USA > Texas > Harris County > Houston > A thumb-nail history of the city of Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1836 to the year 1912 > Part 7
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mittee" was formed in May of 1837. There is no record of their executing any frauds, or of anything else they did. No doubt their very existence warned away frauds and thus accomplished what they de- sired without further exertion on their part.
The first church to secure a permanent foothold in Houston was the Methodist, which perfected an organization in 1837, the year after the founding of Houston. That year the Allens donated to the Methodist brethren the half block on the north side of Texas avenue between Travis and Milam streets. The establishment of Methodism here was almost entirely the work of one individual, the late honored and revered Charles Shearn. Mr. Shearn was a most earnest and devout Christian and devoted his life to the advancement of his church. He brought from New Orleans, at his personal expense, a min- ister of the gospel, gave him a home in his own house, and was mainly responsible for the establish- ment, growth and influence of the Methodist church here. In later years he gave largely, both in time and money, to the church cause, and after the war he built, almost entirely with his own money, the church on Texas avenue, afterwards torn down when the site was sold. When the valuable prop- erty on Texas avenue was disposed of, and, having money, the congregation determined to build an imposing edifice, they put up a magnificent build- ing on Main street and so far forgot their old bene- factor, in the days of their prosperity, that his name was dropped entirely and Shearn Church became
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the First Methodist Church. The writer is not a member of the Methodist church, and probably it is a bit of impertinence for him to express an opin- ion on the subject, but the temptation is too strong to resist. The dropping of the name of the good old saint who did so much for the church and who, unaided and almost alone, placed it on its feet and guided it on the way to prosperity, was an act by the side of which the proverbial ingratitude of re- publics sinks into insignificance. The First Pres- byterian church was organized in the Senate cham- ber of the Capitol building in 1838. Though a church organization was perfected in 1838, no ef- fort was made to erect a church building until '1843. One reason for the delay was, no doubt, the fact that the Allens had stipulated that all churches should have free use of the site on Capitol and Main until they secured building sites of their own, when the property should revert to the Presbyterians for their sole use. Although, by 1843, all the various churches did not have permanent homes of their own, most of them were making active efforts to secure them, so the Presbyterians determined to build. Early in the year a canvass was made, funds secured, and the same year the First Presbyterian church was erected on Main street near the corner of Capitol. It was a large frame building, facing Main street, and was used by the congregation for many years, or until destroyed by fire in 1859.
When the congregation erected a new building they used brick and faced the church on Capitol street. Services were held there until, in 1879, the
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building cracked badly and was declared to be un- safe. The building was to all intents and purposes torn down and restored, thus making it safe. The congregation moved into their restored building early in 1880, the first sermon being preached by their new pastor, Rev. E. D. Junkin, who in ad- dition to being a most eloquent and Christian gen- tleman, had the distinction of being the brother-in- law of the famous Confederate General Stonewall Jackson.
Dr. Junkin's successor was Rev. Dr. Wm. Hayne Leavell. Dr. Leavell resigned in 1906 and was suc- ceeded by the Rev. Dr. Wm. States Jacobs, the present pastor.
The Presbyterians have had fewer pastors than any of the other churches, yet few as they have had, they have lost two by sea tragedies. In 1858 Rev. Mr. Ruthvan was lost at sea. He was going from Galveston to New Orleans on the ill-fated Nauti- lus, which was lost in a great storm that swept the gulf. All the passengers and crew were lost with the exception of a negro deck hand, who clung to a bale of cotton and was picked up by a passing ves- sel a day or two later.
In 1866, Rev. Dr. Castleton and his wife took passage out of Galveston in a sailing vessel. From that day to this not a word has been heard from them, nor has a trace of the vessel ever been found.
The Episcopal church was organized in 1839, and had a fairly good congregation at the very start, since there were thirty-nine adherents of that
FIRST NATIONAL BANK BUILDING
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denomination present at the initial meeting. The early services were conducted by laymen and an oc- casional itinerant minister, until 1845, when the members adopted a constitution, took the name of Christ church and determined to erect a house of worship. The corner stone for the new building was laid in 1846 and the building was consecrated by Bishop Freeman, Bishop of Louisiana, May 9, 1847. There was no regular pastor of Christ church for several years, but services were held reg- ularly, lay members and an occasional minister of- ficiating.
