Elijah Baker (preacher)

For other people named Elijah Baker, see Elijah Baker.
Elijah Baker[1]
Born1742
Orange or Lunenberg County, Colony of Virginia, British America
DiedNovember 06, 1798
Salisbury, Somerset County, Maryland, United States
OccupationBaptist minister
Known forPreaching and church planter in Maryland and Virginia between 1776 and 1798
Spouse(s)Sarah Copeland, Ann Widgeon
ChildrenElijah Baker

Elijah Baker (1742 - November 06, 1798) was an American Baptist minister who preached in Virginia and Maryland. He is known to have preached in Henrico, James City, Charles City, and York Counties[2] before traveling Gloucester County and ultimately founding numerous churches on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland.[3] [4] Elijah Baker's conversion and ordination is credited to Rev. Shubal Stearns of Sandy Creek Baptist Church in Sandy Creek, North Carolina.[5] Baker is credited with planting the following churches:[6]

  • James City Baptist Church, 1773
  • Charles City Baptist Church, 1776
  • Grafton Baptist Church, 1777
  • Lower Northampton Baptist Church, 1778
  • Mesongoes Baptist Church, 1779
  • Hungo's Baptist Church, 1783
  • Matompkin Baptist Church, 1785
  • Chincoteague Baptist Church, 1786
  • Seacock Baptist Church, 1787
  • Portsmouth Baptist Church, 1789
  • Pungoteague Baptist Church, 1790
  • Machipongo Baptist Church
  • Boars Swamp Baptist Church
  • Four Mile Baptist Church


Baker was jailed for preaching for 56 days in Accomack County in 1778, one of the last ministers to be jailed in Virginia for opposing the state-sponsored Anglican church. [7][8][9]

  1. ^ "Reverend Elijah Baker". Geni. 2022-04-26. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  2. ^ Robert L. Saunders, Jr (1977). The History of the Grafton Baptist Church. Mark Enterprises.
  3. ^ Homer Massey (2020-08-02). "Elijah Baker 1742-1798". Scholars Crossing. Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  4. ^ Laverne Young Smith (2011). "Elijah Baker and the Churches He Planted on the Eastern Shore of Virginia: 1776-1798". Scholars Crossing. Willmington School of the Bible. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  5. ^ Taylor, James B. (1838). Lives of Virginia Baptist Ministers, 2nd Edition. Yale and Wyatt. p. 25-37.
  6. ^ Semple, Robert B. (1809). History of the Rise and Progress of the Baptists in Virginia. Cobb.
  7. ^ Bernard Fisher (2014-02-18). "Elijah Baker, Pioneer Baptist of the Eastern Shore of Virginia". The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  8. ^ Tim Fillmon (2020-08-02). "Elijah Baker (1742-1798)". The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  9. ^ Jim Duffy (2023). "When Accomac, Va. Put the Baptist in Jail, 1778". Secrets of the Eastern Shore. Secrets of the Eastern Shore. Retrieved 2024-04-08.