Big Buckhead Baptist
Jenkins County | Organized in 1774
Big Buckhead Church, organized in 1774, is the third-oldest Baptist church in Georgia. Named for nearby Buckhead Creek, its current Greek Revival sanctuary was built in 1855 and stands as one of the most historically significant rural churches in the state. This is the fourth building to serve the congregation, and across the road lies a cemetery that tells the stories of the wealthy planters and enslavers who once worshiped here.
Read more...The church’s beginnings were unusual. Its first pastor, Reverend Matthew Moore, was a Loyalist—the only Baptist minister in Georgia to side with the British during the Revolutionary War. When Moore fled to Savannah and then England, the congregation became inactive, and many of its members were also loyal to the crown. Among them was Colonel Henry Sharp, a deacon who enslaved George Liele. Liele converted under Moore’s ministry and was freed before the Revolution. He went on to help found the First African Baptist Church in Savannah and later became the first Baptist missionary to Jamaica.
After the Revolution, the congregation reorganized in 1787. Successive sanctuaries rose on the site: a log structure, a framed building completed in 1807, and a costly brick church in 1830 that had to be dismantled due to structural flaws. The present meetinghouse, finished in 1855, has endured for more than 165 years.
Big Buckhead played host to major moments in Georgia Baptist life. Bishop Francis Asbury preached here in 1793, the Hephzibah Association was organized in 1794, and the Georgia Baptist Convention met here in 1831, resolving to establish a school that became Mercer University. After the Civil War, Black members left to form Carswell Grove Baptist Church, a congregation that continues today. Though now privately owned, Big Buckhead still opens for special events, a living witness to nearly 250 years of Georgia history.
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14 responses to “Big Buckhead Baptist”
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Hi! I am writing my masters thesis on this church and wanted to get the sources from this post, is there an email I can contact the author by? Thank you!!
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Please email us with your inquiry and we will do what we can to help! info@hrcga.org
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I am VERY familiar with this church as my family has been in Jenkins county before it was Jenkins County-about the 1700’s to early 1800’s. My mother grew up there as did my grandparents, great grandparents, and great great grandparents. This is a very interesting church with much more details than anyone is able to present in an article. It is worth a visit, even if it is just to see on the outside and explore the church cemetery. Looking up those in the cemetery and finding out their back story is very intriguing too. Thankfully I am not that far outside of Millen/Jenkins County and am able to visit every few months.
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Thanks for your comment Karen!
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Can I speak with a Pastor
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Sorry, Joanna. We don’t have contact information for the pastor here.
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Do you know when the last year this church held regular services?
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Hi Meridith. We do not have that information. Suggest you give the Jenkins County Historical Society a call. I am sure they can tell you.
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Hello all 🙂 Is there anyone I could speak to about having a wedding in this church? Sincerely, Abbigail (email: abbigailanddavidwed@gmail.com)
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You might contact the Jenkins County Historical Society for a POC. Good luck.
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Are there any records that would indicate if Rev. Benjamin Davis pastored the church around 1790-1800? He is a ancestor of mine
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Could you tell me if there is someone we could contact about possibly going into the church?
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We don’t have a contact but the church is somethimes left open for visitors we think. Good luck. It is very beautiful inside.
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As for going to the church, it isn’t open any longer for visitors because of vandalism. But if you contact Deborah Bennett at the Millen News, she is a great resource for finding the people you need to speak to as well as the Millen News tells when there will be days that they hold special services there. They just had one on Easter.
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