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Churches of Hearn Texas Robertson County TX
If you can would like to add your family's website, tombstone photos, obits or family photos County Coordinator Jane KepplerCounty Co-Coordinator Jean Huot Smoorenburg
METHODIST CHURCH
The
congregation that worships in the Methodist Church on the corner of
First and
Magnolia Streets has reason to be grateful to those pioneers in the
faith who
blazed the trail for religious privileges under circumstances that
often were
extremely trying to men's souls.
History
of the planting of Methodism dates back to the year 1870 when Horace
Bishop, a
young Missionary Methodist preacher, was appointed to the Hearne and
Sutton
charges from the Northwest Texas Conference meeting at Waxahachie. At that time this charge was in the Corsicana
district which
extended to the South line of Robertson and Leon counties.
When
Horace Bishop arrived, Hearne was a new railroad town and Sutton was
not on the
map. There was no church building
of any kind, so young Bishop made arrangements to hold his first
service in Joe
Lambert's Saloon, using the upstairs of this building because the
saloon owner
would not allow anything to stop his business conducted on the ground
floor.
There was no Methodist membership in Hearne at this time but
there were a
few families here that had been Methodist in their former locations.
Mrs. Horatio Hearne, Mrs. Wash Hearne, Gideon Wilkerson and
Nathan
Kilgore were the first Methodist that Mr. Bishop contacted upon his
arrival in
Hearne and from this small group he started a Methodist Church in
Hearne.
These
were very trying days for the Missionary-minded young Methodist
preacher in a
young frontier town that was known to be wide open to gambling and a
meeting
place for many who had little or no regard for law and order. After holding services for three months in Joe Lambert's Saloon, a small school building was built and churches were allowed to hold services in this building. A Sunday School was organized and with the help of a Dr. Carrington (an Episcopalian), Mrs. Will Hearne (an Episcopalian), Mr. Will Hearne, A Brazos Bottom planter and business man, Nathan Kilgore, and Gideon Wilkerson. Kilgore was made Superintendent of the Sunday School and Wilkerson teacher of the Bible Class. Miss Sallie Powell was appointed teacher of a young ladies class and her sister, Miss Fannie Powell, was given a class of children.
In
1885 the Methodist congregation built a church building of their own on
the
corner of Magnolia and First Streets. At
that time, Hearne and Calvert were on the same charge, and Seth Ward,
who later
was elected Bishop, was sent to this station the year the church was
built.
Old timers recall that before the church was a year old a storm
moved it
off its blocks and three feet south of its original location.
New pillars were put under the church and it was allowed to
remain on the
spot to which it had shifted.
In
the old records of the church for 1893 and 1894, appear names of
members of some
Hearne families whose decendaiits continue to carry on the church.
Prominent on the record is the name of W. A. "Uncle" Billy
Craig, who was elected Steward in 1893. Dr.
H. W. Cummings, a pioneer Hearne doctor, was also a board member for
many years.
Other familiar names on the church roster are the Craigs, the
Cummings,
the Waltmons, the Moseleys, the Shaws, the W. A. Scotts, the Kirkseys,
the J. E.
Cooks, the Welchs, the Rodells, Mrs. Mastyn Brack, the H. K. Davis
family and
many others. Listed in order are those who have been known to Hearne since the first pastor, Horace Bishop, planted the seed that was to grow and prosper through the years; Seth Ward, C. M. Keith, A. J. Anderson, T. S. Williford, S. H. Morgan, W. W. Horner, G. H. Phair, C. E. Farrington, T. S. Williford (second time), A. C. Biggs, J. A. Kenny, M. L. Lindsey, J. C. Carr, L. H. McGee, Harry Hayes, R. S. Marshall, I. T. Andrews, A. A. Wagnon, J. C. Cooper, E. W. Solomon, T. Walter Moore, J. W. Goodwin, Leifeste, Hal Cunningham, T. Miller Smith, and H. E. Floyd.
FIRST
BAPTIST CHURCH
The
First Baptist Church has a long and stirring history which began in
1869 when
the first congregation was organized, and was first known as Hearne
Station
Baptist Church.
The
following is a copy of the minutes of the first meeting with charter
members,
copied from the original church clerk's book:
ORGANIZATION OF THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH,
After
a sermon, preached by Elder J. N. May, a Presbytery was organized,
consisting of
S. G. Thomas, T. S. Allen, D. P. Everett, J. N. May and W. G. Williams
to
organize a Baptist Church by calling Elder D. P. Everett as Sec. When
the
foregoing articles of faith and covenant were read and adopted, prayer
by Elder
T. S. Allen charge by S. G. Thomas, on motion and second, the church
was called
Hearne Station Baptist Church. Brother
Henry Vernon was appointed clerk pro tem. The
following members went into organization, viz: W. G. Williams, L. S.
