First Methodist Church of Mesquite
Mesquite, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In 1857, prior to the incorporation of the town of Mesquite, a group of area residents began gathering occasionally for Methodist worship services led by circuit riding preacher W. K. Masten. Services were held in a nearby building known variously as the Frost Schoolhouse or the Bennett Schoolhouse. By 1863, the group had organized formally as the First Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Services continued in the schoolhouse until 1880, when charter members John L. and Lucy Futrell deeded this land to the congregation for the construction of a church building. Soon a small wood-frame structure was erected. Later damaged by a storm, it was rebuilt in 1900. In 1887 when the town of Mesquite was incorporated, charter member J. E. Russell became the town's first mayor, and the downtown area began to develop near the church site. As the population of Mesquite increased, so did the congregation, and several progressively larger sanctuaries were built after 1916 to accommodate its growth. Because of denominational mergers, the congregation changed its name to the First Methodist Church of Mesquite in 1939, and to the First United Methodist Church of Mesquite in 1968.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Methodist worship began near Mesquite in 1857, before the town existed, when circuit rider W. K. Masten led services in a local schoolhouse. Formally organized by 1863 as the First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, the congregation received land from charter members John and Lucy Futrell in 1880 and raised a frame church that anchored the growing downtown. Denominational mergers reshaped its name over the decades, and it grew into a series of ever-larger sanctuaries.
Why it matters
Begun by a traveling circuit preacher before the town itself took root, this congregation shows how frontier Methodism often laid the first civic cornerstone of a community.
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Related people
- · W. K. Masten
- · John L. Futrell
- · Lucy Futrell
- · J. E. Russell
Themes & tags
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