Josh Everett originally had a small commissary or farm store beside his house, but his business grew so much that he built this store in front of the house to accommodate it. Seeing it over the cotton plants, I was just sure that this was originally a Primitive Baptist Church, as the design is similar to many of them I’ve photographed, but thanks to Susan Nevil, I now know the real history.Viewed from the front, it’s more obvious that it was a country store.

It did serve briefly as a church in 1984 (though that is a small part of its story) after a tornado destroyed the Excelsior Baptist Church. That summer, the ladies of the church cleaned out the old store and put it to use while a new church was being built. The church also began a mission with the Hispanic community at that time and it has grown into today’s Iglesia Cristiana Hispana in Metter.