Methodist Episcopal Church of Douglassville

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Methodist Episcopal Church of Douglassville, out in Cass County. Now before there were walls, before there were pews, before there was so much as a proper roof to keep the Texas sky off your head, the Methodists of this area gathered under arbors and out on campgrounds. Open air, open sky, and whatever faith you brought with you.

That was worship on the frontier, and it served its purpose. But shortly after Douglassville itself was founded, things started to change. In 1856, area Methodists established a church right here on this site.

A real church. It took the place of those arbors and campgrounds as the center of worship, and in the early going it was served by circuit riders, those tireless preachers who covered vast stretches of territory on horseback, bringing the Word wherever the road, or the lack of one, would take them. The land itself was bought from a man named Williamson Petty.

And the board of trustees who made that purchase, well, their names are worth saying out loud: R. P. Rutland, A.

H. Chappell, S. L.

Easley, J. E. Morris, W.

L. and B. G. Heath, R.

A. Brooks, T. J.

Wilson, and J. H. Snipes.

Nine men who put their names on something meant to last. And they were serious about building permanence. In 1870, those same trustees purchased land for a parsonage.

The congregation was putting down roots, one deed at a time. The building standing on this site today went up in 1908. And it wasn't finished becoming itself just yet.

In 1947, it was remodeled and enlarged. From a campground clearing in 1856 to a remodeled church that's still standing. Some things in Texas, if you tend to them right, just keep going.

What the marker says

Area Methodists established a church on this site in 1856, shortly after the founding of Douglassville. It replaced arbors and campgrounds as the center of worship, and was first served by circuit riders. Land was bought from Williamson Petty by board of trustees, which included R. P. Rutland, A. H. Chappell, S. L. Easley, J. E. Morris, W. L. and B. G. Heath, R. A. Brooks, T. J. Wilson, and J. H. Snipes. The trustees purchased land for the parsonage in 1870. The present building, erected in 1908, was remodeled and enlarged in 1947.