First Christian Church
Albany, Shackelford County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In December 1886, evangelist J. P. Pinkerton led 26 people from 19 families to found this church. Members met in the Shackelford County Courthouse. Miss Betty Parker then gave $50 to buy land for a one-room frame building completed in January 1889 at South Third and Pecan. In 1920, the church sold that property to the American Legion, when Mrs. J. W. Eaheart donated land at South Second and Walnut. The new church, which included a fellowship hall and seven Sunday school rooms, was dedicated on September 11, 1921. The church was remodeled and enlarged in 1953. A congregation of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), this pioneer Albany church continues to witness and worship here, and to serve this community.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In December 1886 evangelist J.P. Pinkerton gathered 26 people from 19 families to found this congregation, which first met in the Shackelford County Courthouse. A $50 gift bought land for a one-room frame church completed in 1889, and by 1921 the growing congregation dedicated a larger building with a fellowship hall and Sunday school rooms. A church of the Disciples of Christ, it has worshiped in Albany for well over a century.
Why it matters
Pioneer churches were often the first organized institutions in newly settled West Texas towns, anchoring community life long before permanent civic buildings arrived.
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Related people
- · J.P. Pinkerton
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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