According to the Tax District of Montgomery County for 1799, Lt. Reubin Thompson paid taxes there. He was the key person in establishing Methodism in that section. A soldier in the Dragoons, Reubin was stationed at the fort which was attached to Uchee, the county seat of Montgomery County. Uchee is a corrupted form of the Indian word Yuchi.

The location of the county seat was four miles east of the present location of Ebenezer Church. According to Mrs. Bragg Thompson, the courthouse stood in what is now the backyard of her present country home. The Old Field School was situated in the open field nearby.

Swanton, in his Early History of the Creek Indians and Their Neighbors, indicated that the Yuchi group occupied portions of what is now Emanuel County, in the 18th Century. He located the area near the headwaters of Canoochee Creek, placing them in the general area between the present-day Highway 56 and Highway 80.

"Even though Emanuel County was created in 1812, the county has retained a sense of 'splendid isolation' throughout a large portion of its history. At least a part of this isolation can be attributed to geography.

"It was perhaps fitting that a county which was to remain as isolated from the mainstream of Georgia history until after the Civil War, should be named for one of Georgia's most obscure and least known governors. David Emanuel served briefly as the state's chief executive in 1801..."

In sketching the history of Ebenezer (and Green Leaf), we have pictured factors of Indian problems, isolation, and the few settlers in the pocket community. It would be impossible to paint an accurate picture of the church without stressing the important role of the school standing nearby. The church, the school, and the pioneer homes were the genuine cornerstones of the community.

Harrell in his History of Georgia, quoting a Methodist minister-teacher, the Rev. James S. Lamar, had this to say of the early field schools:

"In the old days, a prospective teacher would wander into a neighborhood carrying his personal 'Articles of Agreement.' The parents agreed to pay him a certain sum of money for teaching each child, and providing a school building. The teacher, with a stout switch...marched with a steady step to the (school) door and called out 'Books! Books! Come to books!' Each student was required to do his reading or spelling aloud.... Imagine 20 scholars, having perhaps 5 or 6 different lessons...all spelling different words or reading all manner of different sentences at one and the same time."

To this very primitive setting Lt. Reubin Thompson brought his wife, Rachel Chambers, and his large family of children. According to tradition, as soon as his log house was built, Reubin said that there must be a place of worship for the few families in the community. Providing a suitable location on his land, he built an arbor. The location is still pointed out by the community....

By 1800, according to church lore, a permanent log church was built beside the arbor, with Reubin Thompson serving as Exhorter. Citing further tradition, Reubin had brought by covered wagon with his family and personal possessions, a crude handmade pew from old Thompson's Meeting House [located in Elbert County] where each family provided homemade pews for all members of the family. This pew became the Mourner's Bench both for the arbor and for the new log meeting house which had been named Green Leaf in 1800. Finally, when the present Ebenezer Church was built in 1877, planks from the old pew were nailed on the bottom side of the present flooring. During the 77 years in which the church was called Green Leaf, the small membership faced many hardships. Roads were few and impassable at certain seasons. Rivers seldom had bridges. According to church lore, early circuit riders often had to let their horses "swim them" across the swollen Ohoopee River. Often, night caught these circuit riders with no place to sleep...except on the ground. Circuits were so large and travel so hazardous that preaching appointments were few and arrival time uncertain. It was no wonder that a high percentage of preachers of this period died early of consumption.

To strengthen the "hold" of Green Leaf on the pocket community, Reubin dreamed of a full-time ministry for the church. He envisioned local preachers or exhorters carrying on the program in the absence of the itinerating [sic] preacher. Accordingly, he made available a log house close to the Green Leaf Church.

Since the Conference was licensing, and sometimes ordaining, local preachers and there were exhorters, there was no local problem. The house, according to tradition, was made available free of charge to a local preacher who would assume the local responsibility of ministering to the spiritual needs of the community. There evolved a unique system during the early period of Green Leaf. In this way, the primitive church kept its doors open on every Lord's Day. According to lore, Saturday services were "thrown in," extra. The long list of these pioneer local preachers and exhorters has been carefully preserved in the back of the old pulpit Bible and in Ebenezer Church.

In no way was there competition between the appointed pastor and the local preacher. The local preacher usually had the funerals and weddings according to public records. This was due to a lack of communication, distances involved, and poor transportation for the itinerating [sic] minister.

