Swallow Savannah Methodist Church

Front: This church first organized c.1815, when members met in a log house 2 mi. S that was adjacent to a sheet of water known as “Swallow Savannah,” the church’s namesake. Local preacher John McFail was likely instrumental in the church’s organization. Through the 1800s, members used several sites along Old Augusta Road including a church built on land given by Dr. Cornelius Ayer and dedicated in 1848. The church cemetery remains there. Reverse: The church was part of the Black Swamp Circuit until 1855, when the Allendale Circuit was formed. In 1880, members made plans to move to Allendale, then a growing railroad depot town. A white clapboard church was built at this site after Lawrence Williams donated the land in 1890. That building burned in 1942 and was replaced by the current church, which was dedicated in 1946. The Fellowship Hall was built in 1961.