First Baptist Church of Kingsville

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the First Baptist Church of Kingsville. Now settle in, because sometimes the biggest stories start with the simplest arrivals. In July of 1904, the railroad reached a brand new town called Kingsville.

That's it. Tracks laid, steam settling, a town just beginning to breathe. And before that summer was even finished, before the dust had hardly settled on those new streets, twelve local residents were already doing something about the spiritual life of the place.

The very next month, those twelve souls organized a Baptist church, led by a man named Bro. R. L.

Pearce, who stepped in as pastor. Twelve people. That's not a crowd, friends.

That's a conversation around a table. But you build what you have. Pearce served that congregation until 1907, and that same year, the members built their first sanctuary.

Their own walls, their own roof, a place to belong. Other pastors came along in those early years, men like Revs. W.

E. Dawn, J. W.

Brice, and B. J. Patrick, each one adding something to what those twelve had started.

And the church kept growing, steadily, the way good things do when people are patient with them. Programs took root: the Woman's Missionary Union, the Baptist Student Union, local mission congregations. The church reached toward university students and tied itself to the Baptist General Convention of Texas, weaving itself deeper and deeper into the life of Kingsville.

By the time the marker commemorating all this was put together in 2004, a full century had passed since that August when a dozen residents decided a new town needed a church. A hundred years of work and worship. Started with a railroad, twelve people, and one pastor.

That's Kingsville's First Baptist Church.

What the marker says

In July 1904, the railroad reached the new town of Kingsville. The next month, twelve local residents, led by Bro. R. L. Pearce as pastor, organized a Baptist church. Pearce served until 1907. That year, members built their first sanctuary. Other early pastors included the Revs. W. E. Dawn, J. W. Brice and B. J. Patrick. Programs such as the Woman's Missionary Union, the Baptist Student Union and local mission congregations, as well as interaction with university students and affiliation with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, have enabled the congregation to grow steadily over the years. Kingsville's First Baptist Church continues to serve the community after a century of work and worship. (2004)