First Christian Church - Fort Worth, TX - Continental Reformed and Congregational Church Sites on Waymarking.com

"The First Christian Church in Fort Worth is an imposing temple-like structure designed in a classical Beaux Arts manner. Crowned by a copper dome set on a high drum, the church's exterior is dominated by a pair of hexastyle Corinthian porticoes. The interior features include the main sanctuary, with its fine stained glass dome and windows, and the adjacent theatre area which can be linked with the sanctuary by raising a large partition wall.

Designed in the Renaissance Revival manner so favored by architects of the period, the church was erected to meet the needs of the third-largest congregation of the Disciples of Christ in the world. The church's many community activities necessitated the construction of the multistory annex, which includes a swimming pool and meeting hall.

The church congregation was founded in 1855 by the Reverend A.M. Dean. The present structure is the fourth to have housed the congregation since that date. By 1910, the membership had risen to over 3,000 and had outgrown the church erected on this same site in 1878. Reverend L.D. Anderson, who assumed the pastorate in 1912, was one of the chief motivators for the construction of a larger and more suitable church. With the financial support of Major K.M. Van Zandt, a prominent banker, and cattleman Samuel Burk Burnett, both lay members of the congregation, funds were raised and Van Slyke and Woodruff hired as architects for the design of the new building.