DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about First Presbyterian Church in Sherman, Grayson County. Now settle in, because this is one of those stories that starts with one man on a mission and ends up reshaping a whole corner of Texas. By 1870, the Presbyterian Church in the United States had set its sights on northeast Texas, and they sent the Reverend R.E.
Sherrill to do the work. Organizing new congregations in territory like that takes a certain kind of stubborn, and Sherrill had it. He gathered a group of Sherman residents and, in 1871, helped them form a church.
Just a few years later, by late 1874, the members had gone and built themselves a sanctuary — on Travis Street, right there between Pecan and Mulberry. Not a bad stretch of ground to plant something meant to last. And here's the thing about Sherman in those years: the city was growing fast, pushed along by new rail lines running through the community throughout the 1870s.
The congregation — already calling itself First Presbyterian Church — grew right along with it. That's the kind of momentum that builds on itself. By 1886, the church had established a chapel in a growing part of town.
Then in 1894, the congregation moved to a larger sanctuary, this time at the corner of Travis and Mulberry. When Austin College moved to Sherman in 1876, First Presbyterian saw an opportunity and took it. The church fostered a strong relationship with Austin College's students and faculty, and that relationship eventually gave rise to something new — a whole separate congregation, College Park Presbyterian Church, planted closer to campus.
First Church and the school's pre-ministerial students also established a Sunday School mission together in the 1940s. It was short-lived, as these things sometimes are, but it happened, and it mattered. Through the 20th century, First Church kept its hands busy — kindergarten programs, pre-school programs, foreign mission projects.
Building new facilities as the congregation needed them. More than a century of growing and serving. And then, in 1995, came the chapter that changed the name on the door.
First Presbyterian united with the Trinity United Presbyterian congregation right there in Sherman, and out of that union came Covenant Presbyterian Church. Today, Covenant Presbyterian carries forward the programs and the services that those historic congregations spent their decades building — the work, the worship, the whole weight of it — right there in Sherman. Some things end so that something larger can begin.
What the marker says
By 1870, the Presbyterian Church in the United States sent the Rev. R.E. Sherrill to organize new congregations in northeast Texas. He led a group of Sherman residents in forming a church in 1871, and by late 1874 the members had constructed a sanctuary on Travis Street, between Pecan and Mulberry streets. Throughout the 1870s, the city of Sherman grew as a result of new rail lines through the community. The congregation, known as First Presbyterian Church, grew along with the city. By 1886, the church had established a chapel in a growing part of town, and in 1894 the congregation moved to a larger sanctuary at the corner of Travis and Mulberry. After Austin College moved to Sherman in 1876, First Presbyterian fostered a strong relationship with its students and faculty, leading to the creation of a new congregation, the College Park Presbyterian Church, closer to campus. First Church and the school's pre-ministerial students also established a short-lived Sunday School mission in the 1940s. During the 20th century, First Church's members maintained other educational services, including kindergarten and pre-school programs, as well as foreign mission projects. For more than a century, First Presbyterian Church grew and served its community, building new facilities as needed. The congregation developed close ties with the Trinity United Presbyterian congregation (Sherman), with which it united in 1995, forming Covenant Presbyterian Church. Today, Covenant Presbyterian continues the programs and services established by its historic congregations in their decades of work and worship in Sherman. (2005)