Soapstone Church & School
This Baptist congregation likely dates to the 1870s and was organized by Rev. Joseph McJunkin to serve residents of Liberia, a community of newly freed slaves settled after the Civil War. Congregants are said to have first met under a brush arbor. Tradition holds that early members held classes for local children on a nearby soapstone outcropping that gave the church its name.
By the 1890s, Soapstone Church housed an African American public school. A one-room schoolhouse that still stands may date to the 1920s and served as Soapstone School until it closed in 1953. In 1967, a church built c.1900 burned in a possible arson. It was replaced later that year by the current church. Former members and Liberia residents are buried in two nearby cemeteries.
Where it stands. 296 Liberia Rd., Pickens vicinity, Pickens vicinity