DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Jacobs Chapel United Methodist Church, standing in Bexar County. Now, every great institution starts somewhere small — and few starts were smaller, or more necessary, than this one. It was 1895.
East San Antonio. And a woman named Eliza Napier looked around her neighborhood and decided something had to be done. The residents out that way — mostly African Americans — were facing increasing hostilities in white-led houses of worship and other organizations.
The doors that were supposed to be open weren't. So Napier did what stubborn, visionary people do: she stopped waiting on those doors and built her own. She began encouraging residents to form independent religious and social fellowship groups, ways to foster support within the Black community.
And then she went further. She started a church — called The East End Mission — right there in her own home, at the corner of Hedges and South Gevers Streets. Her living room became a sanctuary.
Her house became holy ground. Now here's the thing about starting something true and necessary: it tends to grow. The number of attendees rose, and rose, until Napier's house simply could not contain them.
So she petitioned the Methodist elders to open a church. Under the leadership of the Reverend J.T. Jacobs, the first church was built.
A real building. Four walls that belonged to the community. The Reverend Jacobs died in 1911, and following his death, the congregation honored him the way communities honor those who matter — they changed the name of the church to Jacobs Chapel Methodist Church.
A name that would carry forward. The story didn't stop there. In 1925, a new building went up.
Then again in 1948, another. Each one a testament to a congregation that kept growing, kept building, kept believing. And inside those walls, something else was happening.
In 1943, a man named Ernest T. Dixon was serving as Sunday school superintendent at Jacobs Chapel when he received his first preaching license. You might want to remember that name.
Because in July of 1972, Ernest T. Dixon became the first African American elected to the Office of Bishop in the south-central jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church. That journey — from Sunday school superintendent at a church born in a woman's living room to the highest elected office in that jurisdiction — started right here.
The church kept growing in other ways too. During the tenure of the Reverend E. Joseph Tanner, a new parsonage was purchased and a food ministry outreach was started.
The congregation developed a strong music ministry, active children's and youth ministries, and special senior ministries. Expansion after expansion, ministry after ministry, generation after generation adding their hands to something started by just a few. Eliza Napier began with a vision and a corner — Hedges and South Gevers — and what grew from it has been a focal point for the Black community on the east side of San Antonio for decades.
That's the thing about a woman who refuses to wait for a door to open. Sometimes she builds a whole church instead.
What the marker says
In 1895, east San Antonio resident Eliza Napier began to evangelize her neighborhood. The residents of east San Antonio, mostly African Americans, were facing increasing hostilities in white-led houses of worship and other organizations. Napier encouraged residents to form independent religious and social fellowship groups to foster support within the Black community. She began a church, called "The East End Mission," in her home at the corner of Hedges and South Gevers Streets. When the number of attendees rose so that Napier's house could not contain them, she petitioned the Methodist elders to open a church. Under the leadership of the Reverend J.T. Jacobs, the first church was built. Following the Rev. Jacobs" death in 1911, the name of the church was changed to Jacobs Chapel Methodist Church. In 1925 and 1948, new buildings were constructed. In 1943, Ernest T. Dixon, who was serving as Sunday school superintendent at Jacobs Chapel, received his first preaching license. In July 1972, he became the first African American elected to the Office of Bishop in the south-central jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church. During the tenure of the Reverend E. Joseph Tanner, a new parsonage was purchased and food ministry outreach started. Further expansions have since been undertaken. The church enjoyed a strong music ministry and active children's and youth ministries. Jacobs Chapel also began special senior ministries. From humble beginnings as the vision of just a few, Jacobs Chapel grew with the tireless hands of many generations. It has been a focal point for the black community on the east side of San Antonio for decades. (2022)