The resilient spirit of Black America

About this series

Each Thursday in the month of February, local historian
Zann Miner will examine an area of Culpeper’s African-American heritage:

TODAY: Religion

FEB. 12: Education

FEB. 19: Business

FEB. 26: Agriculture

Black Americans, as a people, stand as testimony to a resilient spirit. Theirs was a culture born in freedom, then subjugated not only by the physical chains of slavery but the desolation of dignity denied.

For hundreds of years, generations endured, but did not collapse — a tribute to a few courageous leaders and the faith, hope and spirit of thousands. These remarkable people would ascend inch by inch along sheer cliffs blanketed with slippery terrain and razor-sharp rocks. Each crevice harbored life-threatening mysteries.

If one grew tired or succumbed to a stronger force, there would be another to follow, and another and another. Soon, where once no visible path existed, a road was carved — not straight up the face of the mountain, but like so many well-engineered roads, it curved around and around, allowing others to make the journey more easily.

For thousands of years, men have sought the treasurers of ancient lore: gold, eternal youth or simple freedom. Fortune of this kind is elusive and hard-won, if attained at all. The subsequent journey from ignorance to enlightment is littered with those who tired of the struggle, while others obsessed and completely consumed by the quest, plodded on.

For America’s black people, reaching the top of the mountain was only the first hurdle. Before them lay, in unimaginable proportion, a viewscape of endless possibilities. With Emancipation and the 13th Amendment in place, now, finally, life’s true journey could begin.

Join us each Thursday throughout the month of February as we chronicle Culpeper’s African-American heritage in the areas of religion, education, business and agriculture.

Tidbits of Culpeper’s black and white religious history

Preserving history, Zann Miner/Community Columnist

Culpeper County population records for 1860 indicate a 59 percent majority of blacks with 6,675 of those registered as slaves and 429 as freedmen.

Several Culpeper churches prior to the Civil War maintained a high percentage of blacks in the congregation that at times constituted the majority. A very few were freedmen and all occupied segregated quarters. According to record, a few of the Baptist churches allowed separate services generally led by whites.

Gourdvine Baptist Church:

1852-54: A separate service for blacks was permitted; three black deacons were elected and two white men, Crigler and Ficklin read the scripture and recorded the minutes.

1855: 354 members: white 168 and black 186 or 53%

1861: 311 members: white 165 and black 146 or 47%.

1869: 58 blacks; 1893: 25 blacks and 1903: None

Stevensburg Baptist Church:

1847: 185 members: white 88 and black 97 or 52%

Some records indicate that at least for a time the black membership had their own board of deacons and held separate monthly meetings.

1865: No blacks are listed on the rolls.

Aided by the Freedmen’s Bureau, missionaries and the good will of a few local whites, black churches in Culpeper sprang up rapidly often choosing biblical names as different from the white congregations’ traditional geographic nomenclature.

The Rev. Harrison Blair of Antioch Baptist Church Culpeper, established in May of 1867, was the first black pastor of record serving from 1867 until his death in 1884. By the close of 1867 three other black churches were conducting services in Culpeper.

Crooked Run Baptist on Rt. 15 south whose congregation had consisted of 25 whites and 81 blacks under the leadership of Rev. James Garnett, Jr. raised $400 in 1867 for “putting up a church building at Crooked Run.” There have been subsequent structures built and the church remains active.

The establishment of Ebenezer Baptist Church at Madden’s Tavern followed in Aug. 1867. Rev. Harrison Blair served as moderator and Jack Davis was appointed minister.

Rounding out the first four churches founded by 1867 is Shiloh Baptist at Brandy. Samuel Gordon was initially named pastor, followed shortly by Rev. Leland Waring.

Two more, Upper Zion (Jeffersonton) and Bethel Baptist (Cedar Mtn.) were organized by 1870 and by 1880, there were six additional congregations. The turn of the century saw 18 organized churches serving the Culpeper black communities.

In addition to those already mentioned were Beulah Baptist, Mt. Olivet, Nazareth, Good Hope, Free Union, Mt. Zion, Cedar Grove, St. Stephen’s, Bethel, Pilgrim, 2nd Shiloh and Canaan.

With the rapid growth in congregations, often served by the same ministers on rotating Sundays, there developed a growing need for the sharing of resources and service. In 1888, the Wayland Blue Ridge Association was formed as a coalition of member churches serving several adjacent counties. In 2008, the association celebrated its 120th anniversary as a vital component of the current-day church community.

Until next week, be well.

Center of the black community
Churches played leading role before and after Emancipation

By Zann Miner
Contributing writer

“The Sunday service was pleasant enough what with the singing and all, sure a lot better than working in the field. I got to visit with Sally and my boy from over at Mister Barbour’s place.

But I gotta tell you, I don’t exactly understand about this God white folks talk on about? I just don’t see how he can be as kind as they say and even love us all and still be right with us not being free? It just don’t seem right.”

These anonymous thoughts are not attributed to any one slave, but very well could have been the thoughts of many, especially in the Culpeper area.

Prior to Emancipation, the era’s version of Christianity was full of inconsistencies and mixed messages, creating doubt and cynicism for those in bondage.

Missionaries came preaching that all Christians were equal in the eyes of God, while numerous owners supported by local slave-holding ministers required slave attendance at white-controlled churches as a lesson in obedience.

Stevensburg’s own Rev. Thornton Stringfellow, owner of 60-70 slaves, cited Scripture corroborating the rightness of slavery to a congregation populated by well over 100 slaves.

By no means was he alone in a belief that obedience to one’s master was a highly desired religious ideal. Like many of his peers, he also felt it his duty to tame the heathen spirit through the teachings of Christianity.

In the decade immediately preceding the Civil War, Gourdvine, Mount Pony and Stevensburg Baptist churches enjoyed large congregations comprised at times by a majority of slaves. For a portion of this period, blacks were allowed their own service on a separate Sunday, elected their own deacons and were attended by one or two white men who would preach, read Scripture or simply supervise.

The reason for allowing the services is unsubstantiated:

Was it out of respect or kindness? Was it a question of inadequate space in the church for the large numbers? Was there an unpleasant odor when more than 100 slaves were gathered together with far fewer of their white brethren on a hot Sunday in August?

Regardless of the reason, the separate services served their purpose.

Unsupervised slave gatherings were prohibited, as owners feared more of the same violence exacted during Nat Turner’s 1831 rebellion. Black-only religious services were illegal and enforced by the Virginia Criminal Code of 1848, Chapter 120. See below.

Despite the risk, it was not uncommon for slave communities, in need of spiritual comfort, to organize “hush harbors.” Here, among the swamps or dense forests, in the dark of night, slaves began crafting a personalized form of worship. Elements of the Christian evangelical service integrated with the African practices of rhythmic singing and chanted preaching would birth the independent black church in America.

Post-Emancipation
Did the church rise up from the community or the community from the church?

The end of the Civil War and the passing of the 13th Amendment brought both jubilation and fear to the newly freed slaves. How would they survive? Where would they live? How would they reunite with long-lost family members?

The Ku Klux Klan threatened their safety, and Jim Crow laws thwarted the execution of their newly legislated rights. The need to organize a support system was paramount.

In 1867, virtually all black members of white congregations left to join or form a new church. They were not alone in their efforts.

Targeting the 4 million freed slaves, missionaries, led by Northern black Protestants and joined by predominantly white denominations, flooded the South, fostering the vibrant growth of independent black churches.

With the added benefit of the Freedman’s Bureau, the missionary effort was highly successful in helping to build churches and schools. Southern black literacy increased from 5 percent in 1870 to approximately 70 percent by 1900.

The church quickly became the center of the black community, providing the source for literacy, education, politics, reform, refuge and support. The standard by which all were measured, it has become a foundation of solidarity and salvation.

Spirited style remains
Today the African-American church continues to be uniquely defined by its spirituals, rhythmic singing and chanted preaching — and there are many who are dedicated to this manner of worship.

“The idea of preaching in the African-American church has always been marked by the chanted style,” said the Rev. Frank Lewis, of Antioch Baptist Church in Madison. “It isn’t something you can learn at school; it is a gift.”

In some circles, the practice is thought to be old-fashioned. Lewis disagrees.

“A Sunday service,” he said, “should raise spirits and inspire a sense of compassion for our fellow man. I fear that we have gotten so modern that we may be missing the point.”

Culpeper County through the years

1860: Pop. 12,063 (white 4,959; slave 6,675; free Negro 429); no black
churches

1870: Pop. 12,227 (white 6,058; black 6,169); six black churches

1880: 12 black
churches; Wayland Blue Ridge Association established

1900: 18 black

Terms and Facts
Hush harbor: A place where slaves secretly gathered to worship and sing spirituals.
Chanted preaching: Adopted by black preachers in the South to convey the emotional experience of their message, it is characterized by a sing-song style and punctuated by gestures. The same style of worship was evident in the 1850s among white preachers in the remote regions of Appalachia.

1848 Criminal Code (of Virginia) chapter 120: “It is an unlawful assembly of slaves, free negroes or mulattoes for the purpose of religious worship when such worship is conducted by a slave, free Negro, or Mulatto. For punishment, the slave or free Negro shall be seized and given stripes not exceeding thirty nine. … Any white person assembling with slaves or free Negroes for purpose of instructing them to read or write, or associating with them in any unlawful assembly; shall be confined in jail not exceeding six months and fined not exceeding $100.00.” Source: “Black Laws of Virginia” by June Purcell Guild

Freedman’s Bureau: Established 1865 by the War Department to supervise relief and educational activities for refugees and freedmen.

Ku Klux Klan: A secret militant organization, established in 1865, utilizing terrorist activities in the advocacy of white supremacy.

Emancipation Proclamation: In January 1863, Lincoln freed the slaves in the Confederate states.

13th Amendment: This constitutional amendment officially abolished slavery in America in December 1865.

14th Amendment: Passed in 1868, it protected certain rights of freed slaves.

5th Amendment: Passed in 1870, it established voting rights for blacks.
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