First Baptist Church of Jourdanton

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. October of 1909. The town of Jourdanton was barely a month old, still finding its footing on the South Texas soil, when seven residents decided that wasn't too soon to build something that would last.

Under the direction of the Reverend W.G. Gilstrap, those seven souls gathered and organized a Baptist church. Seven people.

One month after the town's founding. You have to appreciate that kind of conviction. Before the paint was dry on Jourdanton itself, somebody was already thinking about the congregation.

The Reverend A.P. Smith took the pulpit to lead those early members, and it was, the marker tells us, his very first pastorate. First church, new town, fresh start all around.

They met in the community schoolhouse for worship, which is about as frontier-practical as it gets. But they weren't going to stay in a borrowed building forever. By the end of 1910, the congregation had constructed their first dedicated structure, a wood frame building sitting right at the corner of Cantrell Avenue and Poplar Street.

One year in, and they had a place to call their own. Then in 1911, the women of the church organized a Women's Missionary Union, raising funds for missions and lending a hand to church projects. That spirit of reaching outward became a defining thread for First Baptist.

Home and foreign mission work stayed a focus throughout the congregation's history. They donated funds to the Buckner Orphans Home and other Texas organizations. They worked with children and youth.

The annual Vacation Bible School got its start in 1938, which means generations of Jourdanton kids have known those summer weeks at First Baptist. When World War II came, the congregation didn't stand apart from it. Members purchased war bonds, and the church held special services for the families carrying the heaviest weight of those years.

By 1939, the Brotherhood Organization had been established, another arm of a church that kept finding new ways to do the work. Then came 1946, and with it a new church building. While it was going up, members held services over at the Jourdanton High School auditorium, making do the way communities always have.

Come December of that year, the congregation walked through the doors of their new structure for the first time. That sanctuary stood and served until 1977, when it was replaced. And then, in 2003, a large worship center was completed and dedicated, the latest chapter in a story that has been unfolding almost as long as the town itself.

From seven people in a schoolhouse to a congregation with a dedicated worship center, from a borrowed room to Cantrell and Poplar and beyond. Jourdanton and First Baptist Church grew up together, and by every account, they're both still going strong.

What the marker says

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF JOURDANTON IN OCTOBER 1909, JUST ONE MONTH AFTER THE FOUNDING OF JOURDANTON, SEVEN RESIDENTS GATHERED TO ORGANIZE A BAPTIST CHURCH UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE REV. W.G. GILSTRAP. MEMBERS FIRST MET IN THE COMMUNITY SCHOOLHOUSE FOR WORSHIP SERVICES AND WERE LED BY THE REV. A.P. SMITH; FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH WAS HIS FIRST PASTORATE. BY THE END OF 1910, THE CONGREGATION CONSTRUCTED THEIR FIRST BUILDING, A WOOD FRAME STRUCTURE AT THE CORNER OF CANTRELL AVENUE AND POPLAR STREET. IN 1911, THE WOMEN OF THE CHURCH FORMED A WOMEN’S MISSIONARY UNION TO COLLECT FUNDS FOR MISSIONS AND TO AID THE CHURCH IN PROJECTS. FIRST BAPTIST HAS MADE HOME AND FOREIGN MISSION WORK A FOCUS THROUGHOUT ITS HISTORY, DONATING FUNDS TO THE BUCKNER ORPHANS HOME AND OTHER TEXAS ORGANIZATIONS. THE CONGREGATION ALSO WORKED WITH CHILDREN AND YOUTH; THE CHURCH’S ANNUAL VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL BEGAN IN 1938. DURING WORLD WAR II, MEMBERS PURCHASED WAR BONDS AND THE CHURCH CONDUCTED SPECIAL SERVICES FOR FAMILIES. OTHER AUXILIARIES INCLUDED THE BROTHERHOOD ORGANIZATION, ESTABLISHED IN 1939. IN 1946, A NEW CHURCH BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED. MEMBERS MET AT JOURDANTON HIGH SCHOOL AUDITORIUM UNTIL THE FIRST SERVICES WERE HELD AT THE NEW STRUCTURE IN DECEMBER OF THAT YEAR. THAT SANCTUARY WAS REPLACED IN 1977, AND A LARGE WORSHIP CENTER WAS COMPLETED AND DEDICATED IN 2003. TODAY, HAVING EXISTED ALMOST AS LONG AS THE COMMUNITY, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF JOURDANTON REMAINS A VITAL PART OF THE CITY’S PAST AND PRESENT. (2010)