United Methodist Church of Lexington

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, when you're talkin' about a church with roots as deep as the United Methodist Church of Lexington, you can't just pick one starting point and call it a day. This story has five beginnings.

The Lexington Methodist Episcopal Church, South, shows up in the records of the East Texas Conference as early as 1850, with the Reverend Jefferson Shook assigned as pastor. That's your anchor. But the marker will tell you plainly, the full history runs through four other Lee County churches, and each one of those stories feeds into this one.

So let's take them in turn. West of Lexington, the Liberty Methodist Episcopal Church, South, held its own gatherings, sharing a pastor with the Lexington congregation. Come the 1930s, Liberty disbanded, and some of those members made their way into the Lexington fold.

Five miles north, the Tanglewood community had its own house of worship, the Tanglewood Methodist Episcopal Church, South. During the 1930s, that congregation sold its land and its building, forwarded the proceeds straight to the Lexington Church, and the few remaining members came right along with the money. Now that is a graceful exit.

Up in the northern part of the county, the Early Chapel congregation had also been meeting since as early as 1850, same year as Lexington itself. By 1927, the fellowship had dwindled down to the point where the members voted to move their memberships to the Lexington Church. And then there is the German Methodist Church in Lexington, founded in 1882 with the Reverend Jacob Ott as its first pastor.

That congregation carried on until 1939, when the two Lexington Methodist congregations merged into one. Five streams, one river. And with all those membership additions layered in across the years, the United Methodist Church of Lexington grew into something the community could lean on, a place of service and leadership built from the gathered remnants of a whole county's faith.

What the marker says

The Lexington Methodist Episcopal Church, South, appears in the records of the East Texas Conference as early as 1850, with the Rev. Jefferson Shook assigned as pastor. Its history, however, can be traced through the histories of four other Lee County churches. The Liberty Methodist Episcopal Church, South, met west of Lexington, and the two congregations shared the same pastor. When the church disbanded in the 1930s, some of the members joined this congregation. Tanglewood Methodist Episcopal Church, South, served the Tanglewood community (5 mi. N) During the 1930s the congregation sold its land and church building and forwarded the proceeds to the Lexington Church, and the few remaining members came into this congregation. The Early Chapel congregation met in the northern part of the county as early as 1850. Members of the dwindling fellowship voted to move their memberships to the Lexington Church in 1927. The German Methodist Church in Lexington was founded in 1882 with the Rev. Jacob Ott as first pastor. In 1939 the two Lexington Methodist congregations merged. With its membership additions over the years, the United Methodist Church of Lexington has grown to provide significant service and leadership to the community.