Bethel Missionary Baptist Church
Jct. of Webster and Lane Sts., SE corner, Tatums, OKThe Bethel Missionary Baptist Church is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under criterion A for its historic significance to the early settlement of the all-Black town of Tatums, Oklahoma. The town was founded in 1894 by African-Americans from Indian Territory, Alabama, and Texas. Completed in 1919, the church building is the oldest, intact, public building in the town. It therefore meets Criterion Consideration A as a religious property deriving its primary significance from historic associations.
Local significance of the building:Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1995.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.