Free Will Baptist church

Lane’s Chapel F.W.B. Church buys a lot.

Deed book 97, page 245, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

On 23 December 1912, Major J. Lofton, for $18, sold the trustees and deacons of Lane’s Chapel Free Will Baptist Church a quarter-acre lot near Contentnea Creek on the north side of “the Aycock road, running from the town of Wilson.”

Neither Aycock Road nor Lane’s Chapel rang a bell, but I started wondering about Lofton. It’s not a common surname in Wilson County, but shows up on both an African-American graded school and a church. Lofton School sat on 1 3/4 acres on what is now Downing Street, just below Contentnea Creek. The deed for the property gives the road’s original name — Aycock — and it appears Lofton School stood on the other side of the bridge from Lane’s Chapel’s lot. Was it named for Major Lofton? And Lofton Chapel? It was a Free Will Baptist Church, like Lane’s. And we know its building was moved from elsewhere to its (or, rather, its successor’s) site on Bishop L.N. Forbes Street. Perhaps, as was commonly done, Lane’s was renamed Lofton for the grantor of the land it stood on near Contentnea Creek.

  • Major J. Lofton

In the 1880 census of Indian Springs township, Wayne County, N.C.: Robert Loftus, 34; wife Ednie, 34; and children Sylvester, 10, Robert, 8, Emma, 7, Benjamin F., 6, Alice A., 5, Major, 3, and Donas, 10 months.

In 1918, Major James Lofton registered for the World War I draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 16 July 1876; lived on Route 3, Wilson; was a self-employed farmer; and his nearest relative was his father Robert Lofton.

Major Lofton applied for a marriage license for Sam Barron, 24, son of Ben and Mary Barron, and Jessie Lofton, 24 daughter of Robert and Evaline Lofton, both of Gardners township, Wilson County. The marriage took place in Wilson on 30 December 1919.

In the 1920 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Major J. Lofton, 42, widower; mother Evaline, 71, widow; brother-in-law Sam Barron, 24; sister Jessie Barron, 24; and nieces Donnie, 13, Maybelle, 12, and Marie Barron, 10.

Major Lofton applied for a marriage license for Festus Simms, 29, and Maebelle Lofton, 18, both of Black Creek. The marriage took place in Wilson on 1 April 1925.

In the 1930 census of Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia: at the U.S. Penitentiary, Major Loften, 53, prisoner, born in North Carolina.

In the 1950 census of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: widower Lubie Oliver, 67; partner Major Lofton, 74, widower; and brother Henry Oliver, 50, truck driver.

  • S.C. Chadmon — Slade Chatman?

In the 1910 census of Cross Roads township, Wilson County: farmer Josiah Hinnant, 38; wife Mary, 34; stepdaughter Estella, 17, widow; daughter Sarah, 12; son Cleotha, 6; niece Lessie Locus, 13; and boarder Slade Chatman, 40.

In the 1920 census of Cross Roads township, Wilson County: farmer Slade Chatman, 52, widower.

In the 1930 census of Cross Roads township, Wilson County: farmer Slade Chatman, 52; wife Almenia, 27; and children Ned S., 7, Eddie, 6, Willie, 4, Bertie L., 2, and Charlie, newborn.

In the 1940 census of Gardners township, Wilson County: farmer Slade Chatmon, 65; wife Almenia, 37; and children Ned, 17, Ed, 16, Willie, 14, Bettie, 12, Charlie, 10, Joseph, 8, Ernest, 6, Ruby Lee, 3, and Freddie, 3 months.

In 1942, Ed Chatman registered for the World War II in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 30 June 1924 in Wilson County; lived on Route 1, Wilson; and his contact was father Slade Chatman.

In 1942, Ned Chatman registered for the World War II in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 15 June 1922 in Wilson County; lived on Route 1, Wilson; and his contact was father Slade Chatman.

In 1943, Willie Chatman registered for the World War II in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 4 November 1925 in Wilson County; lived on Route 1, Wilson; his contact was father Slade Chatman; and he worked at Carl Aycock farm.