The old church was torn down and another erect- ed on its site in 1859. In 1876 that building was torn down to make place for a third church, which in turn was demolished in 1893, when the corner stone of the present beautiful building was laid.
Christ church runs the Methodist a close race in the rapid change of pastors, for up to 1892 there had been no less than fifteen regular pastors. That year, however, something like permanency was es- tablished and Rev. Dr. Henry D. Aves took charge of the affairs of the church, both spiritual and tem- poral. Its great prosperity dates from his instal- lation in office and during the years of his incum- bency the most marvelous growth and expansion were shown. Dr. Aves became Bishop of Mexico and was succeeded by Rev. Dr. Peter Gray Sears, who has shown himself to be a worthy successor.
The First Baptist Church of Houston was or- ganized April 10, 1841. The history of this church
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is interesting, for unlike that of the others, its in- ception was the result of the untiring efforts of two Christian women, Mrs. C. M. Fuller and Mrs. Piety L. Hadley. Soon after the organization of the church these ladies undertook to buy ground and erect a church building. They had no money and met with small encouragement even from their fel- low church members and members of their own families. Some one, as a joke, gave them a raw- boned mule. This they fattened and sold, thus se- curing a nucleus for a building fund. They then gave a fair where home-made useful articles were sold. The fair and the mule brought them in $450. Then they gave another fair, larger than the other, and secured an additional $900. With this money they purchased the lots on the corner of Texas ave- nue and Travis street, where the Milby Hotel now stands. During all their labors these ladies had the untiring assistance of good old Brother Pilgrim, a pious and devout Christian gentleman.
After purchasing the lots, the ladies wrote to Rev. William Tryan and asked him to come and take charge of the church, which numbered seven- teen members. Dr. Tryan accepted the call, came to Houston, and it was through his effort that suf- ficient money was obtained to build the first Bap- tist church, which stood for many years on the southeast corner of Texas avenue and Travis street.
In 1883 the property was sold and a new church was erected in 1883-84. This church was destroyed by the great storm in 1900 and another was erected
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on the corner of Fannin and Walker in 1903. Rev. Dr. J. L. Gross is the present pastor of this church.
There were Catholic missionaries here in the very early days of Houston's existence, but no effort was made to establish a regularly organized church and to erect a building until 1841, when a French priest, Rev. Father Querat, purchased the quarter block on the south side of Franklin avenue and Car- oline street. Through his efforts sufficient money was obtained to put up a small wooden building and to build another back of it for a school house and home for the priest. For many years this little church was used and not until 1869 was an effort made to secure larger quarters. In 1869 the old church property was sold and a block of ground on Texas avenue and Crawford street was pur- chased. In 1871 the new church was completed and has been occupied ever since. This church is the handsome brick building known as the Church of the Annunciation, and is one of the most beautiful churches in the city. Father Hennessy was pastor at the time and has been such all these years, hon- ored and respected by both Catholics and Protest- ants.
The whole block is used by the church, the church edifice occupying the northwest side, while the re- mainder is given over to elegant school and priest houses.
The first German Lutheran church was organized in Houston either in 1851 or 1852. This tardyorgan- ization is somewhat difficult to understand, since
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there were so many Germans among the early citi- zens of Houston. In 1853 the church purchased the northwest corner of the block on Texas avenue and Milam street and erected a very large and im- posing frame building on the corner lot. Rev. Mr. Braun was the pastor, and he also conducted a fine German and English school, using the church building for that purpose. Among the members of this church were some of the most prominent and useful German citizens of Houston.
About 1875 a second Lutheran church was built on Louisiana between Prairie and Preston. Some years later both the first and second sites were sold and new churches erected elsewhere, one on Texas avenue and Caroline street and the other on Wash- ington and Young avenue.
