The Magnificent First Baptist Church of Edna is shown in this excellent photo by Gordon Nelson.
Built by the Davis Construction of Corpus Christi at a cost of $160,000, the completely air-
condition church seats over 600. It is located at 309 South Cottonwood St. J. C. Ault of
Victoria was the architect. The church will be dedicated at ceremonies Sunday.
 

New Edna Baptist Church Dedication Ceremonies Sunday
Open House at New Church Set In Afternoon

Edna’s magnificent new First Baptist church, built at a cost of $160,000 and completely air-conditioned, will be dedicated Sunday.

The local church was organized in 1887 by D. N. Snodgrass, a missionary, who also was the first pastor, and B. F. Miller, pastor at Hallettsville. The first church had six members.

It has come a long way since that time, with a membership now fast nearing the 1,000 mark. The first building was constructed in 1894 and the frame structure the congregation is moving out of now was erected in 1928. The church has had 22 pastors, with Rev. Carl J. Schlomach the present minister.

Here’s the program for dedication Sunday:

11 a. m.       Morning worship and service of dedication.
3 p. m.         Afternoon worship.
4 p. m.         Open house.
7:50 p. m.   Evening worship.

The new church, built by the Davis Construction Co. of Corpus Christi, noted church builders, seats 605 persons in theatre-type, cushioned chairs. An additional 100 seats can be installed if needed. The old church seated 300 normally.

In a statement today, Rev. Schlomach said: “The First Baptist Church of Edna is grateful for her new building. We are thankful to God for his favor in making it possible for us to have this beautiful and comfortable place in which to worship Him, We are thankful to all of the people who have given time, money and cooperation in making the building a reality.

"Many gifts have come from the membership of the church from week to week and year to year. The greatest gift made toward the building was in the form of the will of one of our members, the late Mrs. Annie M. Oliver. This will left valuable real estate to the church. This was sold and the proceeds made it possible for us to start construction on the building much earlier.

“Many gifts were made by people who are not members of the church. These gifts, large and small, have been made on a volunteer basis, as no solicitation has ever been made and never will be made outside the church membership. We are very thankful for the help and the interest in our building manifested by these good gifts,” he said.

The pastor himself will deliver the sermon of dedication Sunday at the morning worship hour.

At the afternoon worship, the history of the church will be read by Mrs. Helen Garner. It was prepared by Hobart Dunham and W. T. McNeil.

The carillonic bells, a gift of the Ike West family, will be heard along with organ and piano music at the open house at 4 o’clock. Refreshments will be served and the public is invited to attend and see the new church building.

Rev. L. E. Barrett of Hallettsville, a former pastor, will preach at the evening service.

Church choirs will be heard at most services. F. D. Ray is choirmaster and Otto Vann is assistant.

Services have been held in the church for the past two weeks and congregation has been enjoying the 45 tons of air-conditioning and comfortable seats.

Rev. Schlomach said a Baptist church is a democratic body governed by the membership of the church. The local church cooperates with other Baptist churches to make up associations, district conventions, state conventions, the Southern Baptist Convention and Baptist World Alliance, but these cooperating bodies have no governing authority over the local church. “There is no earthly head of the church; Christ is the head. Col. 1:18,” he said.

He said a Baptist church believes in the separation of church and state. Her belief is that no tax should be used to support or carry on her program, whether it be teaching or preaching (Matt. 22:21).

Continuing the explanation of the beliefs of the Baptist Church, Rev. Schlomach said:

"A Baptist church believes that people must be born again to enter the Kingdom of God. (Jno. 3:3-7).

"A Baptist church has two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the burial in water of one who has believed the teachings of the Bible concerning the way of salvation and has accepted Christ Jesus as the one and only Saviour. (Acts 8:32-39). The Lord’s Super is a memorial, and only that, and is to be observed as often as we do it in remembrance of Him. (1 Cor. 11:25).

“A Baptist church believes in religious freedom for all people. Religion of any form should not be forced on adult or infant, but each individual should have the right to worship God when, where and how he chooses. (Mark 9:38-40 (Rev. 22:17).

Edna Herald, August 21, 1952

Baptist Church Is Dedicated

Large congregations attended all four services Sunday as the membership of the First Baptist Church dedicated its magnificent new church building here.

The actual dedication ceremony and sermon took place at the morning worship at 11 o’clock with the pastor, Rev. Carl J. Schlomach, delivering the sermon. The history of the church was given at a program at 3 o’clock in the afternoon.

The official open house and program of music was from 4 to 5 o’clock and the evening worship was at 7:50. Attractive programs commemorating the occasion were distributed at all services.

Rev. Schlomach welcomed and recognized the guests at the morning service and then delivered the dedicatory sermon.

Mrs. Helen Garner read the church history prepared by Hobart Dunham and W. T. McNeil at the afternoon worship. W. R. Farquhar was the presiding chairman.

Mrs. Emmett Cole was chairman of the open house committee. The program consisted mostly of organ and piano music and carillon music. The carillonic bells are the first installed in the immediate area and are heard every evening at 6 o’clock.

