Church and Family History Research
Assistance
for Primitive Baptist Churches in Oklahoma County,
Oklahoma
CHURCHES:
BETHLEHEM (OKLAHOMA CITY)
Bethlehem Church, in Oklahoma City, was organized on Saturday before the second Sunday in October, 1900. The presbytery was composed of Elders John Lovett (moderator), Henry C. Waggoner, J. M. Downing, Henry Richards, and Bro. J. H. Dalton, clerk. The church met, at first, in the Pott Schoolhouse (later known as Lone Star), three miles east of Britton, on the Santa Fe Railroad. The charter members were J. H. Dalton, R. L. Wilkin, Victory Wilkin, J. A. Mace, and Nance M. Mace. Elder John Lovett was chosen the first pastor, with Elder H. C. Waggoner as his alternate.
They met at Pott's school house for a while and then changed the place of meeting to another school some three or four miles northwest of Edmond, where they held services for a few years, and then began to meet at the home of Brother and Sister W. T. Morrisett in the little city of Edmond, where they continued to meet until April 1926, when they changed to the home of Elder T. R. Allen in Oklahoma City, and a month later to the Courthouse, where they met until they bought property at 315 S. E. 16th Street.
Elder Lovett was followed by Elder Thomas Veach, and in 1910, Elder T. R. Allen became pastor and served until his death in 1933. Later pastors of the church which met on 16th Street included Elders J. B. Allen, J. C. Clark, and Troy Corley.
Bethlehem Church evidently divided in about 1930. One part of the church continued to meet at 315 S. E. 16th Street, until July 1948, when the first service was held in a new meeting house which the church had built at 3201 S. Clegern (the corner of 31st Street and Clegern). The other part of Bethlehem Church apparently met at 1644 N. W. Third Street for many years, and then moved to 1200 S. W. 58th Street, in Oklahoma City. In recent years the two parts of the church apparently merged.
Bethlehem Church united with the First Primitive Baptist Association in 1929.
SURNAMES OF MEMBERS:
Allen, Bates, Bearden, Bell, Bishop, Brawner, Brown, Browning, Burnett, Bynum, Carter, Cavner, Cesenas, Clark, Coffee, Compton, Corley, Culbreath, Cummings, Curtis, Dalton, Dies, Elam, Elliott, Fields, Floyd, Fox, Gossvener, Gregg, Hampton, Harbour, Hatfield, Hawkins, Hayes, Hayship, Head, Hendricks, Henry, Hill, James, Jones, Jordon, Lambert, Lane, Lewis, Long, Lovelace, Mace, Matthis, McAllister, McCarthy, McClure, McCorkle, Meade, Morrisett, Newman, Norton, Parks, Pearson, Pittman, Powell, Reese, Richards, Robinson, Russell, See, Shay, Shipman, Sinclair, Smith, Snelson, Storey, Taylor, Thayer, Thomas, Tomlinson, Walker, Ward, West, Westmoreland, Whalen, Whitehouse, Wilkin, Wingate, Wisdom (very incomplete list due to lack of records).
Copyright c. 2002. All rights reserved. The Primitive Baptist Library.
