Enloe United Methodist Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. This is the story of the Enloe United Methodist Church, up in Delta County, and it is a story that starts long before there was even a town called Enloe to put a church in. According to Methodist association records, this congregation first assembled as a full station in the early 1870s, led by the Rev.

W. P. Reed, in the community that would become Unitia.

Now, right away you can tell this is a congregation with a wandering spirit, because they did not stay put. They moved to a site known as Thomas Chapel in 1873, then picked up again and headed to the nearby community of Liberty in 1881. Then, in 1884, they came back to Unitia.

Back where they started. Some folks just have to see the country before they appreciate home. But even that did not hold them, because in 1896, the congregation relocated once more, this time to the fledgling town of Enloe.

The Texas Midland Railroad arrived in town the very next year, and things started moving fast. Enloe's population climbed from 100 to 273 by 1904, and was sitting at 400 by 1914. The town had two banks, a telegraph office, a restaurant, two general stores, a pharmacy, a seed store, two cotton gins, and a bakery.

The Clem Lumber Company was headquartered right there, and cotton shipping was the major industry. This was a town going somewhere. And the church was right at the heart of it.

Then comes Easter Sunday, 1919. Of all the days. The house of worship the Methodists had erected burned on Easter Sunday, 1919.

That is the kind of loss that lands heavy, on a day meant for resurrection. But here is the thing about this congregation. They had moved before.

They had rebuilt before. And they built again, erecting a new structure later that very same year. By the 1930s, membership had grown to about 150 people, with six Sunday School classes filling the pews.

A parsonage went up in 1954, and an educational building was added in 1955. And when the twentieth century drew to a close, the Enloe United Methodist Church was still meeting in that 1919 structure, the one that rose from the ashes of Easter Sunday. Still in service.

Still running programs, including the Lord's Acre Festival, originated in the 1950s, along with other worship and community service activities. More than a hundred years of movin', rebuildin', and showin' up. That is not a church that quits.

What the marker says

According to Methodist association records, this congregation, led by the Rev. W. P. Reed, first assembled as a full station in the early 1870s in the community that became Unitia. The new church changed locations several times in its early years, moving to a site known as Thomas Chapel in 1873 and then to the nearby community of Liberty in 1881. The congregation returned to Unitia in 1884 but later relocated to the fledgling town of Enloe in 1896. The Texas Midland Railroad arrived in town the following year. Enloe's population grew from 100 to 273 in 1904 and was 400 by 1914. The town boasted two banks, a telegraph office, a restaurant, two general stores, a pharmacy, a seed store, two cotton gins and a bakery. The Clem Lumber Company was headquartered here and cotton shipping was the major industry. The house of worship erected by the Methodists burned on Easter Sunday 1919 and a new structure was erected later that year. The congregation was a vital part of the community. By the 1930s the membership was about 150 people with six Sunday School classes. A parsonage was erected in 1954 and an educational building was added in 1955. The Enloe United Methodist Church continued to meet in the 1919 structure at the close of the 20th century. The church and congregation remain in service with a variety of programs including the Lord's Acre Festival, originated in the 1950s, and other worship and community service activities. (1999)