Hopewell Missionary Baptist (Quitman County, Ga.)

According to "Cemeteries and Churches of Quitman County, Georgia" by Jacquelyn M. Shepard, the congregation at Hopewell Baptist was organized in 1876 and that they met in a brush arbor for about ten years. The present church was completed in 1886 and, judging from the footings and the support joists underneath, this would be the original building. The history further says that the pulpit and pews were replaced in 1976, and that "The first pastor was the Reverend Dixon and the first Deacon was Croff Crumbley. About 1900 the Hopewell Music and Education Convention was established by Jordan Miller. Edward Miller, who is his grandson serves as the president of the convention now, as this organization continues with its work of training the young voices of Hopewell Church." The congregation is now inactive and has been so for a number of years. However, the structure is in remarkable condition, given the footings and underpinnings of the church have been there for 135 years.