Springhill Missionary Baptist Church

Duane's take

The way the official marker tells it, here's the story of Springhill Missionary Baptist Church as Duane sees it on this Texas road. Now, picture this. The news travels slow in the deep piney woods of Jasper County.

But when it finally arrives, when word of emancipation reaches these people, they don't wait. They don't hesitate. In June of 1865, shortly after receiving news of their freedom, former slaves come together and organize Springhill Missionary Baptist Church.

And they do it with help from a white minister named Parson Bean, who the marker calls a friend of the community. That detail matters. Hold onto it.

They don't wait for a proper building either. They raise a log cabin, and that cabin serves double duty from the start, as a church and as a school. Think about what that means.

Worship and learning under the same roof, built by the same hands, for the same people. Around 1868, the trustees purchase land, fourteen and sixty-five hundredths acres, from a man named M. A.

Eddy. That ground is set aside for three purposes: a church, a cemetery, and a school. Then, around 1870, the congregation names its first Black pastor, a man the marker honors as Brother Peter Adams.

And the first Black secretary is named too, Brother Armstead Frazier. Time keeps moving. The congregation keeps growing.

New church buildings go up in 1942, and again in 1970. More than a hundred and fifty years after that June in 1865, Springhill Missionary Baptist Church is still standing, still serving, through benevolent outreach, through care for its cemetery, through scholarship programs for the community. They built that first church out of logs in the same season they learned they were free.

And it's still here. Some foundations, friend, don't move.

What the marker says

Shortly after receiving news of their emancipation, former slaves organized Springhill Missionary Baptist Church in June 1865 with the help of Parson Bean, a white minister and friend of the community. Members built a log cabin for a church and school. Brother Peter Adams was the first Black pastor and brother Armstead Frazier was the first Black secretary around 1870. Trustees purchased 14.65 acres of land from M. A. Eddy for a church, cemetery and school around 1868. New church buildings were erected in 1942 and 1970 as the congregation grew. The church has served as a beacon in the community through its benevolent, cemetery and scholarship outreach programs.