First Baptist Church of La Feria

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll pass it along just as it stands. Back in 1912, eleven charter members gathered together and organized the First Baptist Church of La Feria. Eleven.

Not a hundred, not fifty. Eleven people, led by the Rev. Mr.

Roberts of Ohio, decided that was enough to get started. And you know what, they were right. In those early days the congregation didn't go it alone.

They shared facilities and services with other local religious groups, making do, building something from the ground up the way folks in this valley knew how to do. Then the work of building out a real church community began in earnest. The Women's Missionary Society was founded in 1923.

The very next year, 1924, brought two more milestones: a full graded Sunday School was organized, and so was the Baptist Youth Union. The congregation was filling out, taking shape, putting down roots. And then came June of 1925.

That's when the Baptist congregation held its first service in a brand new domed structure, right here on this site. A dome. Out here on the South Texas plain, under that wide open sky, they built themselves a domed church.

Additions and renovations followed as the years went on, as needed, the marker says, which is the modest way of saying they kept growing. The First Baptist Church of La Feria has always been strong in missionary activity, and that tradition of worship and community service continues to this day. Eleven members.

One Rev. Mr. Roberts from Ohio.

And a dome on the horizon. That's how a church gets built.

What the marker says

Organized in 1912 with eleven charter members under the leadership of the Rev. Mr. Roberts of Ohio, the First Baptist Church of La Feria originally shared facilities and services with other local religious groups. The Women's Missionary Society was founded in 1923; a full graded Sunday School was organized in 1924, as was the Baptist Youth Union. In June 1925 the Baptist congregation held its first service in a new domed structure on this site. Additions and renovations to the facility were made as needed. Always strong in missionary activity, the First Baptist Church of La Feria continues a proud tradition of worship and community service. (1998)