1846-1914 - First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Van Alstyne - Van Alstyne, TX
N 33° 25.204 W 096° 34.597
14S E 725329 N 3700483
Built in 1914, the current sanctuary of the First Christian Church of Van Alstyne is at 274 S Waco St, Van Alstyne, TX.
Waymark Code: WMXD78
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/29/2017
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The cornerstone is not visible during the warm weather months, when a tree blocks most of it, and even when the leaves are down, the tree branches make the cornerstone rather interesting to photograph.
A 1968 Texas Historical Marker provides some church history:
The predecessor of this church, the First Disciples of Christ Congregation in Texas was founded during the winter of 1841–1842 at McKinney's Landing in Bowie County near the Texas–Arkansas border.
Collin McKinney, pioneer settler and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence, was the leader of the Bowie County congregation, which had worshipped informally since 1831. Between 1844 and 1846 the group moved to Liberty (later called "Mantua"), three miles southwest of here. In 1846 under McKinney and J.B. Wilmeth, the congregation was reorganized as the "Liberty Church" with eighteen members.
In 1854, the First Mantua Christian Church was built. In this early structure a rail in the center aisle separated men from women. No offering plate was passed; donations were placed on the communion table. Members constructed their own "hymn books", which doubled as souvenir and recipe books. Founders of churches in many cities, including Galveston, Sherman, and Glen Rose, were members of the Mantua church.
In 1887 the Mantua group organized the church on this site in the infant town of Van Alstyne, located on the Houston & Texas Central Railroad. In 1891 the Mantua and Van Alstyne churches joined memberships.
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The church's website has a bit of history that notes this as the first brick sanctuary in the young town:
"In 1914, the first brick church in town was constructed by the First Christian Church. This church is noted for its extraordinarily beautiful stained glass windows which encircle the sanctuary. All the windows are dedicated to early church members who contributed so much to the growth of the church. This beautiful building still serves as an inspiration to today's congregation, with many members able to trace their roots back through several generations who have worshipped here. A few have direct ties going back to our beginning in 1831."