEAR '
PoatofTice Building Phone 257
1 - ??Mm
VAW.VAW.WAWAVAV.V
HISS BEDDJNGFIELD
WINS SECOND PLACE
' <i !\ ?? _ i' ..
Misa Khuemmo Beddingfleld, so
ected to represent. Brevard High
Ichool and Western North Carolina ell
n the State High School Music Con- th<
cat held In Greensboro last week, aj|
von second place. Competition was i
;een, each contestant representing I
ight counties, and MIsb Bedding-^"
leld's signal success In winning sec- pr
ind place In the state-wide contest pr
iub brought much joy to the western jj
inrt of the state, and especially to fe;
Jtevard. At the conclusion of the m
:ontest Miss Beddingfleld was given ?(
ligh praise by John Powell, famous
\merlCBn pianist, who was judge at ),0
;h? contest, jn
Friends In Brevard have been con- wl
jratulating Miss Beddingfleld, and lu
ler instructor, Prof. Alvin Moore, ye
ipon the young woman's great ac- of
:omplishment. !M
Mrs. Roland Owen accompanied j
Miss Beddingfleld to Greensboro.
WNIOR CLASS OUTING LAST \
WEEK ENJOYED BY MANY
. ev
By Glenn MilUr, Jr. di
The Junior CIosb of the Brevard e\
High School, under the direction of L
Mlos Jessie Copp, spent a delightful fi
evening at Maiden Hair falls last tl
Wednesday. et
Leaving town early in the after- a:
noon, the picnickers arrived at their nl
destination and soon were enjoying 0
games and hikes, through the wood- P
lands that are famous for their beau- n:
ty. Especially at this time of the si
year. M
Returning to the picnic grounds n F
delightful picnic supper was spread
and after the afternoon of running, w
walking and playing, each member of S
the party did justice to the culinary P
art of the youtu? ladies. tr
After supper ,the party played A
games and soon started their home- le
ward trek. ft
Those enjoying this delightful pic- ei
nlc were: Johnnie Lee Dermid, Flora J
Held Shipman, Mumie Mason, Mil- B
dred Hamilton. Smanthie Mull, Lila h
Johnson, Georgia Q|alimore, Helen n
Garland, Thelma Collins, Mabel Gil- w
lsple, Majorle Buckner, Olga Der- el
mid, Mary Nell Black, Nell Duck- li
worth Frances King. Christine Salt?,, ft
Winifred Nicholson, Hattli Sue Sit- ssi
ton, Louise Gillespie, Emma Deaver, E
Margaret Barnotte, Ethel Lee Lane, 1
Thelma Johnson, Joe Schnchner, Joe *
Black, Francis Plummer, Moultrie F
Truluck, Lionel Aiken and Fred Tal-,1
lay. j
B. I. NINE SHUT OUT
BLUE RIDGE TEAIW
Tony Trantham's Breviwd Instituti
nine pluyed havoc with Blue Ridge
here lust Siiturdiiy afternoon when |
the cruck pill chasers whitewashed
the visitors with a 10-0 score.
Tommy Graham and Rex Skidmore
played the greater part of the mime ,
by themselves, having fourteen strike- 1
outs chalked up to their credit. |
Mitchell and Aguilor came through i
with circuit clouts to help the neol'e j
along.
Tony will take his boys to Lee j
School this Thursday for a return
game, The locals played a tight
game with Lee here several weeks
ago, when Brevard won 4-2. . |
much less convenient for the majority '
of the congregation.
I There was an old tradition in thin
section of the country of a great '
"split" or division in the church over
the question of where to build the
church, and the writer in his early
boyhood has often heard old men
| (eighty or more years old) speak of
this "split" or division and while hell
has a rather hazy recollection of'1
these talks he clearly recnlls that all
of the talks agree on two points: One
was that the "split" on this subject
practically killed the church for a
number of years and the other that
this "split" was prior to the erection
of the first permanent church bulldlnr
on the bank of Davidson River.
In December, 1820, Ben Duvidson
conveyed a tract of land to John Mac
key, John Clayton, George C. Noil),
G. D. Davis "as trustees that was ap
pointed for the building of the free
meeting house and thelr^snccesBors in
office forever." About the same time
the first permanent church building
wm erected. A year and a half later,
tjie church was reorganHetf under the |
direction of Dr. Kerr aftd th<* church
now has sessional recotds extending
from. June, 1928, to the present time.