From the earliest days of Houston's existence until in the early sixties the Hebrew congregation in this city was kept intact through the personal exertions of "Father Levy," as the venerable rabbi was called. He was a man of great force of charac- ter and was honored and respected by everybody irrespective of creed or belief. After his death the office was filled by a most worthy successor, Rabbi Samuel Raphael. Rabbi Raphael had a strenuous time during the continuance of the war between the States, but through his fine executive ability and enthusiastic zeal he managed to keep his congrega- tion together and the return of peace found it stronger than ever. Rabbi Raphael was a profound scholar, an eloquent speaker and a man of great per-
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sonal magnetism. No man, Jew or Gentile, has ever stood higher in this community than he.
It was five years after the close of the war before an effort was made to secure a suitable house of worship by this congregation. In 1869 a building committee was appointed and in 1870, the corner- stone was laid for the first Synagogue, which was located on Franklin avenue. Two sons of Rabbi Raphael, Benjamin and Mose, were prominent in the work of building this first house of worship for the congregation their father had done so much for spiritually.
The corner-stone for the Young Men's Christian Association was laid October 17, 1907, and the build- ing was formally opened June 21, 1908. The building is one of the finest in the city.
Though it is said the first Christians in Houston were forced to hold religious services under the wide spreading branches of a tree that grew on Market square, their descendants are better provided for and today, by actual count, there are sixty-six houses of worship in this city, representing all shades of faith and belief. Houston is rapidly be- coming a city of churches. Following is a list of the churches and chapels :
Methodist-Epworth Methodist Church; Harris- burg Methodist Episcopal Church; Grace Church, Houston Heights; M'Kee St. Methodist Church; First Methodist Church; Trinity Methodist Church; Bering Memorial Church; Washington Avenue Methodist Church; First Methodist Church of
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Houston Heights; McAshan Methodist; St. Paul's Methodist Church; Tabernacle Methodist Church; Brunner Avenue Methodist Church and Eber- nezer German Methodist Church.
Presbyterians-First Presbyterian Church; First Presbyterian Church of Houston Heights; Hardy Street Presbyterian Church; Woodland Heights Presbyterian Church; Third Presbyterian Church; Oak Lawn Presbyterian Church; Second Presby- terian Church; Central Presbyterian Church; West- minister Presbyterian Church; Park Street Chap- el; Market Street Chapel; Hutchins Street Chapel; Hyde Park Chapel and Blodgett Mission.
Episcopal-Christ Church; St. Mary's Episco- pal Church; Trinity Church; St. John's Church and Clemens Memorial Church.
Baptist-First Baptist Church; Lee Avenue Baptist Church; Magnolia Baptist Church; Brun- ner Baptist Church; Calvary Baptist Church; Ta- bernacle Baptist Church; Emanuel Baptist Church; Bishop Street Baptist Church; Tuam Avenue Bap- tist Church and Liberty Avenue Baptist Church.
Catholic-Church of the Annunciation; Sacred Heart Church; St. Joseph's Church; Church of the Blessed Sacrament and St. Patrick's Church.
Christian Church-Houston Heights Christian Church; Central Christian Church; Second Christ- ian Church.
Apostolic Faith-Clark Street Mission; Brun- ner Tabernacle.
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Lutheran - Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church and First German Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Christian Science-First Church of Christ Scien- tist.
Congregational-First Congregational Church.
Evangelical Association - The Oak Lawn Church.
Church of Christ-First Church of Christ.
Spiritualist-The Spiritualists have a large so- ciety in Houston and hold regular meetings every Sunday.
CHAPTER SEVEN.
Some Military History-Houston Companies Dur- ing the War-Sketch of the "World Beating" Light Guard-Other Military Companies.
