Marker Text: The Rev. D.C. Kinnard began the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in 1875. The first building on this site was erected in 1883. Walter Bennett Martin constructed the present building in1901. Czechs organized a Presbyterian church in 1911 and held separate services in their own language. In 1921 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church became the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. The Czechs United with the congregation in 1953. St. Peter's United Church of Christ merged with fellowship in 1966 to form first United Church of West.

West

Marker location:  West,110 N. Reagan at City Hall

 Marker Text: This community traces its origin to the establishment by entrepreneur Thomas M. West of a stagecoach stop, dry goods store and post office here in the late 1860s. Known as the Bold Springs Settlement, these commercial structures were built on a section of the "Dallas Road" leading to West's ranch property. Early Anglo-American settlers were soon drawn to the area by its abundance of good water and the availability of rich wooded prairie blacklands. In 1880 the Missouri, Kansas, & Texas (Katy) Railroad erected a depot at Bold Springs and in 1882 the name of the community was changed to West in honor of Thomas West. The coming of the railroad and the emergence of cotton production in the 1880s attracted many Czech and German immigrants to this area. By 1900 the town had become the economic and cultural center of the thriving farming region of north-eastern McLennan County. The community soon added its first newspaper, bank, volunteer fire department, and its first block of brick buildings. By 1910 West was a bustling town of about 2000 people. Since then the community has experienced slow but steady growth. Westfest, an annual event since 1976, celebrates the community's Czech heritage.

Church of The Assumption

Marker Location: West: 300 S. Harrison

Marker Text: This congregation orginated as part of earlier church in Martinville (new tours). After the Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railroad came through the area about 1890, church members in west received permission from the Bishop to erect their own sanctuary in1892. The Rev. John Geleissner served as first Pastor of the New Church. Masses were conducted in Latin, but the Czech language was also used in services. The originial wooden building, destroyed by fire in March 1903, was replaced by a brick sanctuary that same year. It was replaced by a third structure in 1956.

The Crash at Crush

Marker location: West,  from southern city limits of West take eastern IH-35 access road 3.8 mi. S.

 Marker Text: A head-on collision between two locomotives was staged on Sept. 15, 1896, as a publicity stunt for theMissouri, Kansas & Texas railroad. Over 30,000 spectators gathered at the crash site, named "crush"for" Mkt passenger Agent William G. Crush, who conceived the idea. About 4 p.m. the trains were sent speeding toward each other. Contrary to mechanics' predictions, the steam boilers exploded on impact, propelling pieces of metal into the crowd.  Two persons were killed and many other injured, including Jarvis Deane of Waco, who was photographing the event.

St. Mary's School

Marker Location: West, West Spruce Street

Marker Text:: St. Mary's Catholic Church was officially organized in West in 1892. Because parents wanted a Catholic education for their children, Father F. G. Sebik wrote to Reverend Mother Florence, Superior General of the Sisters of Divine Providence, headquartered in Castroville. She soon sent Sister M. Pelagia and three other nuns to teach West's 132 Catholic children. The first school structure included three classrooms and living quarters for the sisters. As enrollment grew the Sisters began to accept boarding students. Interest was so high that by 1909 they were forced to turn boarders away. A new brick schoolhouse with six classrooms and an auditorium erected in 1917 accommodated more students. By 1928 seven nuns were teaching at the school. Facilities continued to change as enrollment increased and more sisters arrived. Extracurricular programs with the West public schools ensured that St. Mary's students participated in a variety of activities. The school was fully accredited by the Texas Catholic Conference in 1967. With the economic and social changes of the second half of the 20th century, the number of Sisters able to teach for a stipend instead of a salary decreased and the cost of a Catholic education increased. Enrollment gradually declined over the next decades. The last Sister of Divine Providence left the school in 1984, leaving a legacy of the Catholic educational tradition in West. Parent-teacher initiatives and development ensured the survival of St. Mary's, which continues to serve the community. (1999)

West Brethren Church

Marker Location:  West, 901 N. Marable

Marker Text: Czech immigrants began settling in this area of McLennan County about 1875. Early families included those of Josef Masek and John Foit. They attended St. Peter's Evangelical Church, founded and attended by German settlers, until the Rev. Henry Juren began conducting services in the Czech Moravian Brethren tradition. At his first service in 1888, the Rev. Mr. Juren baptized infant H. E. Beseda, who later became a minister himself. The Rev. Adolph Chlumsky formally organized the West Brethren Church in June 1892. He traveled from his farm in Brenham by railroad about six times a year to conduct services. A choir was active from the congregation's early days, as were the youth of the church. The Krestanske Sestry (Christian Sisters) was organized in 1893 with 26 members. In 1894, church trustees bought three acres east of town and built a church for one thousand dollars and donated labor. The building was dedicated in 1896. There were about fifty communicants by the turn of the 20th century. Among them were families named Adam, Barton, Beseda, Foit, Hegar, Janek, Kudelka and Svacek. The Mutual Aid Society of the Brethren Church organized in 1905. Mrs. Anna Urbanovsky donated a tract of land for a cemetery in 1908. The church building was severely damaged in a 1919 windstorm. It was replaced in 1920 and served until July 1956, when it was replaced by a modern brick facility with a sanctuary seating 220, a large fellowship hall and ten classrooms. A part of the community for more than a century, West Brethren Church continues to offer a variety of worship and educational programs. (2000)

Information excerpted from Texas Historic Sites Atlas (on line) located at: http://atlas.thc.state.tx.us/Atlas/atlas_search_frame.html

Home