The Portsmouth Baptist Association of Virginia assembles at the Blackwater Baptist Church in Prince Anne County. Delegates voice approval of a statewide Baptist committee formed in June “to provide for the education of children of deceased and disabled Confederate soldiers, and that we earnestly urge our brethren to help in this good work.” A resolution…
Throughout the South many black Baptist churches are now hosting schools for freedmen, both children and adults. White Southerners for generations prevented slaves from obtaining education via state and local laws. Many insisted that blacks were simply unable to learn. Now, against the wishes of many whites who believe that blacks should remain in servitude,…
Six months following the conclusion of the war, many Baptist churches in the South are just now resuming congregational life with some sense of normalcy. Some do not reopen until this month, while others continue adjusting to the realities of freedom for black members. This month the Oak Grove Baptist Church of Arkansas finally reopens…