Rev. Joseph W. Tays - El Paso, Texas
Reverendo Joseph W. Tays - El Paso, Tejas

Rev. Joseph W. Tays - El Paso, Texas

Reverend Joseph Tays, an Episcopal missionary who founded El Paso's first Protestant church, arrived in El Paso in 1870, a widower with two boys. C. L. Sonnichsen records the story that a month after he began his mission in El Paso, Tays sent word to Austin that he was "doing his best." Tays was learning Spanish and at least one saloon keeper had closed his doors and found another vocation because of him. He not only preached and taught, he worked in real estate and served the county as surveyor. Tays laid the cornerstone of the first St. Clement's Episcopal Church on Christmas day in 1881. Local Historian and Author Leon Metz writes that after having conducted the funeral of a smallpox victim, Tays contracted the dreaded disease himself and died after a week's suffering. Late in the evening of November 21, two men from the city wrapped Parson Tay's body in a sheet and delivered it quickly to Concordia. He was buried without ceremony in the middle of the night during a violent rain storm. The man who had helped so many in early El Paso was buried with only two grave diggers present. (per http://www.epcounty.com/history/concordia.htm)

Area: Central / El Paso High

Source: El Paso County Historical Society

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Comments

Add a comment
Thank you for your comment

Report this entry

Choose the most important reason for this report

Your name

Your email address

Optional detail

Thank you for your report

More from the same community-collection

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football Kick off

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football Fans

Fans of the Cathedral High School Football.

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football

The Fighting Irish Football ready for the game - El Paso, Texas.

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football Corps of drums.

Cathedral High School, Fighting Irish Football Corps of drums. ...

Tamalada 2013

LQVQ General fund raising event celebrated every year in ...

Cathedral High School Tamalada 2013

Cathedral High School El Paso, Texas Tamalada buddies, Flood and ...

Cathedral High School Tamalada 2013

Cathedral High School Tamalada Class reunions of all different ...

Cathedral High School Tamalada 2013

Cathedral High School graduate Nicholas Loweree seated with his ...

Cathedral High School Tamalada 2013

Cathedral High School Tamalada, Treasurer Mr. Acosta and wife - ...

Cathedral High school-Tamalada

Cathedral High School-Tamalada LQVQ Workers, co-members of the ...

Cathedral High School-Tamalada

Three generations of women from Portillo Family attended ...

Cathedral High School-Tamalada

Cathedral High School-Tamalada unknown couple

Cathedral High school-Tamalada

Cathedral High school-Tamalada. Lady talking to KING Negrete of ...

Cathedral High School-Tamalada - El Paso, Texas

Cathedral High School-Tamalada couple unknown. Definition: ...

Cathedral-Tamalada fund raiser celebration

Cathedral-Tamalada Unknown couple.

Cathedral High School-Tamalada

Cathedral High School-Tamalada - El Paso, Texas

Cathedral High School-Tamalada

Cathedral High School-Tamalada, unknown couple.

Cathedral High School-LQVQ Tamalada.

Cathedral High School-Tamalada three parts good looking one part ...

Cathedral High School-Tamalada

Cathedral High School-Tamalada "We aren't talking about you. ...

Cathedral High School-LQVQ Tamalada

Cathedral High School-LQVQ Tamalada Out of city visitors. ...

Alumni taking the walk to church to attend the memorial.

Raul Guereca, beloved Cathedral High School teacher, passed away ...

1954 - CHS Fighting Irish Marching Band - El Paso, Texas

The marching band was Under the Direction of Christian Brother ...

Archie Candelaria's and son with 2 other bigger golfer

Father and son team against the two other big kids on the block. ...

home.search_collection