St. James' History
The congregation of St. James' Episcopal Church in Hallettsville, Texas was organized in 1875 when in JuIy, General Arthur Pendleton Bagby and his wife, Frances asked the missionary clergyman, Reverend Thomas J. Morris of Columbus, Texas to come and baptize his six children. The Rt. Rev. R. W. R. Elliott, DD, missionary Bishop of Western Texas made his first visit to St. James In 1875 and we were accepted into the Diocese of West Texas the next year. Since we did not have a building as yet, we met In the Odd Fellow's Hall which was referred to as "St. James' Missionary Hall."
In 1880 for the sum of $3,000 St. James' purchased a plot of land on East Third Street and through the efforts of the Bagbys and Mrs. Mary Kroschel and Mrs. Jane Viser the church was erected in 1881. Other families forming the nucleus of the church of those early days included William Taylor Bagby and Eugenia his wife (their granddaughter is a member now and has had four children baptized in the church and 9 grandchildren baptized here); George A. Young and his wife (their daughter later became the wife of one of the first and most outstanding lay readers of St. James); Otto and Lissette von Rosenberg and their 4 children who all were very active in the church; Steve Lee Bennett and wife; Mrs. Martha Washburn; Judge Lester Holt and Martha, his wife; Mrs. Ella Tippett; T. C. Winthrop; Dr. R. R. Knox; and Wm. R. McCutchan and his wife Mary (their granddaughter is a member today and one of their daughters and her husband served for years on the Bishop's Committee). There is a great deal of tradition in this Church.
Since we were a Mission, we did not always have a minister, but due to the efforts of Miss Mattie Bagby, services were available to the Episcopalians in the area, although not always on a Sunday. According to newspapers of the time, some services were on Tuesday evenings, some were in the morning, but the main point was - they were held.
In the 60s, the congregation planned an extension program and with the help of the Episcopal Advance Fund and a considerable bequest from Mrs. Dulcie von Rosenberg in memory of the original von Rosenberg family, the church was built and dedicated to the Glory of God on March 12, 1967 with Rt. Rev. Everett H. Jones, Bishop of West Texas officiating. The beautiful stained glass windows given in memory of the pioneers of St. James as well as the baptismal font and the bell were all salvaged from the old church and are still in use today.
Today our members are active in the community of Hallettsville and the surrounding areas. We work at the Manna Food Pantry and give to that food bank. We support the Hospice of the Southwest, we visit the local nursing homes and just recently adopted several residents who have no one locally to visit them. Our ladies group who meet on Wednesdays (the Get 2 Its) are making Rag Dolls 2 Love to be sent to children in war-torn and third world countries. Our Sunday School raises funds to donate to foreign mission projects of the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas. We provide for a family at Christmas, we participate in the Festival of Lights, Ecumenical Worship Services at Thanksgiving and Easter and the National Day of Prayer. We have a Children's Sunday School and an Adult one as well. Our Get 2 Its is not just for Episcopalians (although we do have a lady from Yoakum's Holy Communion) we have other denominations as well attend our meetings and luncheons. This is held in our Parish Hall and everyone enjoys the fellowship and fun and friendship that getting together is all about.
In 1998 we formed an alliance with a group of Presbyterians who were looking for a place locally to hold services. We shared our church. We hold service at 9am. We had a wonderful joint Bible Study at 10am. They had their service at 11am. Some lasting friendships were formed and we sincerely miss them since they went back to their home church in LaGrange.
In 2004 through a generous grant from the Raymond Dickson Foundation, we were able to purchase a used classroom building that we are now calling our Youth Building. It will be dedicated by Bishop Lillibridge on August 24, 2005. In addition to being used as a Sunday School classroom, it will be for all teen activities affiliated with the Church. It will have an office that the priest can use; plenty of storage space and all the amenities a teen would love. We are truly indebted to the Foundation for this gift. It is an attractive addition to our plant.
We may not be the largest of the eight, but the desire of the people willing to do the Lord's work is just as strong as that of the original families and we are purpose-driven in our wish to make the church grow and minister to the needs of the community as has been our aspiration from the very beginning way back in 1875.
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