Knight,
Taina Echols, Henry Vernon, Sister Virginia Echols, Sister Martha
Echols, Sister
Judy Echols, Sister Helena
Echols, Sister Josephine P. Vernon, and Sister Ellen H. Knight.
Time of meeting, 3rd Sabbath on Sat. before.
The
early struggles of this faithful band is a most interesting story. As to the progress made by the church for the
next two years
history does not record, but we find that on September 23, 1871,
Reverend Edward
F. Thiving preached from the text Matt. 18:20, "For where two or three
are
gathered together in My Name, there I am in the midst of them."
From
this time on the records show a steady increasing membership.
On September 19, 1877, we find the record of a revival meeting
beginning
in the new church under the able leadership of Reverend W. E. Penn.
A large increase in membership resulted from this revival, many
of whom
were faithful workers through the years. Of
this original group prominent members were Mr. and Mrs. Heny Lewis and
Dr. Henry
Parnell and others.
The
church was organized in what was then the Masonic Hall which was
located at the
intersection of Davis and Magnolia Streets but just opposite west of
the present
church site. At one time the church
was located on the corner of Magnolia and First Streets just east of
the present
Methodist Church building.
The
present church building was begun and completed under the leadership of
Reverend
Hulen Carrol, pastor from 1905 to 1909 and Rev.
Isenhower who followed Reverend Carroll.
In
1918, Reverend C. E. Bullock was called as pastor and under his
leadership the
church grew in numbers and interest. In
1933 the church erected the first Educational Building as the result of
Brother
Bullock's untiring efforts.
Following
is a list of early pastors of the church; Rev.
Allen, Rev. Raines, Rev.
Twain, Rev. Bell, Rev.
Figh, Rev. Muse, Rev.
Joe Stephens, Rev. Lumpkin,
Rev. Hulen Carroll, Rev.
Isenhower, Rev. W. A. Bowen, Rev. Frazier,
and Rev. Bullock.
Later pastors were: Rev. 0. G. Barrow, Rev.
Tilson F. Maynard, Rev. A.
E. Riemann, Rev. R. L. Brown, and
Rev. Buford Harrel. Listed among the early church members were: Mrs. J. P. Ayres, Mr. and Mrs. George M. Williams, Mrs. Lelia Harding, Mrs. R. L. Green, John W. Green, Mrs. R. Boswell, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Ely, Mr. and Mrs. R. M. McCarver, Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Jett, Mr. and Mrs. John New Iudge and Mrs. A. G. Cobb, Mrs. Mary Welch, Mr. and Mrs. H. A. Ely, Mr. and Mrs. J. G. Ely, Mr. and Mrs. W. S. Hoyt Sr., Mrs. Beulah Brown, John Luke, judge J. Felton Lane, Mr. and Mrs. John H. Moss, Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Oliver, Mrs. E. C. Vaughan, Mr. and Mrs. D. B. Carrington, and Mr. and Mrs. W. C. Allen.
ST.
MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH
Sometime
in the 1870's the International & Great Northern Railroad Company
erected
St. Theressa's Hospital in Hearne. This
hospital was erected on the top
of a high hill east of the H. & T. C. Railroad near the stone quary
and near
what was then known as the Ward's home. Near
the hospital was a rough frame building which served as a church and a
residence
for the Sisters of Charity who had charge of the hospital.
When these buildings were dedicated, a number of members of the
Catholic
faith came by special train to Hearne, bringing a choir and organ to
celebrate
the christening.
Dr.
Edward A. Pye was asked to take charge of the hospital and in the fall
of 1872
he moved his family to Hearne. When
the terminus of the H. & T. C. Railroad moved to Groesbeck, the
Sisters of
Charity returned to Galveston and the building was sold to a Negro
congregation
for use as a chapel called "The Little Flock Church." This
building was located on the corner of Brenken and Live Oak Streets.
When
the Yellow Fever epidemic broke in Calvert in 1873, Dr. Pye went to
help the
unfortunate people there, losing his own life when he contracted this
dread
disease. Dr. Pye's wife was allowed
to go to his bedside when he was dying, although a strict quarantine
was
observed. Both died within a
fortnight.
The
railroad company donated a building lot to the church and on this lot a
chapel
was built and used for a while. This
building finally succumbed to the ravages of time and its use was
discontinued
in 1893. During 1893 Father Thomas
Keany, residing at that time in Burlington, Milam County, Texas, was
appointed
by Bishop N. A. Gallager of Galveston to visit the Hearne Catholics
every month
and Mass was celebrated in the William Crenan home.
