Recalling the Vision:
A Brief History of First Baptist Church, Waco, Texas

by Alan J. Lefever, Director
Texas Baptist Historical Collection

In 1851 Noah T. Byars joined with four other Baptists to pray about organizing a Baptist church in what is now Waco, Texas. It is doubtful that these five pioneer Baptists foresaw the emergence of the “world-visioned” church which Frank Burkhalter described nearly a hundred years later in his history of the First Baptist Church of Waco. Yet, as a result of the initial meeting of these five individuals, a congregation developed that continues to impact its community and state as well as the world.

First Baptist Church was organized on May 31, 1851, in a settlement that was only a few years old and still known as Waco Village. One of the first acts of this new congregation was to extend a call to Noah Byars to become its pastor. Byars was a blacksmith from South Carolina who moved to Texas and joined the first Baptist church to be formed in Texas at Washington-on-the-Brazos. It was in Byars’ blacksmith shop that the Texas declaration of independence was signed on March 2, 1836. General Houston then engaged Byars to become the official armorer for the Texas army.

After the war for Texas independence Byars was ordained as a Baptist minister and became a home missionary in central Texas. When asked to start a Baptist church in Waco, he agreed to preach one Sunday each month. The congregation of First Baptist initially worshiped in the Methodist meeting house and for years these two congregations enjoyed a special relationship.

Byar’s failing health and the congregation’s desire for a pastor living on the field, led to his resignation in 1854. S. G. O’Bryan, a professor at the fledgling Baylor University in Independence, Texas was called to become the church’s first pastor to live in Waco. It was during the early years of his pastorate that O’Bryan led the church to build a meetinghouse of its own. One of the highlights of his tenure as pastor was the 1857 revival, when a total of seventy-four individuals were converted, many of them prominent citizens. This event firmly established the congregation as an integral part of the Waco community. O’Bryan also played a major role in the development of the Waco Classical School, later to become Waco University and eventually merge with Baylor University in 1886. Despite six successful and growing years with O’Bryan as pastor, First Baptist, then practicing an annual call, decided not to re-elect him in 1860. Apparently, the church did not believe O’Bryan to be the best person to lead the church into the future.

The next ten years (1860-1870) consisted of short pastorates with the church often turning to Rufus C. Burleson to guide it. Burleson came to Waco in 1860 from Independence, Texas to assume the presidency of the newly created Waco University. Therefore, on three separate occasions during this decade, First Baptist had a bi-vocational pastor.

By 1870, only twenty years after the founding of Waco, the population of the city had grown from around 100 to over 2,000. The town suffered economically during the Civil War as many of the larger plantations in the area closed. But, with the development of the cattle industry and the Chisholm Trail, the community was able to rapidly recover. The town continued its economic resurgence with the 1870 construction of the Waco Suspension Bridge, the longest single-span bridge in the world at the time. Until this bridge opened, commerce had experienced difficulty in crossing the Brazos River. Railroad developments led to Waco becoming a “hub city” by 1871. Waco was now a southern boomtown that had successfully made the transition from cotton to cattle as the lifeblood of its economy.

When First Baptist found itself pastorless at the end of 1869, the church once again requested that Burleson fill the pulpit. Burleson informed the church that his duties at Waco University would allow him to preach only two Sundays a month. He suggested that the church contact B. H. Carroll, a young pastor who had recently conducted a revival at First Baptist, to fill the pulpit in Burleson’s absence.

On January 5, 1870, the church asked Carroll “to assist the pastor.” Thus, a relationship began that would forever change the church and Carroll. In 1871 First Baptist Waco extended a call to Carroll to become their pastor, even though he had suffered a divorce while serving in the Confederate Army before becoming a Christian. Carroll accepted the call and it was during his tenure and under his leadership that First Baptist Waco became the flagship church among Texas Baptists and also one of the most prominent churches in the Southern Baptist Convention. He led the church to institute innovative ideas such as instrumental music in the worship service (1873) and women serving as deacons (1877). The first Southern Baptist Convention to which women were invited was held in First Baptist’s new sanctuary at Carroll’s invitation in 1883. By the time Carroll resigned as pastor in 1899, First Baptist’s name and work was well known throughout the south.

Following a pastorate such as Carroll’s would be difficult for any person. Perhaps that is why that during the years 1899-1915 the congregation was led by numerous pastors who stayed for short periods of time. This frequent change in leadership did not stop the congregation from moving forward. In 1908 the church dedicated a new sanctuary that is still in use today. With its domed ceiling, ringed balcony and stained glass windows, the sanctuary is still one of the most beautiful in the state.

In 1915 J. M. Dawson began what would become the longest tenure of any pastor of First Baptist. Under his leadership the church continued to be a pacesetter among Baptists in the south. When the SBC’s 75 Million Dollar Campaign was launched in 1919, First Baptist was assigned to raise $200,000, an amount that was larger than any other church’s portion. The congregation’s commitment to being a world visioned church was also demonstrated during the Great Depression when it sustained and increased its mission giving by sacrificing in different areas, such as the pastor’s salary.

By the time J. M. Dawson resigned in 1946 to head the fledgling Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs, the church was on solid financial footing. Although the growth of industry and population in other Texas cities, such as Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston, had lessened the economic importance of Waco, First Baptist continued to have an impact on Baptist life. Forrest Feezor, H. E. Lindsey, H. J. Flanders, Peter McLeod, John Wood and Scott Walker have all provided guidance for the latter half of the twentieth century. The leadership of these individuals has allowed First Baptist to continue impacting the world around it.

Perhaps First Baptist’s greatest contribution has come through its involvement in Christian education. Since the establishment of Waco University in 1860, Christian higher education in Waco and the church have been inseparable. Every president of Waco University and Baylor University has been a member of First Baptist.

In 1873, when B. H. Carroll began giving ministerial instruction to William Buck Bagby, a future missionary, the foundation for what would become Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary was laid. The nucleus of a few men gathered in Carroll’s study grew to become the Bible Department of Baylor University. Later, under Carroll’s leadership, the Bible Department evolved into a freestanding seminary located in Fort Worth, Texas with Carroll as founding president of Southwestern Seminary. One hundred and twenty years later echoes of history were heard again when First Baptist invited the newly created George W. Truett Theological Seminary to use its facilities. Thus, First Baptist has been involved in the births of two seminaries.

First Baptist Waco has also influenced many future Baptist leaders as a result of its successful college ministry. The ministry and members of First Baptist Waco have impacted countless students who would later serve as missionaries and ministers as well as doctors, teachers and other professionals.

First Baptist Church of Waco, Texas, continues its commitment to missions and to shaping the lives of individuals going forth from its fellowship to the ends of the earth. First Baptist Waco will always be a “world-visioned church.”