Emerson and Will F. Etheridge and Thomas Elihue Scott

William F. Etheridge and Thomas Elihue Scott

Long Range Results of One Decision
My mother learned the story of how her family became Christians. Her uncle, William “Will” Etheridge, left home as a teenager and went to work in a small town. Seeking social excitement, he bought season tickets to the local dance hall.

As he was walking to the first dance, he came by a brush arbor where a gospel meeting was in progress. It was too early for the dance and the preacher sounded interesting, so he decided to take a seat and listen awhile.

He had never heard preaching like this before. He was very impressed with the Bible truths presented and decided to become a Christian that night. He tore up his tickets to the dance and made his life-long commitment to Christ.

He went back to his home near Paris, Tennessee, and converted his father, step-mother, brother, sisters, half brothers and sisters. This occurred around the year 1890. Through his influence, over 100 of his family’s descendants have become Christians.

But this is not the end of his story. Will Etheridge then went to (Johnson Bible) College and became a gospel preacher. He preached for about 55 years in several states and held gospel meetings in many places including Springfield, Missouri.

We never know how the future of our world can change because of our deciding today, either to serve God or to fulfill our worldly desire.

David Guthery, The World Evangelist, Feb. 1992.

William Fletcher Etheridge
By Frances Ann Johnson, granddaughter and FHU graduate

William Fletcher Etheridge, called “Will” or more of often known as W. F. Etheridge, was born near Paris, Tenn., May 20, 1872 and died in Jackson, Tenn. March 11, 1951. It was said that he preached 55 years, but those last few years he did not do much preaching on account of health.

He attended Johnson Bible College near Knoxville, Tenn. where he met and later married Ida French Frazier around 1896. She was from a farm on Kingston Pike near Knoxville. The moved to McConnell, Tenn. where he preached several years and the to Hazel, Ky., on to Murray, Ky. Where it is said he helped start the church. They went from there to Sharon, Tenn., on to Latham, Tenn., and then to Martin, Tenn. staying only a few years at each place.

In 1920, he moved to Middleton, Tenn. and then to Bolivar where he had to hold services in the court house as there was no church there at the time. He moved back to Middleton and built a home where he raised chickens and had a strawberry patch to help with his living. It was said that he was $5 a Sunday at Middleton, but he also preached on Sunday afternoons at Lacy, Bethany, or other country churches, and since Ida was in poor health, he would take Peggy and me with him. He also preached for the church at Tiplersville, Miss. during this time and enjoyed the hospitality of the Tip Thornton family whose son, J. A. Thornton later became a gospel preacher.

His next move was to Chattanooga, Tenn., then Huntsville, Ala. Later, he preached one year in Avon Park, Fla., where he went for his health leaving Ida in Middleton. That was before we had canned juices and be brought back quarts of grapefruit juice that the ladies canned for him.

Ida died in 1932 from a stroke at the age of 60. This left him very lonely so he moved to Milan, Tenn. to preach where he met and married Edna Ruth Sockard, lady of about 40 years of age who lived with and cared for her mother. This was in 1933, so he had not only a wife but a mother-in-law also to bring back to Middleton. Edna was a wonderful wife to him and after a few years they moved to Memphis where he spent about two years preaching for the church at North Parkway. Then back to Middleton which was his headquarters.

In 1946, they sold the home in Middleton and moved to Jackson, Tenn., but I don’t know what church he worked with there. He died in 1951 at the age of 78 and was buried by Ida in Middleton City Cemetery where a picture is on his tombstone.

The story is told that while living in Sharon, Tenn., their son, Mark, who was 14 years old and other boys where playing ball in the yard one Sunday afternoon. Papa Etheridge was off preaching. A train whistle blew and the boys all knew that a Boy Scout’s body was being brought in on the train, so they took off running to the depot. Mark stopped to ask Mamma Etheridge if he could go too and said, “Well Son …” and he took off. He had not finished as she had meant to say, “I had rather you not go.” He and his little dog were running along beside the engine when the engineer began pouring hot water on the dog. Mark tried to grab the dog and somehow fell und the engine, and his body had to be picked up in a basket. When Papa Etheridge returned from his engagement that was the news he received. Both parents were devastated. Mama had high blood pressure after that and the doctor told Papa to get a job during the week to keep him busy so he put in a saw-mill for a few years. After that, they moved to Middleton in southern West Tenn.

Papa was well-liked by everyone. Many from the Methodist church would come to hear him preach. He hand-sorted his strawberries so he had no problem selling them. Many people would give him produce when he came back to visit. I especially remember one Christmas when I went with him out to Mr. Alex Pulse’s home to pick up a special Christmas turkey and he was just a friend who thought a lot of Papa.

He was always very neat and well-dressed and carried himself with dignity.

