First Baptist Church of Kaufman

Duane's take

Here's what the official marker has to say, and I'll tell it to you straight in my own way. On November 5, 1871, Elder J. B.

Daniel, with a hand from the Reverend A. D. Manion, missionary of the East Fork Baptist Association, organized what would become the First Baptist Church of Kaufman.

Nine charter members. Nine people who believed something worth building was worth startin, even without a building to start in. They met in homes, in other places, wherever they could gather, and they did that for over a decade.

Then in 1883, the first church went up: a small white frame structure with a steeple, standing clean against the Texas sky. The ladies of the congregation didn't sit still for long either. By 1885 they had formed a Benevolent Society, because a church that only looks inward isn't much of a church at all.

The congregation kept growin, kept movin, and eventually a second church rose in its place: a classic brick structure, the kind that looks like it was built to last forever. And here's where the story takes a turn. December 18, 1937.

That brick church was razed by fire. Gone. But those nine charter members had planted something deeper than brick and mortar, and what they planted didn't burn.

The congregation got back to work, and on March 24, 1944, a new building was dedicated. The present building. From nine souls meetin in borrowed rooms to a congregation so grown it carries a staff of four, including a bilingual pastor serving its Latin-American mission.

Nine people. That's where it all began. Never underestimate nine people with somewhere to be.

What the marker says

Organized Nov. 5, 1871, by Elder J. B. Daniel, assisted by The Rev. A. D. Manion, missionary of East Fork Baptist Association. Nine charter members met in homes or other places until 1883, when the first small white frame church with steeple was erected. Ladies formed a Benevolent Society, 1885. Second church was a classic brick structure, razed by fire on Dec. 18, 1937. The present building was dedicated March 24, 1944. From the original nine, the congregation has grown to such size as to use a staff of four, including a bilingual pastor for its Latin-American mission.