Over 100 Years of History
First United Methodist Church, or First Church, has a rich heritage spanning over 100 years of ministry in the Round Rock community and beyond. Our present campus along with our new sanctuary stand as a tribute to the dedication and loving service of our very first members.
Starting in 1879...
On March 26, 1879 trustees of the First United Methodist Church of Round Rock purchased property on South Brown Street from the Texas Land Company. On Sunday morning, April 6, 1879, the new place of worship was dedicated. Our church remained a “circuit church” until 1897 when Georgetown and Round Rock were set off from the circuit into a separate charge.
In the early 1900’s the Epworth League, a youth ministry of First United Methodist Church of Round Rock was active visiting the sick, serving food to the disabled, visiting the City Jail and comforting the prisoners, and hosting socials for the church members. As early as 1930 the church began holding an annual banquet. In the late 1920’s and early 1930’s First Church shared a pastor with the community of Weir and had only two services each month. The ministry of the church was carried out by the Sunday School teachers and the Epworth League, with lay-conducted prayer meetings on Wednesday evenings. In 1939 property with a house was purchased, the house was remodeled, and First Church finally had its own parsonage. Throughout the early years members of First United Methodist Church worked closely with the Baptists in Round Rock serving the needs of the community. In July and August 1931 a joint revival was held and in 1942 a Union Thanksgiving service was arranged. An Annex to the church was constructed and was dedicated on January 12, 1949.
In the mid 50's...
On October 24, 1956, the Church Conference voted to build a new Sanctuary to serve the growing needs of the church members. The old church was torn down, the Annex was turned to face north, and a new Sanctuary was constructed. Opening services were held Sunday morning, August 31, 1958 at 11:00 a.m. At 2:00 p.m. a service was conducted to place the cornerstone. The old parsonage was sold in 1965 and a new one was constructed. This building was dedicated on Sunday, September 19, 1965. By 1970 a need for educational and fellowship space was realized and the decision was made to construct a new Fellowship Hall. Open house in the newly constructed facility was held on June 20, 1971. During 1977 the Sanctuary was enlarged in response to rapid growth in the city of Round Rock and church attendance. From 1977 to 1979 church membership more than doubled and the average attendance at Sunday services increased to 200. During this time four new church school rooms and a nursery were constructed between the Sanctuary and the Fellowship Hall.
The first all-church Thanksgiving dinner was held in 1965. This began an annual event that is still held today on the Sunday before Thanksgiving with all the church families and guests invited to participate. On February 10, 1966, a chili supper was held. It is in this event that one finds the roots to our current tradition of the United Methodist Men selling their delicious chili on Super Bowl Sunday.
Our 100th Birthday...
On Sunday, April 8, 1979, a service of worship and consecration celebrated the congregtion’s 100th birthday.
Continued growth of the church membership and attendance required conducting two worship services and two Sunday school hours. This began on March 1, 1981. The first United Methodist Men’s Retreat was held in 1981. The first Women’s Retreat was held in May 1983. Both of these became annual events in the life of First Church and are still conducted today.
On October 13, 1982, a special Charge Conference approved the sale of the existing church property and the purchase of 6.9 acres of land at the southwest corner of U.S. Highway 79 and North Mays for construction of a new and larger church facility. This is the current location of First United Methodist Church Round Rock. An Easter Sunrise Service was held on the new site on April 3, 1983. On Sunday, April 8, 1984, the last service of First United Methodist Church Round Rock was held in the Brown Street location. The church moved to C.D. Fulkes Middle School for services while facilities were being planned and constructed at the new site. On September 30, 1984, an open-air service was held under the ancient Council Oak tree on the new church site. A historic house on the site was dedicated “Payne Cottage” in memory and celebration of the life of Dr. Jack Payne. Dr. Payne was District Superintendent of the Temple District of the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and was instrumental in finding the property for the new church. Following that dedication, ground was broken for Phase I of the new church home. The new church building, designed as a Family Life Center, was officially consecrated on January 26, 1986. The plan was to use the building for worship services for a short time until a Sanctuary could be constructed. Regular worship services in the new building began on February 16, 1986. It would be ten years before the situation was such that plans for additional construction could be drawn up. During those years the Family Life Center would be used for: Sunday worship services; Dinner Theaters; baptisms, weddings, and funerals; handbell concerts; Boy Scout meetings; church-wide dinners; United Methodist Men and United Methodist Women group meetings and events; special services at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, and numerous other activities encompassing the active life of a rapidly growing church.
A new Sanctuary...
A Master Plan for construction of additional facilities on the church property was approved at a Church Conference in 1996. The first phase of that plan, construction of an Education Building which also included administrative office space began in 1997, and the building was dedicated on October 27, 1998. Construction of the second phase, a Sanctuary for the worship of God, began in 2001, was completed in the summer of 2003, and the first worship service was conducted Sunday, August 18, 2003.
In 1897 there were 195 members of the church. In 1904 the roll was revised and then showed a total of 121 members. By 1965 membership had grown to 246 and by 1975 to 278. In 1985 membership was up to 1,016, more than doubling in the ten years since 1975. The membership in 1995 was up to 2,030, doubling again in just ten years, and by 2005 membership had doubled again to 4,040.