Caney Baptist Church

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Caney Baptist Church in Freestone County. Now settle in, because this congregation's got roots that go way back, and a story that keeps on giving. Back in the 1830s, a man named Hopson Burleson, born in 1806, was among those who came to this part of Texas and put down stakes.

He and others in what would become this congregation were some of the earliest settlers in the area, and they brought their faith with them. The church itself was organized before 1858, and in those early years, folks made do. No grand sanctuary, no steeple catching the morning light.

They gathered in homes, or in nearby schoolhouses, passing the Word around whatever table or bench was available. Then came the Reverend E. J.

Browne, who began ministering to this fellowship in the mid-1870s and kept at it for many years. A congregation with a preacher willing to stay, now that's something. The church went by the name 'Tehuacana' in those days, named for a nearby creek, and it carried that name until, by 1884, the congregation had shortened things down to simply 'Caney.' Over the years, the membership rolls read like a who's who of the surrounding community.

Oliver Carter, born in 1801, died in 1876. Gus A. Sessions, born in 1827, died in 1909.

County and District Judge Oliver Kirvin, born in 1875, died in 1924. Leaders, pillars, people who shaped the land around them. And that first real sanctuary, built in 1896 on land donated by Gus Kirvin, is still standing, still in use.

Think about that. A building raised in 1896, still holding people, still doing the job it was built to do. Some things in Texas, friend, just refuse to quit.

What the marker says

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.