Greene County, Indiana

Bloomfield 1st Baptist Church

Began on 19 January 1869 when M. C. and J. Corothers of Terre Haute cam to Bloomfield and held a meeting for the purpose of organizing a church for Baptists.

A meeting held on 21 January 1869 at the Bloomfield Methodist Church was the formal orginizational meeting: The Charter members were: O. T. & Nancy Barker; Susan Cavins; E. P. & Margaret Williams; W. H. Smith, A. C. Flannagan and Emanuel Lagerhour. M. C. Clark was unanimously elected to be the first pastor. William Gainey and E. P. Williams were the first deacons.

They met at the Presbyterian and Methodist churches until their building was built on Indiana Avenue On 30 August 1874 the building was dedicated. It was a frame building of 35X50 and costed $400. It was located at the the corner lot at North Washington Street 2 blocks north of the square the cross street being Church Street.

There was many turnovers in the ministers and in 1912 Mrs. N. B. Leslie was elected pastor of the church .

On 22 January 1922 the building burnt a convention of preachers was to have meet there. Also the churches fire insurance had lasped by one day. The Chirstain Church volunteered their church and the lunch and the convention of preachers occured.

They held services in the court house until they built their building.

They bought 2 lots for $900 at the corner of Franklin and Mechanic Streets which was known as "Dump Hollow". A new brick building was built starting in in June 1922and dedicated on 23 September 1923.

The parsonage was built at the corner of S. Franklin & South Streets in 1946.

In 1958 the interim pastor was Dr. L. B. Matthews of Franklin College.

1976 they started a building fund to build a new chruch on Lincoln Drive and had "rock parties" to gather the rock for the building. They moved into it on 24 September 1979

Last updated 22.10.2009