Zephyr Presbyterian Church

The year this church was finished, a tornado demolished Zephyr, killing more than twenty people. The town rebuilt, and from 1925 to 1950 it counted about 750 residents. A high school went up in 1940, and in 1958 Zephyr became an independent school district so its few students would not have to ride buses elsewhere. Cotton carried the economy until the boll weevil and market conditions closed the last gin in the early 1940s. The population fell to 270 in the 1960s and 1970s and to 198 by 1980, and the town turned to farming and ranching.

What the plaque says

The congregation of the Zephyr Presbyterian Church traces its history to 1890. In 1909 members of the church and community volunteers, with the assistance of Swiss stonemason John Chailette completed a church building. Worship services were held twice a month by a minister shared with the nearby Blanket Presbyterian Church. Sunday School classes, summer Bible school, and ice cream suppers sponsored by the church contributed to the social and religious life of the community until 1944, when the church was disbanded. In 1948 the building became a community center. (1992) Text of supplemental plate: In 1948 this building was donated by C. R. Boase to become a community center for the benefit and pleasure of its citizens.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Lake Brownwood State Park — 18 mi
  A CCC park on a reservoir that filled in a single flood before its dam was done, with stone cabins, a hilltop dance pavilion and a grand staircase climbed by dancers arriving by boat.

More markers nearby

• First Baptist Church of Zephyr — steps away
• Walter U. Early — 9.8 mi
• Blanket — 10.0 mi
• Prisoners of War at Camp Bowie — 10 mi