A note from Jerry McDaniel

Elder Samuel H. Meals, minister of the Gospel, my great, great, great grandfather, died on the 10th of December, 1895, at 8:05 p.m. at his home in Henderson County, Tennessee. This obituary was prepared by his son, Daniel J. Meals, Civil War Solder, survivor of Andersonville Military Prison, and lifelong resident of Clarksburg, Tennessee. Please share this obituary with others. Thanks to Mrs. Bobbie Pierce of Henderson County, Tennessee for locating and sharing it.

O B I T U A R Y

ELDER SAMUEL H. MEALS

It becomes my painful duty to announce to you the death of my father, Elder S. H. Meals, which occurred at his home place in Henderson County, Tennessee, on the 10th of December, 1895, at 8:05 p.m. Samuel H. Meals was born June 22, 1813, in Jefferson County, Tenn.; moved with his father, Elder Daniel Meals, to North Alabama in December, 1819; professed a hope in Christ the third morning in October, 1845; joined the Old Baptist Church at Antioch, Limestone County, Alabama, which was is a member of the Flint River Association. He began to preach in 1847, and was ordained by Elders Wm. Crutcher, David Jacks, R.U. Crutcher and Samuel Edmondson in August, 1849. The deceased leaves two sons and one daughter, sixteen grandchildren and twelve great grandchildren to mourn his death. He was down almost seven weeks, but said he was not sufferring very much, but just seemed to be getting weaker in body all the time. The doctor said he could not bear strong medicine, but he still loved the strong meat of the gospel. It seemed to be all his study, and the first time I went up to see him during his last sickness, while he could not sit up, he told us to sing some of his old familiar hymns, which we did, while he held his family prayer lying on his bed, and it seemed to me the strongest I ever heard around the old hearthstone. I felt it to be the last; and my mind ran back to the time when we were all there at family prayer together with my mother. Yes, Oh Lord, bless the name of mother, who passed away seven years and four days before he did.

Oh, it made me shudder to think how little interest I had in the family prayer. Sometimes I would hurry off to bed to avoid it, and hear him asking the Lord to watch over his children, his neighbors and their children, together with Zion. He said the doctrine he tried to preach was the doctrine of God and the Bible, and that he was willing to risk his salvation on it, and admonished us all to hold to it and contend earnestly for it. His request was, that in his last moments we should sing his song, which was "Sing to me of Heaven." I was sitting at this bed and knew the time had come, and it bore so heavily on my mind I asked my brother's wife if she could help me to sing the song. She said she would. If I ever asked the Lord to bear me up, that was one of the times. So we made the attempt and I never sang a song easier after the start, and by the time we were through singing the neighbors and some of the members of the church were there--Brother and Sister Massey, and Bro. John Waller. We asked him if he wanted the song sung again: he whispered "yes", and we sang it again. He then gave us the parting hand, and told us all to help him praise and bless God that Jesus died for him; and his last words were: "Bless God." He was laid away the next day at the old family grave yard in Henderson County, Tennessee, after an appropriate talk, singing and prayer by mother's youngest brother, A.Y. Douglas. I do feel to rejoice and praise God that he spared him to live to a good old age and be with his children, brethren and sisters. My sincere prayer is, that all his children will try to live as devoted to Christ as he did, and die as happy. Let us weep not, but follow the example of him who has gone before. It will not be long till we, too, must follow.

D.J. Meals

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