Oak Shade Baptist Church

The formation of this fellowship developed from an 1857 meeting in a log schoolhouse (0.5 miles south). Conducted by two missionaries of the Union Baptist Association, David Fisher and B. L. Wright, it showed a need for the establishment of a church in the area. Following a canvas of the surrounding community, the Oak Shade congregation was organized on July 4, 1857. The Rev. Austin Ellis (b. 1791), a native of Virginia, served as the first pastor. Prior to 1860 the church was moved to this site, part of the Daniel Donahoe survey. The membership began to decline in 1870 when the nearby Rural Shade Baptist Church (3 miles south) was started. In 1881 the Oak Shade congregation was reorganized and members built a one-room sanctuary here. A separate building was later constructed on the property to serve as a schoolhouse for the community. Worship services were held here in other structures until 1951 when a brick sanctuary was completed. Graves in the Oak Shade Cemetery include those of Andrew Jackson Isaacks (1817-1864), a veteran of the Texas Revolution who served as the first postmaster for Tarkington Prairie (5 miles southeast), and several victims of a 1918 influenza epidemic.

Oak Shade Baptist Church is a historical marker in Cleveland, Liberty County, dedicated in 1980. It is one of 60 historical markers documented in Liberty County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 133 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 30.3664, -94.9990 near Cleveland. The nearest cataloged historic site is Andrew Jackson Isaacks (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Oak Shade Cemetery, Amos Cemetery, and Boothe Cemetery.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5291009678. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.