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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-05-09 Historical Preservation Committee Minutes May 9, 2011 CALL TO ORDER Chair, Bill Golden, called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. The meeting was held at City Hall at 201 North Ector Drive, Euless, TX. MEMBERS PRESENT Betty Fuller, Michele Burger, Joe Cannon, Barbara Collier, Beth Gathings, Helen Gleghorn, Don Martin, Robert Nail, Faye Stinneford, Glenn Walker, Perry Brockmeyer, Leah Bennett, Doris Brown, Bill Byers, Weldon Cannon, Iris Elliott, Gary Fieldsend, James Gathings, Bill Golden, Norma Lively, David Massey, Shirley Mercer, Iva Nail, Helen Payton, Helen Voss and Mavy Wright. RECOGNITION OF VISITORS Council Member Leon Hogg Jan Bellamy STAFF PRESENT Michael Davenport, Recreation Superintendant Ofa "Mary" Faiva-Siale, Projects Coordinator APPROVAL OF MINUTES Faye Stinneford made a motion to approve the minutes. Helen Voss seconded the motion, motion approved. TREASURER'S REPORT Treasurer, Barbara Collier, reported no expenditures for the previous month and a $20 cash donation from the jar. The final balance as of May 9, 2011 was $6,451.89. DOCENT'S REPORT/RECRUITMENT 1. Bill Golden thanked Doris Brown, Jan Bellamy and David Massey for serving as docents during the April open house. 2. The following people volunteered to docent on Saturday, May 14, 2011: David Massey (3- 5pm), Iris Elliott (1-3pm), Mavy Wright(1-3pm), Barbara Collier(3-5pm), Weldon Cannon (3- 5pm) and Veva Lou Massey if she's available. Jan Bellamy also volunteered to docent. 3. The City's senior program will tour Heritage Park on Wednesday, May 18, 2011. Betty Fuller, Leah Bennett and Robert and Iva Nail signed up to docent. Faye Stinneford and Bill Golden may also attend. HPC MTG 050911 Page 1 4. The following people volunteered to docent during open house on Saturday, June 11, 2011: Bill Byers (3-5pm), Helen Payton (3-Spm), Iris Elliott (l-3pm), Faye Stinneford (1-3pm), Jan Bellamy and Gary Fieldsend (1-3pm). STATUS OF CURRENT PROJECTS I. Acquisition Sub-committee: • Bill Golden was contacted by a citizen wanting to sell kitchen chairs to the Committee. Mr. Golden declined the offer. • Faye Stinneford mentioned her friend has an old dresser she would like to donate to the museum. Bill Golden and Bill Byers will schedule a time to go look at the dresser. • Betty Fuller noted that Johnny Eden has a collection of WWII memorabilia. Billy Byers will look into the possibility of acquiring some items for a display at the museum. • Shirley Mercer has items she would like to donate. She asked about including memorabilia from other wars. The Committee was agreeable to including items from other wars. • Bill Byers spoke with Sam Hayes about possible donations of military artifacts. Items will be acquired once a location to house the items is available. 2. Library Displays: Betty Fuller reported that some tiles are beginning to arrive. 3. Website/Library Photo Display: Gary Fieldsend reported that the glass for the Library display broke. He will purchase another piece of glass and continue working on the project. 4. Evolving History Project: Helen Payton previously gave Doris Brown newspaper articles for the project. Mrs. Brown organized the articles and created a timeline for the events described. 5. Photo Album Sub-committee: Betty Fuller reported that no new additions were made. There was a question about old photos of Euless in Euless Today that could be included in the project. 6. Ruth Millican Center: Helen Voss showed the Committee photographs of other museum's she recently visited. She discussed various ideas for displays, including a local school's display, military memorabilia display, Police display, etc., etc. It was generally agreed that it's time to start making purchases of items for the museum. Items acquired can be stored at the Ruth Millican Center. The idea of having T.V. monitors and/or recorded tours was discussed. The staff will help the as needed. 7. Local Marker Sub-Committee: Staff will include a notice in Euless Today regarding the project. 8. Oral History Project: Gary Fieldsend has the video equipment to record interviews for this project. lie and Betty Fuller will work on interview questions for the project. 9. McCormick Barn/Outdoor Update: Staff reported that lights will be installed in the barn. It will be battery operated. 