Presbyterian Historical Society of the Southwest
James S. Currie, Executive Secretary
Presbyterians in the Southwest have had a distinguished ministry to and with children for years. While Cumberland Presbyterians established a Presbyterian Children’s Home in 1904 in Bowling Green, Kentucky which moved to Denton, Texas in 1932 (and is still there), this column will focus on the PCUSA Presbyterian Children’s Home and Services. Attention to the Cumberland Youth and Family Services agency in Denton will be given space another time.
Today the Presbyterian Children’s Home and Services (PCHAS) has 18 locations in Texas, two in Louisiana, and seven in Missouri – 27 in all that provide a variety of services that range from, among others, counseling services to foster care homes to adoption services to homes where struggling single parents can raise their children in a safe environment.
Today’s PCHAS is the result the merger of four organizations over the course of the past 121 years. These mergers involved institutions from three denominations: the PCUS, the UPCUSA, and the Episcopal Church. Information for this column was taken from the “History of PCHAS: 1903-2023” which was published by PCHAS. The four entities that eventually became one are outlined below:
(1) It all began in 1903 when Leontine Hector Blaney who, dying of tuberculosis, contacted the pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Dallas out of concern for her four children. The Ladies’ Missionary Society rented a house and hired a caregiver for the children. Soon the house was filled with orphans. In 1904 four children from the Box family were the second family of orphans to enter the home in Dallas.
In the fall of 1903 the Society approached Dallas Presbytery and the Synod of Texas (PCUS) to take over the program. Because of the need for more room for this ministry, In 1904 the Synod accepted the donation from the Files family of 341 acres in Files Valley, east of Itasca, Texas. Construction for the new campus began in 1905. According to the PCHAS history, “the original Files cottage was built as a memorial to David Sidney and Sara Anne Files, the pioneer generation of the Files family in Hill County, Texas” (p. 8). Other members of the Files family also contributed over 340 acres and $5,000 to the cause.
In November 1905 Rev. James D. McLean was elected president of the Texas Presbyterian Home and School for Orphans and served from 1906 to 1922. In 1906 twenty-two children were moved from the Dallas facility to Files Valley “where the Grace Knox Home for Girls was built” (p. 9). This building was a two-story brick house that was constructed at a cost of $6,000. Over the years the campus expanded and when, in 1908 the Synods of Arkansas and Oklahoma joined in support, the name was changed to the Southwestern Presbyterian Home and School for Orphans. Rev. John E. Watts served as president the school from 1922-1932, and Rev. Nelson “Pop” R. Hawkins was president from 1936-1956.
In 1929 six-year-old Arthur Strickland and his four-year-old brother, Gene, traveled by train – unchaperoned – to the Southwestern Presbyterian Orphanage. Art went on to college, served in WWII, and then went to Austin Seminary after which he served as a Presbyterian minister for 35 years. Today Art lives in Marble Falls, Texas.
Other name changes followed: in 1936 the name was changed to Southwestern Presbyterian Orphanage and School; in 1953 it became the Presbyterian Home and School for Children; three years later it became the Presbyterian Children’s Home and Service Agency. Rev. Jerry Newbold served as president of PCH&SA from 1956-1973. He was followed by Rev. M. Ralph Weedon who served from 1973-1979. Rev. Jerry Tompkins succeeded Weedon and served as president from 1980-1996. Rev. Chuck Mendenhall then followed Tompkins and served from 1996-2001.
While the campus remained and others were established, in 1981 the administrative offices moved from Itasca to Austin.
(2) In 1914 the Elmwood Presbyterian Orphanage was established in Farmington, Missouri by the PCUS. Three years later the UPCUSA joined in supporting it, and in 1930 the name became the Presbyterian Orphanage of Missouri. After a couple more name changes, in 1952 it became the Farmington Children’s Home. In 1977 it established a St. Louis counseling office known as Presbyterian Family Services. In 2010 it became the Children’s Foundation of Mid-America.
Concern for the high poverty and mortality rate among children in this mining community led Margaret Butler, a member of Second Presbyterian Church in St. Louis, to contribute $15,000 to purchase and furnish the Farmington campus in 1914. Rev. E.O. Sutherland served as the first superintendent. Within five years there 155 children living there. “For the next 55 years, the orphanage cared for up to 145 children at a time” (p. 30). Others who served as superintendents included Rev. William S. Stinson (1919-1930), Rev. Peter W. Fischer, Rev. Fred A. Walker (1945-1948, 1951-1968). Howard Showalter became executive director in 1970 and served for the next 26 years. He was succeeded by James Winston Thurman who retired in 2013. Robert Giggling then became the executive director.
(3) In 1916 the Reynolds Presbyterian Orphanage and School was established in Albany, Texas by the UPCUSA. In 1923 it moved to Dallas with the name Reynolds Presbyterian Home. Ralph M. Reed was the executive director of Reynolds Presbyterian Home form 1940-1971. Alfred M. Travis followed Reed and served from 1971-1986. From 1988 to 1990 Thomas K. Lockhart served as the executive director, and Ann Byers followed him, serving from1990-1996. In 1957 it became United Presbyterian Homes, and in 1988 it moved to Waxahachie, Texas and became Presbyterian Children’s Services. Charles “Ed” Knight became executive director in 1997 and served until 2001. In 2002 it merged with the Presbyterian Children’s Homes in Itasca to become Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services.
(4) In 1955 St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Houston established the Homes of St. Mark. Its roots go back to 1948 when “Dr. And Mrs. W. H. Ackerman were asked to provide care for an unwed woman who was pregnant. The young woman had no place to live and did not want institutional care. The Akkermans provided care for her until delivery. At that time, the birth mother decided to place her infant with a relative of the Akkermans who wanted to adopt a child” (p. 56). Over time, the Homes of St. Mark promoted “open” adoption. With the gradual decrease in infant adoptions, the agency saw a need for children in custody of the state, and in 1993 signed an agreement with the state of Texas “to provide foster care and adoption services for such children” (p. 56).
The Mergers
In 2002 in Texas Presbyterian Children’s Homes (PCUS) and Presbyterian Children’s Services (UPCUSA) merged to create Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services.
In 2010 the Homes of St. Mark merged with Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services.
In 2013 the Presbyterians Children’s Homes and Services (Texas) signed an Affiliation Agreement with the Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services (Missouri). Then in 2014 and 2015 the Texas agency added programs in Louisiana. In 2018 the two agencies merged and agreed to use the name Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services (PCHAS) without state designation.
The administrative office continues to be in Austin, and David Thompson currently serves as president with an executive staff of six: Rev. Peter Crouch (Vice President of Development), Robert Giggling (Vice President of Programs), Crystal Kirby (Vice President of Finance), Cindy Lively (Vice President of Administration), Randy Spencer (Vice President of Organizational Impact), and Jeanine Watson (Vice President of Human Resources).
Clearly PCHAS has come a long way since 1903. It has a rich history and it continues to “make history today.”
The Presbyterian Historical Society of the Southwest exists to “stimulate and encourage interest in the collection, preservation, and presentation of the Presbyterian and Reformed heritage” in the Southwest. If you are not a participating member of the Society and would like to become one, the annual dues are $20 per individual and $25 per couple. Annual institutional and church membership dues are $100. Checks may be made out to PHSSW and sent to:
PHSSW – 5525 Traviston Ct., Austin, TX 78738.
Comments