Under
the guidance of Father Keany, the Catholics of Hearne built a chapel. While the chapel was in course of erection,
Father Keany was
moved to the Gulf Coast area and his successor was Father P. Bienman
under whose
leadership the building was completed. In
1897, Father Gustav Wiese was appointed as resident priest.
For about four months he continued his work and was then
transferred to a
parish in the Tours Settlement.
In
December, 1897, Father J. B. Gleissner came to Hearne as priest.
In 1898 a neat rectory was built by his good people.
Missions attached to Hearne were Mexia, Calvert, Rockdale,
Caldwell,
Milamo, and Franklin. Father Gleissner
continued his pastoral work until March 24,
1904 when he was placed in charge of St. Joseph's Church in Bryan.
Fathers
Spinnweber, J. J. Gallager, and George Hynes were at Hearne following
Father
Gleissner's removal to Bryan.
After
a few years during which the above named priests ministered in Hearne
and
Missions, the Bishop appointed Father Gleissner to again take care of
Hearne and
Calvert.
On
February 8, 1935, the church building located on the corner of East
Fourth and
San Antonio Streets was destroyed by a windstorm.
During the period from the time this church building was
destroyed until
the new church was built on the corner of Cypress and First Streets,
the
communicants of St. Mary's Catholic Church used the facilities of St.
Philips
Episcopal Church. Some of the earliest families of the Roman Catholic Church faith to move to Hearne were: the Crenans, the Bradys, the Currys, the Martins, the Rileys, the Connors, and the Teelings.
ST.
PHILIPS EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Organized
religion had its beginning in Hearne in a little Union Church Building
erected
in 1870. This church building,
which was located on the corner of Barton and Post Oak Streets, was
used by the
churches of all faiths. It was in
this Union building that the first Episcopal service was held by The
Reverend J.
W. Philips. From the Mother Church
at Matagorda, Texas had come the Wadsworth and Brashear families, and
around
these families for many years centered the Episcopal Church activities. Personal interest in these two church families
of old
Matagorda lineage actuated Bishop Gregg in supplying this group with
the
services of Father J. Cooper Waddill of Matagorda to minister to the
infant
mission.
Under
the leadership of Father Waddill, the mission grew and in 1873 erected
and
occupied its own church building on a site donated by the New York gc
Texas Land
Company, and which site has been retained by the mission and on which
the
present church building stands. The
communicants of the Episcopal Church chose to name this mission St.
Philips
Episcopal Church, honoring the patron St. Philip and the church's first
Vicar,
The Rev. J. W. Philips.
Following
Father Waddill in 1875 came Father Edwin Wickins, who carried forward
the work
to 1880 leaving the mission on a firm footing.
Father Sherrod W. Kennerley, an aged clergyman, came then, and
left the
work in 1882. Then followed
intermittent incumbencies of the following: the Reverend Messrs. F. N. Atkins, Harry Cassil, M.
Wilson DeHart, W. K. Lloyd, C. P. Dorsett, William Jeffreys, W. L. Smith, Edgar Sherrod, J. W. Davis and J. W.
Swann, all of whom
carried on the church work here, in connection with other neighboring
parishes
and missions.
These
many years have been filled with many blessings and almost as many
viscissitudes.
The mission grew as the town developed, but the communicant list
of those
years was largely transient. The
mission record reflected alternately a feast or famine as to
communicants.
In
1912 a small legacy by a devoted churchwoman became the nucleus of a
building
fund, which was augmented by the heroic efforts of the women's
auxiliary.
During the time that the Reverend W. W. Daup was in charge of
St. Philips
Church, the old church building was razed and the present churchly
brick chapel
was erected.
An
unusual feature of this building was the completion and furnishing of
it without
incurring debt.
From
1914 to 1917 the Reverend J. H. Randolph Ray, then Rector of St.
Andrew's Church
of Bryan, and then later Rector of the Church of Transfiguration (The
Little
Church Around The Corner) in New York, served this congregation. The succeeding eight years were served by the
following: The
Reverend Messrs. H. B. M. Jamison,
Sidney Dixon, Samuel Rainey, and H. R. Zeigler. The
Reverend Mr. Sidney Dixon was a resident, the others
supplying from Calvert or Bryan. In
1925, the Reverend J. Parker Love served St. Philips as well as
supplying
missions at Cameron and Rockdale. In
1934 and 1935 the Reverend Homer Neville Tinker served St. Philips and
Epiphany
Church at Calvert. Other priests
who have served St. Philips since then are: The Reverends Messrs.
John McKee, Frederick McKinney, James Butler, Meade Brown,
Horace W.
