HistoricSiteMarkers
Early Republic

Enon Baptist Church

Gilmer, Upshur County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Organized May 13, 1848, in home of M. S. Long, a member. Other charter members were D. M., J. D. J., and Lucinda Davis, S. I. and Sarah Knight, and Martha Mattocks. First pastor was J. M. Griffin. Original building of logs. This building erected 1934. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1966

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Enon Baptist Church was organized in 1848 in the home of charter member M. S. Long, gathering a handful of pioneer families in the East Texas settlement around Gilmer. The congregation first met in a log building and called J. M. Griffin as its first pastor. The present sanctuary was raised in 1934, nearly a century into the church's life.

Why it matters

Congregations like Enon anchored frontier communities long before towns or governments took shape, serving as the first durable institutions of a newly settled countryside.

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Related people

  • · M. S. Long
  • · J. M. Griffin

Themes & tags

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