Nestled along Vernon Square in historic Darien, Georgia, one of the original Oglethorpe-planned city squares, stands the proud yet endangered Grace Baptist Church, a vernacular Gothic Revival edifice built circa 1910–1915 that once anchored the spiritual life of the local Gullah Geechee community.

During Reconstruction, the church’s location on Adams Street was home to African American professionals, and many formerly enslaved, first-time homeowners. Grace Baptist Church was a significant institution within the community in which several successful African American leaders were associated, embodying hope and self-determination for families emerging from the bonds of slavery.

The head of the church, Reverend Edward Brawley, assisted in ending the 1899 Darien Insurrection by brokering peace among Black residents, a stand-out moment of healing in the church’s storied history.

Among its founding trustees was W. H. Rogers, later elected Georgia state legislator (1902–1907), highlighting the church’s indelible ties to civic leadership and African American political progress in the early 20th century.

The Bleach and Stewart families were enslaved by the Butler family in McIntosh County. Members of the families were sold during the tragically infamous Weeping Time, one of the largest sales of humans in U.S. history, on March 2-3, 1859. Members of these families returned to Darien after the Civil War and are associated with the congregations of Grace Baptist Church.