Introduction
In the Beginning
The Beginning of Methodism
The First Methodist Church Building: 1883-1895
The Second Methodist Church Building: 1895-1917
The Third Methodist Church Building 1917-1964
The Fourth Methodist Church Building: 1964 to the Present
The Addition of Heritage Hall
The Church Renovation Project: 1999-2000
The Church Bell
The Time Capsule
Little Children's Daycare
Sunday School Superintendents
In Closing
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For several years the urgent need for a growing church membership had been much on the hearts and thoughts of the members. Under the pastorate of W.H. Doss, a magnificent new three-story brick building was built, specified to cost not less than $15,000. The building committee was composed of W.C. Streety, Dr. A.M. Allen, and E.E. Dabney. On the finance committee were K.B. Wilson, Dr. A.M. Allen, F.E. Carter, W. J. Hollomon, A.H. Pate, W.P. Weaver, and W.W. Nance.
The last service was held in the old house March 26, 1917. Monday, March 25, demolition of the old building began and construction on the new one was begun. The cornerstone was laid May 7, 1917, and a large crowd was present. Rev. W.C. Hillburn, a former pastor, led in a prayer of thanksgiving, after which presiding elder the Rev. S. J. Vaughan delivered an impressive address. The cornerstone was then ceremoniously laid in due and ancient form by the local Masonic Lodge. Russell Rice lettered the stone, and in it were lovingly placed old records of the first churches, some copies of the DeLeon Free Press, a list of the Board of Stewards, and, significantly, the first dollar raised for the financing of that church, given by Lucille Dabney. The first service was held in the new church on September 9, 1917.
Dedication ceremonies were scheduled for May of 1926, but there was still $2,000 indebtedness to be paid. The story goes that, "Mrs. May Whaley and Mrs. W. P. Weaver put on their "fighting shoes" sometime in the spring of 1926 and went out to raise the needed funds. They asked 15 men for $100 each and a lot of others for smaller amounts until the necessary funds were in hand."
Bishop John H. Moore dedicated the church on the first Sunday in May 1926, and the mortgage was ceremoniously burned. The pastor was the Rev. Seba Kirkpatrick.
The sanctuary had beautiful oak pews, stained glass windows inscribed with the names of those whose gifts made them possible, and balconies on the west and north sides. There was a choir loft fronted by maroon velvet curtains gathered on large brass rods. The pulpit stood directly at the northwest apex of the sanctuary, and the oak floors slanted toward it. There were two entrances, with matching sets of steps on the outside east front of the building. The doors at the southeast front opened into a spacious square foyer. The steps at the north front entrance led to a smaller foyer, which accessed the stairway to the balconies; and another door, which accessed the sanctuary. Underneath the balconies at the sanctuary floor level, there was theatre-type seating for Sunday School rooms. Wooden oak roll-up doors separated the Sunday school rooms from one another and the regular sanctuary.
The basement had not yet been finished when the church was first occupied. The basement still had a dirt floor, and a coal-burning furnace heated the church through numerous metal gratings in the sanctuary floor. Finishing work on the basement began by paving it with cement squares, each inscribed with the names of members who donated for the cost of each square. Finished in the late 1920s, the much-needed space was put to immediate use. There were Sunday School rooms for the children, a "Cradle-roll Department" for infants and toddlers, rest rooms, a kitchen, and an open area for dining and recreational activities -- the first "fellowship hall." The first classroom to be finished was a large, long room at the front of the basement. It was used by the Men's Bible Class, which was taught by Dr. A.M. Allen for many years; the Women's' Missionary Society; and the Epworth League youth groups. In this classroom was a piano Mrs. W.C. Streety brought from her home and donated to be used. The coal furnace was removed from the basement and open gas heaters spaced along the sanctuary walls heated the building. Ceiling fans obtained from the renovation of the old Baker Hotel in Dallas were installed. The church was truly built for a growing, active, church program, and was joyfully shared for community activities.
The Sanctuary was the site for DeLeon High School Baccalaureate and Graduation events, Armistice Day programs, Mrs. A. P. Schmidt's students' Piano Recitals, and Miss May Whaley's "Expression Class" Recitals. After 1926, the Baptist Church built a new sanctuary, and the school events were rotated between the two churches.
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