Returning to the discussion of Hedgman's River Church, in 1819 the majority of the members of the church were residents of Jeffersonton. They bought one-sixth acre of land in their community on which they "lived" for the next thirty-three years. Later, numerous additions of land make it difficult to locate the original plot. The initial land was bought from the heirs of William K. Spilman. The trustees who made the purchase were Martin Fishback, William Freeman, Thomas Luckett, Daniel Ward, Harmon Button, and Philip Spilman. On this land they built a small wooden structure with one door.
In the new location, the church prospered, and in the next 30 years the membership more than doubled. In 1848, a brick structure was raised which still stood in 1932. Another acre of land was added to provide space for the church and a cemetery. At the time of building, the trustees were John M. Young, James M. Button, Joseph Settle, Caleb Burnley, and John A. Armstrong.
In 1877, disaster struck when the church caught fire one Sunday morning from an over heated flue. The pews were saved and the services were held in the Methodist church. The Baptist pastor, Rev. Grimsley, preached from the text, "While I was musing, the fire burned." He never admitted whether the text was chosen before or after the fire. Using the same brick walls, the church was rebuilt and paid for within the year. Mr. Spilman Armstrong was the contractor. A baptistry was added at this time to replace the use of nearby streams for baptisms.
In 1890, a windstorm blew off the roof and damaged the gable end. Until repairs were completed, the Methodist church was used. In 1906, about one fourth of an acre was added to the property to enlarge the cemetery. This had been purchased from John Holtzman. In 1910 a parsonage was built on five acres bought for that purpose.
From John Pickett to 1932, there were only twelve pastors. Cumberland George raised the average length of service as he was pastor for forty years. Some people believe that Hedgman's River Church ceased to be an arm of Carter's Run Baptist Church and became independent in 1791 when Pickett was succeeded by another minister.
The first clerk is unknown. The earliest known one is Frederick Fishback, who served until his death in 1848. His successors were Joseph W. Button, George Dallas Coons, J. R. Coons, Woodford B. Hackley, and Robert E. Sudduth, down to 1932. Henry E. Button of the congregation was licensed to preach but never ordained.
From the names, it is seen that a number of families of German descent were active in the church.
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.