Webberville Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church in Webberville, Texas is one of the many forgotten churches in Austin and Travis County. Much history about this church needed to be exposed.
White landowner Matthew Duty donated one acre of land for a church and school for the recently freed African Americans in the year of in 1868 shortly after emancipation. Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church was established on the property the same year. His handwritten deed indicated that “as long as there are any members of the church, the land cannot be sold.”. Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church was organized that year as a mission church of the St. John Regular Missionary Baptist Association.
Both church and school were held at Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church. Webberville School (Webberville White School) and Webberville Negro School originated in the Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church in 1870 where both church and school were held. Black students used one side of the church and white students used the other. The church and school had no indoor plumbing or lunchroom facilities.
Baptist congregations held religious services regularly on Sundays and Saturdays. Methodist congregations rented space there and held religious services regularly as well.
The Webberville Negro School building was sold to the church in the year 1968. The Webberville Negro School building was a separate structure southwest of Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church until after 1973. The original school building of Webberville Negro School was added to the church in 1973. The side-gabled wing of church building was the original school building of Webberville Negro School. The other school building was demolished prior to 1973.
To this day, the Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church in Webberville, Texas remains an active congregation. The church building stands in its original location at 1314 Weber Street, Webberville, Texas, US 78653. Today Colorado Lodge #96 and Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church remain in tact.
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