A Short History of Mount Pleasant Baptist Church
Bullittsville, Kentucky
By Jim DuvallMount Pleasant Baptist Church was constituted on September 30, 1840 less than two months before the new Salem Predestinarian Baptist Association would be formed. The church was organized with 12 members from Bullittsburg Baptist, 7 members from Sand Run Baptist, and 1 member from Forks of Gunpowder Baptist.
This church was a charter member of the Salem Association started in 1840. There were 22 members listed in 1840 and 38 by 1843 and 41 by 1845. In 1850 there were 43 members. By 1860 Mount Pleasant was no longer in the Salem Association and we have few records of it.
Lewis Conner, the pastor of Forks of Gunpowder Baptist Church at the time, was present at the Mount Pleasant constitution and was called as the first pastor and remained until the end of 1841. William S. Hickey, a Baptist minister from Clark County, KY had come into the church in November, 1841. He was called as pastor in January, 1842 and served until June, 1844 when he was no longer able (Hickey was still a messenger of the church to the Salem Association in 1845). Lewis Conner again served as pastor until October, 1844. William Hume was called as pastor and served until November 1847. Hume was still listed as pastor of Crew's Creek Baptist Church in the Salem Minutes in 1845, so it was probably a dual pastorate for him. That was a common practice then.
James Gaines, J. W. Rogers, John Gaines and B. Watts were appointed as messengers to the first associational meeting which was held in 1840. James Gaines wrote the Circular Letter for the Association in 1843 on "The Love of God; and also the duty of saints loving one another."
James A. Kirtley said of this church, "Individuals of the churches under the care of Elders Robert Kirtley and [William] Whitaker, withdrew, organized themselves into a church, and went with their comrades into the new association (Salem Predestinarian)." 1 In the 1856 Salem Association Minutes, Mount Pleasant showed a membership of nine. J. Popham, Wilson Conner and W. H. Montague were the church's messengers to the association. The next available Minutes we have extant is 1860 and Mount Pleasant was not listed in the Salem Association. 2
In 1897, Mount Pleasant (along with Salem Baptist church of Verona) was associated with the Miami Regular Baptist Association. Most of the churches in this association were located in Ohio. The records list Mount Pleasant with 21 members and Elder H. M. Curry as pastor. They met on the second Sunday of the month and the prior Saturday for business sessions. Curry lived in Lebanon, Ohio and pastored two other churches. The church clerk was Thomas S. Whittaker, Boone County. 3
The last report of the church having a pastor was 1925.
The meeting house location is listed in the Boone County Atlas of 1883. It was located near the old Bullittsville Post Office, at the bottom center of the map on page 13 (Old School Baptist Church). 4
___________ Notes 1. James A. Kirtley, History of Bullittsburg Baptist Church, p.60.2. Salem Association of Predestinarian Baptists Minutes. The number of Salem Associational records are limited.
3. Miami Regular Baptist Association Minutes (OH), 1897. The Association met at Mount Pleasant meeting house that year. A footnote in the Minutes reads, "NOTE: The present session will long be remembered. The brethren and sisters were royally entertained by their sister church, and await the opportunity to reciprocate. May the good Lord keep and use us in the unity of spirit and bond of love. CLERK"
4. William Conrad and Susan Cabot researched this location; they described and recorded it on the Crisler Cemetery Record in 1990. This is available at the Boone County Historic Preservation Review Board, Burlington, KY.
[Much of this information is from handwritten records of Sarah Holtzclaw, Burlington, KY and was provided by Elizabeth Kirtley, Florence, KY.]
Boone County Baptists
Baptist History Homepage