Restrictions to Access

No restrictions. Open for research.

Copyright Notice

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the W. H. Stewart Reminiscence #5128-z, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Provenance

Received from Anne Moughon of Hillsborough, N.C., in July 2003(Acc. 99570).

Sensitive Materials Statement

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

• Arkansas--Religion--19th century.
• Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)--History--19th century.
• Confederate States of America--Social conditions.
• Disciples of Christ--Clergy.
• Disciples of Christ--Sermons.
• Family--Louisiana--Social life and customs.
• Family--Texas--Social life and customs.
• Graham, Robert, 1822-1901.
• Kentucky--Religion--19th century.
• Louisiana--Religion--19th century.
• Louisiana--Social life and customs.
• Mississippi--Religion--19th century.
• Stewart, W. H. (William Harding), b. 1816.
• Texas--Religion--19th century.
• Texas--Social life and customs.

W. H. Stewart was born near Utica, N.Y., 19 December 1816. He was raised as a Quaker in Mt. Gilead, Ohio. He attended Marietta College in Ohio and taught school in Kentucky and North Carolina after graduation. In 1837, he went to Arkansas, and it was there that he began his work as a traveling Campbellite Christian (Disciples of Christ) preacher. In March 1841, Stewart married Martha J. Smith, with whom he had five children. From 1845 to 1851, he divided his time between teaching school and traveling and evangelizing in Arkansas, southwest Missouri, and the Indian Nation (including the Cherokee Nation). In 1858, he settled with his family in Cheneyville, La., to work with a church there. He also continued to travel and preach, mostly in Kentucky and Mississippi. During his tenure at Cheneyville, Stewart suffered the loss of three of his children, whom he buried in the Old Christian Cemetery. He also indicated that he lost everything in the Civil War, because his home was "... in the great military thoroughfare... ." From 1880 to the time the "Reminiscences" was published in 1894, Stewart lived and preached in Texas. During these last years, his wife died, in 1890, after 49 years of marriage.

The collection consists of the Reminiscences of Eld. W. H. Stewart, published in Jackson, Miss., in 1894. Preacher and teacher W. H. Stewart's reminiscences include an autobiography and sketches for and outlines of his sermons through 1893. Included in the autobiographical portion are comments about Stewart and his work and excerpts of letters to Stewart from prominent members of the Disciples of Christ, most notably Robert Graham. Topics include Stewart's calling to the ministry; his travels and ministry throughout Kentucky, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Texas; the loss of three of his children to disease; the affect of the Civil War on his homestead; the deep political and social divisions he perceived among residents in Lincoln County, Ky., after the Civil War; and the loss of his wife of 49 years. The final two chapters of the reminiscence include sketches and outlines of Stewart's sermons. In one of these, he described the organization and church government of the Disciples of Christ.