West Union Baptist Church

West Union Baptist Church is a Baptist congregation and historic church structure in West Union, Oregon, United States.

West Union Baptist Church
Location22365 NW West Union Road
Hillsboro, Oregon
Coordinates45°34′25.42″N 122°54′24.98″W
Built1853
ArchitectWilliam Kane
Architectural styleClassical Revival
NRHP reference No.74001725[1]
Added to NRHPJuly 10, 1974

History

The Baptist congregation was founded in 1844 and met in the home of pioneer David Thomas Lenox until 1853, when he donated 2 acres (8,100 m2) of his land for a church and cemetery.[2][3][4] The one-story, Classical Revival style building was built of hand-sawn lumber on what is now West Union Road for a little over $1,500.[5][6] The 30- by 40-foot (12 m) structure has cedar rafters, fir joists and sills of hand-hewn fir logs.[4] On December 25, 1853, the building was dedicated by the Reverend Ezra Fisher.[6] It is the oldest Baptist society and the oldest Protestant church building still standing west of the Rocky Mountains.[2][4] Pioneers Caleb Wilkens and George W. Ebbert are buried at the cemetery,[3] which is the oldest cemetery in the state.[2]

The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and is currently maintained by the American Baptist Churches of Oregon.[7] Previously the otherwise unused building was the site of an annual memorial meeting, but the church now holds regular Sunday services.[8]

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. Buan, Carolyn M. This Far-Off Sunset Land: A Pictorial History of Washington County, Oregon. Donning Company Publishers, 1999.
  3. Historic names mark old gravestones. The Hillsboro Argus, October 19, 1976.
  4. "The West Union Baptist Church". Portland, Oregon: Temple Baptist Church (from McMenamins Pubs Newsletter. 2003-2004 edition.). Retrieved 2008-06-04.
  6. Norman, James B., Jr. (1991). Portland's Architectural Heritage: National Register Properties of the Portland Metropolitan Area (revised 2nd ed.). Portland: Oregon Historical Society Press. p. 26. ISBN 0-87595-241-0.
  7. "Abbreviated 2005 Directory, Part B" (PDF). Oregon Mortuary and Cemetery Board. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
  8. "Church History". Portland, Oregon: Temple Baptist Church. Retrieved 2008-06-04.


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