Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/268

 208 HISTORY OP SOUTHEAST MISSOURI the Rev. David Tenney. Jlr. Tenney died in the same year. The Rev. Edward Hollister was connected with the Presbytery for a short time in 1821. The Rev. Timothy Flint was one of the most active of the Presbyterian ministers in Southeast Missouri in the early times. He seems to have organized a Bible society in Jackson about 1820 and also a Sunday school at the same place. This so- ciety was called the Columbian Bible Society. Its officers were Jason Chamberlain, president ; Christopher G. Houts, treasurer; and A. Hayue, secretary. Rev. Timothy Flint seems to have traveled all through Upper Louisiana. He preached at Jackson, New Madrid, St. Charles and in Arkansas. He was a very vig- orous, energetic and earnest man, had been thoroughly educated at Harvard college, and wrote a number of books bearing on Missouri history. He spent the winter of 1819 at New Madrid. He was a man who had consideTable influence but, also, considerable trouble, as he was not always able to adapt himself to the conditions under which he found himself placed. Among the publications written by Flint were the "Life of Daniel Boone," a "History and Geography of the Mississippi Valley," and "Recollections of the Last Ten Years in the Mississippi Valley." In 1818 a presbytery was held at Potosi and a yoimg man, who had been a ministerial student was ordained by Rev. Timothy Flint and Rev. INIatthews. They rode from St. Louis to Potosi on horseback to perform this That one of the Christian denominations knovsTi as Disciples, or simply Christians, seems to have begun its labors in Southeast Missouri in 1819. The teachings of this de- nomination had spread from Kentucky and Pennsj-lvauia to the west, and in the year mentioned the Rev. William Mcilurtry came from Virginia and located in Madison coimty. He was a carpenter by trade, but preached also. He began to teach the doctrines of the church as soon as he was located within the state, and in 1822 organized a church in what is now the town of Libertyville. There were only three members of the church at that time, and they held their meetings in the log school house. The increase was slow at first, for in 1826 there were only nine members of the church. "We have thus recounted something of the beginning of effort by the Christian denom- inations in the early years in Missouri. We find that the only formal organization before 1804 was the organization of the Catholic church ; that its teachings had spread in prac- tically every commimity in Upper Louisiana; that its work had been organized and at least two houses of worship constructed. There were members of other denominations in Up- per Louisiana before the transfer; that they held their regular services in private fam- ilies, but were not allowed to build meeting houses or to perfect any kind of organiza- tions. Upon the transfer to the United States, the Baptists and Methodists, and a little later the Presbyterians and Christians, or Disciples, began to prosecute the work of evangelism in a systematic way. There seem to have been two distinct methods of carrying on the work. The first Baptist church withiu the state was organized through the efforts of a visiting minister, and this church became the center for the sending out of the gospel to other parts and for the organization of other churches. In the same way the organi- zation of the Disciples was begun. The first work performed by the Presbyterians within