Pre-1900: The Wild West Days
First Baptist Church began as a merger of two small congregations in 1875. The first building was on Main Street, surrounded by 20 of the city’s 34 saloons. Church minutes make mention of numerous “drunken brawls” taking place on the streets outside the church.

In 1883, the Main Street building was destroyed by a tornado. Even as the church waited for a new permanent home to be constructed, they focused on missions, including the Bond Street Mission, the Jail Mission, and the Crockett Avenue Mission, which later became Calvary Baptist Church.

Early 20th Century: A Light on Woodard Street
In 1907, First Baptist moved into a new red brick building at Woodard and Mirick (our current location), which served as our home for 50 years.  

In 1925, with a gift from Mrs. Laura McCarthy, an education building was added, which still serves the church today, housing youth and adult classes.

This 1925 photo shows the Sunday school group that inspired the new education building, built to reach and disciple the next generation.

During the Great Depression and the start of World War II, Dr. J. F. Murrell became the longest-serving First Baptist Denison pastor in the 20th Century, guiding the church to pay off all debts, in spite of the turbulent times.

Post-War 20th Century: Building and Sending
After Dr. Murrell’s tenure, the church called Dr. Guy Newman as pastor, who began to lead the church toward the construction of a new sanctuary building to mark the church’s 75th anniversary

At the end of Dr. Newman’s tenure in 1949, the church established Westside Mission, which met in Sam Houston Elementary School. This mission grew to become Parkside Baptist Church.

While plans for a new sanctuary were underway, Rev. W.E. Billingsley led the church in building a new education building on Woodard Street in 1950, which became the office and children’s space that serve the church today.

The old building was demolished in 1957, and finally, on September 7, 1958, the church moved into our current sanctuary. This sanctuary has been our house of worship for more than six decades.  

More renovations came in the 1970s under pastor Joe Dee Ray, but the church was not only investing in building at home. During this time, the church’s Cooperative Program missions giving reached 20% of the church’s budget.

In 1987, the church opened the Christian Life Center, a multipurpose facility featuring a gym and other recreational areas.

The church’s mission extended across the world in 1990, when Mike Windle, a member since 1974, and his wife Diana were commissioned and sent as Southern Baptist missionaries to Peru and later to Mongolia. The Windles planted churches and church planting networks that are still making gospel impact in each of these countries. Their ministry reminds us that First Baptist’s impact has always extended far beyond Denison.

2003-present: A New Era
First Baptist Denison had a re-birth of sorts in 2003, when Pastor Mark Mitchell was called to serve the church. Pastor Mark had been serving Hyde Park Baptist, a congregation that had outgrown its facilities. This merger between the two congregations brought new life and a new era to First Baptist Denison.  

Mark Mitchell was the longest-serving pastor in our church history, and the church thrived under his leadership for many years. During his tenure, church members got involved in Mexico Outreach, and started the church’s annual Love Out Loud Christmas missions projects . Love Out Loud has impacted hundreds of Denison families in the past decade and a half, providing help and relief each December in projects like Jackets for Jackets, Month of Meals, toy drives, and more.

In 2018, the church called our current pastor, Dr. Stephen Suffron. The church’s emphasis under this leadership has been discipleship, adopting a new discipleship vision and process in 2020.

In 2022, the church completed sanctuary repairs and updates, including a full remodel of the church foyer. Later that year, we called Ryan Dickson as our new worship pastor.   God has been faithful throughout the decades, and he continues to be at work in our town and in our church. In 2024, the church celebrated the most baptisms the church had seen in one year in 30 years.

Denison is a growing town, and we know that God has a lot in store for First Baptist Denison as we meet the challenges and the opportunities that he has put ahead of us.

From saloon-lined streets in 1875 to a growing city in 2025, our story is one of God’s faithfulness. As we celebrate 150 years, we also rededicate ourselves to Jesus Christ’s call to make disciples in Denison and beyond.

First Baptist Church Denison Family Tree
First Baptist Denison was not truly the first Baptist church in Denison (that distinction goes to Hopewell Baptist or Iron Ore Baptist). But many Baptist churches in this area can trace their lineage back to our church, including:

In addition, there are many churches and ministries in Peru and Mongolia that trace back to the ministry of Mike and Diana Windle.

Longest-tenured Pastors
Here are the ten longest-tenured pastors in our church history, and the years they served: