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<TITLE> Oak Summit Methodist Church and Community</TITLE>
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<I><FONT FACE="Coronet" SIZE=7><Center><B>History of Oak Summit Methodist Church </B></P></I></FONT></center></BODY>
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<center><STRONG> Picture Courtesy of Jack Ogburn</STRONG></center>
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<STRONG><center>A project sponsored by the Methodist Youth Fellowship of Oak Summit Church under the supervision of the Pastor and the Committee on History and records, homecoming, August 26, 1951.<BR></center><P>
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Preface<P>
For many years there has been a need for a history which would bring to
light the
facts regarding the early days of the community and the origin of the church
at Oak Summit.<P>
This project, undertaken by the Youth Fellowship, is an effort to meet this
need. Many hours of research by the youth and their advisors have gone into the
preparation of this booklet with the hope that many will find great moments of
yesterday recalled to the present.<P>
We are indebted to a number of people for their help in this undertaking,
especially
to Mrs. J. M.. McCustion, Mrs. T. L.. Walker, Sr., Mrs. Jewel Darnell, Mr. L.
L.. Walker,
and Dr. J. S . Haitt.<P>
No doubt errors will be found, but they were not made intentionally. Some
families
and some person were mentioned more prominently than others, but this was of
necessity.<P>
We sincerely hope that this history of our community and church will prove
helpful in
promoting a greater loyalty on the part of everyone of us.<P>
<h3>The Community</h3>
<HR>
In 1750 Lord Granville offered the <a href="morav.html">Moravians</a> a grant of land in the
Carolina's. The
tract covered 98,985 acres stretching over the land of the three forks of
Muddy creek. Thus, all the land in our vicinity belong to the tract known as
"Wachovia."<P>
Little is known of this (northern) section (of Forsyth) until about 1800 when <a href="ogburn.html">Edmund Ogburn</a>, the pioneer
Ogburn of this section, came into the state from Pennsylvania. He settle on a
fifty-one acre
tract seven mile north of Salem (Near the present intersection of Routes 8
and 66 ). Here he cleared the land, cultivated crops , and secured wild game.
The main thread of our story of the community comes to light in the son who
was born about a year earlier in Brunswick, Virginia .<P>
James E. Ogburn purchased a tract of land adjoining that of his father's, as
soon as he was married, and did his father before him, constructed a home of the
pioneer type of logs hewed from the forest on the tract. It is recorded that
the chimney of the house was built of hewed logs, also riveted together, and
coated inside with a plaster of clay.<P>
This house is still standing today on the same site that it was constructed
on over one hundred years ago. It is situated on the lot behind the New Mineral Springs
High School, and is locally known as the "Red House."<P>
All the Ogburns in this section trace their ancestry back to Edmund and his
five sons, especially James E. and M. L.. James E. and his wife reared eight children,
seven boys and one girl. The eldest son, Marcellus H. ("Stump ") bought
land adjoining his father's and built a pioneer home. It is still standing
today and is known as "Green Pastures" (the home of Mr. and Mrs. Blake
Ferguson and family.) One of his daughters, Anna married another Ogburn, Joe
E. They have been outstanding in this community for a number of years.<P>
M. L. ( " Matt ") built an old log home about a half-mile from the present
site of our church. this home, over eighty years old, is known as the Gladstone place
today. His children are well known in our community . They are : Mrs. J. L.
Newton Sr., Mrs. C. R. Ferguson, Mrs. J. H. Pratt, Mrs. W. R. Gladstone, and
Willis " Bud " Ogburn . Page after page could be written about the ancestors of the pioneer Ogburn
in this community . <P>But there are other families too, which are worthy of mention. a
glance at the Cox clan brings us to the knowledge that this community was first called
"Flat Branch." Inquiries to the Post Office Department revealed the fact that this Community
had a Post office established as " Flat Branch" on December 31, 1877. William H.
Cox was the only Postmaster at this office. It stood just about where Mr. Fred.
