Elgin Christian Church
Elgin, Bastrop County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Rev. B. B. Sanders assisted citizens of Elgin in organizing this congregation in 1888. Many early members came from surrounding communities. Worship services were held in the Presbyterian church until the Christian church sanctuary was built in 1892. That building was destroyed in the 1900 Texas storm, and its successor, built that same year, met the same fate in a 1915 storm. A new building was erected in 1916 and, with modifications, served until a new structure was completed in 1965. For over a century, this church has been a part of Elgin history. (1990)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Organized in 1888 with the help of the Rev. B. B. Sanders, this Christian (Disciples of Christ) congregation drew its early membership from Elgin and the farming communities around it, worshipping in the local Presbyterian church until it raised its own sanctuary in 1892. The building and its replacement were both leveled by the devastating Gulf storms of 1900 and 1915, yet the congregation rebuilt each time, erecting a lasting home in 1916 and a modern one in 1965. More than a century of worship in a Central Texas railroad town is written into that cycle of loss and renewal.
Why it matters
Small-town congregations like this one anchored community life across settlement-era Texas, and their repeated rebuilding after catastrophic storms reflects the resilience that shaped so many Gulf Coast towns.
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Related people
- · Rev. B. B. Sanders
Related events
- · 1900 Texas storm
- · 1915 storm
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Elgin Methodist Church
Elgin, TX
When this congregation organized in 1874, Elgin was a young railroad town on the central Texas prairie, and these Methodists were the first to gather a church there. A modest frame sanctuary of 1882 gave way in 1906 to the Gothic Revival building that still stands, its stairstep gable corbelling, corner pinnacles, and memorial art-glass windows the work of local contractor J. C. Miller. It is a fine example of how growing Texas towns expressed both faith and permanence in brick and colored glass.
First Presbyterian Church of Elgin
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Pleasant Grove Cemetery
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