DUANE
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Duane's take
The way the official marker tells it, here's the story of Saint John Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in Grayson County. Back in 1875, a congregation came together and organized as Saint John Christian Methodist Episcopal Chapel. Those first services didn't happen in a grand building on a prominent corner.
They happened in a sanctuary tucked inside a local community of freedmen known as Brushtown. That's where this church began, and it matters that you hold that in your mind as the story moves forward. The Rev.
E.W. Moseley, born in 1854 and gone by 1911, served as its very first pastor. A congregation, a community, a man with a calling.
That was the foundation. Then came the move. In 1912, the church relocated to where it stands today.
And if you think the story slows down there, you'd be wrong. Because in 1926, during the pastorship of the Rev. J.E.
Raines, something remarkable got built. Contractors J.A. Simmons and Jerry Wall completed a two-story Greek Revival sanctuary, and friend, this is not a modest structure.
It features a central pedimented temple entry. Four ionic columns rising up from a grand entry staircase. Defined bays on all sides.
Pilasters. This is a building that announces itself. A congregation that started in Brushtown, holding services in a freedmen's community, raised up a sanctuary that looks like it belongs in the pages of an architecture primer.
That is not an accident. That is a statement. And it is still standing.
What the marker says
This church, organized in 1875 as Saint John Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Chapel, held its initial services in a sanctuary located in a local community of freedmen known as “Brushtown”. The Rev. E.W. Moseley (1854-1911) served as its first pastor. The church relocated here in 1912 and in 1926 contractors J.A. Simmons and Jerry Wall completed this 2-story Greek Revival sanctuary during the pastorship of the Rev. J.E. Raines. It features a central pedimented temple entry with four ionic columns rising from a grand entry staircase; defined bays on all sides; and pilasters. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1993