Samuel H. Hughes
granted the land to the church. First served by ministers from the Milledgeville
Methodist Church and the Putnam Circuit. According to WPA Church Records,
Baldwin County, White Churches, 9/19/1939, Georgia Archives, the "church
first held services in a frame building erected the year of the organization,
this was used forty years, the present (1939) structure was erected in
1853" and dedicated the same year. "It was a frame building
painted white, with no special features. First settled clergyman, Rev.
J. V. M. Morris, 1867-1869."
In 1867, the Baldwin
Circuit was organized and the church had a regular pastor - J.V.M. Morris
from 1868-1869. He served the four churchs of the circuit - Bethel, Pleasant
Grove, Montpelier and Hopewell.
Some of the families
attending were Barksdale, Booker, Elam, Green, Harper, Humphries, Hughes,
Myrick, Minor, Jones, Snead, and Stiles.
According to WPA Church Records, Baldwin County, White Churches, 9/19/1939, Georgia Archives, the pastors who served from "1867 to 1939 were: James V. M. Morris, Nov. 1867-69; John W. Stipe, Nov. 1869-Dec. 1872; Walter R. Branham, Jr., Dec. 1872- Dec. 1873; George W. Hardaway, Dec. 1873 - Dec. 1874; Walter L. Yarbrough, Dec. 1874 - Dec. 1875; William R. Foote, Jr., Dec. 1875 - Dec. 1877; Ed. A. Gray, Dec. 1877 - Dec. 1879; John C. Davidson, Dec. 1879 - Dec. 1882; T. H. Gibson, Dec. 1882 - Dec. 1884; T. D. Cantrell, Dec. 1884 - Dec. 1885; T. H. Gibson 1885-Dec. 1886; F. P. Brown, Dec. 1886 - Dec. 1887; George W. Griner, Dec. 1887 - Dec. 1889; J. J. Ansley, Dec. 1889 - Dec. 1891; J. V. M. Morris, 1891 - Dec. 1895; George W. Griner, Dec. 1895 - Dec. 1896; J. M. Lowery, Dec. 1896 - Dec. 1898; Crawford Jackson, Dec. 1898 - 1899; W. T. Caldwell, Dec. 1899 - Dec. 1900; T. P. Spencer, Dec. 1900 - Dec. 1901; J. A> Quillian, Dec. 1901 - Dec. 1904; E. H. Wood, Dec. 1804 - Dec. 1908; P.B. Seary, Dec. 1908 - Dec. 1911; S. H. Dimon, Dec. 1911 - Nov. 1914; W. O. Butler, Nov. 1914 - Nov. 1915; A. A. Tilley, Nov. 1915 - Nov. 1919; L. W. Browder, Nov. 1919 - Nov. 1923; J. H. Farr, Nov. 1923 - Nov. 1929; T. L. Ruthland, Nov. 1929 - Nov. 1930; G. B. Henderson, Nov. 1930 - Nov. 1933; R. C. Shea, Nov. 1933 - Nov. 1936; G. T. Shell, Nov. 1936 --."
History of Baldwin County Georgia, Mrs. Anna Maria Green Cook 1925
Church History is available at United Methodist
Church (U.S.) North Georgia Conference Local church histories, MSS 028,
Archives and Manuscripts Dept., Pitts Theology Library, Emory University.
Box/Folder 3/14
Eileen Babb McAdams copyright 2002