Val Verde Baptist Church  |
| Address | County | utm_east |
| Milam |
664202 |
| utm_zone | utm_north |
| Davilla |
14 |
3407199 |
| Latitude | Longitude | ||
| N ° | W ° |
| Location | Repair Condition |
| CR 2268, 1 mile
west of FM 437 |
Faded; Refinish |
| Marker Text |
| Val Verde Baptist Church traces its history to 1875, when eight members of |
| the Baptist Church in Davilla joined together to organize a congregation closer |
| to their homes. J. S. Mullins served as the first pastor of the new church. One |
| of the charter members, James Putnam Whittington (1830-1909) was a |
| veteran of the Civil War. A member of H. H. Sibley's brigade in the New Mexico |
| Campaign, he had participated in the Battle of Val Verde. When the time came |
| to name the new church, Whittington suggested Val Verde, and the other |
| members agreed. The congregation met in a small schoolhouse until 1884, |
| when Whittington donated this property for a larger sanctuary and community |
| cemetery. A building was erected which served the members for the next |
| sixty-five years. In 1949 a surplus army chapel was moved here from |
| Brownwood to serve as a new sanctuary. Church members worked to rebuild |
| the structure, and it was dedicated in January 1951. An annual church |
| memorial day has been observed by present and former members of the |
| congregation since 1982. The Val Verde Cemetery on the church grounds |
| contains the graves of many area pioneers. |