10. Fuller House: Staff reported that the AC is being replaced. Staff reported that they will look into repairing the cracks inside the Fuller House in the near future. HPC MTG 050911 Page 2 CHAIRMAN'S REPORT 1. Bill Golden reported and/or discussed the following: • Noted that Jan Bellamy was voted an official advisor to the Committee and thanked her for her continued support. • Reminded all docents to initial by their names on the list in the Fuller House. • Reminded docents to survey visitors during open house to see how they heard about the Museum. • Thanked staff for sending a package of information about the Euless Museum to the Birdville Museum's open house. • Thanked staff for all their support. STAFF REPORT OTHER REPORTS 1. Faye Stinneford reported that the Fire Academy is having a fundraiser. Ten percent of all meals purchased at Fuzzy's Taco on May 11, 2011 will be donated to the Citizens Fire Academy. 2. Weldon Cannon reported on research he recently conducted on the Union Cumberland Presbyterian Church that used to meet in the Grange Hall around the 1890's. Euless old timers used to talk about the church and until recently, mainly undocumented. Mr. Cannon was able to research the church and verify facts when he recently visited the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia. According to minutes and documents at the library, the church did in fact exist and was established around 1 873 making it older than the Euless community and was originally known as the Union Cumberland Presbyterian Church of the Guthrie (OK) Presbytery. Mr. Cannon provided a draft of his research with the final version in the workings. See attached. 3. Bill Byers could use help planting tombstones at Calloway if anyone was interested. 4. Joe Cannon indicated he might know one of the unknown graves at Calloway. He said that years ago, a family buried one of their deceased at Calloway without first gaining permission to do so. He also mentioned that the family used to steal flowers off another grave and place them on their grave. Mr. Cannon knows the general location of this burial site. 5. Iva Nail thanked Bill Golden for everything he is doing for the Committee. ADJOURNMENT James Gathings made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Gary Parker seconded the motion. Motion approved. The meeting adjourned at 11:16 a.m. Respectfully submitted by Ofa "Mary" Faiva-Siale, Projects Coordinator City of Euless Parks & Community Services HPC MTG 050911 Page 3 EULESS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH By Weldon Cannon May 2011 Introduction Euless old-timers, those who remembered back into the 1890s, told about c Presbyterian Church that met in the Grange Hall in Euless, shoring Sundays with a Methodist Church. There are also a few references in the ARLINGTON JOURNAL to a Presbyterian Church in Euless about 1900. A study of Cumberland Presbyterian Church records reveals much more. These documents are primarily the MINUTES OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, MINUTES OF THE GUTHRIE [OKLAHOMA] PRESBYTERY, and MINUTES OF THE RED OAK [TEXAS] PRESBYTERY, at the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia. This is a rough draft, a work in progress. The final,finished document will come later. Text The Euless Cumberland Presbyterian Church was established about 1873. Older than the Euless community, it was originally known as the Union Cumberland Presbyterian Church of the Guthrie (Oklahoma) Presbytery. In 1895 it assumed the Euless name so it would conform to the name of its location, Euless, which was officially established in 1886. The Cumberland Presbyterian Church was organized in Tennessee in 1807 in a disagreement with other Presbyterians about some theological issues and practices. Strongly evangelical, it sent preachers to Texas in the mid-19`h century, making many converts and establishing numerous churches. The national Cumberland Presbyterian Church merged with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in 1907. The Union Church was first mentioned in the minutes of the semiannual Guthrie Presbytery meeting on September 10, 1873, in [?Denton?]. All congregations in the presbytery were listed in the minutes of each meeting. No church named Union was listed in minutes of either the spring or fall 1873 gatherings, but on the second day of the September meeting "W. C. Dobkins from Union appeared and took [his] seat," according to the minutes. This is also recorded: "The following petition was granted, Whereas the Union Congregation has had the ministerial services of the Rev. Hayter of the Red Oak [Texas] Presbytery for the year 1873 and desires his services for the ensuing year, Resolved therefore that: the petition of said congregation be granted. The above was approved." William Calloway Dobkins (1841-1928) was a resident of the Bear Creek community and is buried in the Dobkins Family Cemetery, both slightly over a mile from the site of the Union Church and now located within the Euless city limits, but on DFW Airport property. He was a well-known physician, businessman, farmer, and civic leader. The Rev. Andrew S. Hayter(1818-1900), a Cumberland Presbyterian minister and a surveyor, settled in Tarrant County in 1869. He laid out the plat of a new town on the Texas and Pacific Railway between Dallas and Fort Worth in 1876 that was originally named Hayter, but soon renamed Arlington. Hayter established several congregations in the Arlington area, probably including Union [Euless]. The West Fork of the Trinity River, between Euless and Arlington, was the dividing line between the Red Oak and Guthrie Presbyteries. n7 Patrons of H. _nor rangers red's .ed to j-npring in ioi7 the vativna� Grange of ,hc rct"v�'is J� �.