Good Hope Baptist church was established on October 1, 1847, with 13 charter members. The church was first called the Missionary Baptist Church of Christ at Good Hope. A cemetery which is a well-known landmark was established during this time.
In May of 1848 the church began to seek a suitable place for building a house of worship. No record exists of the first building used as a meeting house, but there seems to have been some structure already in existence. Later, land was purchased, plans made, and the church was built for a total cost of $600.00. The church officially received the meeting house from the builders on November 8, 1848. This building was a wooden structure with wooden shutters and windows. As the congregation grew it was decided to embark on another building project in 1948. The total cost of this facility was $24,451.80 and was dedicated July 31, 1949, debt free.
Vital organizations such as Sunday School, Women’s Missionary Union Discipleship Training, Vacation Bible School, Brotherhood, Youth and Children’s programs have been active for much of the church’s existence with strong emphasis on mission support. The leaders and instrumentalists have been faithful throughout the ears to render service in praise.
The growing membership of the church and growth in the communities surrounding Good Hope Baptist Church necessitated looking into the future and making plans for expansion of the facilities of the Church. When nearby land became available in 1998 it was decided to purchase a new site for needs of the future. In October of that year, 15.53 acres was bought at auction for $57,750.00. In May 2000, a Building Committee and Finance Committee were selected to move forward in erecting a new structure on the land recently purchased. After three years of intense prayer and work the plan for the new structure began to emerge. The estimated cost of the new facility would be $1.8 million. This amount was approved by the church by an overwhelming vote.
Groundbreaking was held on April 25, 2004 and in May construction was under way. In January 2005, a report was received by Marshall Construction that they would turn the Church over to us by the end of February. The first service in the new sanctuary was held on Easter, March 27, 2005, even though most of the sanctuary furniture was not installed. After using borrowed chairs for two weeks the pews were installed.
So here we are 173 years later and 625 members strong, worshiping in a superbly crafted facility that is geared to the needs of the members of the church.