Short Creek Baptist Church

Short Creek Baptist Church was organized in 1834 and is located in McMinn County, TN (Athens, TN). Hamiton Stewart gave one and one-half acres of land for the first building. The building was constructed from hewn logs with no floor. The original building had a large mound of rocks in the center of the church. In the winter, church members would build a fire out of bark and logs, and let it burn down to coals and the rocks and coals would warm the building for church service. A very wide fireplace and chimney was built which would burn long logs. In time of revivals, they would put straw on the ground floor to kneel on for prayer. This first building served the members 59 years.

In 1893 the second building was built. The building was a two story building with the first floor being used for church services and the second floor as a lodge. The building was constructed out of heart pine lumber which was hand dressed. The lodge moved to another location, and the second floor was used for Sunday School rooms. The second building served the church for 61 years.

Mr. John Whiteside gave one-half acre of land adjacent to the church for the third building in 1954. It was constructed of concrete block with wood siding. The building was paid for in July of 1957 and dedicated to the Lord’s service at that time. Improvements which included new stained glass windows, carpet and bricking the outside in 1970. The size of the building was 40’ by 60’. A 46’ by 40’ extension was added to the church in 1975. The addition was for a choir loft, baptistry, pastor’s study, library, classrooms, kitchen and fellowship hall. The building is still serving the church. In 2017, the Correll’s family (the family is related to John Whiteside) gave land and the church broke ground for another fellowship hall, which became functional in 2018. The new fellowship hall has classrooms, restrooms, kitchen, and a half-court basketball court. The new fellowship was paid off in 2023.