On October 13, 1890, Rev. Williams Riley organized Mt. Moriah Baptist church along with Rev. Samuel Brown, Rev. Samuel Milo, and Rev. A.R. Rumph who was called to Pastor a small congregation which consisted of only 18 members. These men of valor were faced with the enormous task of constructing a building for worship, and immediately they began to collect the resources and were able to make a payment for lumber in the amount of $40.00 on December 5, 1890. The following May of 1891, which was the second Sunday, the cornerstone of the building was laid, and Rev. A.R. Rumph was elected and served as Pastor until the end of 1892.
In 1893, Rev. P. A. Knowles was elected as Pastor to the congregation which now had 59 members. However, after only serving for one year, he resigned and went to serve in another field of labor and became known as a leader of the Union District.
In 1894, Rev. A. R. Rumph was elected to serve a second time as Pastor. This time, the membership consisted of 36 members. Pastor Rumph served faithfully in this position until July 1896. On September 26, 1896, Rev. W.M. Walker was elected to Pastor the membership which at this time consisted of 49 members. Rev. Walker was known in the community as an Evangelist and financier and the church membership grew under his leadership. Unfortunately, five years later, the plans to build a new church still lay dormant and the project to rebuild had not yet been completed. Being led by the Spirit of the Lord, Rev. Walker took this task to heart and the new church building was soon completed. Consequently, Rev. Walker was reelected as Pastor and served until March 16, 1901, at which time he submitted his resignation. However, upon leaving the church, he recommended that Rev. Edwards be considered as Pastor. The recommendation was received and accepted, and Rev. Edwards became the new Pastor to serve the growing membership of 127. Many souls were added to the church under his leadership and he served faithfully until October 1904.
In November 1904, Rev. W.S. Johnson was elected to pastor the now membership of 130 and served until March 1908. On May 9, 1908, Rev. J. R. Williams was appointed to serve the church until such time that a Pastor was elected. He was officially elected to serve as Pastor to serve the growing membership of 135 on July 11, 1908, and served in this capacity until November 11, 1911. At this time he submitted his resignation, but recommended that Rev. A. L. Porter serve as Pastor in his stead.
The church accepted the recommendation, and on February 12, 1912, Rev. Porter was elected to Pastor the declining membership of 38. As it was in ancient time with the children of Israel, when Moses was taken off the scene, the task fell to his successor, Joshua to lead the children of Israel on to the promised land. Rev. Porter was our “Joshua” of that day for the Mt. Moriah Church family. The storms of life down through the years had worn the church building and it was dilapidated and was not safe to hold service. Consequently, on July 14, 1912, the church accepted the Pastor’s proposition to rebuild. He convinced the church and they worked together as a team by donating their time, talent and treasure to the service of the Lord, knowing that they would be blessed by their efforts. The fruit of their labor combined with the success of completing the church was confirmation that Pastor A. L. Porter was appointed by the Holy Ghost as overseer of this flock. He served faithfully for 25 years, and the membership increased to 147 members.
In 1937 Rev. Henderson White was elected as Pastor and watched over the flock as a good shepherd watches over his sheep. Under his divine leadership, we constructed yet another church building. On July 2, 1978, the Lord called Rev. White from labor to rest after having served the church for four decades. We shall forever treasure his memories. After the death Rev. White, in 1978, Rev. Robert Dotson was elected and served as Pastor for two months before being called to Pastor a church in Texas.
1979, Rev. Julious Dotson was elected to serve in the capacity of Pastor. Again, many souls were added to the church and four young men accepted their call into the ministry and were licensed. After nine years of service, in December of 1988, Rev. Dodson submitted his resignation. All praises be unto God, moving forward, on May 13, 1989, our Pastor, the one and only, Rev. Jimmy L. Harper was elected to serve as Pastor, Visionary, Leader and Overseer over what we know as the modern day Mt. Moriah Missionary Baptist Church. Rev. Harper is motivated by his love for the people of God and has been faithfully serving the congregation for over two decades. Under his leadership, the church is growing in leaps and bounds, as he has established ministries that are instrumental in promoting the growth and development of God’s people. Like Nehemiah, God used this mighty man of valor to share the vision and motivate the children of God to construct a new church and renovate the existing structure to add an educational wing and a new fellowship hall. Additionally, in an effort to reach the masses, for the first time in the history of the church, Rev. Harper made a decision to go global by launching this website. We as members of the Mt. Moriah looking forward with great anticipation for all of the wonderful blessings that we know God has in store for us under the leadership of our very own, Pastor Jimmy L. Harper.
Note - With all due respect, we as members of the Mt. Moriah church family would be remiss if we did not mention and or give thanks to Professor S. A. Perry whose service has been written into the history of the church. Professor Perry served in the capacity of church secretary for more than 48 years by preserving the history of the church, fulfilling his lifelong dream that the members of Mt. Moriah for generations to come would understand and appreciate their rich heritage.
Mt. Moriah Missionary Baptist Church