In the 1950 census of Cross Roads township, Wilson County: farmer Slate Chapman, 73; wife Almenia, 48; children Willie, 24, Betty, 22, Charlie, 20, Joseph, 18, Earnest, 16, Ruby, 13, Luddie, 11, Virgina, 7, Dorthy, 5, and Sylva, 1; and granddaughter Alma, 1.

On 29 October 1951, Slade Chatman, 75, of Lucama, son of Jerry Chatman and Catherine Greene Chatman, married Almenia Chatman, 49, of Lucama, daughter of Reddick Simms and Bettie Boykin Simms, in Wilson.

Slade Chatman died 17 December 1954 in Lucama, Cross Roads township, Wilson County. Per his death certificate, he was born 14 April 1876 in Craven County, N.C., to Catherine [maiden name unknown]; was married to Almena Chatman; worked in farming; and was buried in Dew Cemetery, Lucama.

  • Will Vick
  • James Johnston
  • R. Loftin — perhaps, Major Lofton’s father Robert Lofton.
  • Jesse Herring

Trustees of Wynn’s Chapel purchase land.

Deed book 111, page 170, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

On 14 April 1917, Frank Hodges and his wife Harriet Hodges of Wilson township, for $80, sold William Bustion, Willie Wynn, and Mattie Porter of Toisnot township, “Active Trustees of Wynn’s Chapel, United American Freewill Baptist Church,” for a lot abutting the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad.

The 1923 Sanborn map of Elm City shows the small wooden church at 313 South Broad Street, just below J.D. Winstead Cotton Gins.

1923 Sanborn fire insurance map of Elm City, N.C.

Lane Street above is now Morgan Street. This parcel is now owned by the Town of Elm City, and is the southeastern-most section of a town park accessible from Parker Street. 

“Wynn Chapel Church was founded in the early 1900’s, between 1908-1909. The members held their original meetings at the Mason Hall of Fellowship in Elm City, North Carolina. The church was named Free Will Baptist Church and the first Pastor was Rev. Jim Brown. After several meetings in the Mason Hall, the members discussed that the building was not suitable to have church services because it had a dance hall that was being routinely used. Early church members, Willie and Jenny Wynn, donated land for the first building and the church was renamed Wynn Chapel Free Will Baptist Church in the early 1920’s. The first Deacons were Willie Burke, Jasper Evans, Talman and Willie Hunter and Pink Wynn. The church mothers were Penny Evans, Lofton Winstead and Jenny Wynn. Irene Evans served as the first secretary. 

“In 1940, the little church burned down. Rev. McKinley Love Whitley was the pastor. While plans were being made to rebuild the church, members met at the Presbyterian Church in “Blood Field,” the Church of God, and several other area churches that were gracious enough to allow them to utilize their facilities. After a while, the officials of the church purchased land on Armstrong Street in Elm City. The pastor was Rev. Fred Gardner. The Deacons were Mason Benjamin, Ernest (J.B.) Dew, Marcellas (Doll) Evans, Cecil Hagans, and Matt Washington. There was one trustee, Mr. Masco Norman and two mothers, Penny Evans and Alberta (Babe) Moore. The little church continued to grow and prosper under several different pastors over the next forty years.”

[Where was “Blood Field”??]

Ellis Chapel United American Free Will Baptist Church.

A couple of recent posts have concerned Ellis Chapel Free Will Baptist Church, founded around 1881 in the New Hope area of northwest Wilson County. Rev. Crockett Best was its first pastor. The sanctuary, built in 1911 on land given by Hilliard and Fereby Rountree Ellis and extensively renovated in 1977, has been empty for many years.  It recently went on the market.

On a recent visit to Ellis Chapel, I found one of the glass double doors at the entrance kicked in and completely shattered. I stepped through into a small vestibule. On either side, there are bathrooms added in perhaps the mid- twentieth century. Glancing up at a square cut into the drywall, I saw the building’s original weathered siding.

Inside the sanctuary, the walls have been stripped to the studs. Its stained glass windows, which bear (or bore) a small plaque naming the donating family, mostly have been  smashed. 

