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On May 21, 1882, fourteen
Christian men and women united to form Corinth Baptist
Church. Rev D. W. Hiott, one of the charter
members, preached the first sermon.
Since that
beginning Corinth has been served by the following
pastors: Hiott, Singleton, Hutchens, Singleton, Durham,
Foster, Weldon, Hiott, Childress, Howard, Hammet, McCoy,
Hunter, Henson, Campbell, Long, League, Ayres, Simpson,
Lankford, Sargent, Ferguson, Trotter, Sipes, Stephens,
Davis, Swinson, Clampitt, Cooper, Hayes, Ladd, and now
Reynolds.
At first the church was
simply called Corinth. At times its name was listed as
Corinth Baptist Church of Christ. Sometime in the year
1882, Corinth joined the Piedmont Baptist Association.
When another church named Corinth also joined, our
church was given the name Corinth No. 1.
In its early years the
church did not meet every Sunday and Wednesday as it
does now. Transportation was not good, money was not
available and most pastors had to serve more than one
church. In fact, Rev. Hiott, Corinth's first pastor,
served three churches at the same time. He preached at
Corinth on the third Saturday each month at 11:00 a.m.
and on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. He then preached at Mt.
Pisgah on the third Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and on Sunday
at 11:00 a.m. He preached at a church in Seneca on the
second and fourth Saturday and Sunday.
In 1896, Corinth began
plans for a new church building which was completed on
March 20, 1889, at a cost of $261.00. It was 28 feet by
40 feet in size, but was expanded at a later date. It
now serves as the fellowship building.
In February, 1924, Sunday
school was first held. B.Y.P.U., the forerunner of
Church Training, was organized in October 1929. W.M.U.
was begun in 1945.
Corinth has licensed
several men to preach. They are Robert Lockaby, Robert
Orr, Robert Dickard, Eddie Johnson, Doyle Finley and
Randy Smith.
In 1963 the parsonage was
completed and dedicated and in 1965 the present church
building was constructed. Mr. Frank Lockaby was the
architect who drew the plans and the M.L. Garrett
Construction Company built the structure. The mortgage
on the building was burned in September 1973.
Corinth No. 1 Baptist
Church has served the Lord for 104 years and with the
rapid growth of the community around the church, there
is great potential for the future.
CORINTH NO. 1 BAPTIST
CHURCH
Pastor.......Rev. Harlan
Ladd
Sunday school.......10:00 a.m.
Morning
Worship......11:00 a.m
Training Union.......6:30
p.m.
Evening Worship.......7:30 p.m.
Wednesday
Night Prayer Service.......7:30 p.m.
May 21, 1982 marked the
centennial of Corinth No. 1 Baptist Church. In the
beginning, the people met each 3rd Saturday and Sunday
for preaching only.
Sunday school was begun in
Deb. 1924. The original building constructed in 1897 and
added to several times, now serves as the fellowship
hall. Today the church has a seating capacity of
approximately 400.
The W.M.U., was organized in 1945 at
the home of Mrs. Leila Smith. Our present director, Mrs.
Truman Black, presented Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Sallie
Campbell with a W.M.U. pin and a certificate on May 9,
1981, for their many years of service to the W.M.U. Our
W.M.U. now has 6 organizations that it sponsors. They
are:
Mission Friends, 2 Girls in Action groups,
2 Acteen groups, and a Baptist Women group. Plans are
being made to add a Baptist Young Women group next year.
Both girls' groups are planning for recognition services
to honor the work they have done his year. We have
worked together to sponsor projects such as Lottie Moon
and Annie Armstrong offerings, Camp La Vida, Migrant
Bags and Prisoner Bags. We feel that we have a strong
organization.
Corinth was founded by
people with as strong desire to build and maintain a
church to worship God. With God's help and the prayers
and support of one another, we have seen this last into
a second century.
THE LAST CENTURY
In the church yard there
stood a large oak tree. Many years it has stood,
perhaps a century.
Birds still come as they
did long ago
To rest on the limbs and observe things
below.
If the birds could talk as they descended
through the years
Would they tell us things of joy,
or would it bring us to tears?
Let's listen to their story
as they tell of yesterday
And of the different people
who may have come this way.
They traveled by buggy,
by wagon or walked;
The young people liked walking,
so they could talk.
Tollie would marry Becky
and Maude would marry Fred;
While Johnny courted
Leila, Sallie turned Furman's head
This place became
a welcomed sight for friends and family;
To meet and
share good news and bad-there was no phone, you
see.
The branches on this tree,
small as they were then,
Kept the horses retained
while the people were within
In the house of worship
where they would sing and pray
And listen to the
preacher bring the message of the day.
There was another purpose
the branches served well too;
They made a good
persuader for those who failed to do
Exactly as they
had been told by their parents tried and true.
The
children learned quite early all rules they would
obey
Or else it felt much better to stand for lunch
that day.
One hundred years have now
passed by
As people look back-some of them
sigh.
Today is so different, so modern, so
fast!
What will be written if another century is
past?
By Eleanor
Hunter
Corinth Baptist Church cemetery is located on the
grounds of the
church.
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