Paul's Union Church
La Marque, Galveston County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Established about 1895 by Laura Stewart and Julia Parr Munson, this church is distinguished by a history of strong community involvement. The congregation has been led by various Methodist, Presbyterian, and other Protestant clergy and has served an interdenominational congregation throughout its history. The site of the original church building, destroyed in the 1900 storm, became a cemetery in which many of the storm's victims were buried. Services were held at B. F. Ayers' home until a new structure was built adjacent to the cemetery about 1913. The church incorporated as La Marque Union Protestant Church in 1927. A new sanctuary was completed in 1933 with the help of Mrs. Paul Naschke. Her financial assistance was extended on the condition the church be named after her late husband, a well-known local photographer and contributor to church affairs. The church was renamed Paul's Union Church in 1933. Various community groups, including La Marque's Garden Club and its civic club, used church facilities. Led by a devoted clergy, the church was able to support a missionary to South America, aid victims of the 1947 Texas City disaster, and lead a 1949 anti-gambling crusade in Galveston County. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845 - 1995
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded around 1895 by Laura Stewart and Julia Parr Munson, this La Marque congregation served an interdenominational community led over the years by Methodist, Presbyterian, and other Protestant clergy. Its first building was destroyed in the catastrophic 1900 Galveston storm, and the site became a cemetery for many of the storm's victims. Rebuilt and later renamed Paul's Union Church in 1933 in honor of photographer Paul Naschke, it remained a center of community life and relief work.
Why it matters
The church's story—shaped by two women founders, the deadly 1900 hurricane, and decades of interdenominational service—reflects the resilience and communal spirit of the Texas Gulf Coast.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In the 1890s the mainland shore across the bay from Galveston was a scattering of small farming communities, and La Marque was one of them. Galveston was then one of the most important ports in Texas, and the settlements on the mainland lived in its orbit. Churches were among the first institutions these small communities built.
In September 1900 a hurricane struck Galveston and the surrounding coast. It is still the deadliest natural disaster in American history, killing thousands of people. The mainland communities suffered too. Buildings were swept away and families were lost. The storm reshaped the whole upper Texas coast, physically and emotionally.
In the decades that followed, the region was transformed by industry, especially petroleum and chemical plants around Texas City. That brought jobs and growth, and also new dangers. In April 1947 a ship loaded with ammonium nitrate fertilizer exploded in the Texas City harbor. The blast and the fires that followed killed hundreds of people, and it is remembered as one of the worst industrial disasters in U.S. history.
People & events
This church began with two women. Laura Stewart and Julia Parr Munson founded it around 1895, at a time when women seldom got credit for building institutions. From the start it was an unusual congregation. Rather than belonging to one denomination, it served Protestants of many kinds, led over the years by Methodist, Presbyterian and other clergy.
Then the 1900 storm destroyed the first church building. In one of the most moving details on any Texas marker, the ground where it had stood became a cemetery, and many of the storm's victims were buried there. For years afterward the congregation met in the home of B. F. Ayers, until a new church was built next to the cemetery around 1913. The church incorporated in 1927 as La Marque Union Protestant Church.
In 1933 a new sanctuary was finished with help from Mrs. Paul Naschke. She offered her support on one condition: the church had to be named for her late husband, Paul Naschke, a well-known local photographer who had been active in church affairs. That is how the congregation became Paul's Union Church. In the years that followed it supported a missionary to South America, helped victims of the 1947 Texas City disaster, and in 1949 led a campaign against gambling in Galveston County. Community groups, including La Marque's garden club and civic club, also used its facilities.
Its place in the American story
Paul's Union Church shows how small-town churches have long served as more than houses of worship. Across America, congregations like this one did the work of community centers, relief agencies and civic organizations, especially in places too small to have many other institutions.
Its story also connects to two of the great disasters in American history. The 1900 Galveston hurricane changed how the nation thought about coastal danger and led to major protective works on the island. The 1947 Texas City explosion became a lasting lesson about the hazards of industrial materials. Local churches were part of the human response to both, burying the dead, sheltering survivors and raising aid.
The church's anti-gambling crusade ties into a colorful chapter of Texas history. For years Galveston was known for open, illegal gambling that local authorities largely tolerated. Campaigns by churches and reformers were part of the long push that eventually brought it to an end. And the congregation's founding by two women is a reminder that women's leadership built countless American communities long before women held formal power in public life.
If you visit
Take your time at the cemetery beside the church. Knowing that this ground holds victims of the 1900 storm changes how the place feels. It is quiet and ordinary-looking, yet it marks one of the most tragic days in the history of the Gulf Coast. Please visit respectfully.
Look around for signs of the church's long life as a community gathering place. A congregation that outlasted a hurricane, rebuilt more than once, and served groups from the garden club to disaster relief tends to leave that sense of shared use behind in its buildings and grounds.
Paul's Union Church fits well into a Gulf Coast history drive. Pair it with Galveston, where museums and historic sites tell the story of the 1900 storm, and with Texas City, where the 1947 disaster is remembered. Together they make a sobering and memorable day about resilience on the Texas coast.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
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Related people
- · Laura Stewart
- · Julia Parr Munson
- · Paul Naschke
Related events
- · 1900 Galveston hurricane
- · 1947 Texas City disaster
Themes & tags
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