The peeling ceiling reveals a soft blue-green layer of paint underneath a white coat.

Triple-six aside, there is surprisingly little sign of vandals inside. The rear wall here appears to have been the original back of the church; the rectangle at right was a window. A roof leak has done serious damage to a section of the ceiling. Other than ceiling fans and broken pendant lamps, little remains of the sanctuary’s adornment.

This fireproof brick was made by Aetna Brick Company of Hartford, Connecticut.

The cornerstone has been pried out, exposing the corner of the bathroom additions.

Scattered on the ground, a torn, snow-soaked Bible and a broken finial printed with praying hands.

The Book of Amos.

One of three gnarly old oaks that shade the front of the church. 

Photos by Lisa Y. Henderson, February 2025.

The Ellises sell Ellis Chapel a parcel of land.

Hilliard and Feraby Rountree Ellis sold Ellis Chapel for the nominal sum of $7.50 the half-acre parcel of land upon which Ellis Chapel Free Will Baptist Church was eventually built. Ellis Chapel’s cornerstone cites the church’s founding as 1882. This deed, however, is dated 26 April 1881 and shows the church had already formed at that time.

Deed book 18, pages 559-560, Wilson County Register of Deeds office.

The confusion may stem from the registration date of the deed —  16 June 1882.

Hat tip to Melanie Nelson Ellis for this copy of the deed.

Ellis Chapel is for sale.

The former Ellis Chapel Free Will Baptist Church, founded in 1882, is up for sale.

“This charming, historic church is a blank canvas waiting for your vision!”

The listing incorrectly cites 1977 as the year Ellis Chapel was built, but that’s the date it was extensively remodeled and an extension added. The church’s brick cladding mostly hides its 1911 clapboard siding, but the wooden boards peek out at the short belfry. The original, peaked, stained-glass windows are another tell. Realtor photos show the interior of the church has been largely gutted.

B.W.A. Historical Marker Series, no. 3: Piney Grove Free Will Baptist Church.

In this series, which will post on occasional Wednesdays, I populate the landscape of Wilson County with imaginary “historic markers” commemorating people, places, and events significant to African-American history or culture.

We been here.

PINEY GROVE FREE WILL BAPTIST CHURCH

Church org. in 1882. Trustees purchased this lot at Vance and Elba Sts. in 1900 from Samuel and Annie Vick. Wooden building with 2-story tower constructed. Moved to present Vick St. location in 1930s; building later renovated.

Photograph by Lisa Y. Henderson, May 2024.

The history of Piney Grove Free Will Baptist Church.

Per its 107th Anniversary booklet:

“Piney Grove Free Will Baptist Church was organized in 1882, under the directorship of the Reverend J.D. Blount. It is believed that the church was first formed as a bush shelter on Lovers Lane, now known as Forest Hills Road.

“On May 29, 1900, Mr. Kichen Watson, land owner let ex-slaves have this land for the church. There was no existing known deed for the land and therefore the land clearly reverted to the heirs. Sometime during this period, the member and Trustees decided to buy a lot and build a church.

“In May during the 1900’s, S.H. Vick and his wife bargained for, sold, and conveyed to Louis Bess, Daniel Blount, and Windsor Darden and their successors in office at the time, a parcel of land lying on the corners of Elba and Vance Streets.

“In 1905, a second deed was made because there were questions as to the original deed and the description of the lot.

“In the 1930’s, R.E. Townsend and his wife sold to Piney Grove Church Members and Trustees, Elijah Parker, Willie Cooper, Quincey Gardner, Carrie Hargrove, Ethel Jefferson, W.H. Palmer, and J.Z. Staton and their heirs and successors in office a lot on the corner of Elba and Vance Streets for the sum of $100.

“The church was moved from its old location to the lot on Vick and Carolina Streets and still remains there today.

“Over the years, Piney Grove Free Will Baptist Church has grown in both membership and improvements have been made in order to maintain the tradition of the church.”

Rev. Eddie H. Cox, who lead Piney Grove’s move to the Vick Street location.

Thank you, M.B. Ward!

