After land was donated to the
church by the J.M. Trosper family, a building was constructed in 1899.
At the first service on November 7, 1899, their daughter Alice married
Howard Edgar. Services were held on the third Sunday of the month
at that time. The church was on the Texas charge in those days.
When Rev. M.R. Turner was pastor from 1916 to 1918, a house was rented
in Bethany to be used as a parsonage.
Each summer, the congregation
held a Brush Arbor Camp Meeting at Bethel. Families often lived in
tents during the ten-day gatherings.
Bethany was the only church
in town in those days. As it grew, the people wanted more than one
service a month. In 1923, the church joined the Louisiana Conference
and was placed on a charge with Greenwood.
At first, Sunday School classes
were held in the corners of the sanctuary. But by 1934, three classrooms
were added onto the church.
On June 7, 1938, Howard Edgar
donated one of his paintings (“Christ and the Rich Young Ruler”) to the
church in memory of his wife, Alice Trosper Edgar. It still hangs
in the church behind the altar.
Using lumbar donated by Mr.
N.C. McGowen, a parsonage was built in 1944 using the labor of the men
in the church. In the mid 1940s, the church became a full-time charge
and started receiving ministers from Centenary College. It later
went back on a charge with other churches.
Over the years, the church has
continued to make changes and improvements as necessary. A new steeple
was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Fred Alexander. The sanctuary was remodeled,
which included lowering the ceiling. Stained glass windows were given
as memorials. Hattie Pearl Brumble crocheted two pieces (the Lord’s
Prayer and the 23rd Psalm) to be hung at each side of the sanctuary.
In 1992, one of the classrooms was converted into a pastor’s study.
The fellowship hall was dedicated in 1995. |
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