The first Methodist services
in the area were probably given by Rev. S.S. Holladay. He came to
the parish in the 1880s and preached in the area. Meetings were held
on the first floor of the old Lottery Building; Masons met on the second
floor.
When Methodist families moved to town
to work for the Nona Mills Lumber Company, they asked for a church to be
organized. Rev. J.M. Alford was appointed to the church in December
1899. He held services at the W.O.W. Hall for the first year.
The first church was completed in December 1900. A storm destroyed
that church on January 5, 1918. The Womens Home Missionary Society
donated two lots next to the church, and a brick church was constructed
at a cost of $25,000. The church bell survived the storm and was
installed in the new church.
In the early 1950s, and education
building was constructed. Completed in 1953, it was dedicated
in 1959 in a service led by Bishop Paul E. Martin. |
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