DUANE
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Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Way out in Lancaster, Dallas County, there's a church with roots that go deep, deeper than most folks stop to think about when they're just drivin' past. Before there was a proper building, before there was even a street worth naming, itinerant preachers were already making their rounds, meeting up with local Methodists in the early days of settlement.
Picture those circuit riders, riding into town, gathering whoever would listen. That was the seed of something that was going to last. On May 25, 1868, the Rev.
Andrew Davis organized what would become one of the oldest churches in all of North Texas. Let that sink in for a second: one of the oldest in North Texas. That's not a small thing.
Now, they didn't have a building yet. For a stretch, services were held in Masonic Hall, which tells you something about how a community pulls together when it has to. Then, in 1874, they finally erected a church building of their very own.
And this place had character right from the start; separate entrances and separate seating for men and women, in the Victorian manner. You walked in knowing exactly where you stood, in more ways than one. That original building served faithfully, and when a new church was constructed in 1911, well, the old one didn't get torn down right away.
It was put to work as a Sunday School annex. Gave it a second life. But eventually, it was razed.
Gone. And in 1957, the present sanctuary was erected, standing right on the site of that original church. Same ground.
Different century. Some things change, and some things just keep going.
What the marker says
Itinerant preachers often met with local Methodists in early days of settlement. Organized on May 25, 1868, by the Rev. Andrew Davis, this is one of the oldest churches in North Texas. Services were held in Masonic Hall until a church building was erected in 1874. This had separate entrances and seating for men and women, in the Victorian manner. After a new church was constructed in 1911, the original building was used as a Sunday School annex, but was later razed. The present sanctuary, erected in 1957, stands on site of the original church.