St. John's A. M. E. Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Way out in Limestone County, in the town of Mexia, there's a congregation with roots that run deep, real deep, all the way back to the 1870s. That's when African Methodist Episcopal Church services were first being held for Mexia's African American population.

And here's a detail worth sitting with for a moment: that church, in those early years, reportedly also served as a schoolhouse during Reconstruction. A place of worship doubling as a place of learning, at a time when both things took courage to build and keep. The church was formally organized about 1903, carrying forward those decades of community and faith into something official, something structured.

Then, between 1908 and 1915, it got a new name. It became St. John's A.

M. E., renamed for a church member named Johnnie Lynn, who had gone on to become a pastor. A member of the flock who rose to lead one of his own.

Now, a congregation is only as strong as the people in it, and St. John's had some remarkable ones. Take Dr.

S. M. Pollock, a Limestone County native who served as a church trustee.

In 1921 he began a dental practice right there in Mexia, and his service didn't stop at the church door. He went on to serve two terms as Mexia City Commissioner. The congregation thrived throughout the twentieth century, and in 1994 a fellowship hall was erected, a new room added to a house already full of history.

The marker says St. John's members continue in the traditions of their founders and predecessors. From the 1870s to today, that is one long, unbroken line of people holding something worth holding onto.

What the marker says

This church traces its history to the 1870s, when African Methodist Episcopal Church services were held for Mexia's African American population. The church reportedly was used as a schoolhouse during Reconstruction. The African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church of Mexia was formally organized about 1903. Between 1908 and 1915 it was renamed St. John's A. M. E. for Johnnie Lynn, a church member who became a pastor. Other notable members included church trustee Dr. S. M. Pollock, a Limestone County native who began a dental practice in Mexia in 1921. He served two terms as Mexia City Commissioner. The congregation thrived throughout the twentieth century. In 1994 a fellowship hall was erected. St. John's members continue in the traditions of their founders and predecessors. (2000)