Looking back at our history helps us realize just how far we have come, and how much we have accomplished since our work was first established in this region.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church was organized in 1863, but had virtually no presence in the South until several years after the Civil War. Although the denomination sent its first missionary overseas in 1874, no work was done in Arkansas until 1877 or in Louisiana until about 1880.

The first Sabbath-keeper in Louisiana appears to have been Mary Nugent in New Orleans in 1866. New Orleans is also the site of the organization of the first church in the state.

In 1884 the World Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition was held in New Orleans. People came from everywhere to see it. An exhibit of SDA publications was held there, with hopes of spreading the gospel. Interests were followed up by members canvassing and giving Bible studies. The few converts that resulted were baptized and organized into a church by G. K. Owen. By December of 1885 about 45 people had begun to observe the Sabbath in New Orleans.

Meanwhile, an interest was growing in Marthaville, a small city in the west central part of Louisiana. Word of this reached Elder Gibbs, in New Orleans and he immediately went there, and preached for about six weeks. Sixteen adults took a firm stand for the Sabbath. Elder Gibbs did report some problems, however. He said, “Pork is the principal article of diet, and tobacco—oh how the people are bound by this monster—men, women, young ladies, and small children.”

One difficulty in developing the work was the instability of the membership.
After joining a small church, people might lose employment or suffer a crop failure, and move elsewhere. Almost everywhere the new Adventist churches, with inexperienced members, and infrequent pastoral visits, faced fierce anti-Adventist propaganda, which resulted in a loss of members.

Other early churches to be established were those in Evergreen, Galvez, Hope Villa, Shreveport and Welsh. Hope Villa built the first SDA church building in the state. The principal factors contributing to church growth were annual camp meetings, literature evangelism, and tent crusades.

The first camp meeting was held in a grove outside the city limits of Alexandria in July 1898. A second camp meeting followed in 1889 at Welsh, Louisiana, and the third in 1900 was at Marthaville. Camp meeting had to be cancelled in 1905, due to an outbreak of yellow fever. We are grateful that this is no longer a problem for us.

The church in Louisiana was listed as a mission field in General Conference District #2 until the fourth camp meeting, held in Crowley in 1901. It was there that the Louisiana Conference was organized and became part of the Southern Union Conference. At that time there were six churches, 178 members, one company, and two ordained ministers. Conference headquarters were in New Orleans.

It is noted that the work of Mrs. Frances Goodwin, a Bible instructor, contributed to a substantial growth in membership. The conference also carried on an active colporteur work.

It is also interesting to observe that women held several leadership positions during the early years of the conference. In 1906, Mrs. King was the conference secretary-treasurer, and Kate Bickham was in charge of the Sabbath School, Youth and Education Departments. And in 1907 Mrs. Saxby became secretary- treasurer and Ruby Roach was SS secretary.

The church promoted Christian education. The first church school was organized in 1899, two years before Louisiana was a conference, in Marthaville, with Mrs. C.F. Dart as teacher. Other early schools were located in DeRidder, Jennings, Hope Villa, Welsh, and New Orleans.

In 1920 a new conference was organized in Jackson, Mississippi by combining the members in Louisiana and Mississippi. At that time there were 1,144 members, 8 ordained ministers, and 12 teachers.

In 1932 the economic depression led to adjustments in administration and territorial changes in several unions across the United States. These were the crisis years of the Great Depression, necessitating major cut-backs. It was at this time that Louisiana was transferred to the Southwestern Union Conference and joined Arkansas. W. H. Heckman was the transition president, presiding over the process of making the two states into one conference. At this time there were 33 churches, with 2,078 members, 9 ordained ministers, and 18 teachers.
The conference office was located in Little Rock, Arkansas.

In 1960, during the administration of I.M. Evans, the conference headquarters was moved to Shreveport, a more central location. Membership had grown to almost 4,000, with 49 churches and 9 companies.

Today the membership stands at 10,443, with 87 churches, 56 ministers, and 51 teachers. From the 2 ministers in 1901 the conference has increased to 56 ministers; from the original 6 churches we have grown to 87 churches and the membership has increased from 178 to almost 10,500. Truly, we can see how God has blessed this Conference. As we go forward, I am reminded of the following Ellen G. White quotation:

“We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us, and His teaching, in our past history.”
E.G. White, Life Sketches, p. 196.

Compiled by Betty Trevino
Arkansas-Louisiana Camp Meeting
May 12, 2007