CHURCH TIMELINE

Timeline of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church

1838: A group of Methodists started meeting with Revs. George Armstrong and Greenburg Vincent, preachers on the St. Marys circuit.

1840: Classes first met in the New School Presbyterian Church, Ash and Fayette streets (Lot 149).

1842 to ’43: The congregation organized as a Methodist Episcopal Church.

1844: The church was officially chartered by the conference.

1855 to ‘56: The Methodist Episcopal Church congregation built its first building. A fire after morning revival services destroyed it on March 21, 1861.

1862: The congregation, now with 82 members, rebuilt on the present site of St. Paul’s. The building faced Fulton Street on Lot 265, just west of an alley that ran north-south. The lot was donated by Judge William Broadwell.

1867: The church separated from the St. Marys circuit, now large enough to be its own entity.

1878: A parsonage was built east of the church building on Lot 250. The church and parsonage was valued at $5,000.

1892: The first brick building was built. It was dedicated Jan. 1, