Smyrna

The town of Smyrna is located on State Highway 77 about six miles southeast of Atlanta in eastern Cass County. Pioneers had settled the area by the 1880s and named the community Smyrna in honor of the early Christian church that suffered much persecution in the ancient Turkish city of Smyrna. On August 9, 1882, ten residents organized the Smyrna Baptist Church of Christ, and Elder Nelson Porterfield became the first pastor. The congregation held religious services in a log schoolhouse until a church building was constructed in 1885. A new church was built on another tract that included the Smyrna Cemetery in 1907. The Church of Christ at Smyrna, organized by Rev. J. M. Copeland in 1896, constructed its first house of worship in 1913. In the 1930s activity in the rural community centered on the churches, and Smyrna had its own school district. The Smyrna Baptist Church completed new buildings in 1941 and 1977 and received a Texas Historical Marker in 1982. Throughout the twentieth century the church also served as a community center. In 2000 the rural town had 215 residents.