| Though Methodism had been at nearby Bayou Scie for
decades, the church at Zwolle didn't begin until 1897. Rev. Sam Holladay,
who was serving the Bayou Scie church, organized some of the Protestant
English-speaking settlers who had recently moved to Zwolle into a church.
The First Methodist Episcopal Church, South of Zwolle was the largest church on
the circuit by the following year. Other churches that have shared a
circuit with Zwolle include Converse, Many, Mitchell, Hornbeck, Neame, Noble,
Pickering and Bayou Scie.
Some of the early members of the church were Senator
R. L. Gay, Mrs. R.E. Pearson, Mr. and Mrs. W.H. Pearson, Mrs. J.S. Gray, Mrs.
E.C. Leone Sr., and Mr. & Mrs. S. H. Porter. Church records do not record the
date of the first sanctuary. One story is that Dr. R.L. Parrott stated
that he would be the first person to join in the new sanctuary. He presented
himself at the altar after the singing of the first hymn, was baptized, and
received the membership vows. The recorded date of those vows is May 8,
1912. The pastor at that time was either Rev. J. C. Rouseau or T. D.
Lipscomb.
As the church grew, larger accommodations became
necessary. In the early 1940s, a new sanctuary was constructed on Port
Arthur Street. It was completed in January 1942 under the leadership of
Rev. A.M. Brown. The current church building was completed in 1964 under the
leadership of Rev. Vernon Fairley
To date, the First United Methodist Church of
Zwolle has been served by 50 pastors. When Toledo Bend Lake was created
in the 1970s, it began an influx of people who moved to the area or began
vacationing there. About half of the active membership today consists of
persons who retired in the area or come to spend their weekends in the
vicinity.
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