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In the winter of 1913, there was a small group of Baptists who felt the need for a church organization or at least organized church work in Pledger. At that time there were few white people in Pledger, and a small school building and two business houses were the extent of the public buildings. The trustees of the school gave permission for the group to hold church services in the school building. Myrtle Brewer, the school teacher, contacted the First Baptist Church of Bay City to see if they could help organize a mission in Pledger. The Bay City pastor contacted the Associational Missionary, and Brother McGraw was sent to Pledger in January, 1914. He lived near Iago, farmed for a living, and preached his Baptist conviction on Sunday. He organized the church and ordained two deacons, O. J. Hodge, Jr., and S. P. Allen. The families of O. J. Hodge, Jr., S. P. Allen and S. W. Gates were the charter members. This being a small and rather inaccessible place with poor roads, church could be held only once a month. Brother McGraw served as pastor for about two years. A preacher came from Wharton in the winter of 1915 to fill the vacancy. Myrtle Brewer was not a charter member of the church, but she added her membership to the roll in the summer of 1915. She married Vernon Allen at Christmas of that same year. In 1915 Pledger began to grow in secular ways and construction was begun on a brick school building which later served as a community center. When the new school building was completed, by common consent, the church had a new home and services were moved to the new building. The church continued to be active as a mission until 1918, when its bloom began to fade and eventually it became inactive. In the fall of 1920, the church was reactivated, and Rev. Moran of Wharton helped to revive the work and reorganize a Sunday School. He also preached on Sunday. Soon after that, Rev. Poe, an evangelist, went to Pledger and held a revival that spurred the church to new interest and strength. That shot in the arm lasted until 1929, when once again the activities of the church dropped. About that time the sulphur mines at Newgulf opened and a Baptist church was erected and organized there with Brother Derrick as pastor. He became interested in Pledger and tried to encourage a building program, but he received no encouragement, so in 1931 the church became dormant again. In 1936 Brother Bradley, the Presbyterian minister at the Federated Church in Iago, went to Pledger to do mission work during the week. Soon Brother Swallow of Newgulf Baptist Church and Brother Bradley initiated a program whereby Pledger could have two Sunday services a month. Then Brother George Lee came to Newgulf, and he and Brother Richards of the Newgulf Methodist Church began to preach on alternate Sundays, thus providing weekly services to the Pledger congregation. Soon Brother Lee began to encourage a building program, but there was no interest. On Sunday morning previous to Armistice Day, the congregation went to the schoolhouse and found it locked against entry. The building was opened by force, and Sunday School and church services were held. The following week pledges of $500 were made to begin a building program. The site for a building was donated by Mrs. O. J. Hodge, Jr., and the United States Bond and Mortgage Company, the ground breaking was held on February 9, 1941. The Pledger Federated Church building was completed, and the first services were held October 26, 1941. The church grew in number and in property, and in 1950 the character of the church membership was such that two major denominations were represented, the Baptist and Methodists faiths. When the question was raised concerning building expansion, there seemed to be no way that the church could be of one accord on the matter. The Baptist congregation held a called business meeting and in conference with Brothers Crouch, Pheifer and Tripp, voted to withdraw from the Federated Church and establish a full-time program of Baptist work in Pledger. This action was approved by a large majority, but was not of unanimous approval, so on June 23, 1950, in line with the action taken in that conference, the First Baptist Church met in the home of Bertha Horvath with the associational missionary, Brother L. V. Crouch, and Brother John Tripp of the First Baptist Church of Boling. They decided to organize a full-time Baptist work and voted to secure permission of the community center board, if possible, to hold services in the school building. On June 25, 1950, after 36 years, the First Baptist Church was back in the school building looking to the associational missionary to send them preachers so that they might make a call. On July 9, 1950, Brother Roy W. Machen of Bay City made formal acceptance of the call and placed his letter in the church during a revival being preached by Brother Robert Cook of First Baptist Church, Old Ocean. The church work seemed to be progressing, but on the morning of August 4, 1950, history repeated itself. The members met for services and found the building locked against their entry. Services, however, were permitted to be held that morning in the school building. The church moved all of its property, in the way of books, pulpits, and the like, to the B. L. Gallaway home for services that night. The next Sunday morning 22 members of the First Baptist Church inaugurated services under the large pecan tree in Mrs. Allen's garden, and regular services were held each Sunday at that place (some 25 feet from the exact spot of the one-room school building site where services were first held in 1913). Before evening service on August 14, Mr. and Mrs. C. B. Barnes donated land for a new church building. A business session was held after prayer meeting on August 18, and donations were taken for the building of a church. At that meeting $1,600 and a piano were given or pledged for that purpose. A building committee was selected to go with C. B. Barnes on August 21, 1950, to choose a suitable site for the church. That action was consummated on August 21, and on the following Monday morning, August 22, construction was commenced. The First Baptist Church of Pledger was re-established, and the doors of its first building were opened on October 22, 1950. The building was a 30'x40' structure on FM 1301. By 1952 arrangements were made to enlarge that first building. The charter membership roll with 121 charter members, was voted on at a regular business conference on September 2, 1953. A water well was dug that same year. In 1954 a baptistry was added, and the deacon committee began looking for a suitable parsonage which was purchased in 1955, but sold in 1972. The church celebrated its 5th anniversary on October 22, 1955, with an open house and 92 members and friends in attendance. On November 4, 1956, the first church mortgage was burned. The event was celebrated with an all-day meeting on the grounds. Indoor restrooms were added in 1957. A second building, providing classrooms and a fellowship hall, was purchased in 1958. In 1967 the two church buildings were joined together, the front porch on the church removed and a foyer added. Central air and heat were installed in the church building in 1972 and in the fellowship hall and classrooms in 1984. The church has been served by eight deacons: E. W. Brown, B. L. Galloway, W. J. Russell, J. O. Jameson, E. H. Williams, Z. C. Vern, D. W. Stell and B. D. Youngblood. The church licensed and ordained John Campbell, B. L. Galloway, Elwood R. Caldwell and Phillip R. Newton. The First Baptist Church of Pledger has been served by the following pastors: R. W. Machen (1950-54), R. P. Berry (1954-55), R. L. Byer (1955-57), Stanley E. White (1957-60), Bobby J. Ellis (1960-61, Keith Oliphant (1961-63), Perry Henderson (1963-64), R. W. Campbell (1965-71), Lee A. Nelson (1971-78), H. Donald Locke (1978-79), Elwood R. Campbell (1979-81), H. B. Gibson (1981-82), Keith Massey (1982), Phillip R. Newton (1982-84), John Tripp (1984) and Clint Lowery. At the present time there are 54 resident members and 62 non-resident members.
Historic Matagorda County, Volume I, pages
606-608 |
