DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Mallalieu United Methodist Church, out in Montgomery County. Now settle in, because this congregation's got more than a century of story packed into one wood-frame building, and they earned every plank of it. It starts on June 23, 1885, when area residents came together and organized what they called First Ward Methodist Episcopal Church.
That's a fine name for a fresh start. Come November of that same year, the Rev. I.D.
Rose stepped in as the church's first pastor. The congregation wasted no time — they bought this very site to build themselves a house of worship. Things were going along nicely.
Then came 1900, and two things happened that year, and one of them was glorious and one of them was devastating. The glorious part: the church was renamed in honor of Bishop Willard F. Mallalieu.
A proper honor, a new name, a new chapter. And then — that same year — the Galveston Hurricane came through and destroyed the sanctuary. Same year.
The ink barely dry on that new name. Now, a lesser congregation might have taken that as a sign. These folks took it as a challenge.
They rebuilt. And then, in 1926, they built again — this time finishing a wood-frame Greek Revival structure that would carry them all the way into the 21st century. That building is still standing, still serving, still the center of a community that has gathered around it for educational programs, outreach, and worship across all those years.
You don't survive a hurricane and keep building for over a century without something real holding you together. That's the story the marker tells — and that building right there is the proof.
What the marker says
Area residents organized First Ward Methodist Episcopal Church on June 23, 1885, and in November of that year, the Rev. I.D. Rose became the church's first pastor. The congregation soon bought this site on which to build a house of worship. In 1900, the church was renamed in honor of Bishop Willard F. Mallalieu. That same year, the Galveston Hurricane destroyed the sanctuary. The congregation rebuilt, and in 1926 built again, finishing the wood-frame Greek Revival structure that would serve them into the 21st century. Throughout its history, the church has served the community through a variety of educational, outreach and worship programs. (2006)