St. Mark’s AME, located just outside the village of Siloam in Greene County, is one of the earliest African American churches established in the area after emancipation. Sources differ on its exact founding date, but records suggest it began in the late 1860s or early 1870s. In The Land Between, Forrest Shivers noted that St. Mark’s quickly became a center of Black religious and social life. A camp meeting in 1874 reportedly drew seven train cars of worshipers from Augusta, another ten from Washington and surrounding towns, and a crowd of 3,000 on the church grounds.
The present sanctuary’s origins are also debated. A construction assessment dates it to 1901, while a July 29, 1892 issue of the Sparta Ishmaelite reported the laying of the cornerstone by Rev. W. M. Duncan, in the presence of Bishop Grant and other leaders. Either way, St. Mark’s has stood for more than a century as a cornerstone of the community. The cemetery, with over 200 unmarked graves, includes many individuals born into slavery, reminding us that this church was central to their spiritual and social lives for generations.
Architecturally, the one-and-a-half-story brick structure with twin towers reflects both Romanesque and Gothic Revival elements. Its tall paneled doors, arched entrances, stained glass windows, and intricate tongue-and-groove ceiling testify to the craftsmanship of its builders. A construction report even praised the “ingenious” system of cambered trusses supporting the roof, evidence of both skill and endurance.
The cemetery, sprawling into the woods beside the church, contains at least 200 unmarked burials in addition to marked graves. Veterans and sharecroppers, freedmen and their descendants all rest here, their lives interwoven with the story of St. Mark’s. Despite population shifts and challenges, St. Mark’s has endured. Today it remains one of six active AME churches in Sparta, carrying forward a legacy of faith, resilience, and community stewardship.