�voi� 'y, .��_ Grangers, the 'ife of farmers, built a Grange Hale in the center of what ,s now Euless. It was the place Of worship the Presbyterian Church in the 1890s, so it is likely that the congregation started meeting there when the structure was erected. The Grange Hall also accommodated a Methodist Church, a school, and served as a community center. There were also churches of other denominations established in the mid- 19'' century in the area, within about 4 miles. The two oldest were Bear Creek Baptist Church (now Western Heights Baptist Church, Irving), in 1853, and Minters Chapel Methodist Church (now Heritage United Methodist Church, Grapevine), about 1854. Others were Spring Garden, 1855, where Baptist and Methodist Churches and a Church of Christ met, New Hope Church of Christ/Christian Church (now Bedford Church of Christ), 1874, Grange Hall Methodist Church (now First United Methodist Church of Euless), 1876, and Pleasant Glade Church of Christ, 1878. After 1874 the Union Church was always recorded in presbytery minutes as a member congregation, but it rarely sent a representative. In 1879, 1882, and 1886, however, Joseph W. Weatherly (1822-1894), another Bear Creek (Euless) resident, represented the congregation at the presbytery meeting. The Minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church also list the Union Church as a congregation of the Guthrie Presbytery. At the fall presbytery meeting in 1879, the Rev. D. R. Bell [Bells, Bull, Bill, Ball] reported that he had recently preached at Union with 54 "professions," 27 "accessions," 17 adult and 2 infant "babtisms." He also accepted a missionary collection, and the congregation elected 2 elders and 1 deacon. In 1882 the church reported a membership of 40. In 1888 the presbytery clustered congregations, usually 3 or 4 in a group if they were small, as was Union, charging each group with responsibility for finding and paying its own minister. The Euless cluster also included Grapevine, Estelle, and Albert's Chapel. In 1895 the Union congregation changed its name to Euless. Some of the congregational leaders in the 1890s, as reflected in the office of clerk of the session (board of elders) or representative to the presbytery meeting, were J. E. Evans, Euless storekeeper and postmaster 1892-1901, W. F. Calahan, and S. P. Shaffer. At the April 1898 presbytery meeting the Euless congregation presented a petition, signed by 22 members, requesting transfer from the Guthrie to the Red Oak Presbytery. As the southernmost congregation in the presbytery, Euless was in "isolation from the heart of the [Guthrie] Presbytery" and near "strong Presbyterian influences in the Red Oak Presbytery." It had particularly strong ties to the Arlington, Johnson Station [south of Arlington], and West Fork [in the Watson community between Arlington and Grand Prairie] congregations. The presbytery approved the change. Among ministers from the late 1880s to the early 1900s were C. H. Smith,J. D. Boone, W. L. Brewer, W. C. Rushing, W. B. Fitzhugh, and J. M. Wilshire. Most of them served more than one congregation simultaneously since few churches were large enough to support a full-time minister. Euless had preaching by a Presbyterian minister only sporadically, or no more than once a month if the minister had a regular schedule. Nevertheless, the Presbyterians met each Sunday in the Grange Hall with the Methodists. The Euless Methodist Church was on the Grapevine Circuit, so a Methodist preacher usually preached at Euless once a month. Regardless of preaching, the two churches had a joint Sunday School each Sunday. • The shared arrangement ended when .ne r.lethcd , s constructed road now Euless North Main Street], facing the Grange Hal', prefab); in. 139' ertain b 1E96. The �, e �y v exact date is uncertain. The Presbyterians now had the Grange Hall to themselves, but there were very few of them and the church gradually dwindled away. Furthermore, the decrepit Grange Hall was about to fall down. The Grange was no longer active, but the building was also used for overflow classes from the school, which had erected its own building nearby in 1894. Postmaster Evans