First Baptist Church of Gilmer
Posted by: 
txoilgas
N 32° 43.789 W 094° 56.788
15S E 317602 N 3623010
Located near the front entrance of the church.
Waymark Code: WM7VCG
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/06/2009
Views: 6
Marker Number: 11310
Marker Text:
First congregation was organized in a log cabin in 1846 as the Gilmer Missionary Baptist Church of Christ. In 1854 the congregation consisted of 22 members and the Rev. J. M. Griffin served as pastor. Church membership grew to 100 in 1869 and in the early 1870s the first church building was erected about one block north of this site. Walter Grimmer organized the first Sunday School in 1878. A Ladies Aid Society was organized in 1895 and in 1896 a new brick sanctuary was erected. The first full-time pastor, the Rev. J. L. Mahan, was called in 1904. The congregation purchased land here in 1909 and in 1911 a new sanctuary containing their first baptistry was erected. That year the church, with a membership of 410, became a charter member of the Pittsburg Baptist Association. A parsonage was built here in 1918 and an education building in 1925. The church was renamed First Baptist Church of Gilmer in 1929. Over the years the church has remodeled existing structures and added new buildings to its property to serve its growing congregation. The congregation has grown with the community and continues to support missionary activities and serve the area with a variety of outreach programs. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845-1995
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