Church History
Enjoy a more in-depth description of the history of Jonesboro First Baptist Church. Thank you to our long-time member, Evelyn Hileman, who so graciously provided the historical information to make this portion of our webpage possible.
Founding and Constitution of the Church
Jonesboro First Baptist Church was founded in 1818, the same year Illinois was admitted into the Union. Originally, Jonesboro First Baptist Church was known as Clear Creek Baptist Church.
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On December 25th, 1818, a group of 10 people met in the home of Brother Joel Boggis for religious worship. Rev. James Phillips Edwards was in charge during the meeting. On December 26th, 1818, the church was constituted through the signing of the 10 brethren and sisters.
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The 10 members were: Benjamin Hall, Joel Boggis, David Sams, Thomas Sams, Moses Atherton, John Brown, Rebecaa Hall, Fanny Boggis, Jane Thorp, and Jane Grayham.
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When the church was first established, the group petitioned Bethel Church, which was constituted in 1806 near Jackson, MO, and Tywapity Church, organized in 1805 in Commerce, MO, for ministerial aid. This established Clear Creek Baptist Church as a part of the Bethel Association. In 1831, the Clear Creek Association was formed.
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During the first meeting, the members appointed John Brown as clerk, and elder James Phillip Edwards drafted the first rules of decorum. At the meeting, they discussed how they would receive new members. At this meeting, Sister Elizabeth Brown was received as a member by “experience”. The term “experience” denotes the regeneration of the individual by faith in Jesus Christ through the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit.
​Standard of Conduct in the Early Church
The original standard of conduct for the church proved to be very strict. Any male member who missed two meetings would be cited to the next meeting unless a reasonable excuse was given by another member. Female members were required to attend as often as possible due to caring for the household and children. After being cited, if the member continued in non-attendance, he was excluded from the church. Other citations were given for drinking in excess, using profane language, desecrating the Sabbath, or violating any of the commandments.
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When attending the meeting for citations, members were asked to respond to the charges against them. If they confessed to being sorry for their sin and resolved to do better, they were kept in fellowship as members. If they did not meet “satisfaction,” they were excommunicated from the church.
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Other examples of citation are as follows: two brethren were appointed to investigate a report that Abraham Miller removed a frying pan from a hunter’s camp, whereas John McIntosh was cited for being overtaken with anger.
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Construction of the First Church
On February 17th, 1819, the church appointed a committee consisting of John McIntosh, Benjamin Hall, and John Kimmel to designate a site for a meeting house. The land the church was placed at was donated by John McIntosh. The church was a modest log structure located in the southern part of the present-day Jonesboro cemetery. Construction started in August of 1819, and on Christmas Day of 1819, the members of the church equally contributed funds for the remaining building expense.
​Settlement of Other Churches
Once settled, Clear Creek Baptist Church took part in settling a multitude of other Baptist churches in the area. In 1821, Clear Creek Baptist Church granted permission for the Cave Creek arm of the Clear Creek Baptist Church to be established in the Ridge settlement. Later in 1826, this arm was constituted as Ridge Church, which is still present today and is known as Dutch Ridge.
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After 1841, the church began to receive letters to grant permission to organize new churches. The list is as follows:
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In 1841, 12 letters were granted to form a church in the Frogge settlement, which is known today as Galilee.
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In 1852, 28 letters were granted to form Big Creek Church, which is still present today.
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In 1856, 6 letters were granted to form Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church.
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In 1858, 27 letters were granted to form the First Baptist Church of Anna, which is still present today.
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In 1861, 52 letters were granted to form a church at Eaves School, which is still present today and is known as New Hope Baptist Church.
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In 1862, 14 letters were granted to form South Pass Church near Cobden, IL, which is now known as the First Baptist Church of Cobden.
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To this day, our church continues to plant churches throughout the area. We have most recently assisted with helping establish Grace Church in Cairo, IL.
​Relocation and Burning of the Church
In 1850, the church was relocated to the corner of Church and Walnut Street, where our church currently sits today. When relocated in 1850, the church cost $1,260.33 to construct.
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One hundred and nineteen years later, on January 5th, 1969, the church burned at approximately 11 pm. Three days later, on January 8th, the church voted to rebuild the church. To rebuild, the architect quoted the committee approximately $100,000. News spread of the cost of the new church, and many contributions were made to rebuild. On December 7th, 1969, the church was dedicated. This is the present-day sanctuary we worship in today. By August 1st, 1977, the debt on the building was paid off, 12 years before it was due.
Closing
God has been good to Jonesboro First Baptist Church over the past 200+ years. We continue to strive to spread the Gospel and serve God and the people of Jonesboro and Union County.