Monday, July 13, 2026

Historic Seventy Six Baptist Church hosts two days of tales, music, family memories, quilts and other displays

Gospel singing, family stories, displays and the history of the community were enjoyed Friday and Saturday, July 3 and 4, at historic Seventy Six Baptist Chuch, founded in 1822, as part of the Spirit of 76 Celebration. Above, the gospel group Generations of Grace performs in the sanctuary.

At right, David Cross discusses the long, colorful history of Seventy Six. Here's a short video of his introduction, with his description of the Semple family, who came here from Virginia, laid out Seventy Six as a town, then moved on to Iowa and California, where they made major marks. Read David's story on the history of Seventy Six here, on the third page of this website.

The two-day event included displays of many quilts and some historical articles from the website and the Celebration's commemorative program, including one below on the Thomases, likely Clinton County's greatest singing family. At bottom, the Cross Brothers of Byrdstown, Tenn., and Ryan Thomas perform.         PHOTOS BY JAMES GUFFEY