Knobbs Springs Baptist Church
Lexington, Lee County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Knobbs Springs Baptist Church has served this area since the mid-1800s. Settlers first came here in the 1850s, establishing the community of Knobbs Springs, and in May 1860, 16 charter members formed a church. The congregation’s first building was located across the road from Jeffries Cemetery and was also used as a school. In 1861, Knobbs Springs joined the Little River Baptist Association. In 1882, after the association’s end, the congregation joined the Western Branch Association, which organized at the church. The church moved to a lot near the Lower Knobbs Cemetery and then in 1897 near Meeks Cemetery. By 1911, members started construction on a new sanctuary. In the 1930s, membership began to decline as residents moved to larger cities and towns to find employment, and in 1947, the church tore down their old building and erected a new, smaller one. The congregation persisted, and in 1972 held a revival which helped spur membership growth. To meet the needs of the growing congregation, the Texas Baptist Men retirees, under the leadership of Olen Miles, who played a significant role in the development of the church, constructed a new sanctuary; it was dedicated in 1979. The group later built an educational building, dedicated in 1988. Knobbs Springs Baptist Church has historically been a hub for the surrounding community. The congregation has also been involved in area baptist organizations and in missions on state, national and international levels. Today, the Knobbs Springs Baptist Church congregation continues to be a spiritual leader, reaching out to the local area and the world at large.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Settlers reached this corner of Central Texas in the 1850s, and in 1860 sixteen of them organized a Baptist church whose first building doubled as the community's schoolhouse. The congregation weathered the Civil War and, over the decades, shifted cemeteries and sanctuaries as it joined and helped organize regional Baptist associations. Depression-era out-migration nearly emptied it, but a 1972 revival and volunteer builders gave it new life.
Why it matters
The church's long survival mirrors the rise, decline, and persistence of the small farming communities that once covered rural Texas.
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Related people
- · Olen Miles
Themes & tags
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