Our History

Rev. Oliver Goad,
1957-1960

Rev. Grayson McNeill,
1960-1962

Rev. Sam Martz,
1962-1968

Rev. Linwood Croxton,
1968-1974

Rev. Ed Brockwell,
1974-1975

Rev. Ron Abbott,
1975-1984

Rev. Richard Wilson,
1984-2001

Solomon German was appointed preacher-in-charge at the session of conference held March 1884, and he was reappointed at the session of conference held in March 1885.

In January 1886, a lot was secured by deeds from John R. Buckmaster and William M. Gott, in disciplinary form, and steps were taken to erect a church thereon.

At the session of conference held March 1886, J.F.F. Gray was appointed preacher-in-charge. The new church, German Chapel, was partially built (apparently named for Solomon German). The preceding material was taken from a book entitled, "Calvert County Maryland Family Records," and the chapter headed, "Church Record of Methodist Episcopal Records."

In 1957, a small group was meeting together in the home of Elick and Sue Campbell. This hand of believers felt led of God to take a step of faith, and plans were begun to form what is now known as First Baptist Church of Calvert County. After much prayer, one of the first steps taken was to rent the American Legion Hall in St. Leonard. This property is now known as the Cliffs Motel. The group met at the American Legion Hall to worship for approximately one year. The first board members were elected on May 12, 1957 at the VFW location in St. Leonard. Those members were Lewis Alvis, Cecil Blackwell, Elick Campbell, Russell Duncan, Robert Hairston, and Ernest Rowell.

Then on July 10, 1957, property was purchased from the Prince Frederick Charge of the Methodist Church. This is the location presently in use and is the same location as the original German Chapel. The small cemetery in back of the church is part of the Rawlings family cemetery.

A mortgage loan was secured from Capital City Building & Loan Association on January 13, 1958. The construction of the church building was begun in May of 1958. The first section measure 30 x 50, and the basement was dug by hand. The first congregation consisted of about ten families. The treasury held a balance of $100, and Rev. Ollie Goad served as the first minister.

The second minister was Grayson McNeill, who served from 1960-1962. The church had not constructed a parsonage at that time. Homes were rented at various locations to serve as the parsonage. The first was in St. Leonard and two others were on Sixes Road and German Chapel Road. The last one rented was on Fairgrounds Road in Prince Frederick.

Sam Martz served as minister form 1962 - 1968. The basement on the new part of the church was constructed in 1968.

Linwood Croxton was the residing minister from 1968 - 1974. Pastor Croxton is now serving as an evangelist, and was one of the missions partially supported by the church. During 1973, a parsonage, located on Wilson Court in Prince Frederick, was purchased by the church.

Ron Abbott served as pastor from 1975 through May 1984. Pastor Abbott, his wife, Irene, and daughter, Becky, resided in the parsonage in Prince Frederick. Pastor Abbot served as chaplain for the Maryland State Police. The church conducted a radio program called "Words of Truth," which ran on local radio station WMJS. It was during Pastor Abbott's tenure as pastor that the church purchased the baby grand piano and the church organ, which are still being used today.

Pastor Richard Wilson began his ministry in Calvert County in June, 1984 to August 2001. Pastor Wilson, originally from Colorado, had previously served as Associate Pastor at Open Door Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. He received his training from Atlantic Baptist Bible College in Richmond. One of Pastor Wilson's first projects was to oversee the work necessary to update and clarify the Church Constitution.  He also instituted the first Board of Trustees, as called for in the Articles of Incorporation dated May, 1957. It was during Pastor Wilson's ministry that Mike Combs became the Church Treasurer, taking over after Don Matthews left the position. The groundbreaking ceremony for the addition of a multi-purpose building/gymnasium to the church occurred on December 3, 2000.

Pastor Ralph Nevin began his ministry at First Baptist Church in October 2002.