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Shady Grove Baptist Church
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Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 23, 2021, 7:47 PM

Before WW2, there were many small churches in the rural communities throughout the South, The church was the center of religious and social interaction. The most prominent denomination were the Baptists Membership was usually in the range of 100 to 150. Seldom was the Minister a graduate of a divinity school. He was one of the local men who was considered a student of the Bible, was a respected leader in the community and considered a good speaker. In addition to his being the Minister, he also was a farmer, carpenter or relied on other means for an income.

Electric power and telephone service had not yet reached most of these areas and the majority of the families relied on a horse drawn wagon for transportation. Shady Grove Baptist Church is not a specific church but a montage of churches during that era. I have taken the liberty to add a few embellishments.

Shady Grove Baptist Church was surrounded by huge live oak trees and long leaf yellow pine, providing welcome shade for those hot summer days. On one side of the church was the cemetery. Almost every church member had a family member buried in the cemetery. About twice each year volunteers gathered for a "cemetery cleaning". The church yard did not have a manicured lawn. In fact, a lawn was a rarity. This was a safety feature. There were many snakes and the bare ground gave the snakes no place to hide.

On the opposite side of the church and under the shade of the huge trees was a long table under a shed-like structure where dinners and pot luck meals were served. Nearby was a hand powered water pump and a Bar-b-que pit. Those dinners and pot-luck meals were something to behold. Fried chicken, chicken and rice, country cured ham, pies, cakes and other goodies filled the table. A couple of men made a trip to a nearby town to obtain a huge block of ice because there is nothing like a a big glass of iced tea on a hot summer day.

Shady Grove Baptist Church held two revivals during the year. Ministers from other churches were invited to come and conduct the services. Of course this meant more big meals. The revivals were often referred to as "all day preaching and dinner on the grounds" but most of the young boys called it "all day dinner and preaching on the grounds" because food was always available.

A short distance behind the church were two outhouses, one for the women and one for the men.

Inside the church were rough hewn pews and a huge wood fired heater. In the summer, all of the windows were open and in the rack holding the hymnals and Bibles were hand held fans donated by one of the area funeral homes. During the winter volunteers came to the church early in the morning to start the fire in the heater.

Very few churches had a baptismal font. They had to use a nearby river or lake for the baptismal service. As one would expect, very few members were baptized during the winter. Shady Grove was real fortunate. A small creek ran by the church boundary. The water was not deep enough for total emersion but the church members had a solution. The creek bed was real sandy and before a scheduled baptism some of the men would dig out some of the sand to provide sufficient depth for the baptism ritual.

One summer Sunday, Prunella Lou Peabody was to be baptized. Church members and friends gathered by the creek to witness the event. The Minister and Prunella Lou entered the water. He took Prunella Lou below the water for a short time and when above the water he asked her, "do you believe"? Her answer was. "I do". The minister again took her below the water, keeping her there for a longer period of time. Again, he asked her, "do you believe"? Again her response was, "I do". For the third time he took her below the water and kept her there for a considerable amount of time. He asked again, "do you believe"? Prunella Lou could just barely get out the words, "I do". The Minister then asked Her to tell the assembled crowd what she believed. Prunella Lou could barely talk but she said, "I believe this old preacher is trying to drown me".

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Grandma took us to "a" Shady Grove


Feb 23, 2021, 7:52 PM

un Sundays up in the hills when we were at the lake. That's is, w2hen we weren't in the Gap Hill Church Of God . She alternated .

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 23, 2021, 8:11 PM

When I was about 4 or 5 one of the church men I knew well would occasionally let me ring the bell on Sundays. My grand parents lived adjacent to the church. He would lift mee and I'd hold the rope and drop down then he would lift m again. It was a big deal to a little guy. I loved making the noise. Guess that is why I took up the drums

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 23, 2021, 8:32 PM

Thank you Mr. Joe, always love your stories. I remember my granddaddy telling us that his job as a boy was to start the fire in the morning before church, this would have been in the early twenties in Ratcliffe Cove near Waynesville, NC. He also had this task on school days. My great granddaddy donated land for two churches, one Methodist of which the family attended, and a parcel for the Baptist too. We hold our family reunions at the Methodist church in Ratcliffe Cove.

The whole time I was reading your story I had one of my favorite songs in my head, Shady Grove by Doc Watson.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7MwW3JuEOY

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 23, 2021, 8:59 PM

Joe, you could have been talking about our Church, Prospect Free Will Baptist Church. Boy, do I miss those days of attending our local Church.

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Is this the one in Pelzer?


Feb 23, 2021, 9:38 PM

Good stuff

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 23, 2021, 11:37 PM

Great story Joe. I attended service there a dozen times over the years when visiting my “mee-maw”. This would have been around 1970.
Are you from that area? Do you remember Shady Grove Grocery across the street? It was a special treat to get a cold “coke” (yes, in a glass bottle).

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 24, 2021, 10:27 AM

This was no specific Shady Grove Baptist Church. The name was intended to reflect a composite of the many small churches in a rural community in the South before WW2. Apparently, there were many churches in the rural areas named Shady Grove, including denominations other than Baptist.

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 24, 2021, 11:13 AM [ in reply to Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church ]

There is a Shady Grove Baptist Church in Belton as well. It's pretty much a generic name for a Baptist church.

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Re: Shady Grove Baptist Church


Feb 24, 2021, 9:48 AM

I grew up in a “Shady Grove” Methodist church in the Pee Dee area. My grandfather helped rebuild the church after the original sanctuary burned in the early 1900s. We had the BBQ pit and a shelter out back, and my grandmother always made sure we were there for the revivals and Vacation Bible School in the summer.
Some of the older men made their famous homemade lemonade for special occasions like Homecoming, and the Chicken Bog dinners were always special. Our community was built around the church.
Thank you again Joe for your great stories!

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