Anderson Baptist Church
Anderson Baptist Church is on the National Register of Historic Places and a recorded Texas Historical Landmark. Early in 1844, a small group of Baptist met in a log schoolhouse four…
Faith and spirituality have historically been an important part of the lives of Texans - from pre-European contact until today. The places that represent spirituality are no less sacred.
Old History, New Life
As archeological finds of pre-history Texans are interpreted, neighborhoods change in our urban areas, as populations fluctuate in our rural communities, and as congregations find a need to expand their facilities, we have begun to realize the historical and cultural importance of the places and structures we outgrow or that have been forgotten. These places are imbued with our spirit, making their survival a complex but important factor when formulating a community's legacy. Redefining our historic religious centers as sacred places helps to avoid denominational challenges, emphasizes their historical significance, provides an opportunity to broaden their function on behalf of the entire community, and encourages preservation. Take a look around your neighborhood. Where is your own special sacred place? Your childhood church down the street? Or is it someplace else, perhaps beneath a favorite old shade tree in the park? Share your sacred place with someone you know and help to keep it a vital part of the social fabric of your community.
Anderson Baptist Church is on the National Register of Historic Places and a recorded Texas Historical Landmark. Early in 1844, a small group of Baptist met in a log schoolhouse four…
Ascension Catholic Church was formally organized in Bastrop with services being held at the courthouse and in private homes. The first Catholic Church in Bastrop, St. Martin’s, was a brick structure built…
One of the older denominations in the community, Bastrop Christian Church existed as early as 1857, conducting services in the old courthouse building prior to the acquisition of the current property. In…
Calvary Episcopal Church was organized in 1869 by Alexander Gregg, the first Episcopal Bishop of Texas. The local Methodist church was used one Sunday each month for services. When the Reverend John…
It was curiosity and boredom that led Frank Kiefer to leave his cake and beer stand in Independence and duck into a Baptist revival meeting in 1854. Though the German boy couldn’t…
On August 3, 1850, the First Baptist Church of Bastrop was organized with 11 members. From 1853 to 1863, the congregation shared a frame building with the Presbyterian Church and the Masonic…
First Presbyterian Church is a classic example of turn of the century architecture. Built in 1894 and completely restored in 1986, this has been a favorite for tour groups. The church houses…
Established in 1835, the First United Methodist Church constructed a wooden church in 1851 on the site of the current Church parsonage. In 1924, a new church was constructed using many elements…
LONG GONE BUT STILL REMEMBERED Fort Parker Memorial Cemetery, located near the Brazos Trail Region community of Groesbeck, is the burial site of a number of the settlers who died in the…
This Gothic Revival chapel, built in 1881-1882 at the corner of 10th and Main Streets and moved in 1955 to East University Avenue, served the congregation of the Grace Episcopal Church until…
Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, located west of Clifton, Texas, has been a spiritual cornerstone for the local Norwegian community since its founding. The church’s story began in 1854 with Cleng Peerson, known…
The Paul Quinn African Methodist Episcopal Church was established in 1876 by Reverend Joseph Morgan, reputed to have been the first African to settle in the county. On June 13, 1886, the…
Built in 1891, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church is typical of Gothic-style churches built in Great Britain. The building is composed mostly of stone with joists, beams and wainscoting from the original church…
In 1879, a handful of German-Texans moved from Frelsburg to western Falls County in search of land. The settlers, many of whom were Catholic, named their new town Westphalia – after the…
Buu Mon Buddhist temple, established in 1980, was the first Buddhist center in Beaumont, Texas. In fact, that’s where it gets its name. During its early stages, the temple moved to Orange…
The church sanctuary was erected in 1858. No significant structural changes were made, though at various times, there were such additions as a two-story Sunday School Annex, built in 1939, a partial…
This impressive structure, listed the National Register of Historic Places, is an outstanding example of classic Greek Revival architecture. Completed in 1912, it was the first air-conditioned public building west of Mississippi…
Organized in 1855, the congregation met south of Mt. Vernon and moved to the site on south Kaufman around 1875. A large frame building was constructed for the congregation in 1869; the…
The community name of Germany originated from references to a German family that settled here. The first African Americans arrived in this area as slaves. Following the Civil War, a group of…
