Cool Springs Primitive Baptist (Wilkinson County, Ga.)

Cool Springs Primitive Baptist in Wilkinson County has an interesting history involving the Georgia Supreme Court and the founding of the Stuckeys retail chain. The story is complex since there were ultimately three churches involved. Allentown, located not far away, was founded in the early 1800s shortly after the Creek Indians ceded the land between the Oconee and Ocmulgee rivers. The first church, organized in 1809, was named Cool Springs Primitive Baptist, located where the Allentown Cemetery is now. Allentown was a thriving community and there is book about it written by Edward A. Cunard - "A Book About Allentown … Georgia That is." Another book, "Cool Springs Primitive Baptist Church History and Cemetery Genealogy, Twiggs County, Georgia" provides further insight." " The original congregation of Cool Springs left the Allentown location to create two other churches, one several miles to the west and one further east. The western location was founded in November of 1876 when Henry Lamb deeded some land in nearby Twiggs County. This is still an active Primitive Baptist church. About the same time, a Wilkinson County deed book (page 209) tells us Nelson Stuckey, on October 10, 1878, gave 2 acres of land to the Elders of New Cool Springs Church located on "lot No 392, 22nd district of Wilkinson County." This church then became a Holiness church in the early 1900s and was abandoned in the 1970s. If the surname Stuckey seems familiar to you there is a reason for that. Nelson Stuckey had a brother named John who moved from Wilkinson to Dodge County. John had a grandson named W.S. Stuckey who founded the Stuckey's chain of retail locations across the southeast and midwest. At its peak, Stuckey's had over 350 roadside locations. The first three photos for this item represent a time sequence. The first photo looks like it might have been taken in the 1970s when the Holiness Church may still have been active. Note the front porch, the air conditioning unit, and the trimmed hedges. The next photo, taken in 2019, shows the encroachment of the forest and the porch is gone. The final photo was taken by HRCGA photographer Tony Cantrell. The old church and land is now for sale and the land has been cleared. As of 2023, the building was no longer standing.