Churches are key community leaders

Most African-American churches in Jackson County are important hubs of the communities they serve. By the count of former Jackson County NAACP president Elmore Bryant, there are 52 Missionary Baptist and African Methodist Episcopal churches in the county, with several others of different denominations as well.

This story features of the most prominent in Marianna, St. James A.M.E. Now at 2891 Orange Street, St. James regularly opens its doors to host community events like NAACP meetings, political forums and many other gatherings meant to make the community a better place to live.

The information for this story was gathered from a history of the church written in 2010 by members Queen Brown, Ermia Barkley and Mary Peoples.

The church got its start around 1865 at a different location, on Clinton Street, and owes its origins to the dedication of a slave named Henry Call.

Since 1863, Call had informally and secretly organized slaves of the community as A.M.E. chapters, the history journal states.

When he found out in 1865 that the minister responsible for formally organizing A.M.E. congregations throughout the state was to appear in Jacksonville, Call put on his walking shoes. He walked to Jacksonville from Marianna to meet with the minster, William G. Steward.

Their meeting resulted in Steward’s coming to Marianna to organize the Bethlehem-area group of slaves to the first A.M.E. church in the Marianna District. That led to the establishment of St. James A.M.E. on a small plot of land on Clinton that had been donated by a white friend.

The original church was built on a blueprint similar to the original St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Marianna. It was a large wooden structure with a bell tower and a pump organ. It boasted a membership of about 300 and was one of two churches where blacks gathered for worship.

In the early 1930s, a new church on the current site was built. Francis Epton, who only recently passed away, recalled for the 2010 history journal that he was the only surviving male who actually helped pour the foundation of the current structure. He said he and another church member, Allen Rivers, made several trips to Cottondale to screen gravel from a sand pit so it could be used for the foundation.

Some of the money to build the brick structure was gathered in outright contributions, but a variety of fundraisers were also held. Musical programs were presented, with offerings given for those performances. Fish sandwiches were made and sold, along with full dinners, homemade ice cream, boiled and roasted peanuts and lemonade. Church carnivals and baby contests were also part of the fundraising drive. The first service was held in the basement of the new structure in 1938. The upper sanctuary was completed under the leadership of the Rev. N.H. Leath in the 1940s.

Music has always been an integral part of the St. James ministry, with young guitarists, drummers and singers of every age making up the choir and accompaniment. Members who were also teachers in the Jackson County school system provided a special contribution in the early days of the new church. Together, they bought an organ for the sanctuary.

The public address system was donated by longtime member Queen Brown in memory of her husband, the late Amos P. Brown Sr.

Some of the sanctuary’s stained glass windows were donated by auxiliaries of the church, some given in honor or memory of family members.

The late Dr. Keturah Whitehurst gave the church its chandeliers and the steward chairs inside the chancellor rails in memory of her father, the late Rev. R.W. Whitehurst.

St. James has hosted many sessions of the annual West Florida Conference for the A.M.E. 11th Episcopal District.

The church often pays special respect to “Legacy Members,” those who are 80 years of age or older, for their service to the church and community and actively involves young people in church activities.

The church is pastored by the Rev. Ronald Dale Mizer and his wife, first lady Bessie Mizer.