Mart in McLennan County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)

Site of Organization of the First Baptist Church of Mart

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2022

1. Site of Organization of the First Baptist Church of Mart Marker

Inscription. In Jan. 1878, local Baptist met at H.J. Breland's home to hear the Rev. C.C. Hardwick preach.Three months later, on April 28, 1878, eighteen Baptists gathered under a large elm tree at this site to organize the first church in the community of Willow Springs, later renamed Mart. The Rev. T.D. Suttle was the first pastor. Near the tree, the congregation built a frame church and established a burial ground, which became Mart City Cemetery. The church moved from this site in 1893.

Erected 1977 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 1653.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical date for this entry is April 28, 1878.

Location. 31° 32.458′ N, 96° 49.396′ W. Marker is in Mart, Texas, in McLennan County. It is on South Johnson Street 0.2 miles south of East Navarro Street. The marker is located in the southern section of the Mart City Cemetery. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Mart TX 76664, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Prairies & Lakes Region.

It is also in the American South.

Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the Republic of Texas,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: First Baptist Church of Mart (approx. 0.6 miles away); Watson Feed Store (approx. 0.7 miles away); Friedens Cemetery (approx. 5.7 miles away); Trinity Lutheran Church (approx. 7.1 miles away); Friedens Evangelical & Reformed United Church of Christ (approx. 7½ miles away); Riesel (approx. 7½ miles away);

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Perry United Methodist Church (approx. 8.4 miles away); Prairie Hill Baptist Church (approx. 8½ miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mart.

Also see . . . Mart, TX. Texas State Historical Association

Mart, once known as Willow Springs, is a small incorporated city eighteen miles east of Waco on State Highway 164 in the eastern corner of McLennan County. Settlement in the area began shortly after the Civil War. The community was known as Willow Springs in the 1870s, but the name was changed to Mart when a post office was granted in 1880. Residents chose this name because they expected the community to become an important commercial center. In the mid-1880s Mart had two steam gristmills and cotton gins, a church, two schools, and 150 residents; cotton and wheat were the principal cash crops grown in the area.

(Submitted on October 29, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

The Site of Organization of the First Baptist Church of Mart Marker in the Mart City Cemetery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2022

2. The Site of Organization of the First Baptist Church of Mart Marker in the Mart City Cemetery

The view of the marker in the cemetery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2022

3. The view of the marker in the cemetery

Credits. This page was last revised on October 29, 2022. It was originally submitted on October 29, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 320 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 29, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.