A city of churches.

Springfield has always been proud of its reputation as a "city of churches." Religion has played an important role since the first families settled in this area. The first religious services in southwest Missouri were held in 1827.... even before the Campbells and Fulbrights arrived . . . in a cabin in Taylor Township.

The first church in Greene County, a Methodist Episcopal, was built in 1833 on a plot of land in the 1200 block of North National.

Several of those early churches are included on the city's historic sites list. The oldest is Christ Episcopal at Walnut Street and Kimbrough Avenue. The original structure was built in 1870.

The church population of the new community grew as it did with a variety of denominations represented. Church buildings came and went as they were claimed by fire or progress. Their styles and locations changed but membership and attendance only strengthened. Today, there are close to 200 churches in the city representing 36 major faiths.