E. Lewis, Jr.'s house stands today. it was named "Flat Branch" for the flat branch which
ran down behind the house.<P>
Mrs. Billy Cox (Sarah) acted as postmistress for this office and was
displeased with the Name "Flat Branch." She wrote to the Department at Washington
having it changed to "Oak Summit" for the great oak trees in the community and for
the summit on which they stood. This was done on March 9, 1981 and the office
carried the name until it was discontinued on March 31, 1903.<P>
The name recalls Martin Westmoreland, the founder of the Sunday
School in the Mount Pleasant community which became the Mount Pleasant
Methodist Church. Martin was the father of T. T. Westmoreland, one of the first
stewards at Oak Summit. he is the father of the following members of the Oak Summit Church ;
Mrs. I. J. Grubbs, Mrs. M. F. James. Mrs. Fred E. Lewis, Sr. Mrs. A W. Stoltz, Sr., and
Mrs. L. L. Walker. Another son, Ernest, is connected with R, J, Reynolds Tobacco. Company.<P>
Worthy of note is the Old Joe Marshall place in what is known as the Cheery
Hill section of our community. This old home is still pointed out as one of the
oldest in the area. Mr. Joe W, Marshall was on the school committee of Oak
Summit when the land for the school was acquired.<P>
Another old home of the community is the Millard Walker place. The widow,
Mrs.Anne Walker, is living in the home at this date. The walker family has
always been active in the life of the community and church.<P>
The Kapp homestead located just below the Gladstone place was started in
1875. W. W. Kapp and his wife reared a large family of children, several of which
are outstanding in our church and community today. They are : Mrs. R. C. Brinkley, Mrs. A. E.
Stanley, and Mrs. M. B. Wolfington. Other children are Mrs. J. W Caudle. Mrs.
D. S. Walker, M. L. Kapp, W. C. Kapp, Sr., and W. E. Kapp.<P>
These are just a few of the many outstanding families which settled our
community and whose children are still very active in the life of the Oak Summit
section.<P>
<HR>
Oak Summit School <a href="oaksum.html">Photo</a> <P>
Like most schools of yesterday Oak Summit was used for teaching the three "Rs"
during the week and for study and preaching of the Word of God on Sunday. According to
the recollections of many people who attended the Old school in the early
1900's (the land was bought from the Moravians on September 3 1888 for twenty-five dollars).
The first Methodist to preach in the school was the Reverend J. H. Robertson, pastor
of the Forsyth circuit. On the other Sundays the several Christian preachers brought
messages to the people gathered in the old Oak Summit School. The aforesaid
Mr. Robertson organized a Sunday school which later became the church.<P>
The annual conference of the western North Carolina Conference of the
Methodist Episcopal Church South, in 1906 received a young man by the name of Joseph
Spurgeon Haitt on trial and appointed him to the Forsyth circuit. It was during that
year that he found a group of people interested in the Methodist way of life
and thus proceeded to organize Oak Summit Methodist Episcopal Church, South
in the one room school building. Here begins our known history of the Oak
Summit Church.<P>
Mr. Haitt's first sermon was preached from the Text: " Let not your heart
be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27). In all probability Mr.
Millard Walker led the singing for this first Sunday worship service.<P>
As the interest continued to grow the group felt the need for larger
quarters. October 15, 1907, marked the day that Henry W. Thomasson and his wife, Bettie, deeded
approximately one acre to the following trustees : C. M. Hauser, Edward
Walker and C. S. Walker for the amount of $45.00. Construction, more than
likely, was begun during the fall under the supervision of Millard and
Charlie Walker. Millard was the husband of Mrs. Anne Walker, the oldest
living member of Oak Summit church. Charlie was the father of Mrs. T. L.
Walker,Sr.'s late husband.<P>
This building, like the others of its day, was a one-room church. there were
two aisles - short benches were on each side. (These are still in use in the
men's and women's Bible classrooms) and the present long ones. It was heated by two stoves -
one on each side with the pipes joining overhead. There were two outside doors - one on each side - with steps, perhaps four, leading up to the doors. the men would go in one door and the women in the other .
There were two windows on either side of the Pulpit, this being the style of architecture for the early twentieth century .<P>
The following notes gleaned from the Quarterly conference records of the
Forsyth circuit at the Mt. Tabor Parsonage are very interesting : <P>First mention of
the Oak Summit
Church is on October 28,1905. First mention of the new church at Oak Summit
is on October 3, 1908. The Reverend Mr. Haitt penned these words in his flowing
Spencerian handwriting in his reports to the quarterly Conferences: " Now worshiping in
new church at Oak Summit. " (January 16, 1909). a later entry, April, 1909 states, " Oak
Summit now finished . " <P>
<center><IMG SRC="wwt.jpg"></center>
<center>Photo of Wiley W. Thomasson, courtesy of Jack Ogburn </center><P>
Another entry in the records reveals that the first Sunday School superintendents were Wiley W. Thomasson and C. S. Walker . The First Quarterly Conference ever held at Oak Summit was on June 19, 1909. Mr. Haitt
adds : "There were no records for Oak Summit as of this date. " The date is unknown, but probably in the following year, when the church was dedicated. It was dedicated by the presiding elder, Dr. T. F.
