Caney Baptist Church - Freestone County, TX
N 31° 48.024 W 096° 18.037
14R E 755564 N 3521485
The Caney Baptist Church is at 438 FM 833, northeast of Kirvin, TX.
Waymark Code: WM14BWR
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/07/2021
Views: 4
While their website (see below) gives a mailing address of Streetman, which is just over six miles north of here, they're in rural Freestone County, nearly four miles northeast of Kirvin. If you drive a few miles to the east and do a little research, you'll find the Hopson Burleson Memorial Cemetery, where the church's benefactor rests in peace, likely with other early church members.
A 1975 Texas Historical Marker provides some history:
Hopson Burleson (1806-82) and others in this congregation settled this area in the 1830s. The church was organized before 1858 and met in homes or in nearby schoolhouses. The Rev. E.J. Browne ministered to this fellowship for many years beginning in the mid-1870s. Called "Tehuacana" for a nearby creek, the church shortened its name to "Caney" by 1884. Oliver Carter (1801-76), Gus A. Sessions (1827-1909), County and District Judge Oliver Kirvin (1875-1924), and other leaders of the community have been members here. The church's first sanctuary, built in 1896 on land donated by Gus Kirvin, is still in use.
The church also has an active Facebook presence, but like the website, it's more about the here and now than it is about the past. Do check out the double-sided Blessing Box they have, which is very well-stocked during these interesting times.