Echoes From The Sandhills

##Early Black Churches

Series 2: Sanctuary & Strength: The Legacy of Black Churches in the Sandhills

Echo 1 – Bethel A.M.E. Zion – Manchester

Imagine being forbidden to read, forbidden to write, forbidden even to gather in worship. This was the reality of our ancestors under slavery. Much of their history, our history, survived only through stories passed from one person to another. And if you’ve ever played the “Telephone” game, you know how stories can change in the retelling. Thankfully, early newspapers, like those highlighted in Series 1 Power of the Early Black Press, offer us glimpses into the real lives behind the stories.

One such story is the founding of Bethel A.M.E. Zion Church in Manchester (Spring Lake), NC. Established in 1873, the church began humbly. Services were held under a “Brush Arbor”—a simple shelter made of branches, a temporary sanctuary where faith could take root until a permanent building could be constructed. Uncle Jack Murchison played a key role in bringing the church to life. Oral history passed down from generation-to-generation relays that a Presbyterian minister who was establishing churches throughout the country came along and preached at the Brush Arbor and established it as a Presbyterian church.  Later, during his two years absence, a Methodist minister came from Fayetteville and sold the Methodist faith to the group, and the rest is history.

Even in early newspapers, the church’s presence is clear. In the March 13, 1875 issue of The Educator, Presiding Elder A.M. Barrett writes about two congregations, Beaver Creek and Manchester, whose members dreamed of building proper churches. By April, a letter to the editor confirmed that the Manchester congregation had secured land for construction.

Oral histories add even more depth. As you can see in the article, Laura Stinson, for example, played a pivotal role in persuading the McDiarmids to sell the property. Alongside her, Frederick Jackson, George Elliott, Lemuel Stinson, Thomas Lucas, Catharine Monroe, Jane Lucas, and Isabella Brinkley are lauded as the driving forces behind raising the funds and turning that dream into reality.

By August 1875, Bethel had grown enough to host the District Conference of the A.M.E. Zion Church. The leadership of Pastor and Presiding Elder A.M. Barrett will be highlighted in later Echoes as we explore the individuals who shaped this community.

Just a few years removed from enslavement—denied education, denied opportunity, denied the freedom to worship—our ancestors carved out a sanctuary through sheer perseverance and faith. They built more than a church; they built a legacy.

What lessons will you carry from their grit and determination into your own life today?

From here, we will begin highlighting other churches in the area that took root during this same period.  Stay tuned.

See you in two weeks.