Hello, All!
Haven't posted in ages, but just came across this message and thought I
would send it on in case you hadn't seen it.
Cynthia
From "A& P Heinle" <1for1(a)bellsouth.net>
To MSJEFFER-L(a)rootsweb.com
Subject [MSJEFFER-L] INFORMATION ABOUT UNION CHURCH
Date Tue, 3 Aug 1999 08:26:20 -0500
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hello all,
I recently subscribed to the Robeson county, N.C. list in hopes of finding
information about the route followed to Union Church, MS. I was fortunate
to receive answers from two gentlemen: Dan Williamson and William Monroe.
The information is of historical importance, so I thought I'd share it with
all of you.
___________________________________________________________________________
_
The Buie Book written in the 1950's and added to by Scott Buie in the 80s
has a lot of information on Union Church, Mississippi. Heres a snippet:
Shortly after the 1790's many Scotch in North Carolina began to heed
stories
of a land of plenty to the south. There, along the higher eastern banks of
the great Mississippi river lay a land that could be had for the taking. A
land where transportation was not a problem that it was in North Carolina,
where a ton of freight sometimes cost fifty dollars to move from Brunswick
to the Scotch villages of Cumberland County; for these goods could be
brought up the great river by sea going boats, and bought at from merchants
at a reasonable price, and crops could be marketed to these same merchants
at a big price.
The first Scots from Robeson County who explored these new lands along the
Mississippi were George Torrey, son Dougald Torrey, Laughglin Currie, and
Robert Willis in 1806. Most likely they took the wagon trail from
Greensboro, NC to Jonesboro in Tennessee and then west to Nashville. There
the trail turns south to Columbia then west toward Savannah, Tn. Cross the
Tennessee River to Purdy, now called Selmer. At Selmer a wagon road leads
south to Corinth, Mississippi. From Corinth you travel south and pick up
the
Natchez Trace and follow that southwest to Union Church. This probably
took them 3 months to travel one way.
A second group arrived with the last names Galbreaths, Gilchrists,
Camerons,
and Montgomery. These Scots were nearly all Presbyterians and they
established a church in 1811. Union Church was organized in 1817 by
Reverend Joseph Bullen before the state was admitted into the union. These
settlers were mainly from Robeson county, North Carolina. After several
years Reverend Joseph Bullen gathered the Presbyterian families that had
collected from different parts of the country and organized them into a
church, which has ever since been known as "Union Church"
Union Church was then given to a large section of the country in the
eastern end of Jefferson county, Mississippi. It extends about 20 miles
from west to east, running over into the present county of Lincoln for
several miles. Its average width is perhaps ten miles from north to south.
It embraces the two Presbyterian churches of Ebenezer and Union and at a
later date two Methodist churches, Nebo and Galatia.
The ruling elders of Union Church were Angus Patterson, Neil Buie Jr., John
Buie, Matthew Smylie, Charles McDonald, Murdock McDuffie, john Watson, John
Buie, Archibald Baker, Reuban Lee, Malcolm McPherson, Lewis Cato, Daniel G.
Buie, Daniel H. Cameron, William B. Alsworth, Samuel D. McCallu, Allen
Cato,
N.R.C. Watson, Davind Galbreath, John Smylie, George Torrey, and Peter
Wilkinson.
The register on names (Not all inclusive) included McArn, McArthur,
McBride, Mccall, McCallum, McCure, McCluthie, McCormich, McCorvey,
McDonald,
McDougald, McDuffie, McEachern, Mcfater, McIntyre, McLaurin, McLean,
McMillen, McMurchie, McNair, McPherson, McQueen, McRea, and others.
The period between 1820 and 1830 may be called the romance period of the
Scotch settlement. The people were young, times were good, and money was
to
be made. After the civil war Yankee carpetbaggers moved in and bought up
the land. The proud Scotch families moved away over time and the area
eventually lost its Scotch identity.