Flat Rock Baptist Church

1866 - Present

Walhalla, South Carolina

Brush Harbor

Three years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Rev. Frank Morris (Morris College) and 15 other charter members founded the church under a Brush Harbor (hush arbor). The first “brick and mortar” building for the church was a small log house. In 1878, Flat Rock Baptist Church was among the 10 churches granted dismissal from the Rocky River Association of Anderson County to form the Seneca River Missionary Baptist Association.

One of the founding members, Rev. James Keith, served as the church pastor for 17 years. He joined the Walhalla Colored Militia (p262, Upper Piedmont book) and in 1870 served as marshal of the league guards. According to an 1867 news article in The Charlotte Democrat (NC) while a member of the militia, Rev. Keith was involved in the Miles Hunnicutt shooting.

Image of Aunt Caroline Pickens from History of Flat Rock Baptist Church.

Another of the church founders, fondly known as Aunt Caroline Pickens who was born June 10, 1838, lived to the age of 105. She recalled being sold at the age of 10 to George Gilreath, a Georgian, for $950. She was subsequently sold from the auction block twice more, being bought back by George Gilreath where she remained enslaved until after the Civil War when she was freed. Aunt Caroline bore 14 children. She died on September 14, 1943 in her Walhalla, SC home.

Flat Rock Baptist Church’s legacy is one of the most intriguing of all the African American churches in Oconee County. The church continues to be an active member of the Seneca River Missionary Baptist Association and remains an anchor in the community.