Houston following so close on the heels of the Texas revolution, it is not surprising to learn that there was a strong martial spirit among its citizens and that they should be willing and eager to em- bark in any military movement that had about it active or prospective active service. Governor Lubbock mentions in his Memoirs that there were two military companies in Houston in the very early days. One of these, to which he belonged, saw service against the Indians, but there is noth- ing to show that the other had active service. These companies were what would be called State troops today. In the early fifties there were two mili- tary companies here, one the Washington Light Guards which held at that time very much the same place that the Houston Light Guard holds today. The other was the Milam Rifles organized after the Washington Light Guards had been in service for some time, and organized for the purpose of taking away from the Washington Light Guards the honors they had won, which were principally the smiles and admiration of the ladies. The two com- panies were about socially equal and there was in- tense rivalry between them, which occasionally led to personal collisions between the individual mem- bers. On one occasion, during a target contest be- tween the two companies on San Jacinto Day, there
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came near being something of a general riot because a lieutenant of one company and a private of the other went to war on their own account over a dis- puted score.
When the war broke out, instead of entering the Confederate army as organizations, these two com- panies disbanded and the individual members join- ed new companies that were organized. The great bulk of the members of the Washington Light Guards joined the Bayou City Guards which after- wards earned such glory in the Army of Northern Virginia under Lee, known officially as Company A, 5th Texas Regiment, Hood's Brigade. In fact so many of the old company joined the Bayou City Guards that it was practically the old com- pany itself. Other members of both companies joined a cavalry company raised by the late Major Ike Stafford for service on the Rio Grande, which was the very first company to leave for the front at the breaking out of the war. The Captain of the Washington Light Guards, Captain Edwards, raised still another company of infantry, while Captain Ed Riodan took some of the members of the Milam Rifles and with them as a nucleus form- ed a splendid company of infantry. It is doubtful if there was a single member of either of the two original companies who did not volunteer in some of the companies that left Houston in 1861.
At that time there was a boys' military company here, something on the order of the High School Cadets of today. This company was commanded
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by Captain W. M. Stafford, now of Galveston. When the war broke out Captain Stafford and most of the older boys entered the Confederate army. Captain Stafford was made a lieutenant in an artillery company and rose soon after to the rank of Captain, he being, perhaps, the youngest captain in command of a battery in the Confeder- ate service.
Another company that distinguished itself dur- ing the war was the Houston Turners, composed almost, if not entirely, of members of the Turn- verein association. This company was organized and commanded by Captain E. B. H. Schneider and saw much active service, giving a good account of itself on several bloody fields.
The Confederate Grays was a fine infantry com- pany from Houston that saw much active service, first at Shiloh under Johnston and afterwards in the campaign in Mississippi and at Vicksburg. After the capture of Vicksburg they were exchanged and transferred to this side of the river.
When the war began it was looked on as a joke and there was much joking at the enthusiastic eagerness of the young men to get to the front. The Bayou City Guards was christened "The kid glove gentry," and when the company was ordered to Camp Van Dorn, below Harrisburg, for the purpose of being mustered into the service, preparatory to going to Virginia, Mr. T. W. House, Sr., sent them a big box of white kid gloves. The members put them on their bayonets and
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marched up Main street with them thus displayed. Afterwards when the accomplishments of this com- pany in the army of Northern Virginia began to be known and bragged about, Mr. House was very proud of the "Kid glove gentry," and told fre- quently of how he had fitted them out for war with kid gloves.
Having had four years of actual warfare there was not much martial spirit left in the young men who returned home after the surrender, consequently there was no talk of organizing a company of play soldiers and the average returned veteran would shy at the sight of a sword or musket. However, there was a new crop of young men coming to the front and in 1873 some of these got together and organized the Houston Light Guard, a military company destined to shed as much honor and fame on Houston during peace times as the others had done during war. The Houston Light Guard was organized April 21, 1873. Captain Fairfax Gray, a member of the United States Navy before the war and a distinguished officer in the Confederate army, was the first Captain of the company. For some reason the members soon lost interest and the organization practically ceased to exist. There were no meetings held from the first one until late in the fall of the same year, when some of the most zeal- ous of the young men got together and determined to reorganize the company. This they did, elect- ing J. R. Coffin captain. From that meeting dates the success of the Light Guard. Captain Coffin
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began regular drills and soon had the company in such form as to make a creditable showing as sol- diers. The boys purchased uniforms, which were Confederate gray, and appeared in them for the first time in the great carnival of King Comus in February, 1874.
