After Ovid Elbert Davis died of blackwater fever in 1911 at Mt. Roraima, the Indigenous believers he had taught in British Guiana continued meeting every Sabbath at his grave, singing the hymn he taught them and pleading for another teacher. Fourteen years later, missionaries finally returned, finding more than 130 people still faithful to the commitment Davis recorded before his death. Today, his legacy lives on through the Davis Memorial Hospital in Georgetown and the thriving Adventist communities that grew from his early work.
Davis dictated his last entry to the guide: “God has especially blessed in this trip. I had a complete mission at Paruima River, another at Mt. Tulameng, and then we came to Mt. Roraima. Just finished establishing a mission when I was taken sick.” This station was officially established on June 25, 1911, the first Seventh-day Adventist mission in this region. On his deathbed, Davis promised that someone would come and teach the people. He died July 31, 1911, from blackwater fever and was buried by Chief Jeremiah at Mt. Roraima. Carrie would return to her home in the United States.
Following Davis’ death, the Indians gathered every Sabbath by his grave to sing. Despite their numerous “appeals” for another teacher, it was 14 years before Adventist missionaries finally followed up on Davis’ work.
About 1918, an explorer found a group of Indians who were singing “There’s Not a Friend Like the Lowly Jesus” in English. Finding this strange, he discovered that they would bring out the effects of Brother Davis and hold a simple service.
In 1922, after more than a decade of waiting, Chief Jeremiah hiked for four weeks to the Adventist mission office in Georgetown to plead for a teacher. In 1924, the division committee decided they must not wait another year despite budget cuts. W. E. Baxter and C. B. Sutton visited Mt. Roraima the following year. They arrived at the grave of Davis on October 25, 1925, after a lengthy journey to find the Davis’ Indians. Chief Jeremiah and his son brought them a bundle of papers. In it was a letter from Davis dated July 17, 1911, certifying that 130 persons at Mt. Roraima had “solemnly declared their intentions to live true and loyal” to “the Gospel of Christ and the doctrines and principles of the Seventh-day Adventist church.” The trip up to the mission resulted in both Baxter and Sutton suffering an attack of malaria.
In August 1927, thanks to a special offering, Arthur and Elizabeth Cotts were able to continue the work at Mt. Roraima begun so many years earlier.
The death of Davis “shook Adventists” and served as “a continuing reminder . . . that they were to fulfill the gospel commission even in remote regions.”
Today the 54-bed Adventist hospital in Georgetown, Guyana, is named in Davis’ honor. Also, in 1956, the Davis Indian Training School at Paruima in the Kamarang became part of the Mount Roraima Mission. In the early 1980s, it was reported that there were more than 1,500 Adventists among the “Davis Indians.”
This story was adapted from Michael Campbell’s biographical article in the online Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. We invite you to visit encyclopedia.adventist.org to enjoy more stories about Adventist missionaries.
Michael W. Campbell
is the director of Archives, Statistics, and Research for the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