Just over the border from Louisiana stands McMahan Chapel, the oldest Protestant church with a continuous history in Texas. The chapel was formed as a Methodist class or society in September 1833…
Oak Grove Cemetery is one of the state’s most famous cemeteries; its trees shade the graves of many legendary Texans from the Revolutionary period. Four signatories to the Texas Declaration of Independence…
The Prayer Tower, made of Indiana limestone with a Vermont slate roof, features a chapel and a 75-foot tower with four Paccard bells from France. It was dedicated to the city…
Shankleville—an east Texas freedmen’s community—is named for Jim and Winnie Shankle, who are known as the first blacks in Newton County, Texas to buy land and become local leaders after Emancipation. Both…
The 17’ bronze statue in patina color was sculptured by artist Miguel Angel Macias, from Mexico City, and Douglas Clark. It is set directly on top of rocks brought to Port Arthur…
Construction on this church started in 1903, and this Italian Renaissance revival structure was completed four years later and named in honor of Saint Anthony of Padua. It features a copper dome…
Originally built as Beaumont's First Baptist Church, the building was purchased by Captain W.C. Tyrrell and donated to the City for use as a library in the 1920's. It is an excellent…
The Zion Hill (First) Baptist Church building, located on Lanana Street was founded by the Reverend Lawson Reed in 1879. It is the senior black church of Nacogdoches, and its congregation now…
The history of this district is typical of many southern U.S. communities after the Civil War. Zion Hill was home primarily to service workers, including shop porters, servants, maids, cooks, and groundskeepers…
The Anson Jones Museum occupies the 1929 First Presbyterian Church. This museum houses artifacts to include a desk and chair used by Dr. Anson Jones in his medical practice and other local…
MISSION SAN ANTONIO DE VALERO Spain’s interest in the New World, including the territory that would one day become Texas, included colonization and expansion of Spanish rule, important instruments in achieving political…
East of San Antonio is the community of St. Hedwig. The Gothic spire of the 1868 Annunciation Church testifies to European immigrants who settled here and named the town for the patron…
This unique structure was designed, constructed and financed by African Americans in 1958 as a new home for the church's congregation that had begun meeting in a blacksmith shop in 1924. The…
Many of the headstone inscriptions at Der Stadt Friedhof Cemetery are in German. The perils of frontier life are reflected in the tombstones of individuals killed by American Indians, cholera, and Confederate…
Although the First Colored Baptist Church (now known as First Baptist Church) began as a slave congregation, it was officially organized after the Civil War in 1867 by the Rev. Jacob Fontaine…
The Cemetery sits adjacent to the Fort Sam Houston Military Post. As early as 1846, the residents of San Antonio attempted to establish a permanent military facility in their town. Remains from…
Built by the founding fathers' skill and pioneer spirit, the facility was dedicated in 1929. There are three Sunday services and various Sunday school classes. The fellowship sponsors annual events such as…
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, this historic district is the cultural and political epicenter of San Antonio. As one of the oldest permanently settled areas in the state, it…
Established in 1874, the Mt. Horeb Baptist Church served the residents of Peyton Colony, a freedmen's community named after Peyton Roberts, a former slave and one of the first freedmen to settle…
The Nameless Historic School and Cemetery capture the life style of Stephen F. Austin’s Upper Colony settlers. Both the exterior and interior are being authentically preserved to the days of the one…
NOT JUST A CHURCH BUT A MISSION Four of the five surviving Spanish colonial missions in and around San Antonio comprise the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. With the National Park…
The original national cemetery site, which was part of San Antonio’s burying ground, was donated to the U.S. government by the city in 1867. The original deed was lost and the transfer…
THE JOURNEY FROM CHURCH TO CATHEDRAL The Spanish Colonial San Fernando Cathedral, most likely completed in 1755, embodies a storied past. It was, and remains, at the heart of San Antonio, sharing…
St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church, UCC dates back to 1878. One of the early acts of the congregation was to convey an acre to establish a public school, which was constructed on…
The history of St. Martin’s Evangelical Lutheran Church closely mirrors that of Austin itself. The cornerstone for the original building was laid in 1884. In fact, bricks from the previous Capitol building…
With a congregation first organized in 1866, St. Paul United Methodist Church is one of the oldest African American churches in San Antonio. The first congregation comprised former slaves and freedmen from…
St. Stanislaus Catholic Parish is the 2nd oldest Polish Catholic Parish in the United States. The parish celebrated it's 150th anniversary in 2005.
