First Baptist Church of Milford
Milford, Ellis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Chartered in 1855 with eleven members, this congregation was organized at the home of Dr. J. M. Higgins. The first pastor was the Rev. J.M. Perry (1817-1905), a native of Alabama. A chapel on College Street, built in 1856, served the fellowship until 1871, when the church was moved to this site. The property was deeded to the First Baptist and Cumberland Presbyterian congregations, who financed the construction of a sanctuary here. Separate Baptist church structures were built here in 1890 and 1917. Former pastors include prominent state and national Baptist leaders.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Chartered in 1855 with just eleven members gathered in Dr. J.M. Higgins's home, Milford's First Baptist congregation was among the earliest in newly settled Ellis County. Its founding pastor, Alabama-born J.M. Perry, led a fellowship that worshiped in a shared 1856 chapel before moving to this site in 1871, where Baptists and Cumberland Presbyterians together financed a sanctuary. Later structures rose in 1890 and 1917 as the town grew.
Why it matters
The church reflects how frontier Texas communities pooled denominations and resources to plant permanent institutions on the antebellum prairie.
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Related people
- · J.M. Perry
- · J.M. Higgins
Themes & tags
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