Ridgeway Baptist
Gilmer County | Organized in 1865
The congregation of Ridgeway Baptist began under the name New Bethel, though the exact founding date is unknown. The first building was constructed in 1865 by a handful of Confederate veterans returning from the war, including Wiley Pankey, J. C. Worley, Frank Nelson, and Leander Corbin. This one-room log structure had a dirt floor, later replaced with planks, along with two doors and three shuttered windows. An extension was added in 1940, electricity in 1949, and a new church was built across the street in 1982.
Read more...Early rural churches reflected the resources of their communities, often evolving from a brush arbor to a log building and eventually a framed sanctuary. Very few log churches have survived in Georgia, making Ridgeway a rare link to that era. Built at the end of the Civil War, it speaks to the hardships of mountain families who lived far from plantation wealth. In the 1940s, services here were still held without electricity. The nearby cemetery tells the story of these families, with many burials of Pankeys, Quarles, and Scots-Irish settlers like McArthur, McClure, McElrath, and McPherson.
The graveyard also holds stories of the Civil War, moonshining, and murder. In this rugged part of Georgia, cotton was not a viable crop, but liquor was. Federal taxes on whiskey brought revenue agents to shut down stills, sparking violent resistance. In Gilmer County, a vigilante group called the “Whitecaps” enforced their own mountain code, which included protecting moonshine operations. One tragic case involved Henry Worley, suspected of aiding federal agents. He survived a failed hanging attempt, only to be shot days later in his cornfield. Several Whitecaps were indicted, with John Quarles Sr. and David Butler sentenced to prison. Quarles died in prison in Ohio, while Butler served his term and returned home.
Atlanta newspapers at the time told of how the Whitecaps had terrorized the area until this trial broke their power. Today, all is peaceful in the shadow of the little log church, where Henry Worley’s daughter Kemmie rests beside her parents and her husband, whose uncle was the same John Quarles convicted in the case.
http://genealogytrails.com/geo/murray/white_caps.htm
https://www.murraycountymuseum.com/on_64.html
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23 responses to “Ridgeway Baptist”
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We were there today (9/5/2026), and the log church is nowhere to be found! I’m guessing it’s been torn down, but I can’t find a single mention anywhere on the internet about it being taken down. Any info?
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Hey Anna, thanks for your comment. We haven’t heard any news about Ridgeway being torn down, and it would be awfully sad if that were the case. I looked it up on Google Street View, and it was still there as of August 2024, but I don’t know anything about it in more recent years. We will come back and update you if we hear anything.
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Is there any burial plots for sale? We live on ridgeway church road and would like to be buried at ridgeway church.
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Sorry Marshall, we are not directly affiliated with the church so we don’t have that information.
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I attended this church many times as a child. Our family also had family reunions there for years. My grandparents are buried there. The McArthur’s.
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Could you give me your mailing address? Thank’s
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1185 Springdale Rd.NE
Atlanta, 30306-
The mailing address to the Church, Ridgeway Baptist Church is /
407 Ridgeway Church Rd, Ellijay, GA 30540.
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Growing up in the Ridgeway area with Regina Pankey as my Neighbor and Dear friend, brings back alot of Precious memories of Us Riding four-wheelers or playing games of Pool at her house 🙂 We had a great Time and I will always Call This Home~
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Does anyone know someone connected with this church where we could possibly get a tour of the inside. We would love this—our son (who is a history major) would like to perhaps write on this church as he also majors in religious studies.
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Carla, we believe the church is open. Not locked.
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My great great grandfather was Leander Corbin. I knew he was buried there, but never knew he had a hand in building the church!
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Glad we were able to shed some light on the family history.
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I have a set of grandparents buried at ridge way they were the Banks’s
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Wonderful to preserve the log cabin church. What prayers and praises were spoken here. Good for community, family, person and soul.
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Its’a beautiful old church
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My Great Grandfather , Wiley Pankey.
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My grandmother was a Pankey. Ridgeway Baptist Church was my Dads home church
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This was my kin folks my grandma Pankey Banks buried out there my Dads Mom and dad great granny Pankey saved that church from being tore down
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History is so important. This Church holds so much within its walls. Is anything done or can anything be done as far as preservation?
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Thanks to John Russell for keeping this information alive.
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Great stories, friends! Does that mean we need tales of Whitecaps to pique our interest? No, but… it was marvelously/terribly time and place specific. Thanks to you folks.
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This one is a jewel, a gem.
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