First United Methodist Church of Rogers

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best by the story. Way out in what folks now call Leedale, there used to be a place called Gindale. And in 1880, before the town of Rogers even existed, a congregation set down roots there and called itself Centennial Methodist Church.

Think about that for a moment. The church came first. The town hadn't arrived yet.

Nine years later, in 1889, the church picked itself up and moved into Rogers proper, settling onto the site where it stands today. That first building served its purpose, but by 1909 the congregation had outgrown it, and they put up the present structure in its place. Now here's where the story gets a little bigger than just one congregation's history.

For many years, that church auditorium was the only hall in Rogers large enough to hold a general gathering. Graduations, public events, any occasion that needed a roof over a crowd, this was the place. The whole town came through those doors.

Two children of this church went on to become ministers. And the congregation also counted among its former members two bishops of the United Methodist episcopacy, A. Frank Smith and W.

Angie Smith. Bishops. Out of one church in one small Central Texas town.

Whatever seeds were planted back in Gindale in 1880, they grew into something that reached far beyond Rogers. The marker's quiet about a lot, but it doesn't need to shout.

What the marker says

This institution originated in 1880 as Centennial Methodist Church in Gindale (now Leedale), before Rogers was founded; it moved into town in 1889. Its first building on this site was replaced in 1909 by the present one. For many years this church's auditorium was the only hall in Rogers large enough for general gatherings, and was used for such public events as graduations. Two children of this church have become ministers; also, Bishops A. Frank and W. Angie Smith of the United Methodist episcopacy are former members here. (1977)