Church History
This era of our history is featured by the culmination of the efforts to secure an adequate house of worship, the extension of the activities of the church, and the remarkable increase in the budget.
For a long while the congregation had felt the need of a new church building. A lot had been secured on upper Main Street in 1919, but conditions at that time were not favorable, and it was later sold. When Rev. A. C. Miller assumed the pastorate, coming from Cisco in 1930, he designated one Sunday each month as church building day, and in this way several thousand dollars were raised. Later, when it was realized that a new building was not yet feasible, the interior was redecorated, a new roof was put on, and a kitchen was added.
Other improvements followed during the Rev. Miller’s pastorate. L. E. Waite became our first director of music and education. The Senior Breakfast for high school students was instituted. The Women’s Missionary Union flourished, establishing organizations for the young people of the congregation. In 1931, Mrs. Charlie Miller led in the formation of the Girls’ Auxiliary. In 1934, Mrs. J. R. Fellrath sponsored the Young Women’s Auxiliary, and later in the same year Mrs. R. L. Henderson helped to establish the Royal Ambassadors. Under the leadership of Mrs. Lillie J. Meyer and others, the Lottie Moon Christmas offering grew rapidly.
Bro. Miller was a man of scholarly habits and an inquiring mind who would have been at home in a seminary classroom. Yet the direction in which his most important work was later to be accomplished began with his interest in the Mexican mission, which he helped to develop into a separate church. It was this sympathy with the underprivileged members of our population, especially those of other races, that led to his selection as minister of minorities for the Texas Baptist Convention, and later still to have charge of that important work for the Southern Baptist Convention. When he left our church after almost ten years, once again a Baptist pastor had been called to a higher field of service.
In 1941, the Rev. J. D. Thorn came to our pastorate, from Graham. Not many months later America was again plunged into war. Again we sent our sons into the service of their country, some of them never to return. The establishment nearby of Camp Hood gave our church an opportunity to minister to the needs of those sent there for training. Some of them found temporary lodgings in our homes; a large number attended our services; and many were received into our membership. While conditions made it inadvisable to raise funds for a new building, the idea was not abandoned. Meanwhile the work of the church prospered. Brother Thorn was a preacher whose messages carried a wide appeal. He was elected moderator of the association, and Mrs. Charlie Miller, our then part-time church secretary, was made corresponding secretary. Ted McGehee was superintendent of the Sunday School. The normal increase in membership continued, and by 1944 the total donations amounted to $36,098.45.