DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — let me carry that story down the road for you. Now, picture Saginaw, Texas, in the year 1914. A small farming community, population one hundred souls.
The Baptists already had a church. The Church of Christ already had a church. Both of them organized back in 1911.
So by 1914, you might've figured Saginaw had its Sunday mornings pretty well covered. But on July 19, 1914, ten people — eight women and two men — sat down together and organized a Methodist Church in Saginaw. Ten people.
That's it. You could seat them all in a farm wagon with room left for the dog. They didn't have a building.
What they had was the auditorium of the new brick school on Bluebonnet Street — the very ground where the Saginaw Elementary School cafeteria stands today. And they had Reverend C.E. Simpson, their first pastor, who came to lead services on the fourth Sunday of every month.
Once a month. That was enough to get it started. And it grew.
By November of that same year, 1914, the charter membership had climbed from ten to twenty-nine, and the congregation officially became part of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Ten people had become a movement in the span of a few months. They kept at it — meeting in that school auditorium, worshiping on fourth Sundays, building something quiet and steady in a little farming town.
Then came 1923, and the congregation raised up a one-room frame building on the corner of Bluebonnet and West Green. Their own place. The first service in that new building was held on April 27, 1924.
I imagine that fourth Sunday felt a little different that year. The decades turned. In 1946, a full-time pastor — James Campbell — was appointed, and that appointment sparked a vision.
The congregation decided to expand: a parsonage, an education building, a Sunday school building, additional acreage. They were planting roots deep. Then through the 1960s and into the 1970s, a new sanctuary and meeting room were added.
And on April 23, 1968, the church took the name it carries today — the Saginaw United Methodist Church. In 2003, the congregation moved to the old First Baptist Church property, right there adjacent to the original location. Different ground, same community, same mission.
Emergency relief. Youth program sponsorship. Local and global community support.
Since 1914, through a century of Saginaw's growing and changing, that church has been — as the marker puts it — a cornerstone. Ten people showed up on a July Sunday in 1914, and they meant it.
What the marker says
In 1914, Saginaw was a small farming community with a population of 100. The town already had a Baptist church and a Church of Christ that were organized in 1911. So, on July 19, 1914, eight women and two men organized a Methodist Church in Saginaw. By November 1914, the charter members grew to 29 and the church officially became part of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Services were held in the auditorium of the new brick school on Bluebonnet Street, located on the present site of the Saginaw Elementary School cafeteria. Reverend C.E. Simpson was the first pastor who led services in Saginaw on the fourth Sunday of every month. After an increase in membership, the congregation erected a one-room frame building in 1923 on the corner of Bluebonnet and West Green. The first service in the new building was held on April 27, 1924. When a full-time pastor, James Campbell, was appointed in 1946, the congregation decided to expand the church grounds with a parsonage, education building, Sunday school building and additional acreage. A new sanctuary and meeting room were added in the 1960s and 1970s. On April 23, 1968, the church became the Saginaw United Methodist Church. In 2003, the church moved to the old First Baptist Church property adjacent to the original location. Along with many opportunities for worship, the Saginaw United Methodist Church also contributes through emergency relief, youth program sponsorship and support of local and global community programs. Since 1914, the Saginaw United Methodist Church has been a cornerstone of Saginaw through its outreach and involvement in the community. (2014)