There is work being done to update this history to the present date, but here is what we have so far.


Our History from 1841-1983

The history of the Beatrice Baptist Church begins with the old Pineville Baptist Church which was organized in 1841. The Pineville Baptist Church building was located in front of the grave which in enclosed with the iron fence at the Baptist Cemetery. At that time, Pineville was the center of business enterprise for a large part of the surrounding territory. When the L & N Railroad was constructed in 1900, the population began to shift from Pineville to the railroad site and the town of Beatrice was founded.

In 1901, the first Sunday School was organized, but the church did not become a reality until 1905 when it was received into the Pine Barren Association. A large portion of the congregation at the old Pineville Church was in favor of the new church which had been organized, because they had either moved to the new town of Beatrice or lived nearby. But there were those who opposed this move, therefore, for several years two churches existed, but in 1910 the building which had served the Pineville Church for many years was destroyed by a cyclone and was not rebuilt.

During the time that the congregation was known as the Pineville Baptist Church, it was the custom of negroes and whites to attend the same church. This was the practice throughout the South prior to the War Between the States. This practice continued until 1870 when negroes began to organize separate churches.

Even though negroes were not members of the local church after 1870, many of the older negroes continued worshipping with the white congregation for many years. Baccus McFadden was the last one to worship regularly.

Church records also reveal that church discipline was practiced during this time. During the year 1851, the Pine Barren Association showed 79 baptisms and 41 exclusions. During one year, there were 59 exclusions and 33 restorations. In the year 1900, the Pineville Church showed 9 exclusions at which time the practice was discontinued.

The Sunday School which was organized in 1901 in the newly formed town of Beatrice was founded by J. B. Harper. It is reported that the congregation met in a building on the north side of Highway 265 and west of the L & N Railroad, and later in a building which was purchased from the Presbyterians and later sold to the Beatrice Methodist Church. It stood on the site of the present home of J. L. Finklea, which is located on the west side of the north end of Main Street ( Highway 265). In 1907, a new frame building was erected where the present church stands on the west side of Vine Street between Wheeler Street and Robbins Street. Seven lots were donated by Dr. W. A. Stallworth, Sr. and Will Andress for the site. The Building was constructed by L. E. Foxworth. The steeple which was on this building is still used today on the present building.

The Pine Barren records show that a WMU was organized in 1909 with twenty members on roll. Records show that Mrs. L. S. Cater, Mrs. L. E. Foxworth, Mrs. John Sanders and Miss Minnie Robbins were four of these charter members. RA’s and GA’s were organized in 1923.
Mrs. T. N. Stallworth, Sr., and Mrs. Maysie Stallworth Wall were the first GA leaders and O. T. Ivey and Jimmie Jones led the newly organized RA’s.

Prayer meeting began meeting as early as 1903 or 1907, according to two different sources.

In 1925, it was decided that a new church building should be built, so the congregation voted to build a brick structure to replace the wooden one. The wooden structure was moved a short distance to the north of where the present church stands, and services were continued in that building until the new building was completed and occupied in 1926. The frame building was then sold to T. A. Black, Sr., who took the building down, removed the nails, and shipped the lumber to Uriah, Alabama, by L & N Railroad. Mr. Black built a house with the lumber and lived in it. The building later burned.

T. N. Stallworth, Sr., W. J. Mason, and G. C. Nettles comprised the building committee to construct the new church building, and on September 5, 1926, this building was dedicated with Rev. McCreary preaching the dedication sermon. Records show that the cost of this building was $7,000, and the debt was completely paid off in the same year that the church building was completed -- 1926. Napoleon Black, the negro brick mason, donated his last day of labor as a gift to the church.

In 1939, a white frame building was built to provide more Sunday School space. This building
was sold when the present educational building was built. It was sold to T. A. Black, Jr. and J. J. Watson, Jr., who moved it to its present location and remodeled it into a rental dwelling. This building is located on Vine Street, across from the homes of Robert Adams and J. W. Thames.

