Concord Baptist Church: A Legacy of Faith and Service

In February 1851, eleven members from Mt. Yonah, Wahoo, and Holly Springs churches gathered to establish Concord Baptist Church. William West was chosen as the first pastor, and the congregation adopted both the Baptist Articles of Faith and the Rules of Decorum. Worship services were held on the second Sunday and the preceding Saturday of each month.

Soon after organizing, the church affiliated with the Chestatee Baptist Association, transferring its membership to the Chattahoochee Baptist Association in 1873. Services expanded to half-time in 1900, and by 1953, Concord called its first full-time pastor, marking a new era of continuous ministry.

The church’s first building—a log structure with split-log benches—stood about half a mile north of the present site and served the congregation for 21 years. In 1872, a box-style building replaced it and was used for a decade. A new house of worship was completed on the current grounds in 1897, remaining in use until 1919, when the present brick sanctuary was constructed. The earlier building was moved across the road for use by Chattahoochee School.

Over the decades, Concord continued to grow and modernize. A Sunday School annex was added in 1950, and during the 1960s, the church installed a steeple and front columns. In the 1990s, a 10,000-square-foot education and fellowship facility was built to serve the expanding congregation.

Concord’s ministries have evolved alongside its physical growth. The Sunday School was organized in the 1870s, followed by the Sunbeams (1907), Women’s Missionary Union (1909), B.Y.P.U. (1910), and the Brotherhood (1952). Later came the G.A.s, R.A.s, youth programs, children’s and youth choirs, and outreach ministries such as the H.O.P.E. Food Pantry.

For more than 170 years, Concord Baptist Church has remained steadfast in its mission—rooted in faith, active in service, and committed to sharing the hope of a living Christ with its community and the world.