Why Seperate Church and State? Combine!

Before you get upset, this post is not about politics and faith, but about genealogical clues to ancestors' lives. In my research, I have found the records kept by various church groups to be of immense help in learning about my ancestors' lives and travels. Such records combined with "state" documents, incl. census reports, official land deeds, wills, and court cases are often all we have to go on -- evidence-wise -- apart from word-of-mouth family stories (which may or may not be verifiable).

Maybe my family branches are different from yours, but looked at in the aggregate, they tell stories of people being converted from one belief to another through the decades and centuries past. Catholics become Protestants, Pilgrims become Presbyterians, Baptists become Quakers (or vice versa) and later become Methodists, and so on. Many of the early church records are quite extensive, with listings of who were part of the community or "flock" in a particular area. The Baptists, Methodists, and Quakers were very detailed in their record keeping, sometimes listing business deals, property purchases, descriptions of who came in and who was "shunned" and why. Monetary tithes, donations, and fines are listed as well. We sometimes tend to forget that these early churches also acted as "community police" so to speak, levying fines for transgressions against the doctrines of that particular church.

In addition, there is the "perspective" of how the church members related to the "outside world". One personal example from my tree is that of James Fowler of North Carolina. Born and raised a Scots-Irish Presbyterian, he became a Baptist preacher and his "flock" -- according to historical accounts -- included many members of the newly-raised Whig militia which participated in the Revolutionary War against Tarleton. In battles known as "Huck's Defeat" and Cowpens, these mounted militia men helped turn the tide against Cornwallis. So...a Baptist preacher contributes (through fiery sermons) to the larger Revolutionary War effort. Go figure! History is not just the BIG events...it is also the little ones -- contributed by our family ancestors.

Got examples from your own heritage? Tell us about them!