First United Methodist Church of Dallas

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll pass it along just the same way. Now, when you talk about faith taking root in Texas, you're talkin' about people who didn't wait for a building to show up before they started believin'. Methodism in Dallas traces its roots to as early as 1846 — back when Dallas wasn't much more than a small village, a dot on a dirt path where Methodist circuit riders would stop, say a prayer, and keep movin'.

Those riders planted something, though. Something that didn't wash away. By November 1850, the first organized group of Methodists had gathered in Dallas.

And here's where you start to appreciate the particular stubbornness of these folks — because that congregation held together for almost twenty years without a building of their own. Twenty years. Meeting wherever they could, passing the collection plate in borrowed rooms, holding on.

Land was donated. Funds were raised. A building was within reach.

And then the Civil War happened. When the smoke cleared, the money was gone. Just — gone.

Most congregations might have folded right there. Not these people. Through sheer determination, the Lamar Street Methodist Church was dedicated in November 1868.

After more than eighteen years, they finally had a home. They had it for eleven years. In 1879, the structure burned.

That's it. That's all the marker says, and sometimes that's all that needs sayin'. The building burned, and the congregation picked themselves up and accepted the hospitality of nearby Temple Emanuel, using their facilities while they figured out what came next.

What came next was a new building, completed in 1889 and dedicated in 1894. Now the congregation kept growin', and growin' means changin'. In 1916, First Methodist and Trinity Methodist — both churches runnin' about one thousand members strong — were united under the name First Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

The sale of the Trinity Methodist Church site sent money toward the construction of Highland Park Methodist Church. A new building for the enlarged congregation was dedicated in 1926, and by 1927 the membership stood at three thousand, four hundred and forty people. The name kept evolvin' right along with everything else.

First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, became First Methodist Church in 1939, then First United Methodist Church in 1968 — denomination-wide changes, the marker says, and that's a polite way of describin' the long, complicated arc of American Methodism workin' itself out over the decades. But here's the moment that stops you cold, if you let it. During the church's 1946 centennial celebration, five bishops — men who had once stood at the front of that very congregation as pastors — came back.

They returned together to dedicate that 1926 building. Five bishops. Think about what that says about the kind of church this was, and the kind of people it shaped.

The First United Methodist Church of Dallas has long been instrumental in the formation of Methodist churches throughout North Texas and beyond. It remains active in mission work, service, and worship, still observing the traditions of those circuit riders who passed through a small village way back in 1846. Some things you build take a long time.

Some things you build burn down. And some things, if the people are determined enough, just keep going.

What the marker says

Methodism in Dallas traces its roots to as early as 1846, when the small village was a stopping point for Methodist circuit riders. The first organized group of Methodists met in November 1850, and continued for almost 20 years without a building of their own. Land was donated and funds raised, but construction was delayed by the Civil War, after which the money had been lost. Through the determination of church members, the Lamar Street Methodist Church was nevertheless dedicated in November 1868. The structure burned in 1879, and the congregation used the facilities at nearby Temple Emanuel until a new building was completed in 1889 and dedicated in 1894; the name was changed to First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1916, the First Methodist and Trinity Methodist churches, both about one thousand members strong, were united. Money from the sale of the Trinity Methodist Church site went toward the construction of Highland Park Methodist Church. A new building was dedicated for the enlarged First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1926. By 1927, the membership was 3,440, and the congregation continued to grow. During the church's 1946 centennial celebration, five bishops who had been pastors at the church returned to dedicate the 1926 building. During denomination-wide changes, First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, became First Methodist Church in 1939 and First United Methodist Church in 1968. It has long been instrumental in the formation of Methodist churches throughout North Texas and beyond. The First United Methodist Church of Dallas remains active in mission work, service and worship, observing the traditions of its founders. (2000)