Marfa in Presidio County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Photographed by Brian Anderson, August 30, 2019
1. St. Paul's Episcopal Church Marker
Inscription.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church. . English natives John and Mary (Walker) Humphris came to Texas in the early 1870s and arrived in Marfa in 1883. John, his brother-in-law, James Walker, and partner Charles Murphy founded Humphris and Co., which became the largest mercantile between El Paso and San Antonio. Mary, a devout Episcopalian, organized the Union Protestant Sunday School, which met in the Humphris home with Mary teaching from the Bible and the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. John built an adobe church near their home to serve as a Union Protestant Church serving many denominations. The building on West Dallas Street later became the San Pablo Mexican Methodist Mission., In 1897, Bishop John Mills Kendrick gave permission to Marfa Episcopalians to build a separate church named St Paul's. Elizabeth Livesay donated lots on Highland Avenue and John and Mary Humphris paid for the building. The church was established as a mission of the Cathedral Church of St. John's in Albuquerque. In November 1928, the Chamber of Commerce Hotel Committee purchased the St. Paul's lot, and the Paisano Hotel was built on that site. In March 1929, Bishop Frederick B. Howden bought lots facing the courthouse square from W. A. and Maudie Hord for a new church. Architect and engineer R. H. Mull drew initial plans, which were finalized by the El Paso architectural firm of Braunton and McGhee, who followed Mull's plans but designed a larger parish hall and an apartment for a resident priest. The Gothic Revival style church, completed in 1930, is built with hollow clay tile walls and river rock masonry exterior facing. Prominent features include lancet windows, an entry faced with a white stone surround, and a tall steeple. The oldest Protestant church in the the Big Bend region, St. Paul's continues to serve as a spiritual beacon and a center for community activities.,
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2015.
English natives John and Mary (Walker) Humphris came to Texas in the early 1870s and arrived in Marfa in 1883. John, his brother-in-law, James Walker, and partner Charles Murphy founded Humphris and Co., which became the largest mercantile between El Paso and San Antonio. Mary, a devout Episcopalian, organized the Union Protestant Sunday School, which met in the Humphris home with Mary teaching from the Bible and the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. John built an adobe church near their home to serve as a Union Protestant Church serving many denominations. The building on West Dallas Street later became the San Pablo Mexican Methodist Mission.
In 1897, Bishop John Mills Kendrick gave permission to Marfa Episcopalians to build a separate church named St Paul's. Elizabeth Livesay donated lots on Highland Avenue and John and Mary Humphris paid for the building. The church was established as a mission of the Cathedral Church of St. John's in Albuquerque. In November 1928, the Chamber of Commerce Hotel Committee purchased the St. Paul's lot, and the Paisano Hotel was built on that site. In March 1929, Bishop Frederick B. Howden bought lots facing the courthouse square from W. A. and Maudie Hord for a new church. Architect and engineer R. H. Mull drew initial plans, which were finalized by the El Paso architectural firm of Braunton
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and McGhee, who followed Mull's plans but designed a larger parish hall and an apartment for a resident priest. The Gothic Revival style church, completed in 1930, is built with hollow clay tile walls and river rock masonry exterior facing. Prominent features include lancet windows, an entry faced with a white stone surround, and a tall steeple. The oldest Protestant church in the the Big Bend region, St. Paul's continues to serve as a spiritual beacon and a center for community activities.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2015
Erected 2015 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 18213.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1930.
Location. 30° 18.842′ N, 104° 1.32′ W. Marker is in Marfa, Texas, in Presidio County. It is at the intersection of East Washington Street and Highland Street, on the right when traveling west on East Washington Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 101 East Washington Street, Marfa TX 79843, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Texas’ Trans-Pecos & Big Bend Region. It is also in the American Southwest. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Comancherνa, the Republic of Texas, and one of the Confederate States of America.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Presidio County Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); El Paisano Hotel (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Hunter Gymnasium
Credits. This page was last revised on April 19, 2024. It was originally submitted on September 7, 2019, by Brian Anderson of New Albany, Ohio. This page has been viewed 603 times since then and 41 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on September 7, 2019, by Brian Anderson of New Albany, Ohio.
