Shiloh Community

Settlement of this area of Lavaca County began in the 1850s, when a group of about thirty families relocated here from Mississippi. The settlers named their new community Shiloh in honor of the church they had left in Mississippi. The majority of the new settlers were Methodists, and they soon built a combination church and school building. A group of German settlers, mostly of the Lutheran faith, began arriving in the 1880s. They shared worship space with the Methodists for a number of years, and in 1901 formally organized St. John Lutheran Church. Shiloh's St. John Lutheran Church merged with another Lutheran congregation in nearby Mixon Creek in 1922. Services continued in a new church building one mile west of this site. A community school was in operation in Shiloh from the 1850s until 1952, when students transferred to nearby Hallettsville. Local residents purchased the former schoolhouse in 1955 and converted it for community use, including memorial services, funerals, family gatherings, voting site, and other community activities. Together with the local Methodist and Lutheran cemeteries, it serves as a reminder of the area's pioneer heritage.

Shiloh Community is a historical marker in Hallettsville, Lavaca County, dedicated in 1994. It is one of 96 historical markers documented in Lavaca County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 174 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 29.5470, -96.8654 near Hallettsville. The nearest cataloged historic site is Shiloh Cemetery (cemetery), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Stratmann Cemetery, Brown Chapel, and Williams.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5285004682. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.