Big Country Baptist Assembly

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Big Country Baptist Assembly, out in Shackelford County. Now, modern Christian camping goes back to the late 1700s, but this story starts in the summer of 1898, when west Texas was already doing something special. The Baptist Young People's Union, drawing members from Haskell, Albany, Anson, and Abilene, made their way to the clear fork of the Brazos River.

They came for physical and spiritual refreshment, and when the season was over, they didn't want it to end. So they voted, right then and there, to create a permanent organization. They called it the West Texas Union.

That name would change over the years. In 1923, the group purchased 31.6 acres from S. Webb and L.H.

Hill, land developers of the town of Lueders. And then came a moment that still turns heads. July 14 through the 23rd, 1925, some ten thousand campers pitched tents on that ground along the Brazos.

Ten thousand people. Tents as far as you cared to look, all gathered for Christian fellowship. The name shifted to Lueders Baptist Encampment in 1933, and then again in 1973 the group was renamed the Big Country Baptist Assembly.

By 1998, the assembly celebrated its one hundred year anniversary, a century since those first young people waded into the clear fork and decided this place was worth keeping. Many believe the Big Country Baptist Assembly represents an original type of Christian camp, the very model of what's now called a Christian Youth Camp. Today, five associations made up of 168 churches of the Southern Baptist Convention own the assembly together.

The grounds themselves have changed plenty. Rope swings and swimming in the river and sack races have given way to a pool and a zip line and much more. Tents and cots have been replaced by three bunkhouses, motel-type facilities, and a dining hall.

But the people who passed through here, the campers, the pastors, the managers, they still carry the memory of what this place did for them. Out on the clear fork of the Brazos, where a handful of young Baptists from four Texas towns showed up one summer in 1898 and decided to stay, something took root that a hundred-plus years hasn't seen fit to uproot.

What the marker says

Modern Christian camping records go back to the late 1700s, but the focus on camping for youth started in west Texas in 1898 on the clear fork of the Brazos River. The Baptist Young People’s Union of Haskell, Albany, Anson and Abilene met here for a season of physical and spiritual refreshment in the summer of 1898 and voted to create a permanent organization under the name the West Texas Union. In 1933, the name changed to Lueders Baptist Encampment and, in 1973, the group was renamed the Big Country Baptist Assembly. In 1923, 31.6 acres were purchased from S. Webb and L.H. Hill who were land developers of the town of Lueders. On July 14-23, 1925, some 10,000 campers pitched tents there for a time of Christian fellowship. Many believe that the Big Country Baptist Assembly is an original type of Christian camp now known as “Christian Youth Camp.” Five associations made up of 168 churches of the Southern Baptist Convention presently own the Big Country Baptist Assembly. The site celebrated its 100-year anniversary in 1998. The campgrounds have changed drastically since the late 1800s as rope swings, swimming in the river and sack races have been replaced by a pool, zip line and many other activities. Tents and cots have been replaced by three bunkhouses, motel-type facilities and a dining hall. Many past campers, pastors and managers reminisce about their time at the camp and the lasting impact that it had on their lives. The longevity of Big Country Baptist assembly represents Texas religious heritage and still promotes evangelism, missions, Christian education, wholesome recreation and Christian fellowship while continuing their strong heritage. (2014)