DUANE
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Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my right by the story. Somewhere in Wood County, in the town of Winnsboro, there stands a church with a secret written right into its roofline. No steeples.
And if you know where to look, that absence tells you everything. The Central Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, got its start in 1893. Twenty charter members.
That's it. Twenty people who believed a congregation was worth building, and they had themselves a pastor, the Reverend Kimberly, the very first to lead this flock. Now, the congregation didn't wait around.
The following year, they had this sanctuary constructed. Brick and timber and faith, rising up right there in Winnsboro. And they put steeples on it, plural, because if you're goin' to build a church, you build it with intention.
Then 1895 rolled in, and with it came a tornado. The original steeples, destroyed. Just like that.
Gone. Here's the part that sticks with you though. They were not replaced.
Not then, not ever. So the building stands to this day without them, carrying that storm quietly in its silhouette. The congregation kept right on going.
In 1914, the building was remodeled, and what emerged reflected the influences of the prairie and classical revival styles. A little of the wide open Texas plain, a little of something older and more formal, all in one structure. Over the years, the church membership has included many prominent area leaders.
Not a bad legacy for twenty charter members and one founding pastor. That empty space where the steeples used to be isn't a wound. It's a chapter.
What the marker says
The Rev. Kimberly served as the first pastor of the Central Christian Church of Winnsboro, organized in 1893 with twenty charter members. The following year the congregation had this sanctuary constructed. The original steeples were destroyed by a tornado in 1895 and not replaced. Remodeled in 1914, the building reflects influences of the prairie and classical revival styles. The church membership has included many prominent area leaders. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1980