Maybe we can get a close-up view of Methodism in the area by quoting the interesting report by the pastor to the Annual Conference in 1859. By this time, Green Leaf had been cut into Emanuel County. The Rev. R. N. Cotter, pastor of the Emanuel Mission, Sanderville [sic] District, Georgia Conference, gave these statistics.

White Members 146

Colored Members 12

Local Preachers 3

Probationary Members 49

Probationary Members (Colored) 9

Another Annual Conference report for the Circuit (mission) was given by the pastor in 1868. The Conference met at Cuthbert. The Rev. N. D. Morehouse signed the report that reflected the state of the church as it was immediately after the Civil War.

"It (the circuit) embraces Emanuel County. The vast reach of the county has not yet been deemed self-sustaining, unless it is served by a single man. There are 8 appointments." The report stated that there were 210 members with 40 accessions during the year. The charge raised $312 for the pastor and $30 for the Presiding Elder.

From the two reports filed at the sessions of the Annual Conference in 1859 and 1868, we can surmise that the Green Leaf Church community was neither populous nor prosperous.

The area, like all the south, was in shock over the recent Civil War. The families in the community had been Quakers for the most part before becoming Methodists. They did not approve of or practice slavery. Yet, the young men of the church had to go to war. Several ministers assigned to Green Leaf also had to go. Several young men were killed in battle and were buried in unmarked graves far from their rural hamlet.

The Conference had started rotating ministers every six months. In a few cases, four different ministers served during the period of a year.... Again, local preachers kept the church open with a full-time ministry.

By this time, Uchee had ceased to be a trading post. Only a few Indians remained, and they were friendly. A new town, Kemp. emerged four miles west of Old Uchee. The Old Field School was closed. A new four room school was built in the center of Kemp. A post office, a railroad depot, 12 stores and shops, and about 45 homes were located in the new town.

Members of the old Green Leaf Church wisely decided to relocate and rename their church placing it beside the new school at Kemp. In the process, the name of the old Green Leaf Church was changed to Ebenezer. An old cedar shingle hangs at the back inside wall of the Ebenezer church. Now under glass, the shingle's inscription reads: "Ebenezer Church - Established 1800." The "history of the wall" has been accepted by all members of the church from 1800 to the present time, 1988. The meeting in the arbor was not an organized congregation.

On November 13, 1865, Wesley Paul Thompson deeded four acres, more or less, to the trustees of the church for a suitable location for a new place of worship.... The copy of the deed is on file at the church through the courtesy of Col. Reginald Thompson.

John N. Thompson...promised to provide all nails necessary for construction of the new building. The Civil War had just ended and the south was impoverished. Yet in such a trying hour, the members of the church had chosen to build a new house of wors[h]ip. John N. did not have any money or credit; however, he did have an old mule which Gen. U. S. Grant had given him (as happened to other Southern soldiers at Appomattox) to ride home and to make a new crop. John N. sold the mule for $15 using the money to buy all the nails needed for the church. Then he became the "human mule," hitching the plow to himself. He had his ten sons to "plow" him on a rotating schedule. In this way he made his meager crop and carried the tithe to the church.

Concerning the land in the area, James Dorsey had written about the neglect during the years of the Civil War. "During their (the soldiers) absence in the armies, the farms had been allowed to run down. Ditches had been filled; their banks had grown up with bushes and briars; fences were falling; gates and bars were beyond repair. The soil was badly prepared and inadequately cultivated. The harvest was a failure both in 1865 and 1866."

By 1877, according to the notes filed in the old church Bible, the thankful congregation assembled in their new church home singing, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing...". The church rang with tearful shouts as the congregation sang lustily, "Here I Raise My Ebenezer..." and "Hither by Thy Help I come...!" [sic].

"Frugality" has ever been the watchword for the small membership in this sparsely populated pocket community. The utter simplicity of Ebenezer is striking. All pews, the altar, the pulpit, and the preacher's chair are homemade. Old fashioned kerosene lamps with metal reflectors are hung at intervals on the walls seemingly [sic] light up and tell the story of a glorious past. The wide flooring and the equally wide side paneling are intact. The boarding on the exterior is the same that was placed there sacrificially in 1[8]77. The pretty landscaping is of native greenery: pine, oaks, etc. The "Silent City of the Dead" is well kept and further helps to enshrine the rich treasure house of Methodist history.