When they moved to Jackson, Tenn., they bought a large house and rented one side for an apartment. Edna baby-sat for the couple who rented, and they treated the child as if he were their own. He is the one spoken of as the “stranger” taken in an article in the World Evangelist in Feb. 1992.
Papa had four daughters to live to adulthood and nine grandchildren.

1. May Etheridge Crawford lived in Bolivar and died at 98.
2. Ruth Etheridge Cornelius of Middleton died at age 74.
3. Winnie Etheridge Scott of Middleton died at 95.
4. Myrtle Etheridge Grimmitt of New Orleans died at 65.

There are seven grandchildren still living. Peggy Crawford Shearin had two strokes and is 81 and in Pine Meadows in Bolivar.

1. Frances Cornelius Johnson is 81 and lives in Manchester, Tenn.
2. Bill Crawford is 78 and lives in Bolivar, Tenn.
3. Bob Scott is 77 and lives in Middleton, Tenn.
4. David Crawford is 74 and lives in O’Fallon, Missouri.
5. Joe Cornelius is 74 and lives in Middleton, Tenn.
6. Patsy Crawford Smith is 71 and lives in Lakeland, Tenn.

All are Christians and there are numerous great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

I have no idea of all the places where Papa Etheridge held meetings.

Edna lived on and married three more times, two of which were short lived. The last marriage was to Paul Tucker. She told him that she could not marry him because she had buried three husbands and she could not stand to bury another. He told her that he was a little younger than she was and that he would care for and bury her. They had several happy years together and he did just that. He cared for her and according to her wishes buried her next to her mother in Greenfield, Tenn. at the age of 90.

P.S. I now realize that the move to Chattanooga and Huntsville should follow the first move to Middleton, then back to Middleton and later to Bolivar, etc.

Emerson Etheridge
W. F. Etheridge, a gospel preacher for 55 years, is buried in the Middleton City Cemetery in Middleton, Hardeman County, Tenn., but he has roots in Weakley County, Tenn.

His father, Emerson Etheridge, was a Representative from Tennessee; born in Currituck, N.C., September 28, 1819; moved with his parents to Tennessee in 1831; completed preparatory studies; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1840 and commenced practice in Dresden, Tenn.; member of the State house of representatives 1845-1847; elected as a Whig to the Thirty-third Congress and reelected as a candidate of the American Party to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1853-March 3, 1857); unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1856 to the Thirty-fifth Congress; elected as an Opposition Party candidate to the Thirty-sixth Congress (March 4, 1859-March 3, 1861); chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs (Thirty-sixth Congress); Clerk of the House of Representatives 1861-1863; unsuccessful candidate for Governor in 1867; member of the State senate in 1869 and 1870; surveyor of customs in Memphis 1891-1894; died in Dresden, Tenn., October 21, 1902; interment in Mount Vernon Cemetery, near Sharon, Tenn.

(Belz, Herman. “Etheridge Conspiracy of 1863: A Projected Conservative Coup.” Journal of Southern History 36 (November 1970): 549-67).

When Emerson Etheridge was sent to the fields to plow, he would carry a book with him and spend time reading. His father hit upon a plan to put an end to this "waste" of working time. He attached a cow bell to the plow horse so he could tell when the boy was not plowing. Young Emerson solved the problem by typing the bell to a bush at the end of rows and moving the bush with his feet while he lay on the ground to read his book.

When Will Etheridge was a young man, Emerson tried to persuade him to become a lawyer. Will decided to preach instead. Emerson's parting advice was the following quotation:

Heights by great men reached and kept
Were not attained by sudden flight;
But they, while their companions slept,
Were toiling upward in the night.

Journey Unto Yesterday, Dresden, Tennessee Sesquicentennial 1825-1975, p. 16.

Thomas Elihue Scott, I (1845-1904)
Go to http:www.freed-hardeman.com to view a photo of the tombstone of Thomas Elihue Scott, I, who is buried in the McCorkle Cemetery in Dyer County, Tenn. He is the grandfather of Thomas Elihue Scott, II, who was a teacher at Freed-Hardeman and is buried in Memorial Gardens Cemetery, near Henderson. His widow and a sister live in Henderson.

Jane and Henry Sanders Wood

Does anyone know about the John W. Johnson mentioned below who went to Bethany College?


Bio From Taylor Book
Henry Sanders Woods baptized Jesse and Cynthia Austin and Benjamin F. Austin and his wife, Lucidna Scott Austin, in 1872 in the Beech River about two and one-half miles northwest of Lexington, Tenn.

The four had ridden mules (four mules) from Scotts Hill approximately eighteen miles each way to hear the word in a meeting at Beech River schoolshouse in August of 1872. They were baptized that night after making the "good confession." After services, they spent the night with newly made friends and Christians to return the next day to their homes near Scotts Hill.

