Palo Pinto Methodist Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, as best as Duane can bring it to you. Way out in Palo Pinto County, where the land has a way of testing your commitment to just about everything, a Methodist congregation took root. It started about 1859, when a man named Reverend Matt Williams came riding through.

Circuit-riding minister, which means the road was his parish and the whole territory was his responsibility. Williams helped organize this congregation, and that very same year a church building was erected. Out here, that early on, that was no small thing.

Then came 1866, and Reverend Melton Jones was appointed to the Palo Pinto Mission. The work was continuing, deepening, taking hold. Now here's something worth noting about the frontier spirit of the thing.

By 1885, the Methodists weren't building alone. They shared a structure with other denominations. Neighbors in faith, pooling what they had.

That kind of arrangement speaks to the practical wisdom of people who knew the country they were living in. Time kept moving. By 1936, the congregation raised a new Methodist sanctuary, their own, built fresh for a community that had grown and endured.

And after that, additional facilities followed, built for educational and social activities, because a church that lasts isn't just a building for Sunday mornings. It's woven into the daily life of the people around it. More than a century of Palo Pinto history, and this church is still there.

Still an integral part of the community. Reverend Williams rode in about 1859, and the congregation he helped organize never stopped gathering. Some roots, once they take, just don't let go.

What the marker says

Methodist services in this area began about 1859, when the Rev. Matt Williams, a circuit-riding minister, helped organize this congregation. A church building was erected that year, and in 1866 the Rev. Melton Jones was appointed to the Palo Pinto Mission. The Methodists shared a structure built in 1885 with other denominations. A new Methodist sanctuary was built in 1936. Additional facilities were later built for educational and social activities. A part of Palo Pinto history for more than a century, this church remains an integral part of the community. (1994)