Smyrna Baptist Church

Duane's take

The way I tell it, I'm drawing straight from the official marker for Smyrna Baptist Church out in Cass County — so let's get into it. On August 9, 1882, ten pioneer settlers gathered in the rural Smyrna community with a purpose. Not ten dozen, not a whole congregation — ten people.

And from that modest number, they set out to organize what they first called the Smyrna Baptist Church of Christ. Now, any good founding needs somebody to call the meeting to order, and that somebody was Elder Nelson Porterfield. Born in 1816, a Georgia native, a pioneer Baptist missionary who had carried his faith through Texas and Arkansas — Porterfield directed that charter meeting and became the church's first pastor.

He would live all the way to 1906, which means he was around long enough to see quite a bit of what came next. Those early worshippers didn't have a proper sanctuary right off. They held services in a log schoolhouse, a quarter mile to the southwest of here.

You can almost picture it — voices rising up through the timber walls, singing into the East Texas air. Then in 1885, the congregation built its first real sanctuary, west of here, on land purchased from a man named J. W.

Hughes. That was just the beginning of putting down roots. By 1900, the church acquired the tract you're standing near right now, along with the cemetery beside it — the burial ground of many early area pioneers, their stories pressed into the soil.

Seven years later, in 1907, new church facilities went up at this very site. And the building wouldn't stop there. Later sanctuaries were completed in 1941, and then again in 1977 — each one a sign that this fellowship kept on growin'.

Throughout all of it, Smyrna Baptist Church found steady growth under the direction of many prominent preachers. The church ordained and licensed several ministers of its own along the way, sending them out into the wider world. And all the while, since that first gathering in 1882, Smyrna has served as the focal point of the surrounding rural community — its facilities opened up for civic and school functions, its members, including descendants of those original pioneer families, playing vital roles in the region's development.

Ten people showed up in 1882. What they built has been standing ever since.

What the marker says

On August 9, 1882, ten pioneer settlers of the rural Smyrna community met to organize this fellowship, originally known as the Smyrna Baptist Church of Christ. The charter meeting was directed by Elder Nelson Porterfield (1816-1906), a Georgia native and a pioneer Baptist missionary in Texas and Arkansas who served as the first pastor. Early worship services were held in a log schoolhouse (.25 mi. SW). The first sanctuary was built west of here in 1885 on land purchased from J. W. Hughes. In 1900 the church acquired this tract and the nearby cemetery, the burial site of many early area pioneers. New church facilities were constructed at this site in 1907. Later sanctuaries were completed in 1941 and 1977. Throughout its history, the Smyrna Baptist Church has experienced steady growth under the direction of many prominent preachers. In addition, the church has also ordained and licensed several ministers. Since 1882 the Smyrna Baptist Church has served as the focal point of the surrounding rural community. The church's facilities have been used for various civic and school functions and its members, including descendants of pioneer area residents, have played vital roles in the region's development.