Ebenezer Church & Cemetery, Rowan County, North Carolina

Date: 1853
Location: Mount Ulla, Rowan, North Carolina, United States

Surnames/tags: Rowan_County North_Carolina

Profile manager: Clayton Martinez

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1 General Information
2 History
- 2.1 Church History
- 2.2 Cemetery History
3 Notable Monuments
4 Notable Interments
5 Possible Interments
6 Sources
7 More Information

General Information

Ebenezer Church of Mt. Ulla

Church name: Ebenezer Church of Mt. Ulla (also known as 'Ebenezer Church')

Former church names: Ebenezer United Methodist Church (1968-2023); Ebenezer Methodist Church (1939-1968); Ebenezer Methodist Episcopal Church, South (1853-1939)

Address: 8425 NC 801 Hwy, Mount Ulla, NC 28125

GPS Coordinates: 35.6934464, -80.6414710

History

Church History

Ebenezer Church was organized & built in 1853 as Ebenezer Methodist Episcopal Church, South. "South" being in the name because it was a Methodist church in the southern United States & also was established 9 years after the Methodist Episcopal Church South split from the MEC.

Old Ebenezer Church (1853-1967)

A clear deed to about 11 acres of land was recorded in 1855. Brothers Osborn Giles Foard & Dr. John Frederick Foard donated the land & material for the cemetery & the church, which was erected by slave labor under the supervision of the trustees. Both men also have family buried in the church's cemetery.

The first trustees of Ebenezer were O. G. Foard, Montford Stokes McKenzie, Elkanah D. Austin, Pitt Rich (d.1911), & William Overman (1812-1890).

The name Ebenezer was chosen probably as a reference to 1 Samuel 7:12, where the prophet Samuel took a stone, set it up between the towns of Mizpah & Jeshanah (or Shen, as it reads in the Hebrew Bible), & named it Ebenezer, which means "the stone of help."

A quarterly conference record from 1922 supposedly shows the church membership totaled 132. However, just 4 years later in 1926, membership had dropped significantly to just 30. By 1967, membership was 69.

Ebenezer was on the verge of closing in 1955. But, the church prospered in faith & resources, if not in numbers. Under the leadership of the pastor at the time, the Rev. J. M. Burton, Ebenezer was reorganized with 16 members. Also at this time, the fellowship hall was built, a well was drilled, & bathrooms were installed.

Work towards a new church building began at a quarterly conference meeting on 26 Dec 1965. In July 1967, during the pastorate of Rev. W. W. Pryor, the church building committee broke ground for the new building. There was a prayer meeting on the night of Wednesday 19 July 1967, & the following morning, they went back to start demolishing the old building.

New church shortly after completion

The congregation worshipped in the fellowship hall for the next few months while the new building was under construction. The first service in the new building was a Service of Consecration held on 17 Dec 1967 with a Christmas Candlelight Service held that evening. The new building cost a total of $41,817.

The first wedding held in the new (but still unfinished) sanctuary was the wedding of Bill Kluttz & Garnette Lyerly in October 1967. The first funeral in the new building was the funeral of James Kluttz, who was also the oldest member; held in February 1969.

The indebtedness was paid in full on 5 May 1972. A dedication service was held at 3:00 PM on 1 October that year during which the mortgage note was burned on the altar. At least 3 former ministers, Burton, Prichard, & Pryor, were present at the service.

Ebenezer's Woman's Society of Christian Service (later named United Methodist Women) was organized in either 1954 or 1955. Over the years, this group has given help to many in the church & the surrounding community. Some of the deeds they have done are sponsored Bible Studies, purchased The Upper Room for the church, equipped the kitchen, installed sidewalks, installed carpet in the church sanctuary, bought vacuum cleaners, given gifts to shut-ins, supported the local Children's Home, & supported the West Rowan High School Bible teacher. A church men’s club was also organized around 1955/56.

The church decided to break away from the United Methodist Church & become a non-denominational church in 2023; with the process being officially completed in November. The name was then changed to Ebenezer Church. Its official name is Ebenezer Church of Mt. Ulla.

Ebenezer's homecoming is celebrated on the third Sunday of August.