HONORING TEXANS Pick just about any cemetery in Texas and you should be able to find someone buried there who’s worthy of an honor or two. You may even have somebody like…
John F. Webber, an Anglo, settled in this area with his African American wife and children after receiving a land grant in 1827. Webber sought to find a place where he and…
Since 1879, this location has been home to San Marcos' oldest known African American congregation, although a succession of sanctuaries have stood on this site. The church had been established for four…
Believed to be the oldest African American Catholic community in Texas, this settlement traces its history to the late 1840s, when the Spann family migrated with their slaves to the area from…
John Henry (Jack) Yates, a former slave and one of the first ordained African American Baptist ministers in Houston, was the inaugural preacher at one of Houston's oldest African American Baptist congregations…
This breathtaking structure transports visitors far away from suburban Houston to the heart of India. The mandir—a Hindu place of worship—is a true sacred space, comprised of intricate Turkish limestone and Italian…
Music was important to German religious life. In Germany, religious music had its roots in the beloved classical tradition, and church musicians were highly trained and revered. Germans carried this priority with…
This cemetery was in use well before the City of Columbus acquired it in 1870. In fact, buried within these 10 acres are many of the “Old 300” - the first American…
South of Bellville on Mill Creek is the 1887 Cumings Crypt, the burial site of Rebecca Cumings who, legend holds, was engaged to William B. Travis when he died at the Alamo.
RAISING THE RAFTERS Immigrants who poured into a post-Civil War Texas in the late 1800’s came from an atlas of different places, including the tiny country of Denmark. Many Danish immigrants settled…
Rev. Johann Ebinger first visited Berlin – a tiny rural community just outside Brenham, the Washington County seat – in December 1854. It was then that Rev. Ebinger led the town’s first…
In 1824, Martín de León settled 41 Mexican families here and named the town Guadalupe Victoria to honor the first president of the Republic of Mexico. After Texas’ independence, Anglos renamed the…
This museum sits a stone's throw from the original site of Kendleton, a freedmen's town founded shortly after the Civil War on the banks of the San Bernard River. The museum focuses…
Dedicated as a memorial park in 1836, the historic Founders Cemetery is the final resting place for some of Houston’s historical celebrities. Buried here are veterans of the Battle of San Jacinto…
Glendale Cemetery in Houston has a serene landscape of rolling hills, ravines, and the meandering Buffalo Bayou. Glendale is Harris county's oldest cemetery with its first recorded burial dating to 1839. It…
RESURRECTION IN STONE Mission Espiritu Santo, or Nuestra Senora del Espiritu Santo de Zuñiga Mission (should you wish to use its full name), was considered one of the most successful missions in…
Near the Jones Creek community, several Old Three Hundred settlers rest in Peach Point Cemetery. Stephen F. Austin, the Father of Texas, was originally buried at this pioneer cemetery in Jones Creek…
THE HEMICYCLE The Houston National Cemetery was dedicated in 1965 and designed for the internment of the remains of military veterans and service members at no cost to the surviving families. At…
In this pastoral setting, a sprawling oak stands beside the restored 1877 Immaculate Conception Church. Panna Maria (“Virgin Mary” in Polish) is where Silesian immigrants in 1854 held the first Catholic Mass…
Independence Baptist Church is perhaps best known for being where Sam Houston was baptized and attended church. Houston’s mother-in-law, Nancy Lea, donated a bell to the church in honor of his baptism…
Marked with a modest granite slab, the gravesite of 19th-century Texas statesman Juan Nepomuceno Seguín is on a hillside shaded by towering live oaks. A small sign directs visitors to the tranquil…
Established in the late 1820s, the community of Matagorda remains just south of Bay City. The grave of Samuel Rhoads Fisher, Republic of Texas secretary of the Navy and signer of the…
The monument marks the tomb of the men that died during the Dawson Massacre of September 1842 and the ill-fated Mier expedition of November 1842, also known as the “black bean” incident…
In 1793, Spanish friars built their last Texas mission nearly 30 miles northwest of here. Two years later, Nuestra Señora del Refugio (Our Lady of Refuge) Mission was relocated to present-day Refugio…
For German-Texans, the churches that dotted the prairie were their sanctuaries, their reprieve from the difficulties of frontier life. They were structurally sound, and many were quite aesthetically beautiful inside – none…
FORT DEFIANCE Presidio La Bahia, a Spanish fort near Goliad, had already been around for a while by the time its walls echoed the sounds of the Goliad Massacre of 1836. First…
The congregation traces its origins to 1848, when slaves met for outdoor services. In 1863, Anglo Methodists constructed a chapel for their slaves to use; after emancipation, it became home to African…
A tranquil meditative environment inspired by the mural canvases of Russian born American painter Mark Rothko (1903-1970), the Chapel welcomes over 60,000 visitors each year, people of every faith and from all…
