First Baptist Church of Waxahachie

Waxahachie was founded in August 1850 as the county seat on land donated by Emory W. Rogers, and the Handbook of Texas says it began with just over 100 residents. Rogers, J. D. Templeton, W. H. Getzendaner, B. F. Hawkins and J. H. Spalding were among the first settlers. The first county courthouse, a general store and the post office all opened in 1850. The Handbook gives the name as an Indian word meaning cow or buffalo, also the name of a local creek, without saying which people or language it comes from.

What the plaque says

First Baptist Church of Waxahachie Organized in 1861 by twelve citizens meeting in the Methodist church, the Baptist congregation elected W.H. Stokes as its first pastor. The group met in several locations until their first church building was completed in 1882. Several successive structures were built, and the present facilities were begun in 1949. The present sanctuary was dedicated in 1959. A part of Waxahachie history for over 125 years, the First Baptist Church has concentrated its efforts on Baptist missionary activities and community assistance projects. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986 Supplemental plaque: The church relocated in January 2019 after 137 years at the Rogers Street location.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Ellis County Courthouse — 2.1 mi
  J. Riely Gordon's courthouse of 1897 in Pecos red sandstone and pink granite, with twenty-one carved stone faces and two cornerstones left by a quarrel over its building.
• Cedar Ridge Preserve — 18 mi
  A 633-acre Audubon Dallas preserve at the western edge of Dallas County, with about nine miles of trails through prairie, woodland and escarpment hills.
• Petroleum Industry Park — 30 mi
  The pipes and drilling tower mark where a city water well struck oil on June 9, 1894, the start of the first Texas field to produce oil and gas in important quantities.

More markers nearby

• Site of Marvin College — 1.6 mi
• Central Presbyterian Church — 1.8 mi
• First United Methodist Church of Waxahachie — 1.8 mi
• Site of a Confederate Powder Mill — 1.9 mi