First Baptist Church of San Angelo

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the First Baptist Church of San Angelo. Now settle in, because this story starts the way a lot of good Texas stories start: with somebody riding into rough country to do something that wasn't going to be easy. The year was 1881, and two men, Dr.

Owen C. Pope and the Reverend L. R.

Millican, brought the first Baptist missionary efforts to this part of the state. The marker notes they became known, noted is the word it uses, for their work on the Texas frontier. That's a phrase worth sitting with.

The Texas frontier. This was not a gentle posting. Now, nobody recorded the exact date this congregation first organized, and the marker is honest about that.

What we do know is that by 1883, a fellowship was meeting in San Angelo under the name the Baptist Church of Christ at San Angelo, and the man holding it together was the Reverend Z. M. Wells.

Then comes 1886, and things start moving fast. L. R.

Millican, the same man who had ridden through this country five years earlier, came back to San Angelo as pastor. That same year, a state charter arrived, and with it came a new name: First Baptist Church of San Angelo. You might think that would be a season for celebration, and it was, but 1886 also brought a drought.

Then 1887 brought a cyclone. And then, in 1889, the United States Army abandoned Fort Concho. Three hard blows, one right after another.

And yet. Membership kept growing. A good part of that growth, the marker is clear on this, came from the Sunday School, which had reached about fifty members by 1886, providing education and training that held the community together when everything else was trying to pull it apart.

Over the years, First Baptist Church of San Angelo stretched its reach far beyond Tom Green County. Its members threw their support behind missionary work, particularly in Mexico and Brazil, and they organized several other Baptist churches across the area. The congregation built something that outlasted droughts and cyclones and the departure of the Army.

That's not a small thing. That's a deep root.

What the marker says

The first Baptist missionary efforts in this area began in 1881 with Dr. Owen C. Pope and the Rev. L. R. Millican, who became noted for their work on the Texas frontier. Although it is not known exactly when this congregation was organized, a fellowship known as the Baptist Church of Christ at San Angelo began in 1883 under the leadership of the Rev. Z. M. Wells. In 1886, L. R. Millican returned to San Angelo as pastor, and a state charter granted the same year changed the fellowship's name from the Baptist Church of Christ to First Baptist Church of San Angelo. Membership increased during the early years of the church, despite an 1886 drought, an 1887 cyclone, and the abandonment of Fort Concho by the United States Army in 1889. The Sunday School, which had about 50 members by 1886, contributed much to this growth by providing education and training for the members. Throughout its history, First Baptist Church of San Angelo has supported and provided leadership to missionary efforts, particularly in Mexico and Brazil. Its members have organized several other Baptist churches in the area. Over the years, the congregation's role in the community has been one of significant service and leadership. (1984)