First Baptist Church of Batesburg held its 150th homecoming celebration on Oct. 9, with a special worship service and dinner on the grounds.

An estimated 450 people were in attendance for the commemorative event, at which State Sen. Katrina Shealy presented a resolution to the church in honor of their 150 years of service to the Batesburg-Leesville community.

“The homecoming celebration was magnificent,” Pastor Henry Stamper said. “The service was excellent from the music to the message. It was nice to see everything that had taken over a year to plan, come together. What a great time we had, visiting with former staff and church members.”

In September 1872, land was purchased as a site for First Baptist Church of Batesburg, and the first sanctuary was erected in 1873. N.N. Burton was the first pastor, serving until 1878.

From the very beginning, First Baptist was a growing church, and by 1900 the membership was 200. A larger sanctuary was completed in 1907.

By 1951, church enrollment had grown even more, with Sunday school attendance reaching 384 and a church membership of 705. The third and present sanctuary was built in 1952.

To date, 27 pastors have served First Baptist, and several attended the 150th homecoming celebration. Danny Hedgepeth, who served from 1985-1989, gave the anniversary message.

Stamper became pastor in 2015, and the current church membership exceeds 500.

— Article information from reporting by Twin-Cities News of Batesburg.