March is Women’s History Month, and this month I’m spotlighting some of the amazing women from Laurel County’s past.
In this episode I want to tell you about Lucy Lee Mahan, an evangelist of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, who was believed to have been the first woman licensed as a Methodist minister in Kentucky.
Lucy was born and raised in London, Laurel County.
She was the daughter of Lee Mahan and Arabella Chesnut Payne Mahan, who were married in Laurel County on April 4, 1861.
Lee and Arabella Mahan had nine children.
The firstborn was a son, the other eight were daughters.
Lucy, the eighth of the nine children, was born on March 25, 1878.
In 1897, at age 19, Lucy began teaching in Laurel County common schools.
She also began teaching classes at Sue Bennett in 1898.
In 1899, she was teaching at Old Macedonia Common School at Billows, in western Laurel County.
She also taught at the Camp Ground Common School for a time.
By 1902, Lucy was beginning to make a name for herself as one of the country's most successful women evangelists.
She began assisting ordained ministers at revivals, camp meetings, and protracted meetings all across the state, as well as in adjacent states.
Lucy was an active evangelist for seven years, from 1902 to 1909.
Then on March 3, 1909, Lucy Lee Mahan, of London, Laurel County, Kentucky, became Mrs. James H. Spilman, of Harrodsburg, Mercer County, Kentucky.
To learn the rest of Lucy's story, be sure to listen to the podcast, which is presented by the Laurel County History Museum and Genealogy Center at Heritage Hills off Tom Jensen Highway in London.
The Museum is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to acquire and preserve historical documents and artifacts related to the rich history of Laurel County and Southeastern Kentucky.
You can get directions to the museum and genealogy center on their website at laurelcokyhistorymuseum.org or call 606-862-1693. They’re open 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday and by appointment.
March is Women’s History Month, and this month I’m spotlighting some of the amazing women from Laurel County’s past.
In this episode I want to tell you about Lucy Lee Mahan, an evangelist of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, who was believed to have been the first woman licensed as a Methodist minister in Kentucky.
Lucy was born and raised in London, Laurel County.
She was the daughter of Lee Mahan and Arabella Chesnut Payne Mahan, who were married in Laurel County on April 4, 1861.
Lee and Arabella Mahan had nine children.
The firstborn was a son, the other eight were daughters.
Lucy, the eighth of the nine children, was born on March 25, 1878.
In 1897, at age 19, Lucy began teaching in Laurel County common schools.
She also began teaching classes at Sue Bennett in 1898.
In 1899, she was teaching at Old Macedonia Common School at Billows, in western Laurel County.
She also taught at the Camp Ground Common School for a time.
By 1902, Lucy was beginning to make a name for herself as one of the country's most successful women evangelists.
She began assisting ordained ministers at revivals, camp meetings, and protracted meetings all across the state, as well as in adjacent states.
Lucy was an active evangelist for seven years, from 1902 to 1909.
Then on March 3, 1909, Lucy Lee Mahan, of London, Laurel County, Kentucky, became Mrs. James H. Spilman, of Harrodsburg, Mercer County, Kentucky.
To learn the rest of Lucy's story, be sure to listen to the podcast, which is presented by the Laurel County History Museum and Genealogy Center at Heritage Hills off Tom Jensen Highway in London.
The Museum is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to acquire and preserve historical documents and artifacts related to the rich history of Laurel County and Southeastern Kentucky.
You can get directions to the museum and genealogy center on their website at laurelcokyhistorymuseum.org or call 606-862-1693. They’re open 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday and by appointment.