History of Stonermouth Presbyterian Church

Ruddles Mills, KY

 

According to the Transylvania Presbytery, the Stonermouth Presbyterian Church at Ruddles Mills was first motioned October, 1786, but it was one year later that Isaac Ruddle deeded to Stonermouth Presbyterian Church two acres of land in the forks of Stoner Creek, Hinkson Creek and the South Licking River for the purpose of building a meeting house and establishing a cemetery and sale was made for a price of five shillings.

 

Andrew McClure is believed to have organized the church and he was the pastor from 1786 to 1793, the date of his death, after which James Crawford, William Robinson and Robert Marshall served as supplies until 1796. The longest pastorate in the church was that of Reverend Samuel Rannels, who was ordained over the united congregation of Paris and Stonermouth which he retained for twenty one years until his death on March 24, 1817. After the date of Rannels, there was no long pastorate. Many different ministers supplied the church for short periods. After the years 1812 to 1839 Stonermouth and Millersburg constituted one pastorate.

 

Stonermouth was the oldest Presbyterian Church in Bourbon County and was one of the important churches in the Presbytery until the separation into the old school and the new school churches occurred in the year 1841. After that date, neither branch of the church prospered. The old school church seems to have had no regular pastor after John T.Hendrick resigned in 1839.

 

By an act of the church dated March 12,1872, Willis Collins, James H.Ardery and John I. Moore were empowered as trustees to sell all vacant land and the ruins of the church building and to use the proceeds of the sale to build a substantial wall around the cemetery. The remainder of the money was to be invested in county bonds, and the interest was to be used to keep the wall repaired and the graveyard cleaned. Today on the outskirts of Ruddles Mills there is an abandoned God's Acre in which many of the pioneers of Kentucky are buried dating back to the birth of Davey Crockett.