Rev. Jo. McLeskey, pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Dyer, Gibson Co., TN was born in the adjoining county of Weakley, January 23, 1832. His parents, W. H. McLeskey and J. E. Gilbert, were natives of North Carolina and Kentucky, respectively. The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm and secured much of his education at McLemoresville, where he also studied for the ministry. In 1857 he was licensed to preach. In 1866 he became pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church at Dyersburg, where he continued until 1870, when he moved to Humboldt and had charge of the Cumberland Presbyterian church at that place until 1879. He then moved to Dyer, where he has since resided and where he as has accomplished much good in his chosen calling. Besides the above named places Mr. McLeskey has successfully officiated in various other churches. In 1858 he wedded Ellen, daughter of James E. Carter. Four children blessed their union as follows: James E., Mattie C., William H. And Bobbie (deceased). January 9, 1879 Mrs. McLeskey died and for his second wife,
Mr. McLeskey selected Sallie Cooper, who has borne him three children; Maunder M., Collie T. and Jo. Mr. McLeskey is of Scotch-Irish descent, is a Democrat and a member of the Masonic and I. O. O. F. Fraternities.

[Source: Goodspeed, 1887 - Gibson County, Tennessee]

Yesterday afternoon late at his home on College street, West Fulton, occurred the death of Rev. Joe McLesky, one of the most aged and most prominent divines of Western Kentucky. The end came with the family of the dying minister gathered about his bedside awaiting the inevitable with the calm which comes to those prepared and unafraid.

Rev. Joe McLesky, who at the time of his demise was nearing the advanced age of eighty years, has been a resident of Fulton for little more than one year, but for many years he has been associated with the work of the Cumberland Presbyterians in this city, he being a consistent member of that denomination. He was born and reared in Obion county, Tenn., and although raised as a farmer boy early took the ministry as his beloved profession and became an ordained minister of the gospel a decade ago when Fulton and her outlying suburbs were woodland forests and tangled swamp lands. His last active charge was at Paducah, where he resigned nearly a year ago and removed to Fulton to reside. Near Christmas he was taken ill of general debility and since that time has gradually sunk to his peaceful end, when unafraid and with sweet peace he entered into the presence of his Maker to claim his certain reward.

The aged minister who has passed to the great beyond won in this city by his splendid personality warm friends who will mourn his loss as sincerely as will the relatives and family of his fireside. He was a preacher of ability and a man of deep true worth. He leaves behind him his wife, three sons, Rev. Hamp McLesky of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Fulton, Joe McLesky of Fulton, and Jim McLesky of Jackson; three daughters, Mrs. Forbus [sic: Forbis] of Jackson, Mrs. Hipps of Arkansas, and Miss Callie McLesky, who lived with her father here. Himself a minister, his father before him was a minister, two brothers were ministers, one son is a minister and his grandson, Jamie McLesky, has lately been ordained to preach.

The funeral will be held tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock at Pleasant Valley Church, five miles out from Dyer, Tenn. The funeral party will leave Fulton tomorrow at 5 o'clock, a.m.

[Source: The Fulton (Kentucky) Leader, May 6, 1909]

Joe McLeskey - Paducah, Ky.
Obion Presbytery
died: May 1909

[Source: Minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1909, page 70]

Rev. Joe McLeskey, was born in Carroll County, Tennessee, January 23, 1832, professed religion and joined the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in 1842.

He was made a Ruling Elder at the age of 14. Was received under the care of Hopewell Presbytery as a probationer for the ministry in 1855, licensed to preach in 1856, and was ordained in 1857.

[Source: Minutes of Obion Presbytery, September 14-15, 1909, pages 10-11]

To write the history of the McLeskey family from 1830 to 1910 would be, to a considerable extent, to write the history of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in West Tennessee. Rev. Hamilton McLeskey and his wife, who was a Gilbert, settled in West Tennessee about 1830--possibly a little earlier than that. They were Cumberland Presbyterians, and believed in training their children "in the way" and not "for the way" in which they should go. Their children became members of the church to which they belonged. Father McLeskey had fine executive ability, hence perfect order in the home. Mother McLeskey was sweet in spirit, gentle in disposition, and affectionate to all. These parents believed that the religion of the Lord Jesus Christ was a reality, and that the possessor of it knew the time and place when it was received. They believed also that the Holy Spirit called men into the Ministry of the Church. Four sons and two daughters grew up to maturity in this family. Three of the sons became prominent ministers in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. The Rev. B. G. McLeskey, D.D. LL.D., was President of Trinity University at the time of his death; the Rev. R. G. McLeskey, who died just as he was reaching the prime of life and was pastor of some of the best churches in the State of Kentucky at the time of his death, and the Rev. Jo McLeskey, the subject of this article, were the three.

