First Baptist Church of Bowie - Bowie, TX - Baptist Churches on Waymarking.com

A 2014 Texas Historical Marker (placed in 2016) provides some background of this church's history, literal trials by fire, and continued service to the community:

On December 24, 1882, Baptist ministers H.M. Burroughs and W.A. Mason, a missionary from the Baptist General Convention, met with fourteen local Baptists to organize the first Baptist Church at Bowie with Burroughs as its first pastor. To celebrate their new church, the congregation sang "Am I a Soldier of the Cross?"

From 1883 to 1902, the congregation worshipped in the Masonic lodge building, also known as Rosser’s school for its weekday usage, located at the corner of Pecan and Lindsay Streets. Purchased from the Masons in 1886, that building burned in 1902. The congregation rebuilt on the site, only to see the new building burn in 1909. The next church building lasted until 1943 when the newly renovated structure burned. The congregation consecrated a new white brick sanctuary on Easter Sunday in April 1944. In 1966, the church campus expanded to include an education building. Members worshipped in the 1944 church until 1981 when a new sanctuary on the corner of Tarrant and Lindsay Streets was dedicated. At that time the 1944 sanctuary became the fellowship hall.

The third church pastor, J.C. Ward, preached at as many as seventeen churches in the North Texas circuit, sometimes being paid in eggs, chickens, and flour. In the early twentieth century, church member and author Fannie C. Potter wrote histories of both Montague County and the church. From its inception, the church’s congregation focused on missionary work, a focus that engendered several other local Baptist churches and community missions, including the multi-denominational Bowie mission.

Date Built: 01/01/1980 Age of Church building determined by?: Cornerstone or plaque Service Times: Sunday, 10:45 AM and 6 PM Website: [Web Link] Church Address: 307 N Lindsey St Bowie, TX USA 76230

Visit Instructions:
When visiting a waymark, please take a picture that clearly shows the church. If you have a picture with yourself and/or your GPSr at the church, that would be great too. Please tell us a little about your experience.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   02/21/2022 WalksfarTX visited it