Mt. Zion, Oak Grove

Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church

• Other names: Oak Grove
• Type: Missionary Baptist
• Language and/or ethnicity: Predominantly Anglo-American
• When organized: Unknown, at least by 1926
• Charter members: Unknown
• First pastor: Unknown
• Other pastors: Brother Melton, J. D. Pate, Walter H. Ingram, Brother Eason,  Alvin Pate, Calvin L. Honea, Cullen R. Keating, Vada S. Lyles, Jack Lucas, Stafford S. Harris, Herman Bryan, J. F. Tompkins
• Zone: Southeast Rusk County
• Location: County Road 3280, Oak Grove Community. Approx: 31.894075, -94.502540
• Affiliation: Shelby County Association, Missionary Baptist Association of Texas, American Baptist Association
• When disbanded: After 1966

The Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church met in the Oak Grove Community south of Caledonia, Rusk County. The building was a short way down what is now County Road 3280. The building was on the right near the 90-degree curve.[i] What’s left of the abandoned cemetery is across the road. J. F. Tompkins is listed as pastor in 1968 Missionary Baptist Association of Texas minutes; by 1972 the church was no longer listed in the MBAT Year Book. (This was probably simply leaving a disbanded church in for several years before removing it.) Mt. Zion was not represented in the Shelby County Association 1967, but last represented in 1966. This church was in the Shelby County Missionary Baptist Association from 1926 to 1966, according to J. W. Griffith’s Century One history, pp. 72-73. When the church disbanded, “the majority of members moved to New Columbia.”[ii]

Known cemetery burials/markers are HERE.

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[i] At least that is what I remember being told. However, on a 1955 General Highway Map of Rusk County, Texas, the church house symbol is shown on the left, on the cemetery side.
[ii] Griffith, Century One, page 72.

Vaughn and Matlock

When I was called to pastor Old Prospect in 1983, I did not know much about the church and community. I would later learn that my great-grandpa Vaughn had connections there. For example, Beeman Strong told me that M. L. Vaughn once preached a two-week revival at Old Prospect and stayed with his grandfather John R. Strong. More recently I found that M. L. Vaughn was a good friend and co-laborer with J. A. Matlock, who lived on Beech Creek and pastored churches in the area, including Old Prospect. M. L. Vaughn pastored two churches associated with the Matlock families – Union Springs and Isabel Chapel.

The Mt. Enterprise Progress, Thursday, June 5, 1924, page 1

The context dictates that there is a typo in the statement “over fourteen funerals,” obviously meant as “over fourteen hundred funerals.”

The Mt. Enterprise Progress, Thursday, June 5, 1924, page 1

“Oak Flat News,” The Mt. Enterprise Progress, Thursday, June 5, 1924, page 1

Notice the difference in how the newspaper speaks of “Rev.” Matlock, while M. L. Vaughn speaks of “Elder” Matlock.

Note: the date on Volume 6, No. 5 of the newspapers is incorrect. It was likely printed on the 12th. J. A. Matlock died on June 8th, so his death could not have been announced on June 5th.