Our History

Hepworth Baptist Church

 
Hepworth Baptist Church is a member of the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada. We are a Bible-believing church, committed to preaching and teaching practical Christianity and living our faith in our church, our homes and our community of Hepworth and the surrounding area.

We are a modern evangelical Baptist church known for its solidly Biblical teaching and preaching, contemporary style of worship, family-like atmosphere and compassionate outreach into Hepworth and the surrounding area. But the church is also the heir of the spiritual zeal and vision of those who have been part of the church during a span of over 80 years.
 
Today's church actually had its beginnings in the Depression and Prohibition era in a series of evangelistic meetings held in the Hepworth area over a three week period in June of 1933. A group of Christian believers of Baptistic conviction gathered together in people's homes for prayer and Bible study, and they held their first baptism at a place called Millard's Bend on the Sauble River.
 
The house group called their first pastor, Donald Sinclair, on February 19, 1934. The group officially became a chartered church on April 12, 1937 with the founding of what was then called the Fundamental Baptist Church, and was welcomed into the Fellowship of Independent Baptist Churches of Canada that same month. The new church had 18 members in total, and they first met together as a formal congregation in the upper room of the old Lyon & Atcheson General Store, and then later on in people's homes.
 
The young church began to grow, even through the challenges of the Great Depression and World War II. After the war, the property for a church building was able to be purchased in September of 1949. The first sod was turned in October 17 of that year, and the completed church building was dedicated on June 17, 1950. By the first anniversary of the dedication, the building's mortgage was able to be burned.
 
The church continued to grow along with its community. On August 5, 1956 the Skipness Baptist Church, which had been meeting for a number of years in the S.S. No. 9 schoolhouse and had been sharing a pastor with the Hepworth church, formally amalgamated with Hepworth Baptist Church.
 
As the growing congregation felt the pinch of the existing church building, a building program was eventually begun. A larger and more modern addition was planned, to provide a larger sanctuary and additional classroom, activity and office space. This new addition, attached to the south wall of the original building, was opened and dedicated in June of 1978.
 
Just as the church building witnessed a number of changes over the years, so too did the church itself see a number of changes over the years. Many people have been brought to faith in the Saviour, Jesus Christ, and many lives have been influenced by the various ministries that the church has undertaken. Over the years these ministries have undergone changes as well, keeping pace with the many changes in society as a whole. Yet from its founding in the days of the "Dirty Thirtys" and right up to today, the church has remained committed to its calling in Christ and to the original vision of its founding members.
 
"The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad."