Elim Baptist Church was organized in 1825 by early settlers John, Samuel, Peter, and Noah Parker. The first church was a small log cabin along Silas Creek, about two and one half miles northeast of the present site, and its first pastor was Alexander Travis, a South Alabama circuit rider. The second building, a frame structure built around 1840, had a balcony where Negro slaves are said to have worshiped. No records remain from before the Civil War, but in 1865 Rev. John Cook served as pastor. The present building was erected in 1920 with Rev. William Murray. The name Elim was chosen for the excellent nearby fresh spring water, likened to the second campsite of Moses and the Israelites, and the church belonged to the historic Bethlehem Baptist Association.