First Christian Church of Paradise

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm passing it right along to you. Now, the First Christian Church of Paradise, that story starts not where the church stands today, but a mile and a half to the southwest, out in what folks called Old Town, the original Paradise townsite. Back in the late 1880s, members of this congregation weren't meeting in any grand building.

They were gathering in each other's homes, holding worship services the old-fashioned way, neighbor to neighbor, living room to living room. And that might have gone on indefinitely; except the Rock Island Railroad had other ideas. When that rail line came through, residents followed it.

They moved to a new location, one sitting closer to the tracks, and a town shifted itself right along with them. Sometime after that move, the First Christian Church of Paradise was officially chartered. Now, a charter is just a piece of paper until real people put their names on it.

This one had twenty-nine of them. And out of those twenty-nine charter members, three stepped forward to take on the role of original trustees. Three people to carry the weight of turning a congregation into something with walls and a steeple.

You had merchant M. D. Cansler.

You had school superintendent S. L. Atkins.

And you had Fred Harms, land owner, cotton farmer. Those three were responsible for purchasing the land and constructing the building. They hired a local contractor named Will Plymell, and around 1905, he put up what you can still see today: a Gothic revival structure, right there in Paradise, Wise County, Texas.

And up in that steeple? The original church bell is still housed there. Still there.

Now here's the part of this story that'll stay with you. At some point (the marker doesn't say exactly when, and maybe that's fitting), the number of attending members dwindled. Not to a dozen.

Not to ten. To as few as three. Three people showing up to keep something alive that twenty-nine had started.

And they did keep it alive. Worship services have continued throughout the church's entire history; through the lean years and the full ones both. That Gothic revival building ties together the old Paradise and the new, the home services of the 1880s and everything that came after.

The marker says it reflects the determination and ideals of its founders. I'd say three people in a pew, refusing to quit, is about as clear a picture of that determination as you're ever going to find.

What the marker says

During the late 1880s, members of this church held home worship services in Old Town, the original Paradise townsite (1.5 miles southwest). The arrival of the Rock Island Railroad sent residents to this location, which was nearer to the rail line. Sometime after the move, the First Christian Church of Paradise was chartered. During the early 1900s, three of the twenty-nine charter members became the original trustees. Merchant M. D. Cansler, school superintendent S. L. Atkins, and land owner and cotton farmer Fred Harms were responsible for purchasing the land and constructing a building for the church. This Gothic revival structure was built about 1905 by local contractor Will Plymell. The steeple houses the original church bell. At one time, the number of attending members dwindled to as few as three, yet worship services have continued to be held throughout the church's history. Over the years the First Christian Church of Paradise has reflected the determination and ideals of its founders. With historic ties to the old and new Paradise townsites, it is a significant part of the area's heritage.