First United Methodist Church of Carthage

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Way out in Panola County, the congregation that would become the First United Methodist Church of Carthage got its start in 1855. No building of their own, not yet.

They held their first services in the Masonic Hall, which, when you think about it, is about as Texas a beginning as you can get. Borrowed walls, borrowed light, and plenty of faith to fill the room. Four years later, in 1859, the members bought the property where they intended to put down real roots.

They started building a frame church right there on that ground. And then, well, the Civil War had other ideas. That building sat unfinished through the whole of it, waiting.

When the war was finally done, the congregation came back and completed what they had started. In the meantime, the building wasn't sitting idle. Local Methodists and Baptists both used it, which tells you something about the practical, neighborly spirit of the place.

By 1902 that first frame structure had given all it had to give, and a second frame church rose to take its place. But the congregation wasn't finished dreaming bigger. By 1942, they had completed a brick sanctuary, an educational building, and a parsonage.

Brick, mind you. Something built to last generations. And then, in 1959, one hundred years after those members had first bought that piece of ground, this congregation turned around and helped establish St.

Andrews United Methodist Church. A century of building, and their answer was to help someone else begin. That is how you plant a church in Texas.

What the marker says

Organized in 1855, this congregation held its first services in the Masonic Hall. In 1859 the members bought this property and began a frame church which was not completed until after the Civil War. The building was used by local Methodists and Baptists and was replaced by a second frame structure in 1902. By 1942 a brick sanctuary, educational building and parsonage were completed. This congregation helped establish St. Andrews United Methodist Church in 1959, a century after its own founding. (1982)