St. John's Baptist Church in Hopkins Before there was a church structure, it is said that freed black people of Lower Richland worshipped in a structure made of small tree limbs and branches called a Brush Arbor. Ephraim Neal (1844- c.1905) donated the acre of land on which St. John Baptist Church was built in 1879 and still stands. Today, one can stand where the back steps of Ephraim's original homeplace were located and wave to church goers.

Ephraim and Eliza (1850- 1910) Neal bore six children. One wonders if Ephraim, while probably helping to clear the land for the church building, ever imagined his son Jesse (1870- 1943), then 11 years old, would later serve as St. John's pastor for 51 years. Ephraim died sometime between 1900 and 1910. He may have met Westbury Neal, his grandson who was born in 1908. Maybe Ephraim dreamed aloud and said to his son Jesse, "This child will trail your footsteps." Westbury Neal followed his father as a teacher and as St. John's pastor for 58 years.

The church was pivotal in the lives of Hopkins' residents. This was the central meeting place for worship, community organization, socializing, and learning to read. These early residents worked hard, prayed faithfully, and sacrificed to gain their education.

Avery Neal By 1891, Ephraim's son, Jesse (1870- 1943), obtained his degree from Benedict College and became a school teacher in Lower Richland. Rev. Jesse Neal also became pastor at St. John Baptist Church. It is known that Jesse, his brothers Weston (1874- ?) and Green B. (1871- ?), and other ministers actively educated many adults through the church.

The slogan, "Knowledge Is Power" resonates at this point. One example of education reflecting confidence and maybe first signs of militancy would be the 1900 Lower Richland, S.C., Census. The respected Rev. Jesse Neal (1870- 1943) was the enumerator. Earlier census records bore stamped responses of "South Carolina" to the questions of where the resident's father and mother were born at least for African- Americans. Ephraim (1844- c.1905) corrected the previous census, indicating his father and mother were born in Virginia!

Speaking of pivotal church activities… Revival preparations at St. John Baptist Church were extremely busy. The church had to be "white glove" clean since folk from other communities would be attending. Even children had cleaning duties. The girls swept, and the boys brought every pew outside for a thorough scrubbing.

Cousin John Barber Jr. tells this story...

Once, the boys sneaked off to the creek for a skinny dip. They heard the giggles of the girls getting closer and scampered from the creek to hide all except Uncle Avery "Abe" Neal (b. 1919). The girls finally left with refilled water buckets, and the boys ran back to the creek in a panic. They jumped in yelling for Abe, fearing he drowned. Suddenly, the clothed and soaked boys heard whistling from the opposite creek bank. There stood a "stark- naked" Abe, the accomplished swimmer, leaning against a tree and laughing!