History

Weare Bible Baptist Church celebrates a rich history in the town of Weare, NH dating back to the 18th century when the first Baptist church in Weare was established in 1768 by Hezekiah Smith of Haverhill, MA. In the early 19th century, debate between the Calvinist Baptists and the Freewill Baptists of Weare split the church in two. The Freewill Baptists experienced a period of great revival and grew rapidly during the early 1800s under the leadership of Elder Hezekiah Buzzell, but this period of growth eventually ended when the many members of the Freewill Baptist Church in Weare splintered into five individual, small churches in the middle of the century. One of these, the East Weare Baptist Church outlasted all of the others and continued into the early 1900s. This church met in the old village of East Weare, a part of town which is no longer in existence today after multiple floods from 1927 through 1959 forced the government to build a series of dams (including Everett Dam) and residents had to abandon the area. After the evacuation of the old town, the East Weare Baptist Church moved to North Stark Highway and changed its name to Weare Bible Baptist Church. After more than 250 years in the town of Weare, WBBC is still a pillar for truth in the community and a witness proclaiming the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ to all.

*This information was derived primarily from the following sources: The Baptists of New Hampshire (by William Hurlin, O. C. Sargent, & W. W. Wakeman), The History Of The Freewill Baptists For Half A Century: From 1780 to 1830 (by I. D. Stewart (Author), Alton E. Loveless), & The History of Weare, New Hampshire (by William Little)