
Early Community, How it all began
Samuel Needham of Griffin Georgia and his family homesteaded 160 acres northeast of Concord Church. Mr. Needham died before the homestead paper was signed and it bears the signatures of President Benjamin Harrison and Lucretia Needham as head of her family. Mrs. Needham became an early addition to Concord Church when she joined by letter in May, 1891. Other early settlers included Jonce Latham, George D. Yeager, Jasper M. Philpot of Buchanan Georgia, and James M. (Jim) Yeager. Some of the settlers acquired their land by homesteading, some purchased their land from earlier settlers, and some acquired their land from the railroad companies. The early settlers arrived in horse or oxen drawn wagons. Upon their arrival these animals were used to till the virgin soil of the area.
On January 31, 1891, the Missionary Baptist Church of Christ at Concord was organized under the leadership of ordained ministers Bart Chambers and W. J. Chambers. Charter members included Synthyan Chambers, church clerk J. C. Watts, Amandy Watts, George Yeager and his wife Mary, and Rev. Bart Chambers who served as the first pastor. The first converts into the new church were Sister C. N. Chambers and Mary Davis. Preaching was held on the first Saturday and Sunday of each month in the one room log building constructed on land donated by Mr. and Mrs. George Yeager. The worshipers sat on slab benches while Rev. Chambers preached the gospel to the small congregation.
In 1893 Rev. Eidson served as pastor from April thru June apparently in the absence of Rev. Chambers. In August 1893, Rev. Bart Chambers resumed the pastorate. Rev. Clark Chambers was elected to jointly serve as pastor with Rev. Bart Chambers in Nov. 1894, however the church records indicate that he preached at Concord on only one occasion and that was in May 1895. On Sept. 14, 1895, the minutes of the church conference records “a charge preferred against B. Chambers for contempt and being the author of confusion.” Rev. Chambers was replaced as pastor with Rev. J. C. Whatley.
Division

Building built in 1898
Rev. Lee Yeager, a native of the community, was called to lead a revival at Concord in 1927. After leaving his pastorate in Tennessee by covered wagon he left his wife and children in Athens, Alabama with his wife’s family and proceeded to Concord. After a successful summer revival Rev. Yeager reinstated the church into fellowship and Rev. J. S. Shults was called as pastor.

Built 1949 to 1955
The year of 1949, plans were made for the construction of a new church building. Mrs. D.O. McCoy donated one acre of land to the church and a brick building was erected during the pastorship of W. T. Casey. In 1953 a controversy arose concerning Rev. Casey’s financial affairs. After a council of sister churches were unable to settle the dispute between Rev. Casey and his opposition in the church he was removed as pastor by a vote of the church and replaced by Rev. Hosea Carver who led in the dedication of the new church building on November 20, 1955.
Growing

Built 1972
In 1972 under the leadership of Rev. Bueford Haynes the church entered a building program that resulted in the construction of a new sanctuary, baptistry, rest rooms, nursery, church library, pastor’s office, and eight classrooms.
Chuck Whitlock, newly graduated from SWBTS, was called to be our full time pastor in 1987. With the able support of Barry Hooten as Sunday School Superintendent and Jim Pinkard as worship leader, we saw God at work in our church. On April 30, 1989 we celebrated High Attendance Day with 146 in Sunday School and baptized thirteen new converts during morning worship. Barry Hooten exemplifies the many men and women from our church that are currently engaged in Christian vocations as a result of early training opportunities at Concord.

Fellowship Hall added in 2002
During the pastorate of Danny Vinson, our fellowship hall was constructed in 2002. This addition joined the Sanctuary and Sunday School building with a hallway that includes new restrooms and an elevator lift, making this facility more handicapped accessible.
A blessed time of spiritual growth for our church occurred during the five years that Ed Heptinstall served before his death in December, 2012. Our current pastor, Jack Holbrook, is guiding us toward our bicentennial. We are growing in love and fellowship. We see miracles day by day. We are ministering to people in every direction and further than our eyes can see. We are in debt to no one but God and to Him be the Glory.
125th Anniversary



Pastors that Served
