First Christian Church of Lufkin

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the First Christian Church of Lufkin. Now settle in, because this congregation has been movin' and buildin' and movin' again for well over a century, and every time it looked like they might finally sit still, something came along to shuffle the cards. It all started, as best anyone can pin it down, around 1884, in Homer.

Homer was the county seat of Angelina County back then, and a Christian church took root there, the way churches do in small Texas towns, quietly, among neighbors who needed a place to gather. But then came the railroad. A line running from Houston to Shreveport was built, and it didn't run through Homer.

It ran about five miles away. And when a railroad passes you by in those days, well, a whole town tends to follow it. Lufkin grew up around that depot, and the citizens of Homer, a majority of the church members right along with them, packed up and headed over.

The Lufkin Christian Church was formally organized in 1894 by the Reverend R. E. Jackson.

Visiting ministers kept the congregation going for many years after that, and the people worshipped in local halls, whatever space they could find, for a good while. Then came the first real foothold. A school building became the church's first permanent home, and in 1903 Judge E.

J. Mantooth donated that school to the congregation. They remodeled it into a proper church edifice.

That's not nothing. That's a community putting down roots. But they weren't done movin' yet.

In 1912, two residences in downtown Lufkin were purchased and converted, one into a place of worship, one into a parsonage. Those two buildings served their purpose, and then they were torn down. Finally, in 1920, the congregation built their own church building and dedicated it themselves.

Their own. Built by their own hands. You'd think that'd be the end of the story, but a growing congregation has a way of outgrowing its walls.

In 1949 they bought six acres of land at South Raguet and South First streets, and by June of 1954 new church buildings were completed on that land. Several additions followed after that, built to house the growing programs of the church. From a borrowed hall in Homer around 1884, to six acres in Lufkin by 1954, the First Christian Church kept finding a way to stay together and keep serving.

The marker says it plainly: more than a hundred years of community. Sometimes the most remarkable thing about a story isn't one dramatic moment. It's just that the people never quit.

What the marker says

A Christian church was organized in Angelina County about 1884 in Homer, the county seat. When the railroad line from Houston to Shreveport was built about 5 miles from Homer, the town of Lufkin was built around the depot. Many citizens of Homer moved to Lufkin, including a majority of the church members. The Lufkin Christian Church was formally organized by the Rev. R. E. Jackson in 1894. Visiting ministers served the congregation for many years. Worship services were held in local halls until the school building was established as the first permanent home for the church. In 1903 the school was donated by Judge E. J. Mantooth and later remodeled into a church edifice. Two residences were purchased in 1912 in downtown Lufkin and converted into a place of worship and a parsonage, but were later torn down. In 1920 the church building constructed by the congregation was dedicated. The congregation bought six acres of land in 1949 at South Raguet and South First streets and new church buildings were completed in June 1954. Several additions were made to house the growing programs of the church. The First Christian Church of Lufkin continues to serve the community as it has for more than 100 years. (1996)