Welcome to
Pines Baptist Church
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History of area and church
But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!
Romans 5:8
History
The land that Pines Baptist Church sits on was first given to Electious Thompson (1757 - 1837) for his service to our country during the Revolutionary War. Mr. Thompson fought heroically under the command of General George Washington at the Battle of Long Island.
He was born in 1757 in Prince George's County Maryland and became a church planter and planted some of the first Baptist Churches in the country in Kentucky and Alabama. He moved to Alabama in or around 1823 to establish a home place and farm on his recently acquired land.
Christopher Erwin Russell came to Morgan County Alabama from Mecklinburg County North Carolina, around 1822. He and Electious Thompson soon became good friends and came to be very crucial to the settlement of the Pines area. Mr. Russell purchased his first 160 acres near the present day corner of Pines Road and Apple Grove Road. He loved this property because of the natural spring and piercing blue water that is now referred to as the "cold hole".
He began buying land and growing his farm west on present day Pines Road. At one time he, or his sons, owed most of the land from Apple Grove Road to current Crawford Bottoms Road.
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In 1857, John Russell, Christopher's son, added to the Russell Plantation by purchasing the property that the current Pines Baptist church resides. Forty four years later, in 1901, the property was given to the community by W. G. and M. N. Russell. The original deep stipulates the building should only be used for educational, community or religious purposes.
A one room school house was built in 1904, and teachers would come to the area and rotate their services on a monthly bases. Teachers boarded with Marvin and Minnie Russell and Russell Peck. Russell Peck, a long time member of the community and school bus driver, attended elementary school there.
Present day "Cold Hole"
in 1952, a community wide decision was made to officially recognize the building as Pines Baptist Church. The building has helped teach children, held many revivals, weddings and funerals and the people who attend there every Sunday are proud to call it home.
Many thanks to Greg Motes for supplying the history of the church and area.
Renovations
In the Fall of 2015 the congregation of Pines needed to do some renovations in the structure of the 111 year old building in the hopes that it will continue to stand and be part of this community for many years to come. There will soon be pictures of the demolition and rebirth of our own little church in the valley.
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Thanks to Joan Knighten Cooper for sharing pictures.
During the renovations a board was found dated 1904 with the signature of W. G Russell, the gentleman who gave the land to the community for the school and church.