First Baptist Church of Plano

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the First Baptist Church of Plano. Now, every congregation worth its salt has a beginning story, and this one starts the way a lot of good Texas stories do — out in the open country, nowhere near where it would end up. The year is 1852.

A congregation comes together and calls itself Spring Creek Baptist Church. They build their first sanctuary on Spring Creek, about two miles south of where this marker stands, on land owned by a man named Jacob Routh. Just a patch of Texas prairie, a plot of borrowed land, and a community of believers deciding to make something permanent.

They formalize things in 1853. And then, like good neighbors do, they look around and find they're not alone. In 1854, Spring Creek joins several area churches to form the Elm Fork Baptist Association.

There's something about that — a handful of frontier congregations deciding that together, they're more than the sum of their parts. Now here's where Texas itself starts doing the work. The railroad reaches Plano in 1872, and when a railroad arrives, nothing stays the same.

A town pushes up out of the ground practically overnight. Spring Creek Baptist Church looks at all of that, looks at where the people are going, and makes a decision. They change their name to Plano Baptist Church, and in 1875 they build a brand new sanctuary — right here.

They're not done building. In 1886, Plano Baptist becomes a charter member of the Collin Baptist Association. Twelve years later, in 1898, a new sanctuary goes up at this same site.

And before the century even turns, the congregation is already thinking about its people — organizing a Young People's Union, and Aid Societies for older women and young ladies. A church tending to every generation under its roof. Time keeps moving.

About 1936, the congregation makes one more change to its name — this time to First Baptist Church of Plano, acknowledging out loud what history had already made plain: this was the first Baptist church established in Plano. Sometimes a name just needs to catch up to the truth. The 1960s bring growth to Plano, and First Baptist grows right along with the town.

By 1970, a new sanctuary rises at this site once more — the same ground, a bigger vision. And then, in the years that follow, First Baptist starts doing something remarkable. It doesn't just grow — it plants.

Prairie Creek Baptist Church and a Chinese mission in 1972. Hunter's Glen Baptist Church in 1976. Hillside Baptist Church in 1982.

Four congregations that might not exist at all if this one hadn't decided to share what it had. A church that began on borrowed land two miles south of here, in 1852, is still reaching — locally, globally, generation after generation. Not bad for a congregation that started with a creek and a plot of ground owned by Jacob Routh.

What the marker says

This congregation, established as the Spring Creek Baptist Church in 1852, built its first sanctuary on Spring Creek about two miles south of here of land owned by Jacob Routh. Formally organized in 1853, the congregation joined several area churches in 1854 to form the Elm Fork Baptist Association. Plano's emergence after the railroad reached town in 1872 prompted Spring Creek to change its name to Plano Baptist Church and build a new sanctuary here in 1875. Plano Baptist became a charter member of the Collin Baptist Association in 1886. A new sanctuary was built here in 1898, and prior to 1900 Plano Baptist organized a Young People's Union and Aid Societies for older women and young ladies. About 1936 the congregation changed its name to First Baptist Church to acknowledge its status as the first Baptist church established in Plano. Growth in church membership mirrored that of Plano in the 1960s, and in 1970 a new sanctuary was built at this site. First Baptist helped establish the Prairie Creek Baptist Church and a Chinese mission in 1972, Hunter's Glen Baptist Church in 1976, and Hillside Baptist Church in 1982. The church continues its global missionary efforts and its many local outreach programs.** (1994)***