Over the years, Ebenezer was a part of multiple charges & 2 districts in the Methodist Church. From the church’s founding in 1853 until 1872, it was a part of the Rowan Circuit of the Salisbury District. From 1872 until 1891, it was a part of the Salisbury Circuit of the Salisbury District. Other charges/circuits & districts Ebenezer was a part of are:

1891-1898: Woodleaf Charge, Salisbury District
1898-1901: Woodleaf Charge, Statesville District
1901-1921: Woodleaf Charge, Salisbury District
1921-1960: Elmwood Charge, Statesville District
1960-Elmwood Charge, Salisbury District
1968-1995: West Rowan Charge, Salisbury District
1995-2023: Ebenezer Charge, Salisbury District

When the sanctuary was rebuilt & furnished in 1967, members of the congregation bought pews for the new church. Most were bought in honor of or in memory of someone. On the back or one side of every pew, there is a small gold plaque bearing the name of who bought the pew & who it was dedicted to.

Given By	Dedicated to
Mrs. Eva Linbarger	In memory of J. L. Linbarger
Mr. & Mrs. C. A. Gilland	In memory of the parents of Mr. & Mrs. C. A. Gilland
Mr. & Mrs. Henry Greer & Mr. & Mrs. David Hodges
John M. Correll, Jr.	In memory of Douschka Goodnight
Mr. & Mrs. Leonard Graham & Mr. & Mrs. Garland Hendrix
J. R. Lyerly	In memory of Mr. & Mrs. R. A. Lyerly
J. L. White	In memory of D. C. & M. M. White
J. D. Redman	In memory of W. Preston Redman
D. Y. Redman	In memory of Cora Dixon
Charlie & Mr. & Mrs. Lynn Bost	In memory of Mrs. Rosie Kluttz
N. F. Hall family	In memory of Ida Correll Hall
C. B., E. H., & Robert Kennedy	In memory of John Kennedy
The Ebenezer W. S. C. S.	In honor of Rev. W. W. Pryor
The Hamby children	In memory of Mike Lee Hamby
The Dagenhart children	In memory of Mr. & Mrs. J. A. Dagenhart
Mr. & Mrs. Charlie Hamby	In memory of Frank Crisco
Mr. & Mrs. Norman Correll	In memory of Rudolph Correll
Mr. & Mrs. J. W. Hamby	In memory of Mr. & Mrs. M. M. Hamby
Mr. & Mrs. Ted Correll & Lisa	In memory of J. M. Correll
Rudolph Correll	In memory of Alice Correll
The Smith children	In memory of Mr. & Mrs. T. E. Smith
Mrs. Nola Howe	In honor of Mrs. Edith H. Kluttz

Ministers

For Ebenezer's 165th anniversary in August 2018, a book was made commemorating the church's history & some events from recent years. On one page was a list of ministers from the early 1890s through the mid-1950s. Subsequent research has found at least 20 more ministers; &, at most, 35 more. Not all of those in this list are without a doubt a former minister of Ebenezer, however. The known ministers of Ebenezer, including the current minister, & the years they served have been:

Rev. Thomas W. Postell - 1855-1856
Rev. Charles Morman Anderson (1st appointment) - 1856-1857
Rev. Marcus Cicero Thomas, Jr. - 1857-1859
Rev. Joseph Wheeler - 1859-1860
Rev. Robert Allen Willis - 1860-1862
Rev. John Bryan Williams - 1862-1863
Rev. John Rives Brooks, D. D. - 1863-1864
Rev. Jesse Anderson Cuninggim - 1864-bef.1867
Rev. Charles Morman Anderson (2nd appointment) - 1867-1868
Rev. James Franklin Smoot - 1868-1870
Rev. Abner Kenneth Murchison - 1870-1871
Rev. Calvin Plyler - 1871-1873
Rev. William M. D. Moore - 1873-1874
Rev. Thomas Lewis Triplett - 1874-1876
Rev. Robert Theodore Nelson Stephenson - 1876-1878
Rev. John Wesley Lewis - 1878-1879
Rev. Daniel Luther Earnhardt - 1879-1880
Rev. Walter Scott Creasy - 1880-1882
Rev. William Chalmers Willson - 1882-1883
Rev. George Albert Oglesby - 1883-1885
Rev. Thomas Anderson Stone - 1885-1887
Rev. Stokely Donaldson Franklin (1st appointment) - 1888-1889
Rev. George Washington Fisher - 1889-1890
Rev. Stokely Donaldson Franklin (2nd appointment) - 1890
Rev. Walter Luther Dawson - 1891-1892
Rev. Perley Elijah Parker - 1892-1896
Rev. Joseph F. England - 1896-1897
Rev. Robert Sidney Abernethy - 1897-1899
Rev. John Jacob Brooks - 1899-1901
Rev. Benjamin Franklin Carpenter - 1901-1903
Rev. John Patrick Lanning - 1903-1907
Rev. Charles Elliott Hypes - 1907-1908
Rev. Evan Granville Pusey - 1908-1909
Rev. Marvin Benson Ridenhour - 1909-1910
Rev. Silvester Starr Higgins - 1910-1912
Rev. James Willson - 1912-1913
Rev. Jesse Franklin Usrey - 1913-1914
Rev. Joseph Walter Kennedy - 1914-1917
Rev. Edward Jasper Poe - 1917-1919
Rev. James Augustus Peeler - 1919-1920
Rev. John Crittenden Umberger - 1920-1921
Rev. Thomas Lewis Kluttz - 1921-1922
Rev. David Anderson Lewis - 1922-1924
Rev. Jacob Winborne Strider - 1924-1926
Rev. Ernest E. Yates - 1926-1927
Rev. Russell Lowell Young, Sr. - 1927-1931
Rev. Robert Lee Bass - 1931-1933
Rev. Robert Eugene Hunt - 1933-1935
Rev. Charles Richmond Ross - 1935-1937
Rev. Thomas Bradley Johnson - 1937-1938
Rev. George Fielder Houck - 1938-1940
Rev. York Dudley Poole - 1940-1941
Rev. Hurlan Eura Jones - 1941-1942
Rev. Elzie Myers - 1942-1945
Rev. Joseph Marshall Green - 1945-1947
Rev. Rupert Gilmer Wagoner - 1947-1952
Rev. Charles Wesley Randolph - 1952-1954
Rev. John Matthew Burton, Sr. - 1954-1957
Rev. Max Wade Dulin (1st appointment) - 1957-2 Jul 1957
Rev. Robert Allen Setzer - 1957-1959
Rev. Thomas Foy Prichard - 1959-1962
Rev. Jesse Gray Scott - 1962-1964
Rev. George Willis Clay - 1 Apr 1964-Jun 1964
Rev. Woodrow Wilson Pryor - 1964-1968
Rev. Max Wade Dulin (2nd appointment) - 1968-1969
Rev. Harry McClure Sherrill - 1969-1972
Rev. Fred Lee Baker - 1972-1973
Rev. Robert Edward Sides - 1973-1976
Rev. Eddie Calvin Gudger - 1976-1977
Rev. Oscar Ray Moss - 1977-1980
Rev. Glenn Lewis Myers, Jr. - 1980-1983
Rev. Brown Thompson McKinney - 1983-1985
Rev. Charles Glenn Powell, Sr. - 1985-1987
Rev. John Wesley Lockman - 1987-1988
Rev. Douglas Lee Love - 1988-1991
Rev. Claudia Gail Harrelson - 1991-1995
Rev. Susan Diana (Hensley) Fisher - 1995-1996
Rev. Shirley Thomas Jones - 1996-1998
Rev. Floyd Juddy Wood - 1998-2015
Rev. Mark E. McRacken - 2015-present

Record of Membership

Old journals of the Western North Carolina Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South & of the Methodist Church record the membership of the church in the given year the journal dates from. Quarterly conference records also show the current membership at the time of the quarterly conferences. In researching the history of the church, any & all quarterly conference records have yet to be discovered. So memberships for many years of Ebenezer’s existence are unknown. With the exception of a 1922 Quarterly Conference record which shows the highest membership the church ever had. A handful of other membership totals have been discovered fom WNC Conference Journals.

Membership in 1922: 132 (highest)
Membership in 1926: 30
Membership in 1928: 39
Membership in 1929: 50
Membership in 1930: 38
Membership in 1931: 52
Membership in 1932: 55
Membership as of 2024: 49

Church School Superintendents

Research has also found a handful of people that served as the superintendent of Ebenezer’s Sunday School. The only ones that have been found served in the early 1910s, 1920s, & 1930s. With one being known that served at the beginning on the 21st Century.

The church school’s superintendents, along with what year they were known to have served—with their birth & death years in parentheses—have been:

1911: David Washington Athey (1882-1927)
1923: Fred Gray Honeycutt (1903-1983)
1924: Bessie Bell Honeycutt (1887-1954)
1928: Bessie Bell Honeycutt
1930: Thomas Cromer Graham (1903-1959)
1932: Bessie Honeycutt
1939: James Austin Dagenhart (1885-1960)
bef. 1985-2000: Floyd Marshall Sneed (1937-____)

Church Treasurer

Years in parentheses following their name indicates the years of their birth & death.

Ethel (Horton) Graham (1930-1995)
Patricia Garnette (Lyerly) Kluttz (1948-2021)
Charlie Rufus Hamby (1926-2012)
Rebecca Elaine “Becky” (Beam) Kluttz (1953-____)