Powelton Baptist Church
Powelton, Georgia
By R. L. VaughnIt would be difficult to overestimate the importance of Silas and Jesse Mercer and the Powelton Baptist Church to the remarkable growth and success of the Baptist denomination in Post-Revolutionary War Georgia. The history books are full of references to these icons and to the importance and stature of Powelton Baptist. The meeting house you see above has been modified several times over the years but the oldest part of the Powelton building dates from 1798, according to A History of the Georgia Baptist Association. This makes Powelton the oldest existing Baptist church building in the state, and it speaks to the importance of the village of Powelton at the end of the 18th century. The bell tower and the covered porch were added in 1822, just in time for the meeting of the first Georgia Baptist Convention. The church holds a special place in Baptist history – the General Committee of the Georgia Baptists was organized at Powelton Baptist in 1803, and the Baptist State Convention was formed here in 1822. Sessions were held at the church in 1823 and 1832. To make the history of Powelton Baptist even more rich, Georgia governor William Rabun lived in Powelton and was a member of the church.
Powelton was the site of many historical meetings as the Baptists aggressively recruited members and began to deal with the challenges of governance. The Baptists were highly decentralized, which appealed to these rugged individuals who had just successfully thrown off the yoke of British control. In the Baptist religion, there was little or no central authority and this presented challenges to the leaders of the movement such as the Mercers of Powelton and the Marshalls of Kiokee. The appeal of local control resulted in some dramatic growth – from 1780 to 1790, the number of Baptists in Georgia had grown from 261 to 3,355 – and most of that had come in the first few years after the War.
The Powelton church began with 26 original members and peaked in the early 1800’s at 250. The first pastor of Powell’s Creek Church was Silas Mercer, the father of the famous Jesse Mercer, for whom Mercer University in Macon is named. Jesse Mercer became pastor of this church in February 1797 and served as the pastor until 1825. During his ministry, 200 people were baptized in the still visible, spring fed baptismal font just across the highway. Amazingly, this sanctuary has been serving the surrounding community for well over 200 years. The present congregation, though small, is still going strong.
[A second article on Powelton Baptist Church by R. L. Vaughn on 8.1.23]:
An old Georgia Baptist Church “It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of Silas and Jesse Mercer and the Powelton Baptist Church to the remarkable growth and success of the Baptist denomination in Post-Revolutionary War Georgia. The history books are full of references to these icons and to the importance and stature of Powelton Baptist.” (Powelton Baptist, at Historic Georgia Churches) Powelton Baptist Church in Hancock County is one of the state of Georgia’s oldest Baptist Churches. (The oldest, Kiokee, was organized in 1772.) Powelton was organized as Powell’s Creek Church by Silas Mercer, John Harvey, and John Thomas on July 1, 1786, with 26 original members. Silas Mercer became the first pastor. Jesse Mercer, son of Silas and namesake of Mercer University, became the pastor 1797 and served until 1825. 20 years later in 1806, during the tenure of Jesse Mercer, the White Plains Baptist Church was organized by members from Powell’s Creek.
Powell’s Creek is significant in my personal history because my Vaughn and Parker ancestors were affiliated with the White Plains Church, and the Smyrna Church organized out of White Plains in 1828. (In fact, there were Parkers in the Powell’s Creek Church, but I do not think I had any direct ancestors who were members there. Further research might prove I am mistaken.)
When I saw the baptismal pool, a walled-in spring, it reminded me of our somewhat more rustic Texas version, a spring at Chinquapin enclosed with heart pine lumber by Smyrna Baptist Church circa 1873. Part of the difference, no doubt, is that the Rusk County walled spring has suffered from some 125 years or so of abandonment to the woods.
Surprisingly, some of the existing Powelton building dates back to a structure built in 1798. Note that when some people refer to Powelton as “Georgia’s Oldest Baptist Church” they actually mean “Georgia’s Oldest Baptist Church Building.”
=============== [From R. L. Vaughn Blog - baptistsearch.blogspot.com - Scanned and formatted by Jim Duvall.]
More on Georgia Baptists
Baptist History Homepage