Jo McLeskey was born Jan. 23, 1832, in Carroll county, Tenn., near where the town of McKenzie is now located. He professed religion when he was ten years old, and joined the Cumberland Presbyterian Church at Spring Creek, a few miles northwest of McKenzie. He was made a ruling elder at the age of fourteen, joined presbytery in 1855, was licensed to preach in 1856, and was ordained to the whole work of the ministry by the Hopewell Presbytery in 1857. He was married to Miss Ellen Carter in June, 1858. After her death he was married to Mrs. Sallie Cooper in December, 1879. To these unions eight children were born, six of whom survive him, also his last wife, whose home is at Fulton, Ky. He died May the 5th, 1909, at his home in Fulton, Ky.

Jo McLeskey was reared on a farm and was familiar with its life and pleasures. The opportunities for an education at that early day in West Tennessee were exceedingly poor. He took advantage of these, and by the time he joined the presbytery he was ready to go away to college. About the year 1855 he entered Bethel College, and continued in college until he very nearly completed the A.B. course. Bethel College was at that time located at McLemoresville, and was an institution of but few years, nevertheless, the course of study was extensive, and her early graduates took rank with the best scholars of the day. The institution had connected with it a boarding (more properly a camping) department for the accommodation of students. Young McLeskey took quarters in this department, did his own cooking and housekeeping, and there, upon a dirt floor, took his first lessons in Latin and Greek. As a school teacher, he was very popular, and secured good positions in that profession as long as he taught. He was a member of the faculty in Bethel College when the Civil war began.

From the time Rev. Jo McLeskey entered the ministry until within a few months of his death he was pre-eminently a preacher. From the day he preached his first sermon at Meridian campground in Weakley County, Tenn., from the text Ex. 14:15, "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward," until he preached his last sermon at Dyer, Tenn., a short time before his death, he was active in the service of the church.

As a servant of his church, he was faithful to his ordination vows. When the time came for the meeting of his presbytery he was there if his health would permit. He was not only present, but wideawake to every interest and question that presented itself to the presbytery. He was often elected moderator, and always chairman of one or more of the most important committees. His presbytery frequently elected him a Commissioner to the General Assembly. Here, as in the lower courts of his church, he was recognized for his ability and loyalty to his vows. He had a conscience in him that said that it was his duty to represent the views of the body whose commission he bore. It was his efforts at the meeting of the General Assembly at Chattanooga, Tenn., that saved the life of Bethel College as a college, and kept it from being made a training school.

Brother McLeskey was not only a fine representative of his presbytery in the higher courts of the Church, but he was a life-long friend to the institutions of the Church. He had the cause of Education at heart. No young man ever came for advice as to his preparation for the ministry that went away discouraged. His advice to such was, "Brother, obtain the best within your reach." He had no hobbies. The Boards of Missions, Ministerial Relief, and Sunday School and Young People's Work each received attention at his hands, and were benefited by his services.

It was fifty-two years from the time Rev. Jo McLeskey was ordained until his death. Very few ministers ever lived a more active life. He was popular as a young man, and widely sought, and his services were much in demand. It made no difference with him whether the place was a shade tree, brush arbor, school house, shed, barn, church in the country, village, or city, just so the Holy Spirit was with him and the people wanted to hear the gospel. He was a fine general, and knew how to handle people. He was a "gospel minister," not a "gospel scolder." His was a message of glad tidings. It was good news to the poor sinner and food for the Church. Camp-meetings were the order of the day when he came on the stage of action and thousands heard his message of love on these great occasions, at which converts were counted by the hundred. No record is kept on earth of the number who came to Christ in obedience to his call. That record is kept in heaven.

As the methods of work changed and revival meetings took the place of camp-meetings, we find Bro. McLeskey adapted to the new order of things, and at once becomes a great revivalist. Space forbids the mention of the many great revivals which he conducted. These run up into the hundreds, and the conversions and additions to the Church into the thousands. God alone knows the extent of the work.

The outline and analysis of his sermons were so simple that a child could understand him. His theology was simply Cumberland Presbyterian. He was so gifted as to be able to preach the doctrines of his Church without offending the members of other Churches.

