Fairview Methodist Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Fairview Methodist Church, Wilson County. Now, some congregations have a quiet history.

Fairview was not one of those congregations. This community of faith was organized before 1876, and in those early days they held services in a schoolhouse. Nothing fancy, but they showed up.

Then W. F. and Jennie Mitchell and J. F. and Martha Prewitt gave the land for a proper building site, and the congregation raised up a small red rock meeting house.

Red rock. You can almost picture it sitting out there on the South Texas plain, solid and sure. And for a while, it was.

Until 1886, when a tropical storm came through and wrecked it. Just wrecked it. The storm did not care one bit about that red rock.

So the congregation did what congregations do. They kept going. By 1891, during the pastorate of the Reverend A.

J. King, the members built a frame structure. A new building, a new chapter.

That frame church served them for decades. Then 1942 rolled around, and another storm wrecked that one too. Two storms, two buildings, one stubborn congregation.

And here is where the story earns its place on a historical marker. Out of the ruins of that 1942 storm, the members constructed a third building in 1943. Out of the ruins.

They didn't leave, didn't fold, didn't find somewhere easier to worship. They built again. The Fairview congregation eventually merged with the Floresville church in 1955, but the story doesn't end there, not entirely.

Every year, memorial services are still held at Fairview Cemetery. The building is gone, but the gathering goes on. Some places just refuse to be forgotten.

What the marker says

Organized before 1876, holding services in schoolhouse until building site was given by W. F. and Jennie Mitchell and J. F. and Martha Prewitt. A small red rock meeting house was built, serving until wrecked by tropical storm in 1886. In 1891, during pastorate of the Rev. A. J. King, the members built a frame structure, which in turn was wrecked by a storm in 1942. Out of the ruins, third building was constructed in 1943. Fairview congregation merged with Floresville church in 1955. Memorial services are held each year at Fairview Cemetery. (1972)