The Old Rich Creek Baptist Church - Mercer County

This church first captured my attention around 2012 when I photographed it standing along a back road in West Virginia. I was on a short weekend trip to Virginia, and before I left to head home, I wanted to get some photos of the Lake Shawnee amusement park. I took photos of Lake Shawnee and we decided to continue driving on Rt. 19 back to the turnpike so we could explore a little more before we left. We came upon this beautiful yet abandoned church building, we stopped so that I could snap a few photos then we on our way. 

I have some of my favorite photos I have taken on my travels, framed, and hung up on several walls in my home. I have a shot of tombstones lined up on the wall of Colonial Park Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, a photo from the top of the stairs I climbed inside St. Augustine lighthouse in Florida, an old abandoned farmhouse in Kentucky, and this old church are among my framed favorites. 

Like many of these abandoned places, often I just snap a few photos, but I am left wondering more about their history. Until this week, I had no clue what this building was, its name or history. I decided to share this photo in a Facebook group I belong to and on my Ghosts of Guyandotte Facebook page too, and people started talking! What was just a snapshot on a backroad, years ago, finally has bits and pieces of her story starting to unfold. While I presumed this was a church, its design is not a common one that I have seen around this region. I cannot recall having seen any other church with two front entrances like this one. A comment from a gentleman stated he believed the church entrances were separate for men and women. I suspected he was probably correct and upon doing a little research, discovered it was not uncommon in the 19th century for rural churches to have separate entrances for men and women to enter. They would be seated on opposite sides of the church from one another, men would enter and sit on the right side and women would enter and sit on the left side.

Another gentleman on my page told me that his wife attended this church with her grandmother as a child, and he shared a link with me about the history of this church. What I found out: This particular church building was built in 1898, it was the first church building that the Rich Creek Baptist church had of its own. The church itself was established in 1869, but church meetings were held at the Bethel Meeting House in Mercer County. In 1893, the church meetings were moved to the Spanishburg School House and held there until the new church was built. In 1972, a new church was constructed about a mile away and the church vacated the old building.

Today the church is still standing and it still vacant, I was told it sits on an old farm and is watched over by the farmer. Locals tell me that it has been a used as a hangout spot for teens and young adults in the past, with some even spending the night in the old building. For some however, the church has a spooky vibe and they prefer to stay away. Some say the church may have a darker side, others disagree. I will be interested to find out more if possible. If I come across any new details, I will be sure to update this story.