Sion Blythe (January 1781 – 23 August 1835) was a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christianity, Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe ...

pastor who assisted in creation of several churches in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

and

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

, United States in the early days of the Baptist movement. Blythe was born in western North Carolina in January 1781. He was baptized when aged 21 and ordained as a pastor when aged 23, preaching in

Buncombe County, North Carolina Buncombe County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is classified within Western North Carolina. The 2020 census reported the population was 269,452. Its county seat is Asheville. Buncombe County is part of the Ashevi ...

and elsewhere. He was among the founders of Locust Old Field Church in western North Carolina. He married Sarah T. McMinn in 1803. In 1807 he was one of the founders of the French Broad Association of six churches in or near the county of Buncombe. Blythe moved to Alabama in 1816 and settled on Canoe Creek in St. Clair County. He was called the "reluctant preacher" because when he first arrived as a farmer settler in Alabama he tried to hide the fact that he was a minister, since he had some doubts about his ability. The secret could not be kept. He helped organize Mount Zion Church (now First Baptist Church of Springville) and several other churches in today's St. Clair, Blount, Shelby, and Jefferson Counties, including the Mount Moriah Church. First Baptist Church Trussville was founded on 14 July 1821 by nine men with Blythe as pastor. In 1823 he was appointed moderator of the newly formed Mount Zion Association, and messenger to the Alabama Baptist State Convention. Blythe was a successful revivalist, described as "tender, urgent, vehement". However, he was said to be better at winning converts than teaching doctrine, and was "somewhat of an

Arminian Arminianism is a branch of Protestantism based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609) and his historic supporters known as Remonstrants. Dutch Arminianism was originally articulated in the ''Re ...

". Blythe left Alabama in 1834 and settled in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

in April, 1835, at that time part of Mexico. He was granted a tract of land about seven miles south of the present town of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

. On 23 August the same year he and one of his children died of a fever. He was survived by his wife and nine children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blythe, Sion 1781 births 1835 deaths 19th-century Baptist ministers from the United States Arminian ministers Baptists from Alabama Baptists from North Carolina People from Buncombe County, North Carolina People from St. Clair County, Alabama Southern Baptists