Primitive Baptist Church of Wells

Alabama native Francis Marion Sessions is credited with the organization of the Primitive Baptist Church of Wells. Prior to his 1890 arrival in the town, Primitive Baptists traveled to Angelina County to worship in the Old Sand Hill Primitive Baptist Church. Although a formal organization date for the Wells church is unrecorded, Sessions and others began meeting in their homes and in the public schoolhouse and in 1918 purchased this school building and property for use as a permanent place of worship. Early leaders in the church included members of the Childers, Wilson and McAdams families. Often in attendance at the monthly services were residents of Angelina, Nacogdoches and Trinity counties. Hymns were sung in special arrangements without the accompaniment of musical instruments, a tradition in rural America known as sacred harp singing. The Old School Primitive Baptist Church, as it came to be known, often served as a gathering place for area harp singers. Sessions' death in 1930 was followed by that of other older members of the church, and the congregation eventually ceased to meet. Although the Primitive Baptist Church no longer exists in Wells, the church building still stands as a reminder of its history.

Primitive Baptist Church of Wells is a historical marker in Wells, Cherokee County, dedicated in 1984. It is one of 112 historical markers documented in Cherokee County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 245 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 31.4896, -94.9441 near Wells. The nearest cataloged historic site is Mt. Hope Cemetery (cemetery), about 1.2 miles away. Others within a short drive include Bowman, John Joseph, Bowman, James H., and Holsomback.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5073006973. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.