First Baptist Church Building, 1908
Copperas Cove, Coryell County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Designed by Melton W. Scott of Waco, this structure was built in 1908 for the historic First Baptist Church congregation during the pastorate of the Rev. A. B. Jenkins. The lofty one-story building of stone with brick accents features asymmetrical wooden towers and art glass windows. It was used primarily for worship services until 1965 when it became the location for Sunday School classes and other churches programs. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1991
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Designed by Waco architect Melton W. Scott, this lofty stone-and-brick sanctuary rose in 1908 for Copperas Cove's First Baptist congregation during the pastorate of the Rev. A. B. Jenkins. Its asymmetrical wooden towers and art-glass windows reflect the ambitious churchbuilding of small-town Texas in the early twentieth century. After 1965 it shifted from primary worship space to Sunday School and program use.
Why it matters
Handsome early-century church buildings like this anchored the civic and social life of rural Texas towns long before larger institutions arrived.
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Related people
- · Melton W. Scott
- · Rev. A. B. Jenkins
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
First Baptist Church of Copperas Cove
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Organized in 1885 by the Reverend J. F. Baker and thirteen charter members, this congregation first gathered in a community schoolhouse. The Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe Railway sold the members a plot for a single dollar, and they raised their first sanctuary in 1890; a second, built in 1908, still survives as Sunday School space. Over the years the church sent out missionaries and ministers while anchoring the growing town of Copperas Cove.
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