It About the time this ehurch
w^ftrst omtind in 1800 that the
f'Sfievangell^n under Goo.
We#ey and other* swept
from one end to the other
;;stydrtly after the ebb of
wave, when the work
?11 ov?r the eountry
.*s vigorous, that the
? a "difference of opto
? location b?>th* 'Ota??eh
and "kindred ?object*, and
work of the church gradually
tamii to ? standstill. A few years la
tor '.he churelr was reorganised, the
members at the reorganisation "being
partly mad6 up of thoae who had be
longed years before, and a number of
young men and women who had just
:ome to maturity.
The territory of this church Includ
ed approximately what is now Hen
ierson County and the territory ex
*nding west indefinitely and includ
td camp meeting grounds both at DaJ
Hdson River and at Mills River.
Being the first church organized in
his section the early members includ
ed many who were inclined toward j
ither denominations, and members
vho withdrew and joliieS the denomi- i
tatlons of their preference when the '
baptists and Methodists organized
hurches within a reasonablo distance.
(To Be Continued)
MRS. LOFT IS HOSTESS TO
FORTNIGHTLY CLVB
Regular meeting of the Fortnightly
lb was held Thursday afternoon at
s home of Mrs. J. G. Loftis, with
members present and two guests.
Following the transaction of rou
te business presided over by the
esident, Mrs. Loftis, an enjoyable
ogram was presented in chargp of
rs. L. E. Brown. The urogram
BtureB included two readings by
iss Edna Brown and Miss Garnefi
x, students of Brevard Institute.
Refreshments were served by the
>ateu during the social hour follow
g the program. The next meeting
ill be in the nature of -a farewell
ncheon, the last moating of the club
ar, which will be held nt the home
Mrs. J. E. Waters, on Thursday,
ay 14, at one-thirty o'clock.
ASHE MACFIE ENTERTAINS
SENIOR CLASS
One of the most enjoyable social
rents of the Senior class was a
ince given by Ashe Macfle Tuesday
'ening, at the lovely Macfle home.
Ilacs, the class flower, were taBte
illy arranged throughout the en
re lower floor which was thrown
lsuite, and the class colors, orchid
id green, were carried out artistlc
ly in the dccorationn. Miss Rowena
rr, Donald Lee Moore and Phillip
rice, furnished music for the cve
Ing. A delicious ice course wnt?
TVed by Mrs. Macfle, assiHteii b>
[iss Edith Sellers end Miss Dorothy
etzer.
Members -of the senior class present
ere: Misses Snrah Louise Andrewes,
ue Hunt, Eliza Nicholson, Ruth
erry, Edith Sellers. Rebecca Sum
icy, and Rachel Williams. Messrs.
ahe Macfle, Henry Erwin, Glen Mil
T Jr., John Recce Sledge, Hinton
IcLeod, Jnmes Jones, Clarence Bow
ti. William Bridges, Carol Davis,
ohn Lyday, Jack Miller, Hubert
atson, Paul Black, Craig Misen
elmer and Clifford Montieth. A
umber of the younger set of Brevard
'ere invited to the lovely affair, in
luding; Misses Mary Osoorne Wllk
is, Almeta Waters, Rose Schachner,
largaret Barnette and Dorothy Fet
?r. Messrs Julius Hinton, George
Iromlleld, Moultrie Truluck, Frank
lenry, Joe Schachner, William Er
dn, Langdon English. Milton Sellers,
aul Kellar, Ruffin Wilkins, and
lary Clayton.
Paul P. Smathers Is in New York
his week on business.
Mrs. Julia Trowbridge, who has
een very ill, is reported as improved.
? Vi' ? II. ??
Society News and Club Activities ,
PEARCE-SELLERS EH0A09
MENT ANNOUNCED
Announcement* hive been received
in Brevard of the approaching mar
riage of Miss Margaret Pearce to Mr.
Harry Sellers, to be solemnised early
in June. Mils Pearce is the dauffhtcr
of Mrs. R. S. Pearce and the late Mr.
