WEST LINCOLN — Pleasant Grove Baptist Church was formed 151 years ago on March 3, 1872 and had 14 members in its start. Linda Halley and David Gill are the fourth generation descendants of those founding members and spoke about the big celebration of their history on March 4 and 5. 

They sat outside in the cool shade of a covered walkway from the main sanctuary to the Fellowship Hall. A sign commemorating the history of the church was installed Tuesday morning. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History made the sign and had it approved by the legislature. 

“We were born and raised here. We didn’t realize how old it was until we started looking at the history. We had to plan the celebration for this year,” Halley said. 

Gill said it worked out to wait another year on its 151st anniversary to celebrate the 150th because things are more relaxed after COVID now. The anniversary committee put together a book documenting their history, the people buried in the church cemetery and current members for the special occasion. 

Halley said they will have a Fun Food Fellowship on March 4th from 2 to 5 p.m. and a Worship Service at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday March 5th. Jason Case will be the Guest Speaker and the Smith Family will provide special music during the service on Sunday. 

Humble beginnings 

Pleasant Grove Baptist Church is named after Pleasent Smith and the grove of Gum trees which grew on the seven acres of property donated by R.R. Applewhite to start the church. His family had gone to Friendship Baptist Church which was started in 1809 but they prayed and decided to form their own church as the family branched out in Lincoln County. They had driven wagon trains or walked several miles to Friendship Baptist Church at Cobbs or to other nearby churches according to the Pleasant Grove 150th anniversary book. 

Pleasant Smith, E.T. Young, J.M. Byrd and R.E. Smith were the founding men who led prayer groups in their homes. A tiny log cabin was built as the first meeting place and had dirt floors. Pleasant Grove has since been updated to carpet laid over wood floors. Thomas Jefferson Hutson served as the first pastor. 

The church grew in size and another building was erected near the site of the first church building in 1901 at the tune of $800. According to the 150th anniversary book, it was remembered for a sign which hung over “Amen Corner,” which said “Please don’t spit on the floor.” It had green shutters on the windows and men and women entered the building through separate doors. 

The building was replaced by a third structure in 1916 and a fourth building was built in 1955. 

Buried in the church cemetery are veterans from the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War and members of the Mississippi National Guard. 

Surviving COVID-19

Pleasant Grove would have seen the struggles of the Great Depression, several American military conflicts and inflation in its history. COVID-19 was one of the more recent challenges the church faced. 

Pleasant Grove’s church minutes reflect a change in 2020 to 2021 due to the pandemic. Transactions stood still, church minutes, requested letters, baptisms, church reports and committee meetings were limited. 

The Lord’s Supper had to be delivered to homes in small, pre-packaged servings.Funerals became graveside services.  Weekly service was limited to morning worship only and two morning services were offered to allow for social distancing. Church goers had to sit every other row once the sanctuary opened back up. 

“It took a lot of prayer and our general connection to the church. We were determined to keep her going,” Halley said. We would do radio broadcasts and whatever we could to reach people. We tried to keep the church open and serve the community as best as we could.” 

Working to the future

God blessed the church with 150 years and in their 151st year a big change came along. Gill said they welcomed their new pastor Mike Carr in December. He has since set to work in unifying the current congregation and growing the flock. 

Gill said in the two months under his leadership they have seen growth in the attendance. They are also emphasizing outreach especially to the elderly under Carr’s leadership. 

“It is a blessing for the Church. Carr is one of the best pastors we have had in a while,” Gill said. “We have youth and children’s projects, bible studies, three services a week, Vacation Bible School and mission groups. We try to see the elderly and shut-ins. Carr is very adamant about everyone being seen to.” 

The big weekend is coming up and Carr is looking forward to the big day because he will be able to sit back and soak it all in. He said the church has made progress as a whole and the committees have been busy getting things ready for the celebration. 

The oldest members of the church are Rosie Laird and Sam Laird. The youngest member is Jon Max Halley born on January 9th, 2023, he is a sixth generation descendant from the founders. 

Anyone who is interested in joining the 150th anniversary celebration is welcome to. Carr said it has always been a good strong church and has pastored in the area including Wesson Baptist Church for 22 and a half years. 

“When I started here our sanctuary was half full. This past Sunday, it was full,” Carr said. “We are excited about what God will do here. We will see what God is going to do moving forward.”