Clear Creek Baptist Church

Clear Creek Baptist Church is located at 2044 Clear Creek Road in northwest Cumberland County."Churches and Missions". Cpbaptistassociation.com. n.d. Web. Accessed 15 September 2014. Originally a member of the United Baptist sect upon its 1875 organization,Deberry, Hazel Phillips."Clear Creek Church". Rootsweb.ancestry.com. n.d. Web. Accessed 15 September 2014. presently the congregation aligns with the Southern Baptists in the Cumberland Plateau Baptist Association. The church was pastored by Chip Bond as of 2012, and was holding Sunday morning services at 10:45, with Sunday evening services at 6:00."Clear Creek Baptist Church". Facebook.com. 18 February 2012. Web. Accessed 15 September 2014.
==Formation==
Sinking Springs Baptist Church, one of the Upper Cumberland's earliest congregations, was located in northern Fentress County, near the Overton County line. They were also one of the region's most active churches when it came to seeding new missions which would later become independent congregations.Fentress County Historical Society.History of Fentress County, Tennessee. Dallas, Texas: Curtis Media Corporation, 1987.
On November 17, 1875, five members of Sinking Springs met at Clear Creek (which was around fifty miles from their home church), were examined and found "sound in the faith" by Presbytery G.W. Presley and Coordinator James Lee Sewell, and organized a Baptist congregation. This was a full-fledged church, rather than a mission, the first time Sinking Springs had skipped that intermediate step when "seeding".
On September 9, 1876 the church affiliated with the Stockton Valley Association when they held their annual meeting at Sinking Spring, Alfred Smith being their delegate. On September 10, 1892 Clear Creek took its turn to host the meeting.Smith, Randolph Nunnally. Stockton Valley Association of United Baptist 1805-1968: Partial Abstract and Index. Publisher unknown, circa 1968.
==Re-organization==
A period of inactivity by the Baptists at Clear Creek, beginning around 1900 when the Association dropped them from the rolls, ended July 11, 1908, when a "council meeting" was called for the purpose of re-organizing the church under the banner of the Primitive (or "Hardshell") Baptists. The meeting was led by Rev. James "Tarhill" Smith and A.J. Green. The following members were present:
*G.W. Smith
*C.B. Smith
*Geo. Pickard
*Winnie Smith
*Hulda L. Smith
*Jane Hicks
*P.E. Pickard
*Nancy Smith
*Amanda Smith
*Patience Smith
*Winnie Creason
*LeAnn Norris
After appointing A.G. Green (A.J.?) clerk for the meeting, the assembled agreed to the articles of faith. Rev. John Smith was approved as moderator for a term of twelve months. A permanent position of church clerk was filled by G.W. Smith, again with the assent of the congregation. A.G. Green was named pastor. An invitation was extended and Leonna E. Green was accepted into the membership by experience and baptism, and the meeting adjourned.
==Photo gallery==
ClearCreek1.jpg|Undated photograph showing church members assembled in front of the building, many of which are identified in the caption
421037 175194395925317 90043742 n.jpg|Clear Creek Baptist Church as it appeared February 2012
426271_175258289252261_1076472314_n.jpg|Clear Creek Baptist Church in 2012, persons unknown, presumably Rev. Chip Bond and family
431975_175258842585539_1292848162_n.jpg|Church sanctuary as of 2012
==References==
Category:Cumberland County churches
Category:Baptist churches