<< Could anyone tell me if Bethel Church in Florence Co. close to the
 Sumter Co.
 border and close to the intersection of Hwy.301 and Hwy. 403 is still in
 existence, how old is it and does it have a cemetery. >>

Greetings from Florence Co.  I found at least 3 "historical" Bethel churches- 
none in Florence Co. Then I found 2 Bethel churches IN Florence Co.

1- Bethel Apostolic Church, 1200 N. Irby St., Florence, SC 29501
2- Bethel Free Will Baptist, 6941 Bethel Rd. Florence, SC 29506

I doubt if either of these is what you're looking for-- but of them, #2 would 
be more likely since (guessing from the zip code) it would be more in the 
direction of Sumter Co.

Could the Bethel you want possibly be IN Sumter Co.? I find Bethel Baptist 
Church in Sumter Co. off of Hwy. 15S not far from the intersection of Rd. 77 
& Rd. 251. 

It is called Bethel (Black River) Baptist Church & was founded in 1780, an 
offspring of High Hills Baptist Church. Bethel was incorporated in 1823, 
first pastor was Solomon THOMSON; among the burials there is John CHINA, Rev. 
War vet. Land for the church given by Jesse & Hezekiah NETTLES. The church 
now standing was built 1849 of "dense-grained Rosemary pine; all material cut 
and sawed by hand, the joints mortised and pegged. "    [from p. 186, 
"Highway Historicla Marker Guide" published by the SC Archives.
URQ

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