The Early History of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church I

Subject

Religion; community; St. Marks

Description

This is a collection of articles about the early history of St. Mark MB Church. According to Florence historian Lee Freeman, the documented history begins with John Portlock: "John A. Portlock (1802-1878) was a North Carolina native who ran a blacksmith shop in Florence. Married, with several children, the value of Portlock's real estate in the 1850 federal population census was assessed at $1200, which by 1860 had increased to $2000; by 1870 his real estate was still valued at $2000 while his personal estate was valued at $5000. Portlock was also a slave-owner: by 1850 he had three slaves, one 52 year-old male, an 18 year-old male, and a 28 year-old female. By 1860 Portlock had five slaves, three males, aged 45, 44, 17 and 17 respectively, and one female aged 9. Unfortunately, at present we don't know any of their names.

In March of 1859 John A. Portlock, "as trusty [trustee] of the Colored members of the Missionary Baptist Church," purchased lot no. 185, on the corner of Market (now Wood Avenue) and Alabama Streets, for the sum of $15 from WH Wade. We don't know Portlock's religious affiliation, only that he was "a truly pious man" who "pursued the straitforward [sic], honorable course in all transactions with his fellowmen and by universal good humor and gentle courtesy gained their admiration as well as respect." Presumably Portlock's slaves formed the nucleus of this new Missionary Baptist congregation.

According to tradition, the church initially assembled in a brush arbor; by 1872 a building had been constructed which was enlarged in June of that year. The foundation for a new meeting house was laid in July of 1884.

The first known pastor is believed to have been freedman and Kentucky native Stephen Coleman (1819-aft. 1880) who came to Florence from Leighton after the Civil War. The first pastor of which we have a certain record is the Rev. Ephraim Cordie “Cordie” White (ca. 1840-1899) who pastored the church from 1881 until his death. In 1901 under the pastorate of White’s successor, Sumter Co., AL native Rev. Lawson John "LJ" Green (1864-1944) the present structure was built. "
(1) John Portlock's Obituary
(2) Deed to Lot 185 in Florence
(3) Deed Wade & Wife to Trustees of Baptist Church, Florence, Ala
(4) "An Amusing Case." . Note: This article reports that Prof. George Poole (who after the Civil War briefly ran a school for freedmen) had been arrested on charges of disturbing public worship; an unnamed elder at St. Mark had pressed charges after Prof. Poole, a member of the Church Springs ME Church (later St. Paul AME Church), interrupted his sermon to ask said elder to provide scriptural proof for an assertion he made regarding baptism. On being told to please be be quiet and sit down, Poole left the meeting, offended. He was vindicated when Mayor Neander H. Rice the following Monday in court found Poole not guilty. Two witnesses in Poole's case were Pony Irvine and Jack East; Irvine testified that he, too, liked to hear scriptural verses cited to back up a minister's point. When asked by the court which church he belonged to East replied "nary one"; in light of their testimony the Times editor (the publishers were WJ Wood and IS Barr) joked that Irvine must have been a "theologian" while East must have been a "helltonian."
(5) Poney [sic] Irvine and Jack East in court as witnesses,
(6) "Editorial Brevities"
(7) Sisters of Zion Dance
(8) Stokes and Simpson at Sisters of Zion Dance and Supper
(9) Murder at Colored Baptist Church
(10) A Man Killed
(11) Simon Jackson Held for Trial and Sent to Jail in Tuscumbia
(12) Muscle Shoals Colored Baptist Association
(13) Colored Baptist Church Supper at Morrison's Hall
(14) Foundation Laid for New Colored Baptist Church
(15) Eleven Converts Baptized at the Colored Baptist Church
(16) A Protracted Meeting in Progress at the Colored Baptist Church
(17) William Grady Accidentally Killed by Falling
(18) Rev. Cordie White Baptizes Seven

Source

(1) Florence Gazette
(2) Lauderdale County Deed Record 17, 1861-1868, p 161
(3) Lauderdale County Deed Record, Vol. 21 1871-1874, pp. 594-595
(4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10) Florence Times-Journal
(8) Florence Republican
(10) North Alabamian (Tuscumbia, AL)
(11, 15, 16) Florence Gazette
(14) Florence Banner
(17) Florence Wave
(18) The Watcher (Florence, AL, African-American)

Publisher

Microfilm
Newspapers.com

Contributor

Lee Freeman

Rights

Images are available for educational and research purposes. This image may not be reproduced for commercial purposes without the express written consent of the copyright holder. It is the responsibility of the interested party to identify the copyright holder and receive permission.

Format

JPG

Language

English

Type

Still Image

Identifier

(1) John_A._Portlock_Obit.jpg
(2) Deed1859a.jpg
Deed1859b.jpg
(3) WadeDeed1.jpg
WadeDeed2.jpg
WadeDeed3.jpg
(4) Amusing.jpg
(5) PoneyIrvine.jpg
(6) Editorial_Brevities_Cropped.jpg

Original Format

Paper

Files

Collection

Religion

Citation

“The Early History of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church I,” Shoals Black History, accessed December 9, 2025, https://shoalsblackhistory.omeka.net/items/show/772.