Organizing Minister
Rev. Hayes Peterson
Rev. Hayes Peterson helped organize Crystal Spring under the auspices of its mother church, Spring Green Missionary Baptist Church. His organizing work is part of the congregation’s founding story.
Our Story
Established in 1938
Since 1938, Crystal Spring Missionary Baptist Church has been part of the faith and community life of Northwest, North Carolina. Its story lives in the generations who have worshipped, learned, and served together—and in the records, photographs, and memories they have kept.
Sunday School teachers, ushers, musicians, trustees, and church mothers all appear in its early written history. Newspaper records remember homecomings, revivals, and Thanksgiving gatherings that welcomed neighboring congregations. Members also contributed to local education and civic life, connecting the church’s history with the community around it.
Our Roots in Spring Green
Spring Green Missionary Baptist Church helped organize Crystal Spring as its mother church. Its story reaches back to 1867, connecting our beginning to an older community of faith.
Our Story Through the Years
1938
Our Beginning
Deacon Lonnie C. McKoy Sr. founds Crystal Spring. Rev. Hayes Peterson organizes the congregation with help from James Bryant and Andrew Perkins, and Rev. R. L. Carr serves as its first official pastor.
Historic view of Crystal Spring Missionary Baptist Church. Published in 1971; photograph date unknown. 1984
On the Map
Crystal Spring appears on a historical map of the Blue Banks community.
See the historical maps1993
June 28, 1993
Community milestone
Northwest Becomes a City
Northwest is incorporated as the City of Northwest. The incorporation act names Elsie Peterson, James Robinson, Artis R. Bryant, and Sylvester Ballard as the initial council members.
1997
Coming Home
The community is invited to annual homecoming services with Rev. Gordon Griffin and the St. John Choir of Chadbourn. The newspaper announcement gives August 31 as the planned service date.
Homecoming announcement, The News Reporter, August 21, 1997. 2012
Giving Thanks Together
On Thanksgiving Eve in 2012, worshippers from four area churches gathered at Crystal Spring for a community service, with a message from Rev. Dr. Carozell Henry. WECT reported that it was the church’s twelfth consecutive year hosting the gathering.
2013
November 17, 2013
Honoring Our Roots
A commemorative plaque records the church’s founding and early leadership.
Commemorative plaque given November 17, 2013. 2019
A Gathering for Young People
A youth revival brings together Rev. John Langley and youth choirs from Crystal Spring and neighboring congregations.
People Who Carried the Church
Remembering Those Who Served (1971)
A record of the members who helped carry the church forward.
- Deacons
- L. C. McKoy Sr. (chair); Henry Robinson; Joseph Ballard Sr.
- Trustees
- Sylvester Ballard (chair/treasurer); Freddie McKnight; Willie Bryant; Olices Robinson; Frank Melvin Jr.; Charlie Ballard
- Clerk / ushers
- Emily Ballard / Sadie Bryant; Fossie Mae Ballard
- Sunday school
- Annie McKnight; James Bryant (district)
- Church mothers
- Martha Rowell; August Perkins; Emily McKoy; Fleeta McLeod (musician)
A historical record, not the current roster.
Community, Care & Service
Fossie Mae “Duck” Ballard
Fossie Mae Ballard, affectionately known as “Duck,” served Crystal Spring through her leadership of the Usher Board. After retiring from a teaching career that included Lincoln High School, she opened Duck’s Childcare in Northwest in the late 1980s alongside her daughter, Valerie Ballard Dorsey, and her sister-in-law, Adelle Ballard, both also members of Crystal Spring, continuing that work through 2012. Through education, childcare, and church service, she helped nurture the children and families of her community.
Faith and Education
Viola McKoy Thomas Jacobs
Founder Lonnie C. McKoy Sr.’s daughter, Viola joined Crystal Spring under Rev. A. H. Murphy and later served local schools for more than 30 years as a teacher and librarian.
Remembering Ella Bryant
A 1973 newspaper notice records Ella Bryant’s funeral at Crystal Spring, with Rev. E. H. Stevenson officiating.
The News Reporter, September 24, 1973, p. 20.
Historical Maps
The Archive
Help preserve what’s been passed down.
Help us tell Crystal Spring’s fuller story. We welcome photographs, church programs, documents, personal memories, and stories passed down through your family. Melanotion helps communities preserve their history and can help document and organize what our church families have kept and remembered.
History Sources & Image Credits
Explore the records and images that help preserve Crystal Spring’s story.