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Emmanuel Baptist Church History

In 1955, the Church Committee of the Potomac Baptist Association decided that a church should be started in the Manassas Park area. Mr. I J. Breeden gave the land for the church. Rev. Guy C. Heyl of Warrenton was called as our first pastor. The first service was held March 4, 1956 in Yorkshire Fire House and 13 persons joined by letter. Two weeks later, the Mission began meeting in what is now C.L. Barnes Furniture store. Sunday School was started by April, 1956, Emmanuel Baptist Church was constituted into a Southern Baptist Church. During the same month, membership was granted in the Potomac Baptist Association.

On April 13, 1958, ground was broken for our first building. The building was completed enough to move into on February 11, 1959. Since then Emmanuel has undertaken several building programs, which include the present day facilities and the Family Life Center.

Rev. Heyl retired in March 1961, and Rev. Charles W. Gibson accepted the call to Emmanuel May 1, 1961, coming from Richmond, VA. With a one-year break, Rev. Gibson served until May 1971. October 17,1971, Rev. B.R. Yarbrough assumed the pastoral duties of Emmanuel and served until March 1977 and returned in September 1978 and served until November 1984. Dr. James L. Ryan served as pastor from August 1977, to June 1978. In September 1985, Dr. Samuel H. Letson became our pastor and served until June 1995. Dr. Rodney Autry answered the call of God and began serving as senior pastor in August 1996.

Emmanuel has always been a mission-minded people. In the summer of 1961, plans were made to establish a mission in the Loch Lomond area. Loch Lomond Baptist Church was constituted as a Southern Baptist Church February 1964. In 1987, plans were taken to establish another mission in the local area. Occoquan River Baptist Church was constituted as a Southern Baptist Church March 3, 1991.

Another mission effort was started in the Fall of 1979: Emmanuel Baptist Church, Pre-School (Grades K-3 and K-4) which evolved into Emmanuel Christian School. Each year thereafter one or more grades were added. Since the first graduating class in 1986, Emmanuel Christian School has graduated 300+ students, with over 90% going on to college. Emmanuel Christian School is accredited by Association of Christian Schools International and affiliated Southern Baptist Association of Christian Schools. Emmanuel Christian School has a full sports program.

In February 1997 Emmanuel Baptist Church voted to align with the new State Convention the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia. In February 2000 we voted to accept the call to become a Key Church for the SBCV and establish The Northern Virginia Center for Church planting. Since then Emmanuel Baptist Church has been directly involved in the planting of numerous missions, including Anglo, ethnic, and language missions.

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