Pieces Of History Make Up Baptist Camp

Pat Smith

Bill Peters gave the old books of the Rossburg Baptist Church to the Historical Society, Eunice King gave the pictures of the original President Kennedy gravesite to the society and the play that goes with this week and next week’s column, supplied by Steve Malone, will also be given to Russell Wilhoit to put in the Historical Society Museum.

Steve Malone of Vernon supplied some fine reading the past couple of weeks. The play itself makes fascinating reading but the paper it’s written on does too. Steve appreciated the column a few weeks ago about the Rossburg Baptist Church and said he’s spent 25-years trying to run down the pioneer history on several churches. He loaned a copy of the play Rossburg gave on the occasion of its 100th anniversary which I’ll share next week. The following is information that Steve told me about Rossburg and other early Baptist churches in this area:

Rossburg was one of at least three churches brought to Southeastern Baptist Camp. The others were Sharon Baptist Church, Bartholomew Co. south of Hope near the old Moravian Cemetery. There is a Sharon Cemetery maintained on the original site. The pulpit from this church building is in the Camp Chapel. This church was established in about 1825 and continued into the mid 1900’s.

The Napoleon Baptist Church established in 1835 was disbanded in 1950. Their building and some other assets were given to the Southeastern Camp. Steve and wife Judith were the first live-in managers of the camp. The building was dismantled and re-built as the camp chapel in 1950. The Wooden Lumber Company of Westport was a major player in arranging this move. Robert Gant of Alert, a present camp trustee, was a fifteen year old lad and helped with the move. Much of the lumber of the Rossburg and Sharon Churches can still be seen in the older buildings at the camp.

Steve brought the “rough draft of the play” written for the 100th anniversary of the Rossburg Baptist Church in 1945. He said, “The play was written, at least in part, by Harold Gray, who was pastor of Mt. Pleasant (now Sardinia) Baptist. I believe he also was pastor at some point of Rossburg as well. Harold was an important part of the camp in the early days, especially when the property was obtained from the Layton Family in 1946.”

Harold Gray knew how to save money. The play is written on the blank back of letters from the Indiana Baptist Convention, notices of the Fall Term at the Sardinia School of Christian Education, expense reports and an important letter from the Decatur County Ministerial Association Committee to “The Citizens of Decatur County.” The letter wasn’t dated but was probably written in late 1939 or early 1940. It begins, “For the past several years this Association has been greatly concerned about existing conditions in our County Infirmary. We have personally inspected the buildings and the farm both in 1938 and in 1939. Insomuch as it seems necessary to maintain such a home for the unfortunate poor of our county…” The letter states that there was no heat in any room during the winter, the place was lighted at night by open gas flames, the bathroom has no heat or hot water and very unsanitary.

There’s no question that the pastors who wrote the letter (Wm. H. Thompson, R. A. Ulrey and Harold Gray) were concerned about what was called “the poor farm” in Clinton Township.

The poor farm was started just after the Civil War and completed in 1867 south of Sandusky. Several buildings, including a jail, were on 160 acres. They raised their own hogs, had cows, fruit trees and raised their own vegetables. If residents were able they helped on the farm, helped wash clothes or other chores. It closed in the 1940s and some of the residents lived in a building just off Park Road on what are now the fair grounds. By the time the farm was closed Social Security was in effect and helped some of the residents. Another interesting page was from Wheaton College Extension Department: Subject Educational Psychology. Here is the first question on an exam, “What is the essential nature of the thinking process?” Second question, “What is the difference between thinking and studying?” The answers weren’t included.

Wheaton College is in ‘Wheaton, Ill., near Chicago, and is a “four year, residential, academically rigorous Christian liberal arts college whose historic motto is, ‘Christo et Regno Ejus,’ or ‘For Christ and His Kingdom.’”Speaking of Sandusky, Historian Russell Wilhoit thinks you will enjoy the following website showing some of the past Sandusky faculty. It’s a good site and is growing.  http://www.historicsanduskyschool.org/index.php?option=com_content&view;=article&id;=49&Itemid;=55

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