East Springfield Baptist Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to honor every word. Out here in Upshur County, the land holds stories older than the roads that cut through it. And one of those stories starts where so many good ones do — with people deciding, after everything, to build something that lasts.

After the Civil War, freedmen and their families spread across Texas, and they did what determined people do. They put down roots. They established communities — schools, churches, cemeteries.

In this part of East Springfield, freedmen settled in and worked the land as tenant farmers, growing cotton. It was hard work, row by row, season by season. Now, in freedmen's colonies like this one, the church wasn't just a place you went on Sunday morning and forgot about by Monday.

It was the heartbeat of social and cultural life, not just the spiritual kind. The congregation here in East Springfield had been gathering since the 1800s — but it was in 1923 that the East Springfield Baptist Church was officially formed and received this property. And not long after that, a church building was erected to hold them all.

Small congregation. Let me tell you, small doesn't mean lacking. The marker puts it plainly: the devotion to community and faith here equaled that of larger churches.

They served this farming community for decades. Sunday services, Sunday school, church socials — and those socials, the marker notes, were a favorite for many local children and youth. You get the feeling those were the kind of afternoons people carried with them their whole lives.

Throughout the 1900s, something else was happening too. The small churches in the area — from Snow Hill, Valley View, Shady Grove, and more — would come together. They'd worship, discuss community news, and sell food for charity.

Neighbors finding each other, season after season. Right near the church stood the East Springfield Colored School. And behind the church — still there today — is the East Springfield Baptist Church Cemetery, where many early settlers and veterans rest.

The church was remodeled in the 1980s, and it kept on. More than a century of service, faith, and love reaching into the communities of Upshur County. Some things you build with lumber and nails.

Some things you build with showing up, Sunday after Sunday, decade after decade. The people of East Springfield Baptist Church knew the difference — and they built both.

What the marker says

Following the Civil War, many freedmen and their families established communities, including schools, churches and cemeteries. Freedmen settled in this area and established tenant farms, growing cotton. In East Springfield and many freedmen's colonies, the church was a major source of social and cultural development in addition to spiritual needs. Although the congregation formed in the 1800s, the East Springfield Baptist Church was officially formed and received this property in 1923. A church building was soon erected to support the small but growing church. The church was remodeled in the 1980s. Although the membership was small, the devotion to the community and faith equaled those of larger churches, serving the farming community for decades. The church offered Sunday services, Sunday school and church socials, a favorite for many local children and youth. Throughout the 1900s, many of the small churches in the area would gather and worship together, discuss community news and sell food items for charity. These included churches from Snow Hill, Valley View, Shady Grove and more. Located near the church was the East Springfield Colored School. Behind the church is the East Springfield Baptist Church Cemetery, containing the graves of many early settlers and veterans. For over a century, the members of the East Springfield Baptist Church have made a positive impact on the communities of Upshur County with service, faith and love. (2017)