Submitted By Mrs. Lucy Williams

We, the undersigned, being true believers in the Old and New Testament Scriptures and the agency of the Holy Spirit the advent of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, into the world, His crucifixion, Resurrection and Ascension and thereby made an atonement for us in short heartily embracing the doctrine taught by the Free Will Baptist Denomination and believing it is necessary for our general welfare and mutual protection to be organized into a body do this day unite ourselves into a church to be known as a Free Will Baptist Church and we do thereby adopt the Church Covenant found in the Free Will Baptist Faith.

This church was organized in a shack like building about 3 miles west of Saffell Post Office where the Mt. Zion Cemetery is now. Later a frame building 32X40 ft. was built by donations and free labor.

We don't have any record of the Harmony Church but it was organized before 1900 about 1/2 mile Southeast of the Saffell Post Office.

The Mt. Zion and Harmony Church buildings were both very much run down and in 1912 they merged and built a frame building 30X50 ft. about halfway between the two churches and named it Mt. Harmony.

John P. Doyle and Joe Williams from Mt. Zion and Dr. Isaac M. Huskey and Bill Callahan from Harmony were elected on a committee to be in charge of the work and material for the building. Donations were given to buy the material and a lot of work was done by volunteer workers.

Rev. Louis C. Doyle was pastor of both churches at this time, so he became the ftrst pastor of Mt. Harmony Church. The first service was held in May, 1912. His brother, Bennie M. Doyle, was the first church clerk. We had services once a month on Saturday afternoon and Sunday at 11 a.m. the second Sunday in each month.

Bro. Doyle lived in the "Western District" near Portia. He came over in March,1912, to fill his appointment. The services were held in the New Hope School House during the building process. We had the Saturday afternoon services and he went to spend the night with Uncle Andy and Aunt Sis. Saffell. She was his mother-in-law. On Sunday Bro. Doyle was too sick to go to the services. They called Dr. Rice from Hazel Grove to see him and he pronounced it a real case of red measles. A lot of us were exposed and had measles later.

The first deacons were Bill Callahan and Sam Sneed. Stewards were Oscar Callahan and S.A.D. Hardin, Trustees were Dr. I.M. Huskey, John P. Doyle and John Hardin.
Caney Quarterly Meeting was held in June 1912 with the Mt. Harmony Church.

In 1924 C.H. Palmer from Izard County was elected pastor and was paid $154.00 for the year. The first record of how much the pastor was paid.

Rev. Herman A. Lewis of Izard County was pastor during the early 1930's. The church decided to buy him a car. We gave him $34.00. He bought a car for $30.00 and the license cost $4.00.
About 1941 the women of the church decided to buy a piano. We met at the church house and quilted for $2.00 per quilt. We got enough money together to pay $35.00 for a piano from LeRoy Wilkes at Lynn, then didn't have anyone who could play it. We paid Mr. Wilkes to play it during our revival.

Norma Louise, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Millard Williams, practiced some songs on an old crown organ at home and soon began to play the piano at church.

Our congregation was getting smaller and we decided if we had our building out on the highway our attendance might increase. In 1946 we voted to move the building to Saffell. The frame building was torn down and what could be used was used in the building of the same size 30X50.
Rev. Ray Watkins of Newport was pastor and A.I. Willmuth was Church Clerk. Rev. Obie Eagan, Ottis Gray and

Harold Howard were on a committee to have charge of the building. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Walker gave the land to build on. Paid Ottis Gray for labor $298.49; for paint, nails, cement, etc. $207.58; attic fan $79.00 and cobblestone and labor $175.00 for a total cost of $760.07. Several men did free labor on the building.

Again we worshipped in the New Hope School House during the building process but no measles this time. We also worshipped in this frame building 34 years.

Rev. Obie Eagan was pastor in 1956. We voted to have preaching twice a month on Saturday night and Sunday the second and fourth Sundays. Then is when we began to pass the offering plate regularly and paid the pastor $50.00 per month.

In 1956 we also bought pews at the cost of $22.00 each. Floyd Huskey, Horace Doyle and Joe Neeley composed the committee to buy the pews.

Rev. Oris Doggett of Warren came in 1960, our first full time pastor. They lived in a house owned by Estle Crabtree, rent free. They stayed three years. We were without a full time pastor for about four years. We did have services twice a month and in 1964 bought 1/2 acre of land from Tom and Martha Allen and in 1965 a parsonage was built, a 3 bedroom buff brick.

