Joseph P. Sneed

{{Infobox person

| image =

| caption =

|birth_name = Joseph Perkins Sneed

| birth_date = January 10, 1804

| birth_place = Davidson County, Tennessee, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|1881|11|21|1804|1|10}}

| death_place = Milam County, Texas, U.S.

| death_cause =

| resting_place =

| resting_place_coordinates =

| nationality =

| other_names =

| known_for =

| education =

| alma mater =

| employer =

| occupation = Preacher

| title =

| term =

| predecessor =

| successor =

| party =

| boards =

| spouse = Achsah Bond Harris (1814–1850)

| children = Cassandra Emily Sneed (1843–1866)
James William Sneed (1845–1922)
Joseph Tyre Sneed Sr. (1848–1912)

| parents = James Sneed (1764–1853)
Bethenia Harden Perkins (1770–1812)

| relatives = Joseph Tyree Sneed III {{small|great-great-grandson}}
Carly Fiorina {{small|(great-great-great-granddaughter)}}
William Henry Sneed {{small|(first cousin)}}

}}

Reverend Joseph Perkins Sneed (January 10, 1804 – November 21, 1881) was an American preacher, farmer and educator. A minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, he established the first-ever Methodist church in Waco, Texas. Prior to and during the course of the American Civil War, he converted many enslaved persons to the Methodist faith.

Early life

Joseph P. Sneed was born on January 10, 1804, in Davidson County, Tennessee, near Nashville.{{cite web|last1=Spellmann|first1=Norman W.|title=Joseph P. Sneed |url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fsn10|website=Handbook of Texas Online|publisher=Texas State Historical Association|accessdate=February 7, 2016}} His father was James Sneed (1764–1853) and his mother, Behania Harden Perkins (1770–1812). His brother Constantine Sneed (1790-1864) built the Constantine Sneed House in Brentwood, Tennessee.{{cite web|title=Historic Brentwood: The Sneed Family.|url=https://brentwood-tn.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=95|website=City of Brentwood|accessdate=February 11, 2016|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011144828/https://brentwood-tn.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=95|archivedate=October 11, 2016}} William Henry Sneed was the son of his father's brother William Sneed (1776–1835).https://www.politicalfamilytree.com/samples%20content/members/candidates_2009-10/Sneed-CA-1.pdf

Sneed was ordained as an elder of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, by Bishop John Emory in 1833.

Career

Sneed was a preacher of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. He preached sermons from a log cabin off the banks of the Brazos River in Waco, Texas in 1850.{{cite news|title=Waco. A Joyous Reunion of Ex-Presiding Elders, Ex-Pastors and Members of an Old Methodist Church.|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/84396790/?terms=%22Joseph%2BP.%2BSneed%22|work=Fort Worth Daily Gazette|location=Fort Worth, Texas|date=May 20, 1887|page=8|url-access=registration |via=Newspapers.com}} His log cabin was the first Methodist church in Waco.{{cite news|title=Methodist Church Has Rapid Growth. First Church In Waco Was Log Cabin.|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/56001506/?terms=%22Joseph%2BP.%2BSneed%22|accessdate=February 9, 2016|work=The Waco News-Tribune|location=Waco, Texas|date=February 26, 1922|page=3|url-access=registration |via=Newspapers.com}}

Meanwhile, Sneed was also a farmer, first in Gay Hill, Washington County and later in Port Sullivan, Texas, where he founded the Port Sullivan Male and Female Institute (also known as the Port Sullivan College).{{cite news|last1=Luecke|first1=Jan|title=Brazos' Port Sullivan... Marker, Cemetery Remain|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/51525266/?terms=%22Thomas%2BJ.%2BH.%2BAnderson%22|accessdate=February 9, 2016|work=The Cameron Herald|location=Cameron, Texas|date=March 28, 1968|url-access=registration |via=Newspapers.com}}

Prior to the American Civil War, from 1855 to 1861, Sneed helped convert enslaved persons to the Methodist faith at the Port Royal African Mission in Texas. After taking a year off in 1861, he resumed his ministry with blacks during the course of the war, from 1862 to 1865.