Marr. <P>
Mr. Haitt served the Forsyth circuit of which Oak summit was a part from
November 19, 1906 until November 21, 1910. He was succeeded by the reverend D.P. waters (deceased, August 15, 1950 ) who served until November 25, 1912.<P>
The first recorded of stewards and trustees for Oak Summit was during the
Reverend Mr. waters' pastorate. They were as follows : stewards - C. M..
Hauser, the late husband of Mrs. Charlie Hauser ; T. T. Westmoreland; Willis Ogburn, and
Edward Walker; Trustees - M. H. (Stump) Ogburn, T. T. Westmoreland, T. E. Ogburn (Joe E.
Ogburn's father), and Edward Walker, father of Mrs. Lottie Walker Johnson, Robah F.
Walker, and Howard J. Walker. Mr. Edward Walker was also the Sunday School superintend.
Mr. Waters was followed by the Reverend G. W.. Vick (deceased, Dec.. 5, 1949)
and he in turn by Rev. J. H.. Vestal. Reverend H. H. Mitchell (deceased ).
Reverend E. K.. Creel, Rev. J. C. Cornette, and Reverend John w. Cline were
the last pastors to serve Oak Summit on the old Forsyth circuit.<P>
The Western North Carolina Annual Conference of 1923 set up a new charge -
Ogburn Memorial, Consisting of Ogburn Memorial, Oak Summit, and Shiloh. The
Reverend G.B. Clemmer was the first pastor to serve this charge.<P>
Oak Summit had continued to grow during the ministry of the devoted men who
had served her until she was cramped for room. It was during the pastorate of Mr.
Clemmer that some very important additions were made. The first was the boiler
room and the adjoining room to the right . The second addition comprised the rooms on the right and
left wings
upstairs and downstairs. The stairway on the right was added at this time to
give access to the room on that side. Previously there was just the one
stairway on the left. <P>
The pulpit windows of the original church were made into doors in order to
give
entrance to the four rooms at the back of the church. Now these were boarded
up and the
present doors cut. The porch, too was added during this time. Robah Ferguson
and Hunter
Gladstone poured the concrete for the porch. Memorial windows were installed
where the
two outside doors were and the center doors with the center aisle were
devised.<P>
Mr. Clemmer also found his bride during his pastorate at Oak Summit. He is
married to the former Clara Newton, daughter of Mrs. J. L. Newton, Sr.<P>
Other pastors to serve the three - point Ogburn Memorial circuit were the
Reverend W. M. Robbins, the Reverend O. P. Ader, the Reverend O. L. Brown, and the
Reverend B.M. Crosby ( Deceased, December, 1949).<P>
On Friday, November 18, 1932, during the Reverend Mr. Brown's pastorate, the
women of the church were organized into the Women's Missionary Society . Mrs.
T. L. Walker, Sr. , was president and the society had fifteen charter members.<P>
The old school house in which the church was started had enlarged by the
county. When the county built Mineral Springs Number Two, it was offered for sale and
on March 4, 1937. L. L. Walker, J. L. Newton , Jr., and C. R. Ferguson,
trustees gave $750, which had been raised by the women of the church, for the
building and property. This edifice has been used for Sunday School classes,
a social hall, and a place for many suppers for the benefit of the church
building fund.<P>
The Annual Conference of the Western North Carolina Conference of the
Methodist Church (the three branches united in May) of 1939 set up Ogburn Memorial
as a station, leaving Oak Summit and Shiloh as a two point charge. This was done during
the pastorate of Reverend C. D. White. This was short lived however, for the
Conference of 1940 took Shiloh from the Oak summit-Shiloh charge and placed
her in with the other churches of the Mt. Pleasant Circuit. Oak Summit was
placed with New Hope and thus formed the New Hope - Oak summit charge. The
men who served this two point charge were the Reverend A. C. Kennedy, Sr.,
the Reverend G. M. Carver, the Reverend G. W. Williams, and the Reverend G.
