The morning sunlight streams in through the wood framed windows of Trickham’s Union Church. Old-fashioned plaster walls reflect gently back some of the light, filling the sanctuary with an almost luminous glow. Strains from a fiddle ring out through what was once the town square, as they likely have for over 100 years here. This time, they are part of a serenade performed by the Millersview Gospel Band at the monthly Saturday morning gospel sing along.
Trickham enthusiast Vonne Cornett is largely responsible for reigniting gospel singing services at the Union Church. Vonne has a passion for community, history and, of course, Jesus, which motivated her to pitch in and get the ball rolling to revitalize the church’s long-held tradition. “While we are approaching one year since we started our sing alongs at Trickham, we are reminded that we are taking baby steps to ultimately reopen the church for regular Sunday Services. We have had discussion about it and feel it will happen “in God’s time”. For now, we worship through gospel song–embracing the message in the words and if not the words the melody that lifts us. We are stronger in spirit for it as we carry it from the church and in our everyday life. After this past week’s dust storm I will be singing as I dust and clean!” Vonne said.
Trickham’s Union Church has a long history in the area.“The first regular Trickham Church was built in 1903,” reads a copy of the Santa Anna News from June 1972. “ The present Trickham Union Church building was constructed in 1947. Men of the community helped with the work, and lumber from the old building was used in the construction. The attractive brick building contains an auditorium and four classrooms.”
After the gospel band’s performance, the congregation repaired to the community center where a generous lunch had been prepared. The community center in Trickham is itself a historic building. It contains many photographs and typed recollections of events in town, including baptisms held in Mukewater Creek, and a school that was taught in there. Born and raised in Trickham, church member Sherrill McIllvain remembers when the community center was a school. She showed me where plays and other performances were held in the building, and the pulpit from the original Union Church structure which sits at the entranceway to the center. You can learn a lot from browsing the displays. “When there was something going on here, everyone in the community showed up,” Sherrill recalled. Sherrill remembers the brush arbor revivals held during the summer near the Union Church, which are featured in some of the photos on the walls. Mcllvain herself was baptized in Mukewater Creek.
One of the reasons I find Trickham history so interesting is that you never know what you’ll hear next. There is a framed story on the wall of the community center which refers to “Uncle Charlie Shield” and his doings with a church in Trickham. This was not, I believe, the Union Church. The paragraph reads, “This Church was built on the northwest corner of city block 7, town site of Trickham.” … “It was stated by old timers that Mr. Shield marched his family of boys and girls into the church by the back door, one of the girls played the piano, and they all sang. Mr. Shield brought his shot gun and bottle of whiskey to the Church (sitting the bottle on the pulpit). He would take about three drinks during the sermon. Singing schools were also conducted in the church. Mr. Shield insisted on paying the small fee charged for lessons for those unable to pay their tuition. This church was not used much after Mr. Shield was killed on a Trickham street (12-17-1911). “
The nearly abandoned town of Trickham is no longer as empty as it seems. The gospel sing along adds a lively note to the picturesque little square. Hearing the congregation sing ‘Come to the church in the country,’ while the fresh daylight streams into the old sanctuary with its creaky wood floors and simple benches is truly lovely. There’s a good spirit there, and a lot to enjoy. If you get a chance to attend services on a Saturday morning, I think you’ll find a old-fashioned welcome, great music and a little something extra that maybe is best described as sort of serenity still often found in small country church services.
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Diane Adams is a local journalist whose columns appear Thursdays on BrownwoodNews.com. Comments regarding her columns can be emailed to littleadams@gmail.com.
