The first services were probably
camp meetings held under a brush arbor at Camp Ground Church. It
is believed that the log church was built on the land in the late 1840s.
It had a shingled roof and a native rock/mud fireplace. On August
31, 1854, the Harper Institute bought thirty acres from the John C. Jones
estate. The church was on part of that land. In the deed, it
stated that ten of the acres must be reserved for the camp ground church
and cemetery.
The log church was destroyed
by high winds in 1865. A new church was built of lumber. It
had glass windows and a wood-burning stove. By 1867, the church had
a Sunday School with five teachers and twenty scholars. The pastor
at that time was Rev. Thomas J. Upton. The church was incorporated
on May 3, 1877.
Some of the membership left
in 1923 when they organized a new church at Clay. In 1941, the church
was badly damaged by winds. A new church was completed under the
leadership of Rev. J.H. Martin. It was dedicated in 1943 under the
leadership of Rev. Jack Shaw. In 1954, Mr. C.G. Adams of the railroad
donated an old locomotive bell to the church.
A tornado on April 3, 1957 caused
$3000 of damage to the church and damaged many of the trees around the
structure. Over the years, improvements have been made to the facilities.
The last major addition was the addition of a fellowship hall, kitchen,
restrooms, and classrooms. In 2001, a prayer garden west of the church
was dedicated.
An in-depth history of the church
was written by Murray Rasbury in the late 1970s. Mr. Rasbury wrote
that the church was probably first named Wesley Chapel in 1864 when the
church began having regular services. |
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