Rev. Jo McLeskey was a pastor. He was a shepherd and his sheep knew his voice. The children loved to sit at his feet in their homes while he told the story of the Cross and talked about the Church. A thousand homes have been brightened by his words of good cheer and his earnest prayers. When all was prosperous and happy in the home of his people a bright smile was on his face. When adversity came, or misfortune entered the home he was the first to extend sympathy and a helping hand. In the sick room he was as gentle as a woman and as cheery as a sunbeam. He could gather messages from the lips of the dying and speak words of consolation to the living. Possibly no man in West Tennessee conducted more funeral services than did he. He was likewise in demand on wedding occasions. Hundreds of blushing brides with fluttering hearts stood in his presence while he spake the words that joined their lives with that of others.

The multitudes that knew him in years that are gone, who are scattered abroad in the earth, I presume, are anxious to know, and had they the opportunity would propound this question, "How did Uncle Joe McLeskey stand on the union of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church with the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America?" He was a Cumberland Presbyterian and opposed the union of the two Churches.

The Rev. J. A. McIlwain conducted his funeral service, after which the remains of this man of God were laid to rest in the Mount Olive Cemetery two miles west of Dyer, Tenn. His body id dead, but his influence still lives. Not only is it alive in the hearts of thousands who sat at his feet to hear the story of Jesus, but in the person of his son, the Rev. W. H. McLeskey, the popular pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church at Clarksville, Tenn., and also in the person of his grandson, the Rev. J. M. McLeskey, a student in Bethel College, and pastor of the church at Dyer, Tenn. May the mantle of the father fall upon his son and grandson.

[Source: Bethel Courier, Vol. I, No. 2, February 1910, pages 3-4 and Vol. I, No. 3, June 1910, pages 4-6]

The history of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, especially in West Tennessee, would be incomplete without mention of the McLeskey family, members of which have been so closely identified with it.

The Rev. William Hamilton McLeskey, himself the son of a preacher, the Rev. Jo McLeskey, Sr., of the Carolinas, came to Weakley County, Tennessee, January 1827, being at the time nineteen years of age, and was married to Miss Jemima Gilbert, July 24, 1828. In 1846 he was received under the care of the Hopewell Presbytery, and was ordained to the full work of the ministry in October, 1850. He was for many years a circuit rider, his circuit covering much of the territory between the Tennessee and the Mississippi Rivers, and it required a full month for him to make the trip round his circuit.

Four sons, Jo, Ben, Bob and Jim, and two daughters, one of whom, Mrs. E. M. Stolts, of Dyer, Tenn., is still living, grew to maturity in this family and their parents being ardent Cumberland Presbyterians, their children were, of course, trained up in the faith and doctrine.

Jo, (he was partial to this spelling of his given name,) was born January 23, 1832, near McKenzie, Tenn. He was received under the care of Hopewell Presbytery in 1855 and was ordained to the full work of the ministry in 1857. He was specially gifted in revival work and there are thousands in heaven and other thousands yet on earth who were born into the kingdom of Christ in his revival meetings. He was also pastor of many of the congregations of West Tennessee, his last work being Paducah, Ky.

Ben, the Rev. B.G. McLeskey, was born near Dresden, Tenn., attained to great distinction, being at the time of his death president of Trinity University in Texas.

Bob, the Rev. Robert Gilbert McLeskey, was born in Tennessee in 1877, was received under the care of presbytery and licensed to preach by Reuben Burrow in 1866, and was ordained to the full work of the ministry at Humboldt, Tenn., in October, 1867.

The Rev. Jo McLeskey was married to Miss Ellen Carter in June, 1858. Of the children born to this union, three, J. E. McLeskey, of Rives, Tenn., Mrs. W. H. Forbis, of Memphis, Tenn., and the Rev. W. H. McLeskey, of Clarksville, Tenn., are now living. His first wife having died while their children were quite young, he was united in marriage in December, 1879 to Mrs. Sallie Cooper. She, with three children, Mrs. D. A. Hipps, of Jackson, Miss Callie McLeskey, of Memphis, and Mr. Jo McLeskey, of Memphis survive him. He died at his home in Fulton, Ky., May 5, 1909, and was carried to Mt. Olive Cemetery, near Dyer, Tenn., where his funeral, attended by a large concourse of friends, was conducted by the Rev. J. A. McIlwain and others. From the time that he entered the ministry until within a few months of his death, he was preeminently a preacher. He preached his first sermon at Meridian camp ground in Weakley County, Tenn., from the text, "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward," and his last sermon at Dyer, Tenn., only a short time before his death. His was an active life in the service of the church and he is said to have preached more funerals and married more couples than any other minister who ever lived in West Tennessee.

