Alright, on your right you’ll see the First United Methodist Church-one of Reno’s oldest spiritual beacons, right here since 1868. Imagine this spot back then: dusty streets, wooden buildings, and a tiny congregation led by Reverend Thomas McGrath, who was basically the “welcome committee” for anyone spiritually inclined in early Reno. Back then, the first church meetings were squeezed into a schoolhouse. By 1871, the congregation scraped together enough for their own place-a wood-framed church, costing maybe what a few months' rent would get you today, but in 1871 dollars, it was a mountain of cash.
Now, look at the building in front of you-the grand concrete structure with those classic Gothic Revival arches. Finished in 1926, it was pretty high-tech for its day: poured concrete before it was cool. The parish house joined it about 15 years later, and the church kept growing, eventually adding classrooms and a fellowship hall in the '60s. Through booms, busts, and Reno’s city wildness, the church’s doors have stayed open, serving a close-knit group of about 400 folks.
