Myrtle Edgar Walton’s memories of the Estrella Adobe Church
By Paso Robles Press · Thu Jan 29 2026
By Paso Robles Area Historical Society
The Estrella Adobe Church was a big part of the lives of the early settlers on the Estrella Plains. Construction on the church began in 1878. The Estrella Adobe Church was the first Protestant church in northern San Luis Obispo County, and was built by early pioneers who contributed labor and time for its construction.
In January of 1878, people gathered in the Estrella schoolhouse and organized the first Methodist Episcopal Class on the Estrella Plains. It was resolved at that meeting to build a church.
Water was hauled in, and bricks were made on the site. The lumber needed had to be hauled over the mountain from San Luis Obispo.
Unfortunately, dry years and poor prices for farm products slowed the work on the adobe, and it was not until 1882 that the building was plastered inside and out. The building was dedicated that year, and it was finally completed in 1885.
Pastor Brother Fields came to the church once a month as he also preached at Cayucos, Mullos, Starkey, and Creston. He was a circuit rider. He rode in a cart, or on a horse with his saddle bags behind his saddle. He called his horse “Jinny Gal,” and when he came to the Adobe Church, he spent the night at one or another of the settlers’ homes.
The church would be full on Sundays. Sunday school classes were held in the corners and sometimes in between. The organ stood in the southeast corner.
Locals enjoyed the “Band of Hope” on Sunday afternoons. The Band of Hope was a temperance organization for children and was founded in Leeds, England, in 1847 by a Baptist Minister following the death of a young man whose life was cut short by alcohol. Its objective was to teach children the importance and principles of sobriety and teetotalism.
There were also large picnics in a grove of trees by the Salinas or Estrella River. There would be a long program of speaking pieces and singing songs. It was a way to spend time with friends and neighbors.
People came to this little church on horseback, in spring wagons, carts, big wagons, and one or two carriages. There was a long hitching pole to which horses were tied.
One time, a stranger came to church and advertised an entertainment he would give the next night. It was called a Phantasmagoria. He stood by the door calling, “Get your tickets before the rush.” The church was filled with curious neighbors who were greatly entertained by the show. It was a slide show, probably the early beginning of the moving picture industry.
Copies of Paso Robles Press Magazine are directly delivered to 23,000 readers in zip codes 93446, 93451, and 93465 and 2,000 droppedwith support from advertisers and subscribers. Together, we are Making Communities Better Through Print.™
To subscribe or advertise, click here.