DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna do my best to do it justice. The story of the Savoy Methodist Church goes back to 1873, just one year after a man named William Savoy founded the town of Savoy right there on the Transcontinental Railroad — the Texas and Pacific line. One year.
The ink was barely dry on the town itself before folks were already gathering to worship. That's the kind of people we're talkin' about. They met first in the Roberts schoolhouse, out on the old Whitewright Road, with the Reverend James Graham leading the congregation.
No grand building, no stained glass — just a schoolhouse and a community that meant business. Then came the building of their first sanctuary, raised up between 1876 and 1878. Now, here's where you want to pay attention, because 1880 is coming, and 1880 did not play around.
A tornado ravaged the town of Savoy. Ravaged it. And when the dust settled and folks walked through what remained, that little church was still standing — one of the few buildings not destroyed.
You can make of that what you will. Through all of it — the shared station arrangements with other area churches, the years rollin' by — the Savoy Methodist Church kept its focus on educational and missionary activities. It wasn't just a place to weather a storm.
It was a place that kept on building something, long after the storm had passed.
What the marker says
This congregation traces its beginning to 1873, one year after William Savoy founded the town of Savoy on the Transcontinental (Texas & Pacific) Railroad line. Led by the Rev. James Graham, the members first met in the Roberts schoolhouse on the old Whitewright Road. They built their first sanctuary in 1876-1878, and it was one of the few buildings not destroyed when a tornado ravaged the town in 1880. A shared station with other area churches throughout its history, the Savoy church has emphasized educational and missionary activities.