Jourdanton United Methodist Church

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Jourdanton United Methodist Church, right there in Atascosa County. Now settle in, because this is a story that starts with a tent and ends with something that's still standing today. The Methodist church in Jourdanton formally organized in 1909, the very same year the City of Jourdanton itself was founded.

Same year. That's not a coincidence the marker lets pass without mention, and neither will I. The church came into being as the Jourdanton Methodist Episcopal Church, South, a member of the Uvalde District in the West Texas Conference.

And right there at the founding, you had families whose names deserve to be spoken out loud: Mr. and Mrs. W. T.

Billingsley, Mr. and Mrs. Murphy, Mr. and Mrs. Easterling, the W.

H. Purgason family, the Carter family, Mr. and Mrs. B.

B. Daughtrey, the Richardson family, and Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Ernst.

Those are the people who showed up when showing up meant somethin'. Now, that first pastor, the Rev. J.

W. Shoemaker, he was not a man who stayed put. In 1909 he was riding a circuit that stretched from Pleasanton to Jourdanton to Campbellton to Fairview.

Four congregations, one reverend, and a lot of road. He was followed by other early pastors, the Rev. W.

N. Carl and the Rev. J.

N. Rentfro among them. And where did the faithful gather during those earliest days?

A tent. That's it. Just canvas between them and the Texas sky.

But the congregation was already movin'. On March 3, 1910, the Jourdanton Methodist Church Ladies Aid Society held its very first meeting, which tells you something about how organized this community was even before they had four walls. Also in 1910, church trustees B.

B. Daughtrey, James A. Waltom, and C.

B. Myers purchased property at the corner of Elm Avenue and Brown Street from E. M. and May Tom, and a frame building was constructed right there on that site.

That frame building served its purpose, but by 1941, the congregation razed it and built a new one at the same location. Then the story takes a turn. Property was later purchased at the corner of Chestnut and Campbell, and in 1957 that 1941 sanctuary was moved to the new site.

Moved. The whole sanctuary, picked up and carried across town. Then the sanctuary was sold and removed from the property, and in 1964 the present sanctuary was constructed.

So in the span of one congregation's life, you've got a tent, a frame building, a new structure, a relocated sanctuary, and finally the one that's still there. And all the while, the church kept building something else, too. Organizations grew up inside those walls over the years: the Women's Society of Christian Service, the Wesleyan Service Guild, the Epworth League, the United Methodist Women, the United Methodist Men, and the Methodist Youth Fellowship.

A city and a church, born the same year, still both standing. That, right there, is Jourdanton.

What the marker says

The Methodist church in Jourdanton formally organized in 1909, the same year that the City of Jourdanton was founded. The church began as the Jourdanton Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and was a member of the Uvalde District in the West Texas Conference. Founding members included Mr. and Mrs. W. T. Billingsley, Mr. and Mrs. Murphy, Mr. and Mrs. Easterling, The W. H. Purgason family, the Carter family, Mr. and Mrs. B. B. Daughtrey, the Richardson family, and Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Ernst. During 1909, Rev. J. W. Shoemaker, the congregation's first pastor, served a circuit consisting of churches in Pleasanton, Jourdanton, Campbellton and Fairview. Other early pastors included the Rev. W. N. Carl and the Rev. J. N. Rentfro. Services originally took place in a tent. In 1910, church trustees B. B. Daughtrey, James A. Waltom and C. B. Myers purchased property at the corner of Elm Avenue and Brown Street from E. M. and May Tom, and a frame building was constructed on the site. In 1941, the congregation razed the original structure and built a new one at the same location. Property was later purchased at the corner of Chestnut and Campbell, and the 1941 sanctuary was moved to the new site in 1957. The sanctuary was later sold and removed from the property, and the present sanctuary was constructed in 1964. The Jourdanton Methodist Church Ladies Aid Society held its first meeting on March 3, 1910. Additional organizations later founded within the church included the Women's Society of Christian Service, the Wesleyan Service Guild, Epworth League, the United Methodist Women, the United Methodist Men and Methodist Youth Fellowship. (2009)