Jenks Branch

Jenks Branch, a community and small stream in western Williamson County, named for John Jenks in whose survey the stream lies, where many large camp meetings were held after about 187o. Milas, Richard and Nelson Miller, three Negro brothers, purchased land in the area soon after the Civil War and helped other Negro families to settle there. Thus the community was also called Miller community. Milas Miller established a school consisting at first of a brush arbor, put up a building where both school and church services were held. Later, the Liberty Chapel, A. M. E., was erected of rock a short distance west of the original structure. Cemeteries were established near the first church and later on land given by Joe McClain and William David Miller south of the new church. The Independent American Knights of Liberty put up a lodge hall about half a mile east of the Chapel, where community socials, box suppers, church meetings, Bible School were held. When the young people wanted dances, often square dances, they furnished their own music on piano, fiddle and guitar. The Negro community had active baseball teams which played Florence, Llano and Lampasas. The lodge building was torn down about 1913.