Born in Hull, Arkansas on October 27, 1901, Joseph Paul Horton was called by the Lord to preach in the mid 1920's.  He received his Bachelors Degree from Henderson Brown College, then went to Perkins School of Theology and Southern Methodist University Theology School, where he earned his Bachelors of Divinity Degree.  In 1929, he was assigned his first Appointment, "The Huntsville Circuit."  There were nine small towns in this circuit:  Pine Valley, Sterling Chapel, Phelps, Riverside, Oakhurst, Point Blank, Willow Springs, Farris Chapel and Stephens Creek.  All of these small towns had one-room school houses, which also served as churches and community centers.  Brother Paul brought the leaders of communities together, who were interested in building a centrally located large building.  After being assured the church would still be used as a community place for gatherings and social activities, they decided Stephens Creek was the central location.  Mr. J. M. Harrell and daughter, Ms. Florida Harrell Geaslins, deeded 3-1/2 acres for the church.  Brother Paul sketched the plans with Mr. Tommy Jenkins, a carpenter from Huntsville, TX, who made the final drawings of the large sanctuary and five Sunday School class rooms.  This was the largest Methodist Church in the area.

Only two men were paid for the construction of the building.  Mr. Jenkins was paid $3.00 per day for helping frame in the building and Mr. Otto Hawkins was paid $1.00 per day for carpenter work. Also, Otto Hawkins was the Song Leader when services were held.

Men and boys dug sand and gravel from the Stephens Creek bed.  They were loaned a concrete mixer with no instructions of how to use it.  Through trial and error, they learned to make concrete support blocks for the foundation and the steps for the three exterior doors.  These steps can still be found under the present wooden ramps and steps.

Trees were donated by different families of the community, which were cut down by the men and boys.  The felled trees were hauled by mule teams to a small sawmill, where they were cut into lumber.  After the lumber was air dried, mules and wagons hauled it to The Oakhurst Lumber Mill, where it was ran through the planner at no charge, and hauled to the church. 

While the men and boys cut trees, hauled lumber and constructed the building, the community ladies and girls cleared weeds and vines from the site.  Also, they prepared lunches shared by all the workers.  Drinking water was brought by buckets to the men.  Almost everything pertaining to building the church was given by individual members.  Brother Paul obtained a loan from The Church Board Extension through the Methodist Conference for $1,000.  The Church was chartered June 19, 1931 and completed in 1932, with $800 still due on the loan.  The community sold box suppers and made pledges to pay off the loan.

The pulpit and the kneeling rail were designed and built by Mr. Foxx Kelly.  The pews were designed and built by Mr. Ed Hopkins.  Later, the kneeling benches were designed and built by Mr. V. L. Harris.  Every family in Point Blank, Willow Spring and Stephens Creek gave their time and talents.

The Paul Horton United Methodist Church is of the community and by the community for God.

EARLY MEMBERS AND WORKERS:

HARRELLS                GEASLINS                    HARRIS
HOPKINS                   BLANKS                       ADEN
HEDREICK                 KELLY                         ANDERSON
CURRIE                      MANN                          JONES
COUNTS                    BAILES                         HARVEY
STREET                     WILLIAMSON              WALKER
JOHNSON

The picture on this page is that of the original building.