More About our Church
Hester Baptist Church has a rich history. Founded in September of 1823 with land donated by Captain Benjamin F. Hester, the church was named in his honor.
Our first meeting house was a 20 X 20 foot log structure. This was used for eighteen years until 1841, and then a frame building was erected. In 1849 the church purchased additional land from Rhodes N. Herndon, where our present facilities are located.
On July 14, 1918 the church dedicated a new cross shaped building made of brick. This building consisted of a Sanctuary and seven Sunday School rooms. In 1951 additional educational space was added to the south side and in 1968 more space was added to the north side of the sanctuary.
The church’s cemetery has existed since the late 1800’s and additional land was purchased for the cemetery in 1976. On March 5, 2005 Hester was presented a check from the sale of the B.F. Dean estate which was willed to Hester. Hester purchased nine acres of this estate at a public auction and swapped this with Mrs. Betty Rusher for land that she owned that was on the south and west perimeter of the Hester Baptist Church property. This land swap allowed Hester to have a buffer of land equal to the nine acres, along the border of the church property. The church family is grateful to the B.F. Dean estate and to all who have contributed memorial gifts.
We are grateful to the faithful people who have served and continued to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ here at Hester Baptist Church. Rooted in our rich past, we are committed to following the movement of the Holy Spirit into a rich future. Founded almost two centuries ago, in 1823, it is our mission to continue to make disciples, as our Lord Jesus has called us to do, and we invite you to come and join us as we follow Jesus together.