F. Houck.<P>
During the pastorate of the Rev. Mr. Williams the people of Oak summit laid
plans for building a parsonage at Oak summit. The parsonage was then located at
New hope in the Old Town section.<P>
Here begins the heroic saga of the combined efforts of a hard working pastor
and the equally hard - working members of the congregation. The site of the parsonage
was selected on the oak summit just to the west of the old school building in
which the church was organized. A number of tall, stately oak trees were
removed, taken to the mill and made into lumber for the parsonage. The actual
work on the parsonage began at Easter time, 1947. A number of the men under
the capable leadership of Mr. Fred E. Lewis, Sr., would gather for work in
the evenings after work and on Saturday and holidays. Suppers were held to
pay for the materials that had to be bought and for the labor that had to be
contracted.<P>
In August, 1949, the people of Oak Summit were promised a station and a
pastor for the next year. Being pushed for time, the finishing work was contracted,
and the furniture moved in several days before the new pastor, the present
one, moved in.<P>
The parsonage , completed in October, 1949, is modern in every respect. It
has seven rooms - living room, dinning, kitchen, master bedroom, study, and two
upstairs bedrooms; two full baths and a full basement, part of which is used for a
garage. It is heated by a central oil-fired furnace. The cost of the parsonage and furnishings is estimated at $25,000.<P>
The State Highway people paved the road in front of the church in the Spring
of 1949. Now that the hazard of red dirt was lessened. Mrs. C. R. Ferguson,
seeing the need of painting the church, set out to obtain the necessary funds. In a few short
weeks of hard work she secured the needed contributions and shortly after conference, Mr.
A.C. Larrimore and Mr. Robah Ferguson gave the exterior a coat of gleaming
white; the belfry was treated with aluminum paint. <P>
The beauty of the outside contrasted so badly with the unloveliness of the
interior that the men of the church decided to beautify the sanctuary too. first, the
ceiling was celetexed and then the men met one evening and painted the
interior in the restful green color so in demand in these days. Lonnie Benge
and Junior Ashely put up the celetex. The women's and men's Bible classes
were then dressed up with the same treatment. These projects were done in
January , 1950.<P>
The rooms in the Sunday school were painted by the men shortly afterwards in
the restful blue, rose, and green that you see today.<P>
The people of Oak Summit are proud of their present accomplishments, and
rightly so, but they are already laying plans for the future. a building fund has
been started for the New church which will be built across the road adjacent to the parsonage.
The present enrollment of the Sunday School is 229 . The present membership
of the church is 270. <P>
Oak Summit, situated in a rapidly developing residential area, and within
shouting distance of the New Mineral Springs high and Elementary Buildings (Valued at
$1,500,000 ), and the Oak Summit Elementary school with its new $250,000
additions, has every chance to grow into a leading suburban church. May the
Lord guide her future as He has the past<P>
Register of Pastors - 1907 - 1951<P>
Forsyth Circuit<P>
1. J.S. Hiatt - November 19, 1906 - November 21, 1910<BR>
2. D.P. Waters - November 21, 1910 - November 25, 1912<BR>
3. G.P. Vick - November 25, 1912 - December 25, 1912 <BR>
4. J.H. Vestal - December 1, 1913 - November 19, 1913 <BR>
5. H.H. Mitchell - November 19, 1917 - October 27, 1919 <BR>
6. E.K. Creel - October 27, 1919 - September 25, 1920<BR>
7. J.C. Cornette - September 25, 1920 - September 24, 1921<BR>
8. J.W. Cline - September 24, 1921 - October 22, 1923<P>
Ogburn Memorial Circuit<P>
9 G.B. Clemmer - October 22, 1923 - November 7, 1927<BR>
10. W. H.. Robbins - November 7, 1927 - October 29, 1928<BR>
11. O.P. Ader - October 29, 1928 - November 15, 1931<BR>
12. O.L. Brown - November 15, 1931 - October 28, 1934<BR> 13. B.M. Crosby - October 28, 1934 - October 24, 1938<P>
Shiloh - Oak Summit <P>
14. C.D. White - October 24, 1938 - October 24, 1841<P>
New Hope - Oak Summit<P>
15. A.C. Kennedy, Sr. - October 24, 1941 - October 23, 1942<BR>
16. G.M. Carver - October 23, 1942 - October 22, 1943 <BR>
17. G.W. Williams - October 22, 1943 - October 13, 1947<BR>
18. G.F. Houck - October 13, 1947 - September 26, 1949<P>
Oak Summit<P>
19. C. Marvin Boggs - September 26, 1949<P>
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One of my fondest memories was attending this church and then going over to my uncle's <BR>house (<a href="hall.html">J. E Hall</a>) to count the day's offering. Uncle Pete was Treasurer for many years - <I>Faye Moran</I><P>
This information generously contributed by Jack Ogburn. Jack's email address is: [email protected]<P>
<HR>
<IMG SRC="coff.gif"><a href="ogburn.html"> Ogburn Family Page </a><BR>
<IMG SRC="coff.gif"><a href="index.html"> Jarvis Family Homepage</a><P></STRONG>
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