Our Story
How it all started…
In 1876 there was nothing but bare prairie where the town of Coleman now stands. While a group of surveyors was laying out the townsite, there was a great inrush of people.
On January 27, 1877, Coleman Baptist Church of Christ was organized with 16 members. Elder J.C. Averett was the organizer. Services originally were held in a building known as the “Rawhide Courthouse.” This building was made of rawhide lumber sawed from elm logs and was used as a general meeting place and courthouse. The structure was located where Coleman Inter Bank now stands.
For 12 years, meetings were held in different buildings, first in the “Rawhide Courthouse,” then in the upper story of a business in town and later in the Presbyterian building. As early as 1879 a committee was appointed to select a suitable site for a building, but it was not until February of 1885 that the church purchased the lot and material of the Presbyterian building, which had been blown down by a tornado. It is believed that this lot was on the northwest corner of W. Elm and S. Neches St. Mention is made several times in the minutes of erecting a building, but it was not until November 28, 1888, that Lot No. 3 in Block 12 was purchased. The church building was built sometime during the winter or spring of 1889 and was dedicated June 9, 1889. It was located where the present auditorium is located and faced west on Colorado Street.
The present auditorium was erected in 1915 while Rev. J.J. Kellam was pastor and a little later a Pilcher and Son pipe organ was installed. The name was changed from Coleman Baptist Church of Christ to First Baptist Church on June 7, 1916.
Expanding the vision…
In December of 1972 ground was broken for the new educational building and fellowship hall (now the Youth Building) and the cornerstone was laid in July of ’73 upon completion of the building.
In January of ’75, a church bus was purchased and a bus ministry was begun. In addition to that, an “Action Program” was begun in the spring of ’76 following which the Sunday School attendance was increased by a good percent.
In early 1980, the Moss Martin Cottage and the garage apartment, an on-site parsonage located then on the northeast corner of our property, was removed via extraction and moved off our campus. Our three-story Education Building, which was built in 1927, was finally demolished after the third story had been deemed unusable for years.
Operations stayed consistent through the 80’s and 90’s, we then added a specific children’s ministry called TEAMKids in 2001. We then broke ground and erected our Family Life Center, on the corner of Elm and College, in 2007. This is now the hub for our Wednesday night gatherings and special events.
Where we are headed…
The addition of our FLC has allowed us to serve the community with meals, also houses a full sized gymnasium in which we began hosting the Coleman Youth Association’s Basketball League in 2021.
As a church, we are continuously looking for ways to proclaim Jesus as Savior and Lord here in Coleman County, Texas. Those ways could include you! Let us know how we can serve you, and your family, as we seek to glorify the Lord in our community.
