Rock Springs Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Valley Mills, Bosque County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Rev. James B. Sadler (1828-1911), a self-educated former slave, started this black congregation in 1870 and helped establish a separate black Presbytery in 1876. Worship services were held in a nearby brush arbor or in homes until the present structure was erected in 1890. This building also housed a community school for a time. The Rev. Sadler and his wife, Susan, owned the property until 1909. It was then deeded to church officers, who maintain the church and adjacent cemetery today. The congregation's annual homecoming is held in November. (1975)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
The Rev. James B. Sadler, a self-educated former slave, gathered this Black congregation in 1870 and helped organize a separate Black Presbytery in 1876, worshiping in a brush arbor and homes until the present church was built in 1890. The building doubled for a time as a community school, and Sadler and his wife Susan owned the property until 1909. The congregation still tends the church and its cemetery and gathers each November for homecoming.
Why it matters
Independent Black churches like this were the free-standing institutions of Reconstruction-era African American life, serving as sanctuary, school, and center of community.
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Related people
- · Rev. James B. Sadler
- · Susan Sadler
Themes & tags
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