Cuthbert Webb
Cuthbert Webb (1806-1868) lived on Brimstone Creek in the early 19th century and is believed to have been the first preacher in Scott County, a claim that is almost impossible to substantiate. The claim comes from Jehu Phillips, writing for the Cumberland Chronicle in 1904.
Biography
Born in 1806 in Lexington, Ky., Cuthbert Webb was the son of Isaac Webb Jr. and Lucy Catherine Ware. He was one of 10 siblings. His brothers and sisters included: Catherine, Winifred, James, Isaac, Lucy Caroline, Mary Ann, John Thompson and Elizabeth Frances.
Cuthbert married Susannah White (1805-1894) in 1828 and they had at least nine children. Among them: John, Mary Ann, Rebecca, Francis Marion, Isaac, Jacob, Elizabeth, Eleazar and Amanda. His wife was the daughter of Joel T. White and Susanna Sears.
Life and times
According to U.S. Census records, Cuthbert Webb had moved to Morgan County, Tenn. in 1830. He alsos hows up on a tax list in Morgan County in 1836. It should be remembered that southern Scott County, including part of Brimstone Creek, was part of Morgan County until Scott County was formed by act of the Tennessee General Assembly in 1849.
When the 1850 census was taken, the first to be taken after Scott County was formed, Cuthbert Webb was listed as living in Scott County. The 1850 census listed his occupation as farmer. The 1860 census listed his occupation as “Farmer & Bapt Clergy.”
The claim that Webb was the first preacher in Scott County comes from Jehu Phillips, who wrote for the Cumberland Chronicle in 1904: “In those days the preachers were all Baptist. I suppose the first preacher raised in this county was a man named Cutbearth Webb who lived on Brimstone Creek.”
It would be difficult to verify that claim. Rev. Isaac Smith, the Methodist circuit rider, rode through present-day Scott County as early as the 1830s. And Bethlehem Baptist Church was founded at Buffalo Creek in 1834. However, Phillips’ writing stated that Webb was the first preacher raised in Scott County, which Smith, obviously, was not. (The first pastor of Bethlehem was James Lay, followed by Reubin Bridges in 1842. A “Bro. Webb” was listed as Bethlehem’s pastor in 1845, which is likely a reference to Cuthbert Webb.)
In the Sept. 28, 1847 edition of the Knoxville Standard newspaper there was an article about the 29th annual meeting of the Powell’s Valley United Baptist Association at Clear Fork Meeting House in Claiborne County, Tenn. Listed among the delegates was Cuthbert Webb, representing the church at Brimstone.
Death
Cuthbert Webb died in 1868.