In 1967 Rev. Terry Forrest came as full time pastor. He stayed only one year. Rev. Bernard Roberts came in 1968 and stayed until October,1973. Rev. Jerry Smith came in December 1973 and stayed until June 1976. In 1971 a heating and cooling system was installed. During the past fifteen years classrooms had been added, rest rooms installed, a pastor's study added and our congregation had grown until we were crowded in the sanctuary and some of the classrooms. We worshipped 33 years in the cobblestone building. Rev. David Waltrip came in August 1976 and in September 1977 we voted to build a new building. A building fund was started and continued for awhile. Later ways of fmancing were explained and we voted to go the Bond Program way of financing and to sell $70,000.00 of bonds. April 23, 1978 Warren Pernell of Share Church financing, Moore, Oklahoma came to explain more fully how the bond program worked and April 28 was set as "Kick Off" day for the bond program. When he came on that day the entire $70,000.00 of bonds had been spoken for. All of the bonds, except two were bought by people who attended church at Mt. Harmony. One was bought by the pastor's father and one by a daughter of one of the deacons. Construction on the new building was begun in June 1978. Size 50 ft. by 100 ft. upstairs with a basement 50 ft. by 88 ft. Sanctuary, baptistry, one classroom, nursery, library, pastor's study and foyer and two restrooms upstairs. Downstairs there are 10 classrooms, kitchen, fellowship hall, utility room and two restrooms. The building was finished outside with antique brown brick.

Bro. David Waltrip resigned in June 1982 and Rev. Dennis Artman and family moved into the parsonage in August 1982 and he is now serving as pastor.

John E. Willmuth, J.D. Doyle, L.C. Doyle, H.O. "Uncle Tennie" Eagan, Will Osburn, John Huskey, Obie Eagan, W.B. Hardin, Austin Mullen, W.M. Padgett, W.H. Richardson, Aileen (Mullen) Calvery, a missionary who with her husband, Wesley, have been serving in Japan since 1954.

Pastors of the church since 1878 until 1982: John F. Crafton, George W. Hassell, W.C. Haley, J.D. Doyle, A.J. Rowlett, H.O. Dammons, John E. Willmuth, J.F. Finney, L.C. Doyle, H.O. Eagan, E.H. Palmer, M.G. King, John Huskey, H.A. Lewis, Lonnie Palmer Sr., Obie Eagan, Grady Linebaugh, Lyle Cartwright, Ray Watkins, Oris Doggett, Lonnie Clark, Jimmy Richardson, Terry Forrest, Bernard Roberts, Jerry Smith, David Waltrip and Dennis Artman.

Deacons: John Wilson, John E. Willmuth, W. Willmuth, J.M. Turner, Joe Williams, Sam Sneed, Bill Callahan, Henry Sides, Wesley Huskey, Luther Croom, Hubert Newberry, Luther Reaves, Harold Howard, Horace Doyle, Gerphus Huskey, Millard Williams and Jim Crabtree.

Church Clerks: George W. Hassell, A.D. Saffell, A.C. Williams, J.M. Williams, W.H. Richardson, L.C. Doyle, James M. Turner, Bennie Doyle, C.C. Huskey, Millard B. Williams, Harold Howard, W.B. Hardin, A.I. Willmuth, Avanell Saffell, Mabel Croom and Lorene Doyle.

Mt. Harmony is one of the nineteen churches composing the Polk Bayou Association of Free Will Baptists and is the oldest church in the Association.

The Caney Q.M. was composed of several Free Will Baptist Churches. Harmony Church was about 1/2 mile east of Saffell, P.0., Mt. Zion Church was 3 miles west of Saffell and about 5 1/2 miles Southwest of Strawberry, Bethlehem Church was about 1 mile north of Strawberry near Jerry's Lumber Shed; North Mt. Zion Church joined later. It is now known as Oak Grove and is in the Eaton Community. Some churches in Independence County also were part of the Quarterly Meeting.

There is no Bethlehem Church now. It listed as one of it's delegates to a quarterly meeting W.R. Mullen, father of the late Roy Mullen of Walnut Ridge. Another was Hiram Saffell, grandfather of Roy and Melvin Callahan and the late Harold Callahan also of Walnut Ridge.

Mt. Zion and Harmony Churches merged and became Mt. Harmony and Oak Grove Church is still active. There is no record of minutes of the Caney Quarterly Meeting since 1916. I don't know if it disbanded or what happened. The minutes dated back to 1885.