Marion Regular Baptist Church Richmond Township

The Marion Church - Regular Baptist church was organized the fourth Saturday in June, 1832. The following first memebers were, John Vanderpool, Winant Vanderpool, James Campbell, Levi Vanderpool, John Brown, Henry Miles, Elisah Butcher, Thomas english and Hiram Clark. The original church building was erected of logs, about 1846. It was burned some time in the pastorate of Reverend James Duval. In the autumn of 1880 the erection of a new frame church was begun. It was completed early in the succeeding year, having been on Christmas day, 1880, dedicated by Rev. William Brown and Rev. James Duvall. Rev. John Stone was the first pastor of this church and was a good man, whose memory is fondly cherished. Rev. James Duvall was pastor upwards of thirty-three years. In the fall of 1880 the roll book of Marion Church showed a membership of twenty-eight. At the beginning of the war a division arose in the church from the same grounds that caused the schism in the New Garden Chruch. Part of the congregation joined fellowship with the Crooked River Church, and took no part in the erection of the present church building. Taken in part from 1881 Ray County History 1973 Ray County History book does not mention this church.