The Jackson Ranch Church in Pharr is now officially a historical designation.

The church is being recognized for its place in the Underground Railroad more than 150 years ago.

A UTRGV historian says the original family who bought the land and built the church did it in order to avoid slave catchers.

READ MORE: Valley historian finding traces of the Underground Railroad in the Valley

The Jackson Ranch Church is now being recognized by the National Parks Service's National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program. 

Through the years, Nathaniel Jackson and Matilde Hicks assisted people who were in search of freedom cross into Mexico.

“They knew about their community, they knew about their church, and they were seeking refuge, hoping to make it across the river to freedom in Mexico,” UTRGV Anthropology Lecturer and Director of the university’s Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools  \Roseann Bacha Garza said. 

The Jackson Ranch Church welcomes visitors, and they're expecting to see more with this historical designation.

Watch the video above for the full story.