First Christian Church of McKinney
McKinney, Collin County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This congregation was formed on April 1, 1848, when about 20 persons gathered to worship at the home of Nancy and Joseph Bryson Wilmeth (1807-1892). After a picnic lunch, the group journeyed about two miles south of the Wilmeth cabin to the new county seat of McKinney. Desiring that the first institution in the town be a religious body, they met at the present site of the courthouse square and formally organized the First Christian Church. Members worshiped first in an unfinished barn and later in Collin County's log courthouse. Lay preachers who conducted services included Wilmeth and James Sanford Muse (1804-1878), both of whom had studied under Alexander Campbell, one of the founders of the Christian Church. Members of this congregation erected their first church building in 1858 and shared the small frame structure with other denominations. In the tradition of the day, men sat on the side of the sanctuary and women of the other. Despite the hardships of frontier life and the chaos of the Civil War, this fellowship grew and flourished. In 1872 the Rev. R.C. Horn became the first full-time pastor. Members erected their second church building in 1897 and in 1970 dedicated the present facility. (1978)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
On April 1, 1848, about twenty worshippers gathered at the Wilmeth home, then traveled to the new county seat of McKinney determined that its first institution be a church, organizing the First Christian Church on the future courthouse square. They met at first in an unfinished barn and the log courthouse, led by lay preachers who had studied under Alexander Campbell, a founder of the Christian Church. Despite frontier hardship and the upheaval of the Civil War, the fellowship endured, calling its first full-time pastor in 1872 and raising successive church buildings over the following century.
Why it matters
The congregation's founding alongside McKinney itself shows how faith communities were woven into the very creation of frontier Texas county seats.
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Related people
- · Joseph Bryson Wilmeth
- · James Sanford Muse
- · Alexander Campbell
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
First Presbyterian Church of McKinney
McKinney, TX
Organized in 1874 at the home of local physician Dr. E.N. McAuley, this was the first congregation in Collin County tied to the Presbyterian Church in the United States, a Southern denomination born during the Civil War. From eighteen charter members it grew steadily, outgrowing a modest frame chapel and a brick sanctuary before settling into its present home in 1966, still ringing a bell cast for the fellowship in its earliest years.
Howell House
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The Howell House stands on land granted in 1845 to Edward Bradley, a member of the Peters Colony that drew settlers into North Texas. His daughter Mary Ann inherited the property, and her husband, merchant Daniel Howell, built the first part of this home in 1861-62 — much of its cypress lumber hauled by wagon all the way from Jefferson. Four generations of the family occupied and enlarged the house over the years.
Fox-Caldwell House
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Built in 1915 by George W. and Lula Fox, this house reflects the Prairie School style then sweeping American design, with its low hipped roof, deep eaves, boxed rafters, and a wraparound porch echoing the horizontal lines above. George Fox, descended from a pioneer Collin County family, worked as a local Realtor and county official. In 1922 the prominent Caldwell family bought the home, giving it the second half of its name.
John Martin House
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Local architect and builder John M. Martin erected this house for himself around 1880, showcasing the Queen Anne style then sweeping American towns. Its asymmetrical form, varied wall surfaces, and octagonal-roofed upper bay — said to be a Martin signature — reflect the fashionable eclecticism of the Gilded Age, finished with milled porch details drawn from the Eastlake style. Martin sold the home in 1908 and left McKinney.