A BRIEF HISTORY OF BROWNSVILLE BAPTIST CHURCH

Brownsville Baptist Church was organized on Friday, June 22, 1934 by twelve charter members: Mrs. Willie Cummins, Mrs. Bill Elliot, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Lilly, Mr. and Mrs. Dewey Munnerlyn, Mr. And Mrs. Oscar Reeves, Mrs. Oliver Shields, Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Tippett, and Mr. Ernest Tippett.

The church grew out of a meeting started by Missionary Horace Boyd on Sunday, June 5, 1934, at the home of Mrs. Willie Cummins. This resulted in the planning of a revival meeting in the community of Brownsville led by Evangelists Bro. Horace Boyd and Bro. James Kelly. The meeting was initially held under a tent. However due to a severe storm, the tent blew away, but the revival continued on under a gunny sack arbor.

Mrs. Oliver Shields donated land for the building of a permanent church. Mr. Will Beard and Mr. Bob Tippett donated logs and the men of the newly formed church went to the woods to cut and haul the logs to the local mill and used the lumber to build the first Brownsville Baptist Church on Brownsville Loop Road. The building was dedicated in October 1934.

Five deacons were initially ordained: Mr. Alvin Cummins, Mr. Arthur Cummins, Mr. John Hill, Mr. Evans Robinson, and Mr. Oliver Shields, Sr. Bro. James Kelly was called to be the first Pastor of Brownsville Baptist Church.

Two men have been ordained to the ministry at Brownsville: Bro. Morris Young, and  Bro. Darrell W. Brown. Bro. Charles Watson was licensed to preach by Brownsville and was later ordained at Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Cabot, Arkansas. Over the years, many men have been ordained as deacons as well.

Since its founding in 1934, 31 pastors have served in the pulpit of Brownsville Baptist Church. Bro. Andrew “Andy” Kerr has been the longest serving pastor, as he pastored Brownsville from April 1988 to December 2005.

Our current pastor, Bro. Woody Evans, has been with us since 2015.

The original site of Brownsville Baptist Church on Brownsville Road 

The historical markers commorating the Battle of Brownsville in August 1863