The Rev. William Hamilton (Hamp) McLeskey, the second son of the Rev. Jo McLeskey, Jr., is, and has been for the past four years, pastor of the strong and growing congregation of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Clarksville, Tenn. To him and his wife, who was Miss Florence Meadows, three children have been born, two of whom, the Rev. James M. McLeskey and Hamilton, a five-year-old boy, are now living. He and one of the elders of his congregation, Judge W. B. Young, will be members of the General Assembly at Bowling Green, Ky.

The Rev. James M. McLeskey, for the past two and one-half years the pastor of the Arrington Street Cumberland Presbyterian Church in the city of Nashville, is the youngest of the McLeskey family to enter the ministry of the church. Though but a youth when he came from Bethel College to the pastorate of this congregation, he has been quite successful in his work and his outlook for the future is full of promise. He began work as a pastor in the church at the age of sixteen and has been constantly engaged in that kind of work, though, in common with all of the McLeskeys, he delights in revival as well as pastoral work.

Thus it will be seen that the history of the ministers of the McLeskey family covers a period greater than that of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. In the pictures which appear upon this page, reading from top to bottom, the second, third, fourth and fifth generations are shown and we regret that the picture of the first generation is not available. Reading from left to right are three brothers of the third generation.

[Source: The Cumberland Presbyterian, May 8, 1913, page 290]

MCLESKY--Died, Mrs. Ellen Elizabeth McLesky, at Greenfield, Tenn., Jan. 9, 1879.

Sister McLesky was an excellent Christian lady, and a true helpmate to her husband. She died, as she had lived, in the triumphs of Christian faith. Her obituary will be sent to the CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIAN soon.
E. W. EDWARDS

[Source: Cumberland Presbyterian, March 6, 1879, page 8]

MCLESKEY.--Died, Jan. 9, 1879, Mrs. Ellen McLeskey.

Sister Ellen MCLeskey was born in Weakly county, West Tennessee, July 18, 1844. She was the daughter of Egbert and Catherine Carter. Her parents were members of the Missionary Baptist Church, and were both devoutly pious and impressed upon the mind of Ellen, when she was but a child, the necessity of the new birth. Hence, even prior to her conversion, she exhibited the power and influence of parental training.

On the 29th of June, 1858, she was united in marriage to Rev. Jo. McLeskey, a member of the Hopewell Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. In the following September she embraced religion and soon became a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church at Warner's camp-ground, Weakly county. From the hour of her conversion until her Christian work was fully accomplished, she was at all times ready to give a reason of the faith within her.

I have before me a letter that she wrote a short time before she was confined to her room, to her lady friends of Kenton congregation and Sabbath-school, of which her husband is now pastor. In that letter she expresses a feeling of gratitude in consideration of some presents which were sent her by these friends. It is simply the language of a Christian heart in consideration of acts of benevolence performed by others. How often might the minister's heart, together with that of his toiling companion, be made happy with but little sacrifice upon the part of his flock. Christian reader, if you forget your preacher, don't forget his dead wife and children. Brother McLeskey remarked in the presence of my family, "She always encourged me to attend my appointments, under all circumstances, and I never returned home but what she met me with a kiss." When General Jakcons, in the late civil war, lost his arm by a shot from the enemy, and was thereby disabled from active service, General Lee, feeling that he had sustained a heavy loss, dispatched to his wounded companion these words, "You have lost your left arm but I have lost my right." When Samson fell it was recorded, "So the dead which he slew in his death were more than they which he slew in his life."

When informed by her physician that she could not live long, and was asked by him if she felt ready to go, she looked up into his face with an expressive smile and said, "Brother Doak, do I look like I was ready?" On the night before her death, which occurred January 9, 1879, at 12:15 P.M., her little baby boy, as she termed him, came and knelt by her bedside, as she had taught him to do, and prayed. When he arose she laid her hand upon his head and said, "Lord bless my little baby boy." Though she had been married more than twenty years, her husband says he never saw her mad. No doubt, in common with others, she was sometimes perplexed and would to some extent become excited, yet she had mastered self and would never allow her anger to rise to such a pitch that one could say, behold, she is mad. What a comment upon on life. She had buried five children; four are still living, all religious exept the youngest.

Why should the Christian fear the hour of death? Verily, to the child of God it is the happiest hour outside the portals of glory. It might seem to the less considerate that the Lord has had a controversy with brother McLeskey's family and relatives. They are crossing the last river in quick succession. "Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth."
H. R. REED.

[Source: Cumberland Presbyterian, April 10, 1879, page 8]