Birdville Church of Christ

Duane's take

Here's what the official marker has to say, and I'll tell it my way. On February 26, 1852, the town of Birdville had just become the Tarrant County seat, still fresh, still finding its footing, and twelve charter members gathered together for the very first worship service of what would become the Birdville Church of Christ. Twelve people.

That's it. Doesn't sound like much, but you know how these things go. Small beginnings have a way of outlasting the doubters.

Now, the congregation hit some kind of rough patch along the way, because they had to reorganize in 1882, and after that they made do by meeting in the Birdville school building. Borrowing space, sharing walls, getting the work done with what they had. Then came the year 1900, and the congregation pulled in someone who was not exactly a quiet, unassuming visitor.

Richard M. Gano, well-known evangelist, and a Confederate general to boot, came and conducted a revival. That name carried weight.

That combination of the pulpit and the battlefield had a way of drawing a crowd, and Gano brought it all under one roof. After that, the congregation started putting down roots in a more permanent way. They acquired land from the John McCord family, and in 1906 a frame building went up on it.

A proper home, after all those years of borrowed space and reorganizing and revivals. But this story doesn't end with a tidy ribbon on it, because fire has a vote in a lot of Texas histories. In 1950, fire came for that building.

What rose in its place was a brick auditorium: sturdier, more resolute, the kind of structure that says we are not moving. And then, as if the congregation needed one more test of character, fire came again in 1970. The auditorium was repaired and it stood.

From twelve charter members on a February morning in 1852 to a brick building that survived two fires and kept on standing, some stories don't need any embellishment at all.

What the marker says

On February 26, 1852, soon after Birdville became the Tarrant County seat, 12 charter members attended this congregation's first worship service. After reorganizing in 1882, the members met in the Birdville school building. In 1900, Richard M. Gano, the well-known evangelist and Confederate general, conducted a revival. This land was acquired from the John McCord family and a frame building was erected in 1906. After a 1950 fire, this brick auditorium was constructed and then repaired after a 1970 fire. (1979)