HISTORY OF SAINT PETER AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Saint Peter African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1880. Peter Caldwell, Henry Glover, Albert Pauling, Elijah Robinson, and F. Williams, five former slaves, purchased a parcel of land from Thomas Ulmer for the sum of eight dollars to build a church. At the time of this transaction, the land was part of Orangeburg County; theref
ore, the deed was recorded in Orangeburg on August 4, 1881, by Donald Barton, the auditor. The deed stipulated that the land was to be utilized for construction of the proposed house of worship only. Caldwell, Glover, Pauling, Robinson, and Williams, who became the first trustees of the church were unable to fulfill their dream to erect a church due to insufficient funds: Thus the church had its humble beginnings as a bush harbor. The first pastor of the organized church, the Reverend Adam Williams, was succeeded by the Reverend W.M. McDuffie, who worked diligently, together with his parishioners to realize the dream deferred: The construction of the church was completed July 1906. Peter, as well as the parsonage, built about the same time, was a wooded structure. A school built next to the church served as the first school for African Americans children in Calhoun County. Professor Andrew Black was the principal and head teacher until his death in 1942. He also taught St. Peter’s Church School from the bush harbor days. Peter has been blessed immensely with several eminent pastors. One of the first was the late Rev. Hildebrand. Other included the late B. Sumter, the late Rev. S. Hunter, and the late W. Baxter who became Presiding Elder. Bishop John Hurst Adams appointed Rev. Baxter Presiding Elder of the Wateree District from St. Peter. Our pastor became our Presiding Elder. Rev. C. Roberts, whom Rev. Baxter succeeded at St. Peter, has also been appointed Presiding Elder. During the pastorate of the late Reverend Henry F. Bowman, St. Peter flourished. He was instrumental in the construction of the Educational Complex, having laid most of the bricks himself. He and the late First Lady Mrs. Eartha Bowman worked tirelessly with the congregation to raise funds to dissolve the mortgage as quickly as possible. Cushioned pews, carpet, and a central heating and air system were installed in the church. Also, the Black Family dedicated a large exquisite stained-glass window in memory of Sister Cora B. Black a remarkably faithful lay person and missionary. One of the church’s most blessed occasions, our Annual Homecoming Observance, which culminates the Sunday before Memorial Day, was inaugurated during Rev. Bowman’s tenure. The church planned an event to celebrate the payment in full of the mortgage on the Educational Complex and provide the members of the St. Peter A. M. E. Church New York Club, organized years earlier with George Thomas, Sr., as president, as opportunity to worship collectively in their home church: thus, the inception of Homecoming in the 1970’s. Through the years with a number of pastoral appointments, the church has been modernized and enhanced tremendously spiritually and materially. Under the pastorate of the late Rev. O. Vance, the original church building was brick veneered. During the late Rev. G. Norwood’s tenure, a new parsonage was built, where the school had stood decades earlier. Under the inspired leadership of Rev. Baxter, the church was refurnished. Beautiful stained-glass windows were donated in memory of our family members. The first organ was purchased, and a phonics system was installed. During Rev. Virginia Stith’s office as pastor, the church was re-roofed from funds pledged within several minutes at a Church Conference to complete the project. Under Rev. Saint Julian Snider’s auspices, the Educational Complex was renovated. The Senior Classroom was
Transformed into the W. D. Shepard Conference Room, named in honor of a most magnanimous pastor, who, having envisioned construction of a new church, contributed quite generously to the Building Fund. During these improvements, Sister Ethel Joseph, president of the St. Church New York Club donated a magnificent new steeple to adorn the church. The Reverend Sammie L. Gordon, under the tutelage of Rev. Baxter, is the only son of the church trained here to become a pastor. Gordon, having pastored in the Central Conference for a number of years, was superannuated at the Eighty-Ninth Session of the Central South Carolina Conference, Seventh Episcopal District. African Methodist Episcopal Church October 2012 and honored during the Retirement Luncheon at the Theological Institute and Post Conference Meeting 2012. Notable for distinguished pastors, St. Peter is also known for prominent lay persons. The first president of the Central Conference Laymen’s League (now Central Conference Lay Organization) organized in 1950, was the late Sis Cora B. Black. The Cora B. Black Humanitarian Award is presented annually at the Central Conference Thomas E. Haigler Banquet and Pageant, named in honor of the church member who succeeded Sis. Black as president and served faithfully as president for twenty-five years. A number of other members of the church have been elected Conference and District officers, General Conference delegates, Quadrennial delegates, and Biennial delegates. Peter has been blessed with the appointment of The Reverend Archie R. Fair to this charge at the Theological Institute and Post Conference Meeting in November 2011. The church is experiencing a “renaissance” as a consequence of Rev. Fair’s Christian character, vision, inspiration, dynamic preaching, and excellent teaching.