Mother Rosa Edwards Yelverton of Saint Luke F.W.B. Church.

Rosa Edwards Yelverton (1890-1992).

——

In the 1940 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: widow Annie Edwards, 69; daughter Rosa, 49, cook; son Josh, 35, lumber laborer; and daughter Hildrene, 14.

In 1950 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: Josh Edwards, 43, hauls logs; sister Rosa, 57; and nephew Hubert, 7.

Wilson Daily Times, 30 July 1992.

Photo courtesy of Saint Luke Free Will Baptist Church, Stantonsburg. Thank you!

Mother Emma F. Winstead of Saint Luke F.W.B. Church.

Emma Ford Winstead (1891-1950).

——

On 21 July 1917, Emma Ford, 22, of Stantonsburg, daughter of Smith and Mary Ford, married Walter Winstead, 20, of Stantonsburg, son of James and Eliza Winstead, in Wilson.

In the 1920 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farm tenant Walter Winstead, 23; wife Emma, 24; and daughter Anlizer, 2.

In the 1930 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Walter Winstead, 39; wife Emma, 30, washwoman; and children Anna Liza, 12, Nancy B., 10, Clara, 8. Walter L., 6, Milton, 5, Clarence, 3, and Willie, 1.

In 1942, Walter Lee Winstead registered for the World War II in Wilson County, North Carolina. Per his registration card, he was born 12 October 1924 in Wilson County, N.C.; lived in Stantonsburg; his contact was his mother Emma Winstead; he worked “helping father on farm,” and had a scar on his right cheek.

In the 1950 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Walter Winstead, 45; wife Emma, 50; and children Nancy, 28, Walter, 23, Clarence, 20, Willie, 19, Lois, 18, Jessie, 10, and William, 6.

Photo courtesy of Saint Luke Free Will Baptist Church, Stantonsburg. Thank you!

Mother Lizzie J. Fleming of Saint Luke F.W.B. Church.


Lizzie Jones Beamon Fleming (1892-??)

——

In the 1900 census of Saulston township, Wayne County, N.C.: Isaiah Jones, 29, farmer; wife Sidney, 25; and children Lizzie, 7, Leuberter, 6, Octava, 4, and Febry, 8 months.

On 4 October 1908, Willie Beamon and Lizzie Jones, both of Greene County, N.C., were married in Speights Bridge township, Greene County.

On 4 December 1919, Josh Fleming, 38, of Wilson County, son of Jim and Jane Fleming, married Lizzie Beamon, 26, of Greene County, N.C., daughter of Isiah Jones, in Greene County. A.M.E. minister J.W. Saunders performed the ceremony in the presence of J.G. Brooks, J.H. Williams, and Isaiah Jones, all of Stantonsburg.

In the 1920 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: tenant farmer Josh Flemmin, 38; wife Lizzie, 26; children Wade, 10, Clifton, 7, Dydie, 5, and Antabelle, 3; [Josh’s] stepchildren Viola, 10, Susie, and Simm S. Beamon, 2; and nephew Connie Fort, 19.

In the 1930 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Josh Flemming, 47; wife Lizzie, 37; and children Viola, 19, public school teacher, Clifton, 17, Dida, 15, Sudie, 14, Archie B., 13, Esie, 12, Josh Jr., 9, Lizzie, 7, Mary, 5, Douglas, 2, and Jernas, 7 months.

In the 1940 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Josh Flemming, 47; wife Lizzie, 37; and children Josh Jr., 20, Lizzie, 17, Mary, 15, Douglas, 13, and Jernis, 10; Ivy Robinson, 10; Nathaniel Fleming, 7; mother-in-law Sidney Jones, 66, widow; and lodger Ida Holmes, 48, widow, cook.

In the 1950 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: on Whitley Street, widow Lizzie J. Fleming, 37; children Journice E., 20, Nathaniel, 18, and Alma D., 11; daughter Lizzie F. Charles, 27, house service, and her children Vivian E., 8, Joyce A., 7, and Mary V., 1.

Photo courtesy of Saint Luke Free Will Baptist Church, Stantonsburg. Thank you!