In 1837, the town of San Felipe de Austin was incorporated and the town council built a multi-purpose building to be used as a town hall, school, and church on land known as “Constitution Square.” The one-story building was constructed out of cypress, an extremely long-lasting and rot-resistant wood that allowed the structure to exist today, over 175 years later.
The Methodist group in San Felipe de Austin used this building for evening worship though the building was secularly owned by the town. By 1847, a new town hall was constructed, leaving this building to serve as a church and school only. In this same year, the town also added the second floor to the building.
A new Masonic Lodge formed in San Felipe in 1859 and met on the newly built second floor. Today the ceiling still exhibits a painting of a blue sky with five-pointed stars and on the eastern wall an ‘Eye of God’ painting. In 1880, a new school building was constructed for the town, allowing the first floor of this building to be used solely as a church.
In 1883, a steeple was added and a bell was donated to the church. This building became the Methodists’ official church and the congregation still meets here today. Up until the 1940s, when the building got electricity, the church used oil lamps hung on the walls of the sanctuary for indoor worship. These lamps are still hanging today and are lit every Christmas Eve in remembrance of the church’s history.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1962
Marker is property of the State of Texas