On August 31, 1941, a Centennial Celebration was observed. Charles Granade was the pastor at that time, Dr. A. H. Reid was the speaker for the morning service. Rev. Grady Ketchum was the speaker for the evening service and at that time there was an ordination service for new deacons. That same year a pastorium was built on land which was donated by Mrs. Laura Nettles Andress.

A unified budget system was adopted in 1951.

In the Spring of 1952, a Homecoming Celebration was observed with a revival following. Harold Anderson and Ronnie Hilburn led these services. In August of the same year, the church voted to call a full time pastor. Rev. Wallace Keown, who was serving Beatrice Baptist Church and the Peterman Baptist Church on a part-time basis, was called as full time pastor.

In December of 1952, a nursery was established.

A Brotherhood was organized in 1954, with T. N. Stallworth, Jr., serving as its first president.

In 1956, the church voted to remodel the existing sanctuary and to build an educational building. This project was completed in 1957, and there was a dedication service held on April 7, 1957, with Dr. Leon Macon, editor of the Alabama Baptist, preaching the dedication sermon. Rev. John F. Lindsey preached in the afternoon, Rev. John E. Barrow was pastor at this time, and F. D. Stallworth, T. A. Black, Joe M. Black, T. N. Stallworth, Jr., J. A. Sanders, Elliott Sadler, Sr., and Carl Bayles served on the building committee. This increased the church property value to $100,000.

The church voted to call a Minister of Music, and Rose Marie Stallworth Clark served in this capacity. Those who have followed her are Wade Ivey, Mike Vickers, Jeff White, Mike Johnson Victor Forseman, Landon Sawyer, and presently, Linda Spann.

Lightning struck in the church in 1960 while Rev. Robert Edge was serving as pastor. It caught fire and quite a bit of damage was done. The water to fight the fire came from a ditch near the church. The church bell, which had been used for many years, was removed after this time for safety purposes. For many years the bell had been rung by hand to call the townspeople to worship. The two Wiggins brothers, Robert and Newton, developed a way to ring the bell electrically. After the bell was removed from the belfry tower, it was placed in the yard near the church, and later disappeared.

The organ in the church was given in memory of Mrs. Willie Harper Sanders in 1967, by the Sanders family.

In July of 1973, the church voted to tear down the house which stood on the property adjacent to the north of the church, which was owned by the congregation. This area has been made into a playground for the children and young people, and in January of 1974, construction on a tennis court was authorized.

The church voted in December, 1977, to sell the pastorium, which had been built in 1941, and to build a new one at a cost of $53,750. J. A. Black, III, John M. Watson, and Elliott D. Sadler, Jr., served as trustees. This increased the value of the church property to $250,000.


The need to expand our facilities has been evident for a long time. A building committee consisting of David F. Steele, Anna Laura Brown, Lynne Hardee, Lee Philen, Neal Hayes, and Jim Bigger, was formed to research the possibility of an addition. Our needs were determined and translated into architect’s drawings, which were approved by the church membership. Pledges were taken and finally ground was broken for the new addition in January, 1999. Dr. Earl A. Potts was interim pastor. Hammer Construction, of Monroeville, started construction in January and completed work in August. Services were held in the new fellowship hall while renovation of the sanctuary was underway. A new baptistry was added, as well as double doors leading to the new covered courtyard. The old frosted glass in the long windows was replaced with clear glass and enhanced by inside shutters.

Throughout the years, Beatrice Baptist Church has been active in missions. Members of our church have participated in mission trips to various locations coordinated by Pine Barren and Bethlehem Associations, as well as going to New Mexico two years to hold Vacation Bible School and revival services on a Navajo Indian Reservation.

A complete record of a local body's history can never be measured in the recorded statistics. It is measured in eternity by the influence it has in bringing lives into the kingdom.