The congregation of Sardis Baptist Church Began in 1814. The modest Carpenter Gothic church was built in 1899. Based on the Eldren Bailey headstones and Ancestry searches, I know the people buried here are African American, so I believe this to be a historic Black congregation.

The 1814 date on the sign makes me believe the congregation began as white, and local planters brought the people they enslaved to the church. A handful of Black churches throughout Georgia began before the Civil War, like the Strawberry Chapel AME in Laurens County. Still, I am not aware of any that started that early. I suspect this church became a separate Black congregation after the Civil War. Unfortunately, there are so many Sardis Baptist Churches that it’s been challenging to tease out the history from online searches, and the church does not seem to have a web presence. There also doesn’t seem to be a separate book written about Taliaferro (pronounced Tolliver) County.

I will update the post if I get more information.

Note: While the sign does say Sharon, this church is much closer to the community of Raytown.