Although Farmer engaged in several occupations during his lifetime, he is best known for his service as a pioneer preacher and
Methodist circuit rider on the Indiana frontier. In addition to farming and other business ventures, Farmer became a politician and served in the
Indiana Senate in
Indianapolis from 1843 to 1845. Farmer was also editor of the
Bloomington Religious Times, a local newspaper in Bloomington, Indiana. During the
American Civil War Farmer was an unofficial, self-appointed
chaplain for the
Union army and tended to the needs of the soldiers, mostly in Tennessee.
Methodist circuit rider Farmer, a converted
Christian, Methodist preachers on the Indiana frontier, where church buildings had not yet been constructed, were assigned to a circuit within a state or territory and met in settlers' log homes, in nearby woods, or at revival gatherings called
camp meetings, which Farmer and other circuit riders helped to organize. Circuit riders such as Farmer could also form new and abandon circuits at will. Farmer officially served as a Methodist circuit rider for nine years. Between 1825 and 1839 he was assigned to Methodist circuits in Indiana that included Bloomfield (1825–26), Vermillion (1826–27), Crawfordsville (1827–28), Washington (1829–30), White Lick (1830–31), Franklin (1831–32), Greencastle (1832–33), and Brown Mission (1837–38), although Farmer did not take an assignment due to ill health during some of these years. His final assignment was at Danville (1838–39) before he returned to his farm in Bloomington, Indiana. While traveling on the Crawfordsville Circuit in 1827–28, Farmer married Elizabeth McClung and organized the first church in
Lafayette, Indiana. This congregation became the present-day
Trinity United Methodist Church. Farmer and his wife also spent some time at their rural home near Bloomington, Indiana, due to poor health. During 1828–29 Farmer was so ill that he did not take an official preaching assignment. Family friends persuaded the Farmers to rent out the farm in Bloomington and reside at
Fairplay in Greene County, Indiana. By 1829 Farmer had regained his health and resumed work as an itinerant preacher, although he remained in Bloomington for several more years in order to operate a local store that was struggling. By 1836 Farmer was preaching on a part-time basis in
Brown County, Indiana, and in 1837 was formally assigned to the Methodist Church's newly established Brown Mission in Brown County. During his year of service at Brown Mission, Farmer reported that 300 members joined its Methodist congregation. In 1838 he received his final appointment to the Danville Circuit. Farmer temporarily resided in
Danville, Indiana, before permanently returning to Bloomington in 1839. During Farmer's years as a circuit rider in the 1820s and 1830s, the Methodist Church experienced significant growth, becoming the dominant religion in Indiana by the 1850s. The
Second Great Awakening, which began in the early 1800s, contributed to the significant growth of the Methodist faith and other religious denominations among the early settlers on the frontier, including
Presbyterian,
Baptist, Christian Church, United Brethren,
New Lights, the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and the
Evangelical Association congregations. By 1831, the same year that Farmer reported he had received 550 members while traveling the Franklin Circuit, the Methodist Church claimed it had more than 500,000 members. After officially serving as a Methodist preacher for nine years, Farmer separated from the
Methodist Episcopal Church in 1839 to pursue his idea for a
Christian Union, a non
sectarian church. Farmer faced opposition from some church leaders for this decision, but found an ally in
Indiana University president
Andrew Wylie, who offered the use of the university's chapel on its
Bloomington campus for nonsectarian revivals. Farmer's plans for a Christian Union faltered as he became more involved in business and farming ventures, as well as politics and other interests. However, around 1863, Reverend James Fowler Given and others formed a Christian Union in
Columbus, Ohio. This Christian Union movement held religious beliefs similar to those espoused by Farmer. Following his return from the
American Civil War, Farmer merged his group with the one in
Ohio. Christian Union later became recognized as a religious denomination.
Businessman During the 1830s, Farmer was involved in farming and several business ventures. He became an investor in a Bloomington general store in the early 1830s and ran a mill. After selling his interest in the store, Farmer acquired a
salt works, but sold a portion of his investment when he returned to preaching. After his break with the Methodist Church in 1839, Farmer gave up full-time preaching and ran a couple of
brick-making
kilns to earn additional income to support his family.
Politician Farmer, a
Whig who later became a member of the
Republican Party, strongly opposed the
Indiana Mammoth Internal Improvement Act of 1836. A supporter of the
Mexican–American War, he also opposed slavery and those who sympathized with the
South. Although Farmer was an unsuccessful candidate for the
Indiana Senate in 1836 and the
Indiana House of Representatives in 1840, he won a state senate seat in 1842. Farmer served in the Indiana Senate from 1842 to 1845. Following his service in the
state legislature, Farmer tried to extend his political career by running for a seat in the
U.S. House of Representatives, but he was defeated in 1845 and in 1851.
Newspaper editor In 1853 Farmer and two business partners established the
Bloomington Religious Times, a weekly newspaper in Bloomington, Indiana. In addition to providing news of the day, it served as a platform for Farmer to describe his religious beliefs and Christian Union plan and was also the official organ of the Republican United Brethren. Its first issue was published on November 11, 1853. Farmer's "rambling" and "sarcastic" prose in his newspaper articles quickly attracted critics. In June 1854 the newspaper's name was changed to the
Western Times; the enterprise disbanded the following year. ==Later years==