A Dream That Began With Revival

In 1913, the city of Jonesboro had a population of nearly 8,000 residents.  It was basically a thriving community with many people coming from out of state to purchase the forty dollars-an-acre farm land.  The three railways that led to Jonesboro provided easy commerce of the agricultural goods.

There were no paved streets in Jonesboro and the suburban areas were sparsely settled.  However, several laymen from the "downtown area" felt the need to establish places of worship in the suburban areas of the city.

In the summer of 1913, a revival, under the sponsorship of the First Baptist Church, was conducted at the corner of Walnut and Burke Streets.  The small building at the site would not hold the large crowds, so the services were moved to a vacant lot adjoining the building.  The revival lasted six weeks and resulted in the birth of two churches: Walnut Street Baptist and Huntington Avenue Methodist.  

On November 30,1913, thirty-nine members of various churches came together to organize the new congregation.  The name "West Jonesboro Baptist Church" was chosen and Rev. A.J. Lincoln became the first pastor.

to the right: A.J. Lincoln, Walnut Street's first pastor.

The first completed church building on Walnut & Matthews built in 1923.  It was destroyed by fire in 1945.

The First Baptist Church of Jonesboro offered the new congregation a piece of property on the corner of Walnut and Matthews.  The church moved to the property in 1915 and occupied an existing old frame building.  In March of 1916, the name was changed to "Walnut Street Baptist Church." 

The first building program began in February 1916.  In the first month of the program, a total of $17.86 had been raised.  A new basement was built, which served as a meeting place until a new brick edifice was completed in 1924.  By this time, the church was well established.  It had a new facility in which to meet, a full-time pastor, a "singing leader" (at a salary of $10 a month) and a $5,000 budget. 

The church building was destroyed by fire in October of 1945.  A new building was built in 1946, at which time the Sunday School attendance was reported to be about 425.  In August of 1952, the church began broadcasting the Sunday morning worship service over KNEA.  The broadcast continues even today. 

to the left: The temporary wooden worship center used until the new building was built in 1946.

The second brick-edifice church building built on the Walnut & Matthews property, completed in 1946.  It was destroyed by fire in 1980.

The deacons of Walnut Street Baptist Church in 1970, who served under the pastoral leadership of Dr. Don Moore.

A New Location, A New Vision

Walnut Street worshipped in the facilities at Walnut Street until April 21, 1980, when the church building was again destroyed by fire.  Several months later, the church voted to move and rebuild on a piece of property in southwest Jonesboro.  The church had owned four acres in southwest Jonesboro since 1968.  George and Margaret Williams had donated the land to the church.  Plans had been made earlier to build a mission on the property, but a shortage of money had delayed the project. 

Twenty additional acres were purchased in 1980 to add to the four the church already owned.  Construction began, and in March 1982, the church moved into the new facilities.

The growing membership voted in 1995 to purchase 2.14 acres adjacent to the church property by the new bypass, with the plans of finally building the new worship center.  In 1997 plans were confirmed and construction was soon underway. 

Services were held in the multi-function building for nearly two decades where temporary use was originally planned.  On Easter Sunday, 2001; the new building was used for worship for the first time.  The vision of worshipping together in a new building was finally realized. 

We Continue To Search For Revival

As we move well into the 21st century, things haven't changed much in 90 years.  We still long to see God at work in us and we pray for the revival of Jonesboro and northeast Arkansas.  This fall, we begin the 40 Days of Purpose prayer and fast as we seek God's face, longing for the very same thing that brought us together in 1913--a revival of God's people. 

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Walnut Street Pastors In History