Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1927-06-09
Introducing the Rev.
Plato Albert Hicks
Personal GlimpSes of New Pastor of
Boone and Blowing Rock Bap-
tist Churches

Mark of April 25, carried the follow
ing sketch of the Rev. P. A. Hicks,
who recently accepted the pastorate
of the Boone and Blowing Rock Bap-
tist churches:
Rev. Plato Albert Hicks, who has
been pastor of Western Avenue Bap-
tist church for the past four years,
was born in Burke county, August 8,
1892, son of Joseph and Mary Jane
Hicks. He was one of eleven chill
dren, three sons and eight daughters.
The fathe~, one brother end two sis
ters have passed away:
Daring what is known as the
"Cleveland panic" when Mr.. Hicks
was five years old, the family remov-
ed to Lincoln county, and two years
later moved to cotton mill at Lin
colnton. 81 began working in the mill
at the age of eight" stated Mr.. Hicks
in recounting the period of his career
spent in in Lincolnton, "and worked
till was eighteen, attending the pub
lie school about four months each
year. When l began working l re-
ceived ten cents per day and when l
stopped working l was receiving the
fancy wage of one dollar per day. 1
had operated most every piece of ma
chinery in the mill and had been pro-
NOTED to assistant overseer."
"On September %, 1906" con-
tinued Mr.. Hicks, when asked for fur
ther information concerninf his ca
reer, 81 was baptized into the fellow
ship of River View Baptist church.
Two years later l was elected super
intendent of the Sunday school, and
also taught the mems Bible class.
SIN the fall of 1911, feeling that
God was calling me into the blessed
work of the gospel ministry, enter
ed South Fork Institute, a Baptist
high school located at Maiden, N. c.,
and was given license to preach the
same fall. took four years course
in three years and graduated May Is,
1914. While here I paid my expen-
ses by serving as janitor of the Ad-
ministration building and serving
Bethany Baptist church at Hilder-
bran. A very interesting coincidence
is that both positions paid me the
same salary-five dollars per month.
'In the fall of 1914, three great
things happened in my career: l got
married; the World War started, and
l entered Wake Forest College with
my young bride by faith, with just
enough money to reach Wake Forest.
| married Miss Diere Whiteside, of
my home community, my first and
only sweetheart. She was real
companion to me in my struggles at
Wake Forest and at the Theological
Seminary, at Louisville, Ky.
"The first two years at Wake For
est, l paid most of my expenses de-
livering the Raleigh Evening Times,
working with my good friend, the
late Lieutenant B. w. Maynard, the
"sky pilot"
Mr. Hicks was ordained to the full
work of the ministry July 1S, 1915,
and served the following churches in
connection with his last two years in
college: South Henderson, Kenans-
vile, New Hill and Pleasant Plains
Baptist churches.
Mr. and Mrs. Hicks have two boys,
both being born during their resi-
dence at Wake Forest-Jeter Joseph
Hicks, born May II, 1915, and Paul
Albert Hicks, born January 2, 1917.
On the oath day of May, 1918,
Mr.. Hicks received the A. B. degree
at Wake Forest College. On the fol
lowing September, he was asked by
the home mission board to serve as
pastor at Camp Greene, Charlotte,
and in connection with this camp he
was called as pastor fo Chadwick
Baptist church. He served as camp
pastor 1S months until the base hos
pital closed, at which time the Chad
wick church became self-supporting,
by reason of the fact that the men,
bership had almost doubled, and he
remained as pastor there until Sep
tember, 1921, when he went to
Louisville, KY, to enter the Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary.
While a student at the seminary,
Mr.. Hicks served two half-time
churches in the state of Indiana, one
at Burney and the other at Shelby
vile, which he found to be very de-
lightful field of work.
After receiving his Th. B. degree
from the Southern Baptist Theologi-
cal Seminary at Louisville in May,
1923, Mr.. Hicks and family left for
Statesville, which he designates as
the chest town in the Old North