Four months later when the May Volksfest was held the Light Guard entered their first competi- tive drill, meeting four companies from outside points. The entering was all they did for they got no prize, but did get experience.
The next year under Captain Joe Rice they won their first prize at the Austin drill, it being a sword valued at $500.
About that time there seems to have been a gen- eral revival of the martial spirit throughout the country and each city strove to secure a crack mili- tary company. All over the South and in many of the Northern and Western cities military com- panies were formed. While there was lots of pleas- ure and sport in indulging in this fad it was very expensive, since the heavy expense fell on the indi- vidual members. Each company paid its own traveling expenses, for its uniforms and for every thing except its guns which were furnished by the State government. Interstate drills became all the rage and in 1881 the Houston Light Guard entered its first one at New Orleans where it competed against some of the crack companies of the South. The Light Guard took fourth prize, $500.
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Their next appearance was in 1882 at the Inter- state drill that was held at Nashville, Tenn. There were five companies competing and the Light Guard took fourth prize again. However, they had the satisfaction of beating the Lawrence Rifles, a company that had come all the way from Boston, Mass. Beating that Boston company gave them the only bit of satisfaction they had.
However, the Light Guard were as strong in de- feat as they afterwards proved themselves to be in the hour of victory. Captain Thomas Scurry was their commander and he determined to make them world-beaters, and did so before he completed his work. In the face of two or more failures they be- came more determined than ever and they were loy- ally backed by the business men of Houston.
In 1884 the business men raised a large sum of money to be used as prizes and to pay other ex- penses and issued invitations to all the military com- panies in the United States to come to Houston for a great interstate drill. A number of crack com- panies promptly accepted the invitation. The War Department at Washington appointed three army officers to attend the drill, act as judges and make a report of results to the Department. Mr. H. Baldwin Rice was appointed manager of the drill, which took place at the Fair Grounds, where now stands the "Fair Grounds Addition." The drill lasted a week. The first prize was $5,000. From that sum the prizes were reduced so that the last prize was only about one-quarter of that amount.
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There was a State as well as an Interstate drill held at the same time. In the Interstate drill were such companies as the Treadway Rifles of St. Louis; the Columbus Guards of Columbus, Ga .; the Mont- gomery Greys of Montgomery, Ala .; the Washing- ton Guards of Galveston, Texas, and the Houston Light Guard. The Houston Light Guard put up one of the most perfect drills that had ever been wit- nessed. They took first prize easily as the following report of the army officers who were judges, shows: Omitting figures grading the various parts of the drill the totals were as follows:
Houston Light Guard, 2.66; Treadway Rifles, 2.55; Columbus Guards, 2.35; Mobile Rifles, 2.29; Montgomery Greys, 2.28; Washington Guards, 1.95. A perfect drill would have given 3.00, the maximum score.
To show how perfectly the Light Guard drilled, the following extract from the report of the judges is given:
"Houston Light Guard-It is observed that the inspection was nearly perfect. The appearance of the men in their dress, arms and accoutrements and their neatness, exceeded anything we have seen any- where-each man like a color man at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Captain Scurry had not proceeded far in the programme when, while wheeling his company from column of twos, improperly, the company was placed in a posi- tion from which it was almost impossible to extri- cate it, except as done, exhibiting great presence of mind on the captain's part.
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"Captain Scurry's appreciation of the pro- gramme and its requirements was superior to that of the other commanders.
"The ground was laid out with the view to testing the length and cadence of the step in quick and double time. A company marching as contem- plated in the method applied would take the fol- lowing number of steps in quick and double time, and in the time specified. In quick time, 284 steps in 2 minutes and 35 seconds; in double time, 284 steps in one minute and 26 seconds. The Houston Light Guard made the following record: In quick time, 283 steps in 2 minutes and 35 seconds; in double time, '1 minute and 27. Aside from all prac- tice in this particular, the result was almost phe- nomenal. Captain Scurry was the only one who marched upon the flag with guide to the left as di- rected by the judges."
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