represented the Euliss [sic] church at the fall 1899 presbytery meeting. The Euless church was not represented at the August 1902 presbytery meeting, but the clerk of the session for Euless was Mrs. Susan Weatherly. Out of 48 church session clerks listed, she was the only female. Her husband, Joseph W. Weatherly, had died in 1894, and apparently she was the mainstay of the church by 1902. Her nature is reminiscent of her mother, Mary Ann Whitson Trigg, a widow who migrated from Bedford County, Tennessee, to Tarrant County, Texas, in 1868 with several of her children and others. Mary Ann bought 200 acres, farmed, and built a cotton gin and the Grange Hall on her property. Another daughter,Judy Ann Trigg, married Elisha Adam Euless, who also migrated from Bedford County at the same time. He purchased all of his mother-in-law's property in 1879 and 1880 and operated the gin and a general store. The community that grew around these took the name Euless. There seems to have been strong links of the Trigg, Euless, and other related families to the Euless Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Within a short time span the church was organized (1873), the Euless Grange established (1874) and the Grange Hall erected (1877) on the property of Mary Ann Trigg. Her sons and other family members were organizers and leaders in the Euless Grange for many years. When Adam Euless died in 1911 he was eulogized by the minister of the Hemphill Street Presbyterian Church in Fort Worth, a Cumberland Church before 1907. Mr. Euless lived in Fort Worth when he was Tarrant County Sheriff, 1892-1896, and the last few years of his life. Susan Trigg Weatherly and Priscilla Trigg Calahan, wife of W. F. Calahan, were sisters of Judy Ann Trigg Euless. The last extant account of the church meeting for worship is from April 1901 when an Arlington newspaper article revealed that the "Rev. W. B. Fitzhugh occupied the pulpit at Euless fast Sunday." The Rev. Mr. Fitzhugh lived in Arlington, where he was pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, but also preached at West Fork and Johnson Station. He had strong ties to Euless. In 1903 he performed the marriage of Dr. Luther F. Rhodes, prominent Euless doctor who was a Rock Island Railway physician and official Tarrant County Physician, and Maggie Calloway, an orphan who had been reared by her uncle and aunt, Joseph W. and Susan Trigg Weatherly. In 1908 Mr. Fitzhugh delivered a memorial address at the erection of a monument for recently deceased Joe Calloway, Maggie's brother, in Calloway Cemetery in Euless. Meanwhile, the fragile Grange Hall was on its last legs. On particularly windy days parents rushed to the Hall to pick up their children, fearing it would collapse. It was finally torn down about 1900 or shortly thereafter. Since the Presbyterians had no building of their own, they were now without a regular place to meet, ensuring their congregational demise. In 1905 the minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Church reported a church in Euless with 6 members, but there was no report from it and no clerk of the session, although the minister in charge was J. M. Wilshire. In 1906, although there were reportedly 10 members, there was no report, clerk, or minister in charge. In 1910 the Tarrant Baptist Church, about two miles away, purchased property in Euless, including the site of the Grange Hall, the lot "formerly known as the Presbyterian Church," and soon moved there, changing its name to Euless Baptist Church, now the First Baptist Church of Euless. :WGC note—Check records of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A..), especially for the Synod of Texas and the Fort Worth Presbytery after 1907 to determine if there was any mention of a church in Euless after that year.] The Euless Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the national Cumberland Presbyterian Churcn came to an end about the same time.The Cumberland membership was concentrated in the South. By the 20'h century a majority of members thought there was no need for a-separate Presbyterian denomination and that they should be part of a larger fellowship. Hence, the denomination merged with the Presbyterian Church (U.S. A.) in 1907, although a sizeable minority refused to join and reorganized a new Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Thereafter Euless was without a Presbyterian Church until 1963 when the First Presbyterian Church of Euless was organized. It briefly met in a school and in 1964 constructed a building on Simmons Dr., now in J. A. Carr Park. Moving to Bedford Euless. Nevertheless,the Presbylter a Presbyterian Church madeht As in today, there is no Presbyterian Church in the last quarter of the 19th century and has left a lasting heritage.