Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church, Butler County

Butler County, Alabama

Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church,
Butler County, Alabama

The following is an excerpt from Rev. J. W. Joyner's book, A History of the Baptists in Butler County ( 1819-1957).

I think it was Edgar A. GUEST who said, "Regardless as to where you may go, there is a place you feel like you are from." and to the writer this place is the Mt. Pleasant Community. It was in this community he first saw physical and spiritual light; it was in this community that he found a sweet companion; it was here "he died to sin" and was buried in baptism and rose to walk in new-found way; it was her he heard the call to be God's minister; it was Mt. Pleasant Church that ordained him, and for around twenty years he was pastor of the church.

This church was organized in the year 1888. Four families took a part in the organizing: W. H. JOYNER's, J. H. JOHNSON's, D. G. TILL's, and B. T. THOMAS's. Soon other families joined in: the DANIELS, SALTERS, BOZEMANs, SATTERWHITEs, FULLERs, and McLEODs. From these families and their descendants we find the names of CROSSLEY, SPANN, GREEN, POWELL, JONES, CAIN, and PARKER.

From this church a number of preachers have been ordained: Elza HUGHES, J. C. VANDIVER, Ira SALTER, E. W. HOLLAND, and J. W. JOYNER. The following preachers have acted as pastor of the church: Rev. W. H. JOYNER, L. B. CHORAN, A. T. SIMS, J. W. JOYNER, J. C. VANDIVER, SPHEARS, J. B. OWENS, L. R. TINDEL, R. L. SHELL, WILLCOX, PARKER, and the present pastor is B. L. ARMSTRONG.

Mt. Pleasant Church has a good building with Sunday School rooms and a nice pastorium, on a two-acre lot which was given to the church by W. H. JOYNER.

It was in this church building the writer saw the greatest demonstration of God' power to save in all his ministerial life. Two young boys, Joe WILLIAMS and Ellis TILL, about eighteen years old, through some misunderstanding got into a fight, and in the fight Joe used a know on Ellis' throat and made a serious gash, but not fatal. In a few days the summer revival came, the Holy Spirit brought conviction to Ellis, he walked over to Joe and extended his hand. Joe accepted and they became friends through the years that followed.