Grace Presbyterian Church
Greenville, Hunt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
According to local oral tradition this congregation was organized in 1863 as the Cumberland Presbyterian Church by the Rev. John Nicholson, making it the oldest Presbyterian church in Greenville. The first church structure, built on Washington Street, was relocated to the corner of Wesley and Henry Streets in 1902. The congregation was renamed Grace Presbyterian Church in 1908. In need of larger facilities, the members built a new sanctuary at this site in 1966. This congregation actively sponsors area charity and relief programs and numerous missionary efforts. (1993)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
By local tradition this congregation was organized in 1863 as a Cumberland Presbyterian church by the Rev. John Nicholson, making it the oldest Presbyterian body in Greenville. Its first building on Washington Street was moved across town in 1902, and the congregation took the name Grace Presbyterian Church in 1908. Needing more room, the members built a new sanctuary at this site in 1966.
Why it matters
Founded amid the Civil War, the church reflects how frontier Texas communities planted lasting institutions of faith even in the hardest years.
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Related people
- · John Nicholson
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Wesley United Methodist Church
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Created in 1846, Hunt County set its seat at a spot donated by surveyor McQuinney Howell Wright and named it Greenville for Texas independence veteran Thomas J. Green. Unusually for north central Texas, the county voted for secession, and Greenville endured hardship, violence, and federal occupation through the Civil War and Reconstruction. The arrival of the Missouri, Kansas and Texas railroad in 1880 transformed the town into a cotton-shipping powerhouse, complete with banks, streetcars, and Texas's first municipally owned electric utility.