Rock Methodist Church was established in 1839 about three miles from the present location with Alfred T. Mann as the first pastor. The congregation erected a substantial structure in the year of organization, according to archival records of the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church. It featured a slave gallery and the history notes that after Emancipation, some slaves still attended for a time. One in particular, Steve Willis, was fondly remembered for tying the horse before services and for making coffee when dinners on the ground were held.

The present church was erected in 1870; it’s unclear why they relocated, but it’s possible that they gave the old church to the black members who formed a new congregation.