K. 8. Pearce. The family is now liv
ing In St. Petersburg, Pla., where the
late Mr. Pearce was at one time may
or of that city. The -family has long
spent the summers in Brevard, and
will return to this place at an early
date. Miss Margaret Pearce is one of
the most popular young ladies known
ii) Brevard, and announcement of her
approaching marriage to Mr. Sellers
will be received with great interest.
Mr. Sellers is manager of the A. &
P. Store, Broad Street, and is an out
standing man of the community.
Follnwing is re-printed from the
St. Petersburg newspapers, being the
first public announcement of the en
gagement of these popular young peo
ple:
"Of much interest throughout thin
city and North Carolina is the an
nouncement Of the engagement of
Miss Margaret Strange Pearcc,
daughter of Mrs. Robert Strange
Pearce, 4543 Third avenue south, and
the late Mayor Pearce, to Harry Rus
sell Sellers of Brevard, N. C., the wed
ding to be an event of early June.
"Miss Pearcc is one of St. Peters
burg's most attractive and popular
girls. She graduated from the local
high school in the class of 1926, hav
ing served as vice president of her
class through the four years. Later
she attended Junior college and was a
member of the first graduating class
from the college. While a student at
the college shu was chosen as the May
queen both years.
"Mr. Sellers is the son of Mr. and
Mrs. A. B. Sellers, Asheville, N. C..
but makes his homo in Brevard where
he is in business."
MOORE-CARPENTER ENGAGE
MENT ANNOUNCE 1/
( Henderson vitlr Tiwen-New * )
Mr. and Mrs. E. H. Jones of Bre
vard announce the engagement ol
Mrs. Jones' daughter, Emily Rut!
Moore, to Dr. Walter William Car
penter of Iiendersonville. The mar
riage is to take place in the early sum
mer.
The foregoing announcement wil
be of wide interest to a lar?e circli
of friends In the Carolinus and othei
states. The bride-elect, who has speni
a number of years of her life* here
is a young woman of much cultun
,nnd charm and is widely beloved foi
SPECIAL SERVICE FOR
THE JUNIOR ORDER
m
Special services for the Junior Or
der will be held at the Glady Branch
Baptist church Sunday evening, May
3rd. the service to be held at 8:00.
The pastor, Rev. I. N. Kuykendall,
will be in pharge of the service and
will deliver the message to the mem
bers of the Order. The public is In
vited to attend this service.
The Junior Order in Brevard h*
been very active in the past several?,
months, and many new members havdB
been' udded.
ED MTOYLEASES
FILLING STATION
j Ed McCoy announces in this week's
lisue of The News that he ha*
leased the Ailing station on the cor
ner of Broad nnd Jordan streets, and *:
will open for business Friday morn*^
lng May 1st. This station, recog
nized as one of the ideal locations in
the town, is up-to-dately equipped,
and Mr. McCoy announces that he
j will handle Standard gasoline and
motor oils as his main line of busi
ness, also carrying a full line of
tires and tubes.
The "Mayor of Pisgah Forest'' who
Is also postmaster, announces that
he will continue in business at his old
stand in Pisgah Forest, and that
Albert Lyday will have charge of the
station in Brevard.
| Free parking space will be provid
ed customers of the new station, a
large lot being situated adjoining the
station. _____
her sweet graciousncss of manner. At
present she is a member of the fac
liulty of the school at Andrews.
, Dr. Carpenter, who is the son of
1 Mrs. Lula Carpenter and the late Mr.
Carpenter of Landrum, S. C., came
here several years ago and is one of
the most prominent dentists of the
city. He has made many warm friends
on account of his sterling qualities
and genial disposition and among oth
? er affiliations is a member of the Ki
wanis Club. He Is a brother of Mrs.
i A. Yates Arlodge, who with Mr. Ar
? ledge and little daughter, Phoebe
? Anne, prominent residents of this
? city, have moved to Asheville.
f Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Siniard, Mrs. L.
;|e. Siniard, Mrs. Dermitt and Miss
" Dermitt spent Wednesday in Ashe
tiville, shopping.
, I Mrs. C. H. Trowbridge of Weaver
j'ville, is visiting Mrs. Julia Trow
g.bridgi.
Grandmother's
CAKES
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ib. 29?
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JELLIES
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PINK SALMON ,K. 10c
SPARKLE as 3 p*??. 19c
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