H. S. Wood was likely converted by John W. Johnson, who had studied under Alexander Campbell at Bethany College. Brother Wood lived and preached mostly around Juno and Wildersville. He was born in the 1820's and died Dec. 29, 1903. His wife, Jane, was born in 1818 and died in 1892. They are buried in Beech River Cemetery, north of Lexington, Tenn.

Cf. Austin's Chapel -- The Tribe of Benjamin by Jeanne Crews Taylor, p. 9.

Letter From Claude Roberts
On August 29, 1861, Henry Sanders Wood and his wife, Jane (Altom) Wood were received into the church by the right hand of fellowship. On the second Sunday in August 1870, he was set apart to the work of an evangelist by the church, giving him a letter signed by the elders, recommending him as a preacher of the gospel to the brethren and friends everywhere. He was born February 13, 1824, and died December 29, 1903. He was the father of my grandmother, Eliza Ann (Wood) Roberts, who married William R. Roberts. My father's name was John A. Roberts. Henry Sanders Wood was a powerful preacher of that day and time. He was married the second time to Mary Frances Nichols, a widow, after the death of his first wife in 1893. Three daughters by his second wife still survive and live in or near Lexington. My grandmother Roberts was immersed by W. A. Johnson on the second Sunday in June 1867. My grandfather Roberts was received into the church on confession from the Baptist church by letter on the same date. Cf. Letter from Claude Roberts, http://www.tnyesterday.com/yesterday_henderson/c-chapel.htm.

Directions to the Beech River Cemetery
Go north of Lexington, Tenn. on Highway 22 for about 4.6 miles. Turn left on Oak Street and go 4/10 of a mile and turn right on the Old Huntingdon Road. Go about 6/10 of a mile and the cemetery is on the right. When you enter the cemetery, the graves are at the far end of the cemetery and on the back rows.

Mrs. Jess Wilcoxson passes

Hagan Young Wilcoxson, age 86, died July 5, 2005, at Chester County Healthcare.

She was born and reared in Florence, Alabama, the daughter of the late John Emmett and Martha Whyte Young. She attended Coffee High School in Florence, and also attended Freed-Hardeman University. In 1938 she was married to Jess M. Wilcoxson. They lived in Florence, AL from 1936 until 1944. She worked at A. B. Hill Grocery while Bro. Jess served in WWII. They lived in Americus, GA, Macon, GA, Henderson, TN and Texarkana, TX where Bro. Jess was minister for the Churches of Christ. They returned to Henderson in 1961 and she began her work with Freed-Hardeman University as manager of the Freed-Hardeman University Bookstore. She retired in 1988. They lived two years in Florence, AL, where they were associated with Mars Hill Bible School. They returned to Henderson in 1990.

She was a lifetime member of the Freed-Hardeman Associates and a member of the Henderson Church of Christ. She was a Sunday School teacher in the Churches of Christ in all the places Bro. Jess served as minister.

She is survived by two daughters, Fran Davis of Henderson and Jane Maness of Germantown; four grandchildren, Kathy Davis Sisco, Susan Camille Music, Cameron Jess Maness and Camille Maness Brewington; eight great-grandchildren, Emily Sisco, Katie Sisco, Clayton Music, Jess Music, Paul Music, Elizabeth Music, Olivia Frances Maness and Sabrina Rose Brewington and a brother, Gene Young of Florence, AL.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Jess M. Wilcoxson in January 2002.

Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m. Friday at the Henderson Church of Christ with Bro. Ben Flatt, Dr. Claude Gardner, Dr. Milton Sewell, Dr. Milton Tucker and Dr. J. Walker Whittle officiating and burial will follow in the Henderson City Cemetery.

The family will receive friends at Casey Funeral Home after 5:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Memorials may be made to the Jess & Hagan Wilcoxson Scholarship Fund at Freed-Hardeman University in Henderson.

Casey Funeral Home Henderson, TN 731-989-2421
As reported in The Jackson Sun on 07/07/2005

More on Cat Corner

Here is an email from Ken Willis who preaches in Morrison, Tenn.

Tom,
Just looked at your restoration website today & the note about "Cat Corner". I preached there once a month during my student days at Freed-Hardeman. It is the Rehoboth congregation in the Cat Corner communiity. It was a thriving community at the time with a busy cotton gin, community store, and lots of share croppers. The cotton gin is gone & most of the share cropper houses, but the little congregation is still there. It is on the road from Newbern (Lane's Ferry Road to the Obion River, then on toward Reelfoot Lake.

The next time I visit my aged mother (now 88 & still liviing alone) I'll try to get the name of that road. It is just a few miles from "Do Drop", which is just an intersection now. Formerly stores, etc.

Ken

Cat Corner

William Boyd of Greensboro, NC recently wrote in an email:
"While preaching in Rives, Tennessee I remember hearing that "Cat Corner" in Southwest Obion County received it's name after someone threw a cat through the window while John R. Williams was preaching. A church was still meeting there at the time."

Anybody know where Cat Corner is located and anything about the church?

Tom