No two family pews are identical in design or length. As it was at the old Green Leaf Church, each family was requested to provide adequate seating for its family plus a few friends. No one in the area had a yardstick or money to buy one so each man "stepped off" his own pew length....

In 1906 the Post Office closed. This was followed by the removal of the railroad station and tracks. Next, the Old Kemp School that had stood on the lot beside the church ceased operation. Soon, the stores and shops went out of business. Finally, came the exodus of the families, leaving their homes and other buildings to decay. Kemp, the once prosperous town, was no more. Yet, Historic Ebenezer accepted the challenge to remain open. Every third Sunday became "Meeting Day", and Sunday School sufficed on other Sundays. The following, extracted from Minutes of the Sunday School Record preserved at Ebenezer, give [sic] a picture of how the Sunday School operated in 1914.

For: January 11, 1914

Religious Services conducted by Supt. J. W. Thompson

Opening song - "I Love to Tell the Story"

Officers and Teachers Present 4 - Absent 4

Scholars Present 65 - Absent 35

Scripture Lesson - Luke 10:1-24

Subject of the Lesson - "The Mission of the Seventy"

Collection - 67� Weather - Fair

School Closed by School Principal - G. W. Thomas

Rev. E. R. Cowart, Pastor

As Ebenezer Church serves in its second century, it is still rendering spiritual leadership to a community in which it first responded to the call for ministry. The task of the church is less complicated because the Church Homecoming Day is really a Reunion Day for members of the closely knit family association. Since it is a family church, all of the offerings received on that date go for church use. Among the families attending, almost every Protestant denomination is represented....

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Soon after, Spencer Youngblood built a dam [destroyed by flood in 1990] and mill house on a 100-acre pond site where he ground corn into meal. Upon his death, his son, George Ashley Youngblood, continued to operate the mill for several years, until flood waters washed out the dam and subsequent flood waters washed away the mill. Water from the pond, which generated the power for the mill, flowed into the Ohoopee River near the crossing on the trail leading from Swainsboro to Covena. A wooden bridge was built to carry traffic and was named Youngblood Bridge. This bridge was used until 1962, when a cement bridge was built just below it to replace it. The wooden bridge is still standing [as of the time this was written in 1977], but is no longer in use.

At one time Ephraim H. Youngblood developed the Old Youngblood Mill area as a recreation place for his family and friends. A large cottage with several rooms was furnished for camping and relaxing. The house was built on the edge of the old mill pond. It was there that many of the early reunions were held by these families and the people of Kemp. [By Reginald Thompson]

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Services at Ebenezer Church were held at eleven o'clock a.m., Saturday and Sunday. Sunday School was at 3:00 p.m. Prayer meeting was Wednesday night at eight o'clock. People came to church services from miles around in horse-drawn buggies, surreys and wagons.

School closed in May with three nights of entertainment. Then came time for the fish frys and picnics at Martin Landing, Hall's bridge on the Ohoopee River, and Youngblood Mill Pond.

Protracted meeting began on third Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. in July and was held for two weeks with a visiting preacher present. Dinner was served at the church for several days.

Christmas time was a jolly time for everyone. They gathered at the Church and placed a large holly tree by the altar and decorated it and everyone put presents under the tree. On Christmas Eve Night the folks met at the church and sang Christmas carols and Santa Claus handed out the gifts. During the Christmas Season, they had pound parties at the homes. Each one carried a pound of fruit, nuts, or cake and put is on the dining table. Everyone gathered around and ate and made merry. The young men dressed in costumes and false faces and rode from house to house and wished everyone a Merry Christmas. [By Mattie Eva Youngblood Thompson]

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The Rowell boys, Robert Thompson, John C. Hall, Spencer Youngblood, helped build the second place of worship for the community.

The deed for the present property is dated the thirteenth day of November in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy five. This indenture was made between Wesley P. Thompson on the one part, and G. A. Kitchen, J. C. Hall, J. N. Thompson, Allen Thompson and R. B. Thompson on the other part.

The present church was built about the date of the deed. The sponsors were John C. Hall, who put up land, G. A. Kitchen, who put up land, John N. Thompson, who gave a horse, Spencer Youngblood who gave one hundred dollars in gold, and William Thompson.

As you enter the church today and take a look around, the very building tells the story of a plain, simple-living, God-fearing and God-worshiping [sic] people. Many of the worshipers [sic] themselves helped to build this plain structure at a great sacrifice to themselves and their families.

