Mt.Moriah P.B. Church seems to have been located in Jefferson County,Fl.It belonged to the Ochlocknee Association.Mt. Moriah seems to have disapeared about 1870.The Ochlocknee Assoc. also seems to have disapeared. Am doing research on Mt. Moriah and Ochlockee Assoc. Need location of church,history, membership info, pastors, etc. Also similar info on association,history, churches belonging, etc. Any info appreciated..Thanks..Ed King

Ed - I have ancestral ties to both Jefferson Co, FL area and The PB churches in that area including the adjoining counties of Taylor, Madison, and Lafayette. Both Rocky Ford PBC on the Aucilla river(Jefferson/Taylor co line) and Corinth PBC in Lee, Madison Co. were early churches in this area.

I also have the book, "Primitive Baptists of the Wiregrass South" by John G. Crowley. The book covers the south Georgia/North Florida Primitive Baptists. It makes several mentions of the Ochlocknee Assoc, etc.

I will need a week or so to reread through the book and my notations and then will post.

I do have a great interest in the PBC faith since all my documented maternal genealogy points to southern roots - from NC and SC moving down to GA and AL and on into North FL and southward. I have found PBC ties as early as 1837.

My grandfather was a member of the Antioch PBC in Vero Beach and still have relatives attending today.

I will compile what i can to help.

Best Regards, Lisa

Lisa, many thanks.. I have Dr. Crowley's book and have exchanged mail with him. I really seek two bits of info..1.Exactly where was Mt. Moriah Church located in Jefferson County? 2.Lists of members and pastors. These are important to me as former members of Mt. Moriah(anti missionary) Church founded my home church, Liberty(missionary supporting) Church in Grooverville, now Brooks but then Thomas County, Ga. in 1843. I am a native of that area,born and reared in Brooks, mother born and reared in Jefferson County. Mt. Moriah Church records or minutes from Ochlocknee Primitive Baptists Association, to which Mt. Moriah belonged, would be very helpful. I know that Nancy Ann Cone Hagan was one of the members of Mt. Moriah who founded Liberty but think there were others. Life gets difficult don't it? Interesting though!!! Many thanks...Ed King

Ed,

I am glad you too have Dr. Crowley's book as there is so little written about the history. And what a privledge to correspond with him.

My mother spent her last ten years living in Monticello in Jefferson County. I would drive down from South Jersey twice a year. Many times i would cut off at Brunswick or so to head southwest towards Tallahassee. My last leg carried me through Quitman - then down 221 into FL then west on Route 146 (Ashville Hiway) to come in the back way to Monticello. I see i was not far from your Grooverville. It is pretty country through there - Mom called Monticello her "Andy of Mayberry".

Have you been able to view the minutes of the Ochlochnee Assoc? There also may be some records at Thomas County or Jefferson County Historical societies that aren't available at the archives in FL or GA. Elmer's Genealogy in Madison, FL has a large collection of records.


You may have already researched this , but i will list anyway for fellow researchers.

I did look at land and cencus records on both Nancy and John F. Hagan and additionally on Henry Milton, pastor of Mt. Moriah. (Crowley, pg 82)

Nancy Hagan is listed on the 1830 census in Magnolia, Leon County - which would correspond with her land patent of 1826 in Township 2N, Range 1W, Sec32 at the western edge of Lake Jackson. I did not initially find her listed on the 1840 census athough she did have 3 land patents issued in 1837/1838 all for Township 1N, Range 3E, Sec6 still in Leon County due west of Jefferson County line.

Her son John F. resided in Jefferson County in the 1840 census and was issued a land patent in 1843 (also in Jefferson) for Township 3N, Range 5E, Sec35. This township/range area adjoined Georgia state line.(even though it changed several times, his section was not in dispute - prob about 18 - 24 miles south of today's state line. By 1850 John F. was listed in St. Marks, Wakulla county along with his wife and children. One interesting note is that his 6 yr old child is listed born in Georgia (ca1843) while the rest - both older and younger - were born in Florida.

Henry Milton was listed in 1830 in Thomas County and in 1840 as Grooverville, Thomas County. So did he travel a circuit beween Georgia and Florida?

I did find one notation on Ancestry.com that listed a Mrs. Denmark, wife of Thomas Irving Denmark as being one of the founders of the Liberty Church in Grooverville. She was Amanda Groover, dau of Charles Groover of Bulloch county. (Many Hagans were also listed in Bulloch county on census records). The book states "Mrs. Denmark was one of the organizers (about 1840) of Liberty Baptist church in the old town of Grooverville in Thomas (now Brooks) county, GA". (Memoirs of GA., Volume 1, pg 379).

Lastly, a supreme court case of Groover vs Coffee was filed in the late 1800s by heirs of Charles Groover over land disputed to be in either Irwin County, GA or Madison Co., FL. The court case is online.

I wonder if the changing boundaries affected Mt. Moriah?

If i ever come across anything on Ochlocknee Assoc or Liberty Baptist, i will post it. I plan to visit Tallahassee (State Archives) next year - Rocky Ford's PBC records are there and i am hoping to fill in gaps on ancestors....

Best of luck in your search. It can be intriguing at times, can't it?! Many Blessings.


Regards, Lisa Romano

Lisa,many thanks for the info on the folks involved in Mt. Moriah/ Ochlocknee P.B. Assoc. Things are looking up on my research efforts, still have much to do but hit pay dirt yesterday. I recieved a reply to a mail on the Jefferson County,fl. Rootsweb message board that provided the exact location of Mt. Moriah Church and Cemetery. It was located about five miles northeast of Monticello,Fl., off St. Rd. 149. Have located some minutes from Ochlocknee Assoc. but need more. Also have had good luck in searching census records and have located nearly all of the charter members of Liberty Church. Also located its early preachers and deacons. One of the preaches that helped establish the church had four wives and 19 children. Since my family has lived since the 1820s on the Ga/Fl line I am familar with the boundry disagreements but doubt that it made any difference. Churches on both sides of the line frequently joined associations in the other state. Preachers, nearly all of them, served more than one church and frequently in both states. Assuming that you are interested in more on Nancy Ann Cone Hagan, I recommend two sources:1. Google for "Ed Cone's Home Page" for detailed, mostly correct,info on Nancy's famiy and location.( She did not die in Brooks Coo. as it was not formed until 1858.)2. The book "Creating an Old South, Middle Florida's Plantation Frontier before the Civil War", by Edward E. Baptist has a good bit of info on Nancy. It is well worth the cost if you are interested. It is a avilable in used book stores on line. The book,"Ante-Bellum Thomas County,1825-1861 has a bit of info on her association with Liberty, as does the book," History of Brooks County Georgia, 1859-1948". It is very evident that most of these books are derived from the same source as they all have the same mistaken name for Liberty's first preacher..they list R.J. May...his name was clearly Mays. He was a very rich slave owner who built Clifton Plantation House in Madison County, Fl., owned thousands of acres. Anyway, its fun and I am grateful for your info and interest. Ed King