Long Cove Baptist Church

Noah Turner Byars, who organized the church, had a long record before Long Cove. A South Carolina blacksmith, he opened a gunsmith shop at Washington-on-the-Brazos in 1835, and Sam Houston named him armorer of the Texas army in 1836. He was among the eight charter members of the first Baptist church in Texas and was ordained in 1841 with President Mirabeau B. Lamar attending. In 1848 he became the first missionary of the Texas Baptist Convention. He founded five associations and more than sixty churches, among them the First Baptist churches of Waco and Brownwood.

What the plaque says

Long Cove Baptist Church The organizational meeting for the Long Cove Baptist Church was held on February 22, 1876, by The Rev. Noah T. Byars, a prominent early Texas Baptist minister. There were eight charter members in the congregation, which originally was known as Sims Creek Baptist Church. By 1885, the name Long Cove had been adopted. Membership grew under the leadership of itinerant pastors. The fellowship met for worship services for many years in the Long Cove schoolhouse, which was located near this site. The schoolhouse also served as a community social center. When the structure burned in 1925, the congregation, under the leadership of The Rev. D. K. Smith, constructed a wooden sanctuary. By 1981, membership had dwindled such that those remaining voted to disband. For more than a century, the church provided significant service and leadership to the Long Cove community and, through former members, to other areas as well. The cemetery at this site was long associated with the Baptist congregation. It is located on the grounds of the early school building and contains the graves of Civil War and World War II veterans, and pioneers of the rural community. (1985)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Colorado Bend State Park — 19 mi
  Old ranch country on the Colorado above Lake Buchanan, where a spring-fed creek drops 70 feet over fern-covered travertine at Gorman Falls.
• Hancock Springs Park — 22 mi
  Lampasas's city park on Sulphur Creek, with a spring-fed swimming pool that holds about 69 degrees all year, the walls of the old bathhouse and a golf course.

More markers nearby

• Richard S. Stokes — steps away
• Pleasant Grove Cemetery — 4.7 mi
• Site of Lometa Reservoir — 4.8 mi
• Phantom Hill Road — 6.0 mi