This freedmen's community took its name from the St. John Missionary Baptist Church, founded in 1873, shortly after settlers led by the Rev. John Henry Winn arrived in the area. Across the…
By 1860, German Catholics constituted roughly half of Galveston’s ethnic population. Seeing a need for German-language masses, Bishop Jean Marie Odin authorized the construction of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Incredibly, the wood-frame…
Praha is a small community located on FM 1295. This Czech community is one that is known from coast to coast due to the notariety of its church: St. Mary's, Assumption of…
Towns like Weimar represent the third wave of German immigration to Texas. Founded in 1873, Weimar saw its populations shift as a result of the expanding railroad, which brought scores of Czech…
Mentz gets its name from its first settlers, who came in 1846 – Catholics from Mainz, Germany. Records show that as early as 1850 priests were riding from Frelsburg on horseback to…
Teo Chew Temple is a colorful and welcoming, but secluded temple surrounded by suburban development, Teo Chew transports visitors to Vietnam via statues and traditional architecture. Inside, guests are greeted by fragrant…
Gottfried Gerstenberger came from nearby Industry to what in the 1860s was called “Prairie Community”, followed by his parents and brother. He renamed the new community New Bielau after Langenbielau, Germany. Six…
Established in 1848 as a slave congregation, the Trinity United Methodist Church continues its service today as one of the oldest African American churches in Houston. Members of the congregation helped found…
The Vietnam Buddhist Center in Sugarland features a traditional prayer hall and lush gardens. Its focal point is an enormous 72-foot-tall statue of Quan Am, a revered bodhisattva (one who seeks awakening)…
The Deutsche Gesellschaft von Houston, founded in 1875, established the German Society Cemetery here in 1887, offering family lots and single spaces to the public. By the time the traditionally German cemetery…
In the small town of Acton, five miles outside of Granbury, a statue of Elizabeth Crockett appears to be looking for her husband in the distance. Towering over Acton Cemetery, this regal…
The Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1875, and William Sidney Pittman drew up the designs for this sanctuary in 1914. The building's design demonstrates a modified Tudor Gothic…
Dedicated in 1902 as the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, the city’s oldest Catholic Church is in the heart of the Dallas Arts District. Spanish language services are held daily, with the…
During the First World War, the United States struck a deal with its allies in Great Britain and Canada: they could use the excellent training airfields in Texas, and in return, they…
First organized in 1876, Joshua Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church took its name from the Rev. Joshua Goins, who founded AME churches throughout Texas. William Sidney Pittman designed the two-story, red-brick…
The Kaufman County “Poor Farm” is the only such site in Texas, and believed to be the only one in the United States, that is still owned by the county. The history…
Founded and promoted in 1892 by land speculators Anton and August Flusche, Lindsay is an example of a German settlement that came about because of railroad expansion. Many of the first settlers…
Organized in 1873 to minister to former slaves, this is one of the oldest African American congregations in Dallas. The distinctive red-brick structure, with its high archways and beautiful stained-glass windows, was…
Mercantile Jews, primarily from Germany, moved to Corsicana during the oil boom and constructed an unusual synagogue in 1898. Now a community meeting hall, Temple Beth-El features two onion-dome towers and remains…
EL PASO’S BOOT HILL Concordia Cemetery, resting place of famous (and infamous) El Pasoans began with the simple grave of Juana Ascarate in the 1840s, deceased wife of Chihuahuan trader Hugh Stephenson…
THE ROYAL ROAD OF THE INTERIOR At a mere nine miles, the El Paso Mission Trail’s short distance hardly represents the long and vast history found along its route. By following Socorro…
RESPONDING TO A RIVER Mission Socorro, originally given the name Misión de Nuestra Señora de la Limpia Concepción de los Piros de Socorro by Governor Diego de Vargas in 1691, was established…
Twenty-two miles to the southeast of downtown El Paso sits San Elizario, a small border town with a history spanning more than 400 years. In 1598, Don Juan de Oñate passed through…
In 1789, the Spanish military established a presidio (military garrison), which they called “San Elceario”, after the Catholic patron saint of the military. They built a chapel inside the presidio. Some forty…
The small cemetery located along the downhill slope of the Terlingua Ghost Town, a formerly abandoned quicksilver mining camp turned tourist destination and residential community for desert dwellers, may be one of…
EVERT RESTING PLACE HAS A STORY The region surrounding Van Horn was familiar territory for travelers crossing the Chihuahuan Desert region of far west Texas long before the community rose up among…
A FRANCISCAN MISSION The Spanish Colonial mission, known formally as La Misión de Corpus Christi de la Ysleta del Sur, has been serving the region’s Catholics since its establishment in 1680. The…
The descendants of escaped slaves and Florida's Seminole Indians, the Black Seminole Indian Scouts were known as unparalleled trackers and fearless combatants. The U.S. Army organized the scout unit in 1870, and…