Murray Methodist Church

Duane's take

Now, I'm telling this one straight from the official marker, so let me set the scene for you. Way out in Young County, there's a story that starts with a log cabin nobody wanted and ends with a church that never quit. Pull up a seat.

Back in 1874, a man named Thomas Price purchased land in a place called the Fish Creek community. And when he got there, he found an abandoned log cabin sitting on that land. Could've torn it down, could've used it for storage.

Instead, Price and his neighbors repaired that cabin and designated it for use as a church. Now here's the part that tells you something about early Texas: those early settlers, whatever their denomination preferences happened to be, worshiped together in that little cabin. No arguments about who was right, just folks finding common ground on a dirt floor.

The Fish Creek Methodist Society got itself organized in 1886, and a circuit riding minister from the Throckmorton District rode out to serve that little church. Life was good, for a while. But congregations have a habit of growing, and sure enough the membership outgrew the cabin.

So starting in 1893, services moved to a nearby school. That arrangement lasted until 1897, when the school burned. Just like that, gone.

A new school was built, and the church met there until 1907. Now, somewhere along the way, the Fish Creek community became known as Murray, when a new post office was established with that name. And 1907 turned out to be quite a year for this congregation.

The W. L. Chandler family donated land to the church, two miles west of that original log cabin site.

A church building was erected on that donated ground, with many interior fixtures donated by members of the congregation themselves. The church had gone by a few names by then. It was formerly known as the Methodist Episcopal Church South of Fish Creek, then called Chandler Chapel for a short time, before it was renamed Murray Methodist Church.

From an abandoned log cabin that a pioneer decided to fix up rather than forget, all the way to a congregation that built itself a proper home with fixtures their own people gave. The marker says the church continues to be a vital part of the community. Out here in Young County, that's not a small thing.

That's the whole thing.

What the marker says

When early pioneer Thomas Price purchased land in the old Fish Creek community in 1874, he found an abandoned log cabin which, along with his neighbors, he repaired and designated for use as a church. Early settlers, regardless of denomination preferences, worshiped together in the cabin. The Fish Creek Methodist Society was organized in 1886, and a circuit riding minister from the Throckmorton District served the little church. When the membership outgrew the cabin, services were held in a nearby school from 1893 until it burned in 1897. A new school was built, and the church met there until 1907. The Fish Creek community became known as Murray when a new post office was established with that name. In 1907, the W. L. Chandler family donated land to the church, two miles west of the original log cabin site. The church, formerly known as the Methodist Episcopal Church South of Fish Creek, was called Chandler Chapel for a short time, then renamed Murray Methodist Church. A church building was erected, featuring many interior fixtures donated by members of the congregation. The church continues to be a vital part of the community.