History

The history of the Baptist Center begins with the Baptist Women's Convention of Northern Virginia, Inc. At its first session in 1939, President Dora Lucas recommended in her annual address that the Convention consider the advisability of establishing an Old Folks Home. In keeping with her recommendation, the women raised money and, after looking at several parcels of land, purchased eight acres in Odricks Corner, Virginia (now McLean) for $2,300.

In 1947, at the Northern Virginia Baptist Association, Moderator Samuel Ross proposed the establishment of a Baptist Center by the three independent bodies: the association, the Women's Convention and the Sunday School Convention (The Northern Virginia Sunday School and Baptist Training Union Convention). Moderator Ross appointed a committee which met at the Alfred Street Baptist Church, Alexandria, on July 15, 1949, to deliberate on the establishment of a Baptist center. Moderator Ross's recommendation which was adopted by the Association stated, "That the Association appoint a committee to consider the establishment of a religious center in Northern Virginia, including the goal of the Women's Convention; provision for Christian culture; recreation for our young people, and a place of meeting for all our organizations in Northern Virginia". Then the search for suitable land for this project began in earnest. Mrs. Carey Barnes, a member of the Women's Convention, the Sunday School Convention and Oakland Baptist Church, Alexandria, through another member of Oakland, Mrs. Jennie Wood, learned of land Mrs. Wood's uncle, Mr. Tom Lambert, in Gainesville, Virginia, might consider selling to the organization. Rev. Luther Mills, Oakland's Pastor, carried this information to the Association's Executive Board. Mr. Lambert agreed to sell 22.9 acres of his land at $100.00 per acre. However, there was no money to make the purchase.

The Association strongly urged the Women's Convention to sell its Odrick's Corner acreage to pay for the land in Gainesville, citing among other things that the land was not feasible for the intended purpose. The Women's Convention sold its Odricks Corner property, purchased the Gainesville land in 1951, and the Baptist Center came into being. The Baptist Center's plan included the Women's Convention project of housing for senior citizens. 

Rev. Ross recommended that the Association and the Sunday School Convention pay a third of the cost of the Gainesville land. Both bodies agreed and each paid $833.33 to the Women's Convention. From that day forward, the Baptist Women's Convention, the Northern Virginia Baptist Association and the Sunday School and BTU Convention would share in all decisions through their trustees to the Baptist Center. There was also a board of directors made up of the three bodies. In later years, the two boards merged into the Baptist Center Board, as we know it today, comprised of ten representatives from each body.

Many additions were added through the years including the pavilion, the dining hall, barracks, a twin building with restrooms, and showers in the middle, to accommodate nearly 100 campers. A dining room and kitchen with four bedrooms, bath, and living room were also built. Additional work included two pools, a pool house with dressing rooms and the filtering plant. A caretaker's house was built close to the Glenkirk Road entrance surrounded by a chain link fence. In 1998, an education wing was added to the Pavilion. There are classrooms on the main and lower levels, rest rooms, offices and a mini-auditorium. The building is handicap accessible and the sidewalk extends from the front of the Pavilion to the end of the new construction. 

Today, the Northern Virginia Baptist Center is in great demand. Many churches, organizations and individuals use these facilities for retreats, programs, picnics, banquets, reunions, anniversary and wedding receptions, camps, and other educational and spiritual activities. Members of the Baptist Center organizations envision the day when the center will have accommodations like motels and hotels.

(Reference for this brief history of the Northern Virginia Baptist Center include Rev. James E. Browne, The Northern Virginia Baptist Center, 1966, by Rev. Joseph C. Hackett, and the history of the Baptist Women's Convention).