Old Bethel Baptist Church was founded in 1809 by Rev. James Lemen, Sr. By 1840, its 200 members made it the largest Baptist congregation in Illinois. That year, the members built a 40' x 60' frame building, and Rev. John Mason Peck preached at the dedication service. The church was a center of antislavery sentiment, and the building was believed to be a station on the underground railway. It supported missionary efforts and religious education, including the first Protestant seminary in Illinois at Rock Springs. The congregation moved to a new sanctuary in 1977. Efforts to preserve the old building failed, and it was dismantled in 1981.