My father was a Baptist preacher, as was his grandfather and the two generations before them. Having grown up in a Baptist church, and having been "dunked" myself, I've always been fascinated by the old tradition of "Going down to the river for a baptizin'" that happens primarily here in the South. I thus wanted to take some time to put together some of the more interesting historical photos of people coming out for this unique ritual.
In this late 1890's photo, you see the entire congregation has come down to the water for the baptizing. And despite the damp and mud, no one shirked on wearing his or her Sunday best, did they?
This is quite the event! Here we see a gathering in Nebraska in 1913. Credit: International Center of Photography
A typical scene from Appalachia where it was often just a pastor and a couple getting baptized together.
A full immersion Baptism going on in New Bern, North Carolina around 1900. Various congregations did different things depending on their traditions -- you'll see that everyone wore white in this church.
This is one of our favorite photos from the Cincinnati Museum Center of a baptism happening right there on the Ohio River in 1910.
Another great scene from Kentucky, this time from Monroe. Sometimes the water wasn't much or deep, but as long as they got dunked, it counted!
Some say "The Lord Don't Wait on Nobody!" in churches around these parts, and here's a great example of a winter baptism in 1907. We haven't been able to pin down the location here, but can you imagine how cold this would be. I'd certainly be praying for the pastor to move pretty quickly with the talking and get to the dunking!
Here we see a 1905 baptizing down on the Tennessee River. Credit: Decatur Library
This one is from the Kentucky Digital Archive and captures a baptizing in Eastern Kentucky. Oftentimes the preacher may come out to a farm and baptize individual people right there on the farm.
Two women emerge from the water after this baptism in Middle Fork, West Virginia in April, 1957.
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