McCray Cemetery
Brown Township, Hancock County, Indiana
39° 53'35" N 85° 36'57"W
The Concord Baptist Church was founded by children of William and Mary Palmer Sparks, daughter of Rev. Joshua Palmer. The church was organized 29 October 1838 at the home of Stephen and Mary "Polly" Sparks Harlan. The first members were Stephen and Polly Sparks Harlan, Moses and Jane Sparks McCray, Hiram Harlan and wife, Morgan McQuery and wife, William Sparks, Jane Ross (Reeves), Jane Wilkinson, Charity Wilson, and Jacob Parkhurst. Stephen Harlan and Moses McCray donated logs to build a church, which stood where the cemetery is located today. The log church was replaced by a frame building in 1855. It was dedicated by Reverend John Sparks of Connersville, Indiana, another child of William and Mary Palmer Sparks. John and his brother, Reverend William Sparks, were the first pastors. They traveled from their homes in Fayette County to conduct services. The church no longer exists, but many of its early members are buried in the surrounding cemetery.[1]
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[1] George J. Richman, History of Hancock County, Indiana: Its People, Industries, and Institutions (Greenfield, Indiana: Wm. Mitchell Printing Co., 1916), 533.
[1] George J. Richman, History of Hancock County, Indiana: Its People, Industries, and Institutions (Greenfield, Indiana: Wm. Mitchell Printing Co., 1916), 533.
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