Abraham Marshall was the son of Daniel and Martha. When he was just a baby, his parents began an effort to evangelize the Mohawk Indians in rural Connecticut, but when Shubal Sterns invited them to join him, they moved to Sandy Creek, North Carolina. While serving there, the Lord used Sterns and Marshall to start dozens of churches throughout the Carolinas and Virginia. But then the Lord moved the family further south, where Daniel started the Kiokee Baptist church outside of Augusta, Georgia. After his father’s death, Abraham became the pastor of that church. But it is to be noted that he was not yet married.
After his father’s death, Abraham was forced to return to New England to take care of some of the family’s interests there. Throughout that 1100 mile trip Abraham took every opportunity to preach Christ, and the Lord blessed with hundreds (yes, hundreds) of conversions. His audiences were sometimes more than two or three thousand. On his return to Georgia, he was greeted by converts who expressed in tears their joy for his ministry. When he got home he was still unmarried.
Then in 1792 he set out again for Connecticut, but high on his agenda were plans to find a wife. When he stopped at the home of John Waller, he was introduced to the man’s dauther, Ann. Despite lacking social graces on his part, Ann took a liking to this godly man. Abraham would often explain himself by saying, “I was born a Yankee, and raised a Mohawk.” After he left Virginia still heading north, he couldn’t stop thinking about Ann, determining that upon his return he would ask for her hand. On this day in 1792, Abraham returned to the Waller home and almost immediately fell to his knees to propose to Ann. She instantly agreed. They were married that night and soon thereafter they mounted their horses for a 500 mile honeymoon trip to Georgia.
Ann and Abraham passed away in 1815 and 1819 respectively. Their son Jabez became the next Marshall to pastor the Kiokee church, and that congregation still exists today.