The Little Church of La Villita

There are many delightful surprises awaiting the visitor who passes through these gates into the La Villita Historic Arts Village. One of the pleasant discoveries in the Village is the Little Church.

The cornerstone of the church was laid on March 2, 1879.  Today it is a non-denominational church, and is a favorite setting for weddings.

In 1846, the Rev. J.W. De Vilbiss had bought a  site across the street from the current day church with the intention of building a Methodist church . He set up a bell, to denote the worship site, but did not build due to a problem with the title to the lot.  In 1879, German Methodists erected this Gothic Revival style church. 

A Norwegian Sailor named Olaf carved pegs and hinged the lancet shaped casement windows. The Episcopal diocese of West Texas bought the church in 1895 and in 1945 the title of the church property was acquired by the City of San Antonio.  (The church is a designated Texas landmark, but the medallion is missing.)

 

The Little Church holds regular services, but it is not unusual to pass by and see a wedding in progress.  Many years ago I had my little Brownie Scouts on a Saturday tour of downtown and we came upon a bride about to go up the steps to make her walk down the little aisle.  We quickly hushed the girls and told them to watch.  Most of the girls had never seen a real live bride, so they were quite impressed.  The adults were reaching for tissues to dab our eyes!

 An early picture of the church can be seen at History of La Villita. 

Bastrop Christian Church

This door leads into Bastrop Christian Church in Bastrop, Texas.  When I first saw the church from a distance I immediately thought of the churches and buildings of New England.  Imagine my surprise when the plaque by the door described this building as being in a New England Victorian style!

The church was founded sometime before 1857. Members met in the courthouse until a rock church building was built on this site in 1867.  The New England Victorian building was completed in 1895. 

 

Bastrop was established in 1832 when Stephen F. Austin located 100 families in this area.  In 1834 the name was changed to Mina.  The town was incorporated under the laws of Texas on December 18, 1837, and the name changed back to Bastrop. 

  

 

 

   

 

The building on the right is their education building.  It was built just a few years ago, but is such a sensitive addition it looks like it was built at the same time as the church.

 

This is the peaceful courtyard between the two buildings. 

 

The wind vane also reminded me of New England!









Decker UMC

I've gone to a facility near Austin several times in the last two years for dog shows.  The route to the facility takes me by this pictuersque little church and I always want to stop and read the marker, and of course, make pictures.  Yesterday I finally had a chance to stop and explore. 

The community of Decker is about 8 miles east of downtown Austin, Texas.  The first settlers in this area were Swedish immigrants who arrived around 1867.  They worshipped in churches in Austin until 1871 when the Reverend C.C. Charnquist began to preach in homes; a church would be built and dedicated on Pentecost Sunday, 1879. In 1884 the church was enlarged and a parsonage was built.  By this time there was also a public school in the community; by 1907 there were two teachers and sixty students in the school. There was a community cemetery, as well as the one next to the church.

The church's bell - I wonder if they still ring it on special occasions

The current building was built between 1901 and 1902 under the pastorate of Reverend C.O.Freeman, with the modern addition (on the right) being added in 1967.

This is the side of the church, looking somewhat northeast.  I'm not sure what happened with the siding, it appears to be storm damage, but it does reveal a layer of a prior type of siding.

Whether you are traveling north or south on Decker Lane the view of the church is charming. There has only been limited development around the church, so I feel like it still looks much like it did a hundred years ago.

As luck would have it, they were having a family reunion in the church so there were cars blocking the view for pictures, and I didn't want to explore around too much and intrude on the gathering. But the next time I go by I will stop again.  (Go to church's website to see a picture of the church without cars.)