Church gets steeple after 153 years

LEANDER, Texas (KXAN) - After 153 years, the Leander Presbyterian Church added a long-awaited steeple to its building this morning.

Organized in 1857, the church had planned to construct a steeple for years but never had the funds.

Church historian, Karen Thompson, said that the congregation has always focused extra money on community outreach but that a recent donation helped to finally launch the project.

Thompson's daughter, Kathy Howell, designed the steeple's windows to match the older stained-glass portions of the building.

"It just looks gorgeous," Thompson said.  "It's going to have a light in it too. I can’t wait until dark to see how it looks."

The church was originally founded as the Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church in Bagdad, Texas. In 1882, congregation members voted to move the church closer to the railroad in the new town of Leander.

A formal dedication program for the steeple will be held on Sunday, March 21, 2010.