Our History

The roar of cannons from the Civil War had barely ceased when the settlers in the Bamboo area near Boone sensed God calling them to trust Him to begin a church. Fourteen members of the community under the leadership of Parson Joseph Harrison and his wife, Nancy, established a church where Christ would be proclaimed and glorified. On April 21, 1866 the vision which captured these believers became reality. In the home of Adam and Delphia Cook, Mount Vernon was born 140 years ago. These sixteen members were: Parson Joseph & Nancy Harrison, William & Louisa Cook, Sena Cook, Eliza Cook, Malinda Cook, W.J. Critcher, William VanDyke, Sarah VanDyke, Delphia Cook, Caroline Cook, Evelyn Benson, Mary Cook, Emmanuel VanDyke, and Martha Harrison VanDyke. The church met in the Cook family home for four years.

The church joined the Stony Fork Baptist Association and served the Lord with those churches until 1981 when we joined the Three Forks Baptist Association.

In 1870 Joseph Harrison and John Cook, Sr. gave a tract of land on Bamboo Road for a building site. By the time the crisp fall air settled upon the mountains in 1871, the first church building was built. While occupying this log structure the first Sunday School was organized in 1875. In 1896, following twenty-five years of God's love and direction, a one room wooden structure was built on the present sight of our church facilities. The church continued to grow and experience a heightened sense of God's blessings. There was indeed a plan for the small church on the outskirts of Boone.