In 1867, African Americans in the Cedar Lake Community organized St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church with help from Rev. Israel Campbell. Rev. Dennis Gray was appointed the first pastor. The church met in log cabins and sometimes under a tent until 1873, when Christopher Higgins donated two acres to the church. The Freedmen’s Bureau supplied some building materials, allowing the community to build a permanent structure for worship which also served as the first school for blacks within the community. A portion of that land serves as a cemetery for church and community members. For more than 150 years, St. Paul has persevered, continuing today to provide a strong presence working to improve prospects for present and future generations. (2019)