In the church today [again, originally written in 1977] are the same old handmade pews made by G. A. Kitchen and his helpers. The old pews seated many a saint who was never conscious of the hardness or discomfort.

Then there is the handmade pulpit at which many of the great preachers of early Methodism preached. Many of them our "Kith and Kin".

Old Reverend Robert Thompson, son of Reubin, preached at this pulpit. Joseph Kitchen told of seeing him make his hands into fists and placing them on the pulpit, then lean forward on them. He would preach so movingly and earnestly to the people until all were deeply touched.

As one observes the slatted railing altar they will see no kneeling cushions for comfort while worshiping [sic] at this altar. Do not these things speak of a people with a great faith in God? A God who had brought them safely from foreign lands through wilderness and hardship to finally settle in a place of their choosing.

At the first meeting of the new church the hymn, "Come Thou Fount of Many Blessings" was sung. Some of the words were "Here I raise my Ebenezer-hither by Thy help I come." Ebenezer means a monument commemorating divine assistance, or a stone of strength. Polly Ann Thompson, who was Robert Thompson's daughter and Reubin Thompson's granddaughter, suggested the church be called Ebenezer.

In the early days of Greenleaf, in the yard where the horses and buggies were hitched, there were three large round blocks of wood sunken into the ground, close together and at different heights. The blocks were for the girls or ladies to dismount from the horse after riding pillion to church.

The ladies would wear an extra skirt over their Sunday dress for protection from the dirt and dust made by the horse. These skirts would be removed before entering the church. The ladies and girls sat on one side of the church while the men and boys sat on the other, unless a young man was with a young lady. Then he would sit on her side of the church. [Author unknown]

[Reubin Thompson first settled in what was then Montgomery County in 1794. He was an ancestor of several Youngblood descendants].

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Usually a visiting preacher would help hold these meetings, and they would last as long as three weeks. There would be much preaching, and as the people became very emotional there was much shouting at this church. [In addition to shouting, much dancing and singing is described].

Long Bob, son of John N. Thompson, would sit mostly shedding tears. His wife, Jane Beasley Thompson (daughter of Redding Beasley), would shout and clap her hands. Neal Kitchen's wife, Sallie Smith, would do the same. Jay Bob Thompson's favorite song was "A Little Broken Vase." John N. Thompson, a dignified old man, sat stiffly in his seat looking on.

This shouting was a form of real worship to the people. Seeing them engaged in shouting in church was an experience a young child never forgot. It would happen when the minister had finished preaching and the congregation joined in singing what became a second part of the "altar-call." Soon the voices, instead of singing, changed into shouting, and the order of the service was dispensed with as the people shouted and clapped their hands, moving from one to the other in church. [No author given]

[Vernon Hall remembers his parents at protracted meetings spreading a quilt on the floor beneath their pew where he and his sister Johnnie and brother Jim lay down to sleep, only to be awakened and initially frightened by the manner in which the people worshipped].

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The mill was made of two rollers about a foot in diameter, with cogs on the top that fit into each other. Over the top of the two feet [sic] long rollers was a sweep. This was a long bent-cured hardwood post. A mule would be backed up to this mill and the traces put to the single tree. Men would feed the cane stalks between the rollers, and the mule would walk around, and around, mashing the cane to a pulp while the juice would run into a barrel set under a little trough. The barrel would be covered with a cloth to skim the juice.

As the barrels filled they would be carried to the furnace, poured into a big iron vat like a great big dishpan. The cane juice was cooked into syrup from early morning until night. The foam which would form was dipped off with a dipper on a long pole. The one doing the dipping was called a skimmer. The farmer would test the juice as it cooked and when the syrup was just right it was dipped up into tubs, later put in jugs. Old and young folks attended these cane grindings at night. It was like a party with the young folks playing games of which "Snap" was popular. The last night was spent in pulling candy made from the syrup.

Some of the cane was not ground but put in a corner of the cane patch in piles. Over this was put dirt, and there it stayed until next spring. At that time the cane patch was plowed in furrows, the cane dug up and laid end to end in the furrows. At each joint on the stalk is an "eye." From each eye sprouted a new stalk for the new season. [By Mattie Eva Youngblood Thompson]

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Compiled and Copyrighted By L. L. Ketchum, Westfield, Wisconsin, � 1998. L. L. Ketchum. June 1992. Revised May 1998. All Rights Reserved.