A CHURCH WITHOUT A NAME
Nestled deep in the piney woods of East Texas as you drive along Farm Road 2138 there is a small white church building without a sign telling what kind of church it is. Across the road from the church is a small, extremely well kept, cemetery with a state historical plaque at the entrance which reads:
UNION GROVE CEMETERY.
ESTABLISHED IN 1868 WITH THE BURIAL OF MARY ANN PATTON,
THE FIRST WIFE OF JOHN F. PATTON (1829-1900). HE WAS JACKSONVILLE POSTMASTER, CONFEDERATE ARMY OFFICER
DURING CIVIL WAR (1861-65). IN 1871 HE DEEDED THIS
LAND TO THE UNION SCHOOL AND CHURCH. KEPT UP BY GIFTS.
CEMETERY IS STILL IN USE. (1971)
I wanted to know more about this church with no name and the people who were buried in the small cemetery across the road, so I found an "old timer" and from him learned the story of Union Grove, Cherokee County, Texas.
The community was first settled between 1845 and 1849. Five families started the farming community which covered an area of six square miles (14,000 acres). In 1868 Marry Ann Patton, one of the original residents fell sick and expecting to die selected the site of the present cemetery for her grave. In the same year the residents of the community decided to erect a log building in a small grove of trees across the road from the grave be used as a church and school. It was named the Union Grove Church and School. The word "union" came from "the co-operative efforts of several denominations to maintain a church house in the community." The building became known as simply the church and the people who worshiped there put off denominational ties and considered themselves to be just Christians, no more, no less. What a beautiful concept. A new building was erected in the early 1890's, and the present building was built in 1944.
America was only fifty-three years old when John Patton was born. The lives of those who now rest in this cemetery cover a span of over one hundred and seventy-five years. Their story is our story, their history is our history and the nation they built is our nation. The world calls it the United States of America but, by the grace of God, we call it home.
The Union Grove Church is only one of the thousands of small churches that have dotted the landscape of rural America since our founding. It was a place where good and honest people came to worship the God they believed had blessed them with the freedom and opportunity that only America enjoyed. They worked together, played together, and lived together. Tears flowed from eye to eye and joy from heart to heart. They were our parents, our grandparents, and our great grandparents. Their legacy to us cannot and must not be measured in terms of money but in the freedom and the strength of the nation they built.
The little church is no longer used on a regular basis, but on the first Sunday of October there is a special reunion service held in the building by the descendants of those first five families. A collection is taken up to be used for the maintenance of the building and cemetery for the next year. The building is now only used for weddings, funerals and special events. This is the only known history concerning the Union Grove Church, the church with no denominational affiliation. If you are a descendant of one of those first five families you have the right to be buried in the Union Grove Cemetery.
The history of the little church is one of births, marriages, and funerals. It is the story of a people who loved the land, nurtured it, and preserved it for us. With tear filled eyes they sent their sons and daughters to fight for on foreign fields and welcomed them home with open arms and grateful hearts. In between they preyed to God that He would protect them on the fields of battle. Their lifestyle was one of honor, respect for others and a desire to make life a little better for each other. They valued family, family values, and family ties. Their lives were simple as was their worship and their house of worship. Today small rural congregations have by-in-large been replaced by the large congregations in our cities. Many of today's congregations are made up of thousands of people who come together on Sunday to be entertained but remain strangers throughout the rest of the week. The televangelist are extorting millions from people in the name of religion. Why do I feel that we have lost something very precious and very special in the process?
Wouldn't it be nice if, like them, we were united as one nation under God. Wouldn't it be nice if we were no longer hyphenated Americans but simply Americans; not divided by denominations but simply Christians. We are a nation of many diverse peoples, but those who say that our diversity is our strength are wrong. Strength has never been the result of diversity but the result of unity. The key to the future prosperity of our nation lies in putting aside our diversity and working together to build and maintain our unity. The concept of America as the "great melting pot" is needed today more than ever before, and the morals of our forefathers need to reestablished, maintained, and passed on to our children. Those persons and those organizations who seek to divide us politically, socially, and morally must be opposed and defeated. This nation was not built by men and women who championed their diversity but by those who fostered our unity.
There is a particular marker in the Union Grove Cemetery that caught my attention. It gives the names of the husband and wife, the dates of their births and deaths. Then in large letters are inscribed two words; "Together Forever."
Our national motto has long been "In God we Trust." I pray that this will ever be the motto of our nation but if we are ever forced to change it I would like to recommend the alternative to be "Together Forever."
May God continue to bless the United States of America and may we strive to make this indeed "One Nation Under God."
Nestled deep in the piney woods of East Texas as you drive along Farm Road 2138 there is a small white church building without a sign telling what kind of church it is. Across the road from the church is a small, extremely well kept, cemetery with a state historical plaque at the entrance which reads:
UNION GROVE CEMETERY.
ESTABLISHED IN 1868 WITH THE BURIAL OF MARY ANN PATTON,
THE FIRST WIFE OF JOHN F. PATTON (1829-1900). HE WAS JACKSONVILLE POSTMASTER, CONFEDERATE ARMY OFFICER
DURING CIVIL WAR (1861-65). IN 1871 HE DEEDED THIS
LAND TO THE UNION SCHOOL AND CHURCH. KEPT UP BY GIFTS.
CEMETERY IS STILL IN USE. (1971)
I wanted to know more about this church with no name and the people who were buried in the small cemetery across the road, so I found an "old timer" and from him learned the story of Union Grove, Cherokee County, Texas.
The community was first settled between 1845 and 1849. Five families started the farming community which covered an area of six square miles (14,000 acres). In 1868 Marry Ann Patton, one of the original residents fell sick and expecting to die selected the site of the present cemetery for her grave. In the same year the residents of the community decided to erect a log building in a small grove of trees across the road from the grave be used as a church and school. It was named the Union Grove Church and School. The word "union" came from "the co-operative efforts of several denominations to maintain a church house in the community." The building became known as simply the church and the people who worshiped there put off denominational ties and considered themselves to be just Christians, no more, no less. What a beautiful concept. A new building was erected in the early 1890's, and the present building was built in 1944.
America was only fifty-three years old when John Patton was born. The lives of those who now rest in this cemetery cover a span of over one hundred and seventy-five years. Their story is our story, their history is our history and the nation they built is our nation. The world calls it the United States of America but, by the grace of God, we call it home.
The Union Grove Church is only one of the thousands of small churches that have dotted the landscape of rural America since our founding. It was a place where good and honest people came to worship the God they believed had blessed them with the freedom and opportunity that only America enjoyed. They worked together, played together, and lived together. Tears flowed from eye to eye and joy from heart to heart. They were our parents, our grandparents, and our great grandparents. Their legacy to us cannot and must not be measured in terms of money but in the freedom and the strength of the nation they built.
The little church is no longer used on a regular basis, but on the first Sunday of October there is a special reunion service held in the building by the descendants of those first five families. A collection is taken up to be used for the maintenance of the building and cemetery for the next year. The building is now only used for weddings, funerals and special events. This is the only known history concerning the Union Grove Church, the church with no denominational affiliation. If you are a descendant of one of those first five families you have the right to be buried in the Union Grove Cemetery.
The history of the little church is one of births, marriages, and funerals. It is the story of a people who loved the land, nurtured it, and preserved it for us. With tear filled eyes they sent their sons and daughters to fight for on foreign fields and welcomed them home with open arms and grateful hearts. In between they preyed to God that He would protect them on the fields of battle. Their lifestyle was one of honor, respect for others and a desire to make life a little better for each other. They valued family, family values, and family ties. Their lives were simple as was their worship and their house of worship. Today small rural congregations have by-in-large been replaced by the large congregations in our cities. Many of today's congregations are made up of thousands of people who come together on Sunday to be entertained but remain strangers throughout the rest of the week. The televangelist are extorting millions from people in the name of religion. Why do I feel that we have lost something very precious and very special in the process?
Wouldn't it be nice if, like them, we were united as one nation under God. Wouldn't it be nice if we were no longer hyphenated Americans but simply Americans; not divided by denominations but simply Christians. We are a nation of many diverse peoples, but those who say that our diversity is our strength are wrong. Strength has never been the result of diversity but the result of unity. The key to the future prosperity of our nation lies in putting aside our diversity and working together to build and maintain our unity. The concept of America as the "great melting pot" is needed today more than ever before, and the morals of our forefathers need to reestablished, maintained, and passed on to our children. Those persons and those organizations who seek to divide us politically, socially, and morally must be opposed and defeated. This nation was not built by men and women who championed their diversity but by those who fostered our unity.
There is a particular marker in the Union Grove Cemetery that caught my attention. It gives the names of the husband and wife, the dates of their births and deaths. Then in large letters are inscribed two words; "Together Forever."
Our national motto has long been "In God we Trust." I pray that this will ever be the motto of our nation but if we are ever forced to change it I would like to recommend the alternative to be "Together Forever."
May God continue to bless the United States of America and may we strive to make this indeed "One Nation Under God."
