First Baptist Church of White Settlement
White Settlement, Tarrant County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Six charter members established this congregation in 1868 and named it New Prospect Baptist Church. The founding members - Joseph and Melinda Jane Farmer, James and Sally Young, and Lawrence and E. A. Steel -called the Rev. J. C. Powers as their first pastor. They met in Grant's School, a one-room log cabin that also served as a community center. Mr. and Mrs. Joe Dearing gave the church an acre of land and then sold another acre to the church for the purpose of building a permanent house of worship in the White Settlement community in 1905. Three years later the name was changed to White Settlement Baptist Church. A lightning strike in May 1946 caused the church building to burn to the ground. Members met in an adjacent school facility while plans were made for a new building, which was completed in 1953. The congregation maintained a fairly small membership until the 1940s and 1950s when nearby development of Consolidated Aircraft Corporation, Carswell Air Force Base and associated industries brought a surge in the area's population. During this time, White Settlement Baptist Church helped found a number of new congregations in the county and developed strong programs of education, mission and outreach to the community. Known as the First Baptist Church of White Settlement since 1954, the congregation has played a significant role in the religious history of Tarrant County and continues to uphold the ideals and traditions of its founders. (2001)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Six charter members founded this congregation in 1868 as New Prospect Baptist Church, gathering in a one-room log cabin that doubled as Grant's School and a community hall. A permanent sanctuary followed in 1905, and after a 1946 lightning fire the congregation rebuilt again by 1953. The wartime arrival of Consolidated Aircraft and Carswell Air Force Base swelled the surrounding population and, with it, the church's reach.
Why it matters
The church's growth mirrors how defense industry transformed sleepy North Texas farming communities into booming suburbs in the mid-twentieth century.
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Related people
- · J. C. Powers
- · Joe Dearing
Themes & tags
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