George W. Truett

Duane's take

The official marker tells it this way, and I'm just here to make sure you hear it right. Now settle in, because this is one of those lives that makes you wonder if a man was running on something extra. George W.

Truett was born in North Carolina, but Texas had a claim on him. In 1889 he followed his parents west and settled first in Whitewright, up in Grayson County. He worked the family farm, attended Grayson Junior College, and fell in with the Baptist congregation there.

And here's where you start to see what kind of man this was — because that congregation recognized something in him and ordained him a Baptist minister in 1890. Same year. But the ordination wasn't even the headline of 1890.

Baylor University was sitting under a $92,000 debt — and if you know anything about institutional debt, you know that number had a way of just sitting there, growing heavier by the season. Truett had built himself a reputation as a skillful fund-raiser, so he was appointed financial secretary of Baylor. Within twenty-three months, the debt was gone.

Gone. You can let that number breathe for a second. In 1893 he enrolled at Baylor himself, and he paid his tuition by serving as pastor of East Waco Baptist Church.

The man was working his way through the very institution he had rescued. In 1894 he married Josephine Jenkins. In 1897 he graduated.

And then came the call that would define the rest of his days. George W. Truett became pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas — and he held that position for forty-seven years.

When he arrived, the membership stood at 715. When the accounting was done, it stood at 7,804. That's not a congregation, that's a movement.

In 1904, the Texas Baptist Sanitarium was founded as a result of his fund-raising efforts — an institution that would later become Baylor Hospital. He raised millions more for the Southern Baptist Convention, served as an officer in numerous organizations, and traveled worldwide on preaching tours. George W.

Truett died at age 77. A North Carolina boy who followed his family to Texas in 1889 and spent the better part of a lifetime building things that outlasted him — churches, hospitals, a university freed from debt. The marker doesn't call it a tall tale.

It just calls it a career in service to others. Sometimes that's the tallest tale of all.

What the marker says

North Carolina native George W. Truett followed his parents to Texas in 1889, and settled first in Whitewright in Grayson county. He worked on the family farm, attended Grayson Junior College, and became an active member of the Baptist Congregation. A gifted teacher and speaker, Truett was ordained a Baptist minister by the congregation in 1890. Truett had also gained a reputation as a skillful fund-raiser, and in 1890 he was appointed financial secretary of Baylor University, which was burdened with a $92,000 debt. Within 23 months, Truett had eliminated the debt. In 1893 he enrolled at Baylor and paid his tuition by becoming pastor of East Waco Baptist Church. He married Josephine Jenkins in 1894. Truett graduated in 1897 and became pastor of the First Baptist Church, Dallas, a position he held for 47 years. The membership grew from 715 to 7,804. In 1904 the Texas Baptist Sanitarium, later the Baylor Hospital, was founded as a result of his fund raising efforts. He also raised millions of dollars for the Southern Baptist convention, served as an officer in numerous organizations, and traveled worldwide on preaching tours. Following a distinguished career in service to others, Truett died at age 77. (1997)