Fairbrother, Jim McKeown, and Warren F. Merritt. As one goes into the church building, he sees the many memorials given in loving memory of so many of Hearne's earlier citizens. The Cross, candlesticks, missal, the beautiful silver chalice and paten, and the Credence Shelf, the organ and Altar are all memorials given to the church in memory of some former communicant. Hearne people will remember with fond affection Mrs. Sarah Wadsworth Wilkerson, Mrs. Bertie Brashear was also one of the church pioneer founders, and other old-timers include "Uncle Billy" and Mrs. Mattie Henson, Miss Mollie Wadsworth, Mrs. Valesca Steffan Marshall, and J. W. Harlock. Mr. Henry Schultz was one of the earliest church organists.
HEARNE
CHURCH OF CHRIST
The
Hearne Church of Christ was organized in May 1929 when a small group of
Hearne
citizens of this faith met in a downtown building on Third Street. The group that composed the charter members
included: Mr. and
Mrs. Mike Yankie, Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Blackmon, Mr. and Mrs. E. C. Cobb,
Mrs.
Melton McNair, Mrs. Harvey S. Spiller, Mrs. G. H. Blackmon, Mrs. D. R.
Melton,
Mrs. J. T. White, Oxsheer Cobb, and John Henry Reagan.
Others who contributed to the early day organization of the
church in
Hearne were: J. T. White, Melton McNair, D. R. Melton, Mr. and Mrs. J.
E. Ewing,
Mr. and Mrs. J. F. Mathews, Mr. and Mrs. W. W. McIlroy, Mr. and Mrs.
Jess
Reagan, and Mr. and Mrs. C. K. Oden.
After
the church was organized in the business building located on Third
Street in the
downtown section, services were held regularly at this location.
Later on the church was moved to the Hostrasser building on
Magnolia
Street and remained at this location until the first church building
was
constructed on the corner of East Evans and San Felipe Streets.
The first service in this new building was held November 5, 1939.
The church did not have a full time minister at the
time the building was completed, but later A. D. Martin assumed the
duties as
the first minister.
Other
ministers who have served the Hearne Church of Christ are: F. B.
Shepherd,
Raymond Whittington, John Haygood, M. L. T. Jackson, H. I. Taylor, Bill
Manning,
Charles Garner, R. L. Nolen, Calvert H. Wylie, Lewis Case, Joe Burton,
and Syd
Wyatt. In 1955, the congregation of the Hearne Church of Christ constructed a beautiful church building on the corner of Live Oak and Barton Streets. This building was completed during the time that Joe Burton was minister and the first service was held in the new building November 6, 1955.
OLD
HISTORICAL CHURCH
In
1874 Charles H. Raymond wrote an interesting letter about Harrison Owen
and his
"Historical Church." Excerpts from the letter follow:
"I
understand that you take an interest in the old soldiers of Texas. There is one veteran still living, in 1874,
who is engaged,
as I learn, in the noble enterprise of erecting a "Historical Church"
in Robertson County near Hearne, of whom I love to think and speak.
He is Harrison Owen. I once
settled in Robertson County. I took
up my lodging with Harrison Owen. He
supplied the table with wild turkey and venison.
His wife prepared it to the satisfaction of the most fastidious
taste. He always kept a good horse.
He had a splendid rifle, and was an unerring marksman.
Harrison Owen was among the foremost to respond to the call of
the
bleeding frontier, and to drive back our savage foes."
The
"Historical Church" is said to have been the repository of a complete
history of Texas from its colonization by the North Americans to its
annexation
to the United States. This church
was said to have been located near Hearne.
The dimensions of Anniversary Hall were 40 x 80 feet, 3200
square feet
with an additional apartment to be added and to be used as a library.
Books
of record on this church were kept. The
ground had been donated by an old Confederate veteran, Colonel Harrison
Owen,
for the temple. The foundation had been laid, and a part of the superstructure already built by Colonel Owen, with the help of a few Confederate veterans and the public. Colonel Owen sent out the following notice; "We earnestly appeal to our fellow citizens for assistance in completing this church. The Houston & Texas Central Railroad Company and the International & Great Northern Railroad Company came forward nobly to our assistance. We appeal to the ladies of the entire community in behalf of the Historical Church." This appeal was signed by the following: W. F. Williams, Andrew McMillian, E. N. Eubanks, E. Q. Haley, J. H. Collard, Robert Crawford, Harrison Owen, and William L. Glass.
Used with permission of Norman Lowell McCarver, Jr. These electronic pages may not be reproduced in any format by other organizations or individuals. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material must obtain the written consent of McCarver family relatives.
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Page Modified: 19 November 2019
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