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Cherokee County Churches



Early Day

Preachers


As our pioneer ancestors pushed westward, one of their greatest concerns was the establishments of religious services and finding a way to fulfill their spiritual needs.
For the first decade or so in each new settle the only religious services were occasional gatherings in the homes with preaching by a traveling preacher who chanced along. Often they were hard pressed for a man of the cloth to conduct marriage ceremonies, funeral rites or baptisms.
Dedicated zealous men arose to meet these needs...men who rode innumerable miles on horseback, fording rivers and braving Indians to  bring comfort in time of trouble and to help the scattered settlements keep in touch with the world. These early preachers' Bibles in their saddle bags, have a special place in religious history.

To write the history of the Methodist Church in Cherokee County, one has to go back to the circuit riders. The Methodist church was the first denomination to make use of these roving preachers on the frontier.
The circuit riders have been described as dedicated, zealous men who rode innumerable miles on horseback, fording creeks and rivers and braving Indians and the wilderness, to bring comfort to pioneers in time of trouble and to advance the work of the church in the new west.


Reverend David R. Stanford - Circuit Riding Preacher Was Early Settler

O. S. Wight - Circuit Rider Preacher





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Page created 3 June 2025