Union Baptist Church

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Union Baptist Church in Dallas County. Now settle in, because this story starts before Dallas was much of anything at all. May 10, 1846.

A pioneer cabin. Not a grand hall, not a steeple you could see from the road, just a cabin, and inside it, the Rev. David Myers gathered a small handful of people and organized what would become the earliest Baptist church in all of Dallas County.

Think about that. The whole county. And it began right there.

The charter members were Franklin Bowles, J. B. and Margaret Ann Lee, Letticia Myers, and John Miller Myers. Not long after, Sarah and Thomas Keenan and Narcissus Wilburn joined the fold.

That was your congregation. A few families, a cabin, and a conviction. Then in 1847, the Baptists, aided by other settlers, built their first meeting house.

The land was given by Thomas and Sarah Keenan, and that first building went up near Keenan Cemetery, about two and a half miles south-southwest, in what is now Farmers Branch. The Rev. David Myers, the original pastor, kept right on serving that church until his death in 1853.

He had been there from the very first word spoken under that cabin roof, and he was there until the end. Within a generation, Union Church had already pulled up stakes and relocated to Carrollton, and by 1871 it was occupying its third site. This church was not standing still.

Then came May of 1896, fifty years on, and the congregation held a three-day semicentennial celebration. Three days. They dedicated a fourth sanctuary on A.

W. Perry land. The Perry Cemetery, about a mile and a third to the north-northwest, marks that site today.

As the town grew toward the railroads, the church moved again, and by 1911 it had settled on Belt Line Road at Myers Street. In time, that congregation became the College Avenue Baptist Church. Then in 1961, present facilities were established, and the name was changed again to Highland Baptist Church.

From the very beginning, Union Church carried weight in that community, and not just on Sundays. Its influence reached into secular affairs as well as sacred ones. One cabin.

One May morning in 1846. And a church that just kept movin' and growin' right along with the county it helped build.

What the marker says

Earliest Baptist church in Dallas County; organized in a pioneer cabin, May 10, 1846, under leadership of the Rev. David Myers (1797 -1853). Charter members were Franklin Bowles, J. B. and Margaret Ann Lee, Letticia (Mrs. David) Myers, and John Miller Myers. Sarah and Thomas Keenan and Narcissus Wilburn joined soon afterward. The Baptists, aided by other settlers, in 1847 built their first meeting house on land given by Thomas and Sarah Keenan, near Keenan Cemetery (2.4 mi SSW), in present Farmers Branch. The Rev. David Myers, the original pastor, served until his death in 1853. Within a generation, Union Church was relocated in Carrollton, and by 1871 was occupying its third site. In May 1896, at a 3-day semicentennial celebration, a fourth sanctuary was dedicated on A. W. Perry land. The Perry Cemetery (1.3 mi. NNW) marks that site. As town grew toward the railroads, the church had moved by 1911 to Belt Line Road at Myers Street. In time it became the College Avenue Baptist Church. In 1961 present facilities were established, and the name was changed to Highland Baptist Church. From the beginning, Union Church had an important role in community life, with influence not only in sacred but also in secular affairs.