Oak Lawn Methodist Episcopal Church, South

Begun in 1911 and completed in 1915, the Oak Lawn Methodist Episcopal Church, South is an excellent example of Late Gothic Revival architecture in Dallas. It stands in a late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century neighborhood where the construction of high-rise office buildings and the expansion of other commercial development has dramatically compromised the area's historic character in recent years. As a result, the Oak Lawn Methodist Church has attained greater significance as a landmark in the neighborhood and remains an important link to the area's past. This is only the third sanctuary used by the congregation, which was organized in 1874. C.D. Hill, one of Dallas' most successful and prominent architects of the early twentieth century, designed the facility. Many of his most important commissions still stand and are listed in the National Register, including several Georgian Revival-styled buildings at Southern Methodist University and the Rogers Hotel in the Ellis County Courthouse Historic District in nearby Waxahachie, Texas. Two major additions have been built onto the rear of the church; however, both incorporate Late Gothic Revival detailing and are sensitive to the original structure's architectural integrity.

In the early 1870s, a time that marked the end of radical Reconstruction in Texas, settlers began moving into the area of Dallas County that became known as Oak Lawn. Among the first were the families of Franklin Owen Sale, John S. Dickason, and the Rev. Marcus Hiram Cullum. Early Methodist worship services were conducted under oak trees on the Cullum property until the fall of 1874 when parishioners built a small frame chapel on land donated by the Sales and Dickason's. There, nineteen charter members organized a Methodist Episcopal Church, South, on September 20, 1874, under the direction of Rev. Cullum. The Oak Lawn Methodist Church building became the nucleus of the settlement that developed around the property, providing meeting space for school classes and community functions.

The steady growth of the church in the first two decades of its existence reflected the dramatic early development of Dallas, which increased threefold in population between 1880 and 1890. Well before the turn of the century, Oak Lawn was experiencing the transition from a separate frontier settlement to a suburban residential neighborhood. To accommodate the increase in membership brought about by the change, the church constructed a larger frame sanctuary in 1890. The size and style of the new building, which included Gothic detailing, two spires, and ornate stained-glass windows, further enhanced the site's significance as a cultural and religious anchor of the surrounding community.

Oak Lawn continued to flourish in the early years of the twentieth century, spurred by the addition of such amenities as a golf course, parks, and a line of Frank Cockrell's North Dallas Circuit Railway. With the influx of new residents came a renewed effort by church members to provide better facilities, and planning began for a larger sanctuary. Begun in 1911, but halted temporarily due to limited funds, the building rose slowly. Workers completed the basement in 1913, the year of the cornerstone placement. Final work was completed late in 1915, and the congregation moved into the structure in January 1916.

Dallas architect C.D. Hill designed the impressive Late Gothic Revival structure. Born in Edwardsville, Illinois, in 1873, Hill was a graduate of the Chicago Art Institute and a former employee of the noted Fort Worth architectural firm of Sanguinet and Staats. Hill established his own practice in Dallas in 1907. Among his early accomplishments in Dallas were the 1904 Prairie Style residence (razed 1971) of Dr. John O. McReynolds; the ornate Elizabethan-styled Dallas Golf and Country Club, completed in 1911 and burned in 1955; the 1910 residential replica of Mount Vernon, built for developer Edgar L. Flippen; and the adjacent classically-inspired Melrose Hotel (1925). He also is credited as the architect of many residences in the Swiss Avenue, Munger Place, and South Boulevard/Park Row historic districts in Dallas, all of which are listed in the National Register. The eclecticism of the era and the scope of Hill's design capabilities are reflected in such public and institutional structures as the Dallas Municipal Building of French Renaissance influence, the classically-designed sanctuary of the First Presbyterian Church and the Norman Gothic-inspired City Temple of the Central Presbyterian Church. The latter shared a 1915 completion date with Oak Lawn Methodist Church but was razed in 1964. The two landmark church structures provided evidence that Hill's success as an urban designer extended into the area of ecclesiastical architecture as well. It is interesting to note that Hill's design for the Oak Lawn Methodist Church was "recycled" in Waxahachie when the Central Presbyterian Church (National Register 1986) was built in 1917-18.

Throughout the early part of the twentieth century, Oak Lawn Methodist Church was among the fastest-growing congregations in the North Texas Conference. Its leadership in the organization was significant at a time when important programs in Dallas Methodism, including the establishment of Southern Methodist University, were being developed. The church's membership included such prominent Dallas area residents as postmaster and entrepreneur B.M. Burgher, an important state and local leader in Methodist Sunday School programs, Dallas Police Chief Epps G. Knight, Dallas County Treasurer C.B. Gillespie, and numerous business and professional leaders of the city. The architecture of Oak Lawn Methodist Church was equally significant, contributing markedly to a burgeoning era of construction that included the Dallas County Criminal Court and Jail Building (1913), the White Rock Dam (1911) and the Praetorian Insurance Building (1909 and remodeled 1961), Dallas' first steel-framed skyscraper.

Historically, Oak Lawn has been primarily a residential community, but recent changes in the area have included new construction, large-scale commercial projects, and the adaptive reuse of early homes. Oak Lawn Methodist Church is a symbol of both history and change. C.D. Hill's 1911 design reflects the energy and expectations of the past, while structural additions, completed in 1929 and 1950, represent the ability to adapt to a growing and changing neighborhood. The church building is prominently sited at the major intersection of Cedar Springs Road and Oak Lawn Avenue, across from the historic Melrose Hotel. Both buildings serve as important landmarks reminiscent of old Oak Lawn and of the early suburban development of Dallas.

Although founded in the early 1840s, Dallas has experienced tremendous growth throughout its brief history, and its population today is estimated to be about one million. While the city boasts innumerable churches, relatively few pre-1937 sanctuaries have survived, most having fallen victim to the city's rapid expansion. In some cases, these churches were abandoned and demolished or completely remodeled by their respective congregations in favor of larger, more modern facilities. In other instances, land development pressures have resulted in the destruction of many of Dallas' historic churches, especially in the older sections of the city. The Oak Lawn Methodist Church has overcome all these obstacles, and it stands as one of the city's oldest and best-preserved churches. In addition, it remains a good local illustration of Late Gothic Revival architecture which gained some popularity in Dallas during the early twentieth century.