Rev. L. E. Barrett, a former pastor of the local church, delivered the sermon at the evening service.

There was special music throughout the day by the choirs led by F. D. Ray, choirmaster, and Otto Vann, assistant choirmaster.

The church history, as prepared by Mr. Dunham and Mr. McNeil and recited by Mrs. Garner, will be published in these columns next week.

Edna Herald, August 28, 1952

The angle of the solid oak backdrop behind the pulpit. Note the small
openings for the organ sound boxes. (Photo by Nelson)

 
This interior photo of the new First Baptist Church was taken from the baptistery in the center near the rear and into the
balcony. The seats are theatre-style are are cushioned. (Photo by Nelson)
 

Baptist Church History Is Given; Started in 1887

(EDITOR'S NOTE: The following history of the First Baptist Church of Edna was presented by Mrs. Helen Garner at the recent dedication of the new church building. It was prepared by a committee of Hobart Dunham and W. T. McNeil.)

While the success of a church cannot be measured by the building in which its members meet, the dedication of this building today is perhaps symbolic of the spiritual prosperity with which the Lord has blessed this church. To most of us gathered here today it is difficult to imagine the conditions as they existed when this church was organized on March 26, 1887. There was no Baptist Church as such in Edna until that time. The services which were held were conducted by visiting pastors from towns in the surrounding area and by missionaries sent by the established churches to develop and organize new churches.

This church was organized by Rev. B. F. Miller, who was pastor of the Hallettsville Baptist Church, and Rev. D. S. Snodgrass, a missionary. Rev. Snodgrass served as the first pastor of the church for a short time after its organization. Bro. J. M. Sellers was the first clerk and Bro. J. N. Murphy the first deacon. At the time the church was organized there were only six members.

It was not until June 17, 1894, some seven years after the church was established, that the Baptists of Edna bad a building of their own in which to worship. Dr. J. M. Carrol dedicated the first building more than two years after it had been started, so it was evident that more than one generation of the members of this church have looked with anxiety to the time when they could move into a new building.

Shortly after its organization, this church became a member of the Colorado Baptist Association and remained in that association until 1919, when the present Guadalupe Baptist Association was organized, with this church being active in its organization.

In 1894, the same year that the first church was built, the first Sunday School was organized, with Bro. R. T. Baylor becoming the first Sunday School superintendent. Four years later, in 1898, the Ladies Auxiliary began its functions which have meant so much to the progress of this church. The Brotherhood of the church has been active since 1939.

The latest and perhaps the greatest project organized by this church has been the mission work among the Mexican people of Edna. This work began in the calling of a regular pastor in 1948, and regular Sunday services have been held since that time. A Sunday School composed of some thirty members now meets each Sunday. Rev. Cruz Rodriquez is the present pastor of the mission and recently has baptized three new, converts, with another awaiting baptism.

By 1928 the congregation and activities of the church had increased to the point that it was felt necessary to erect a new building. The building was begun on Sept. 21, 1928, and on March 3, 1929, the dedication service was held. Bro. M. C. Moore was the pastor of the church at that time. J. W. Pollard was the principal building contractor and served on the building committee with Bros. W. R. Farquhar
and O. E. McNeil.

In 1932 the Sunday School had also grown to the point that additional space was a necessity, and the present educational building was erected. Only six years later, in 1938, this structure was added to, and since that time the buildings of the church have remained the same, with the exception of minor changes. The pastor’s home was built in 1940.

Since its organization, this church has been under the leadership of twenty-one pastors, who were: Brethren

Bro. L. E. Barrett served for the longest period of time, having served a total of fourteen years in his two pastoral terms.

While it is interesting to note all the statistics on the growth of the church, the following will serve to tell the story of the progress which has been made:

As to membership, there were, as noted before, six members at the beginning in 1887.

In 1906 there were 28 members.
In 1914 there were 91 members.
In 1922 there were 179 members.
In 1930 there were 319 members.
In 1940 there were 409 members.
In 1950 there were 712 members.

Since Bro. Schlomach was called to serve as pastor, there have been 555 additions to the church and 260 have been lost by death,
transfer of letters, etc. Present membership is 743.
In 1930 the total contributions to the church were $2,675.24.
In 1940, total contributions were $4,762.59.
In 1945, total contributions were $10,575.06.
in 1950, total contributions were $15,925.78.
In 1951, total contributions were $20,781.08.
The present budget for 1952 is $30,954.

While the record of tithers is not complete, they do show that in 1930 there were only six members pledged as tithers, while in 1950, 75 members were regular tithers.

The Sunday School enrollment in 1930 was 204, with an average attendance of 103.
In 1940 the enrollment was 371, with an average .attendance of 167.
In 1945 the enrollment was 396, with an average attendance of 196.
In 1950 the enrollment was 587, with an average attendance of 268.
In 1951 the enrollment was 617, with an average attendance of 299.
The present enrollment is 559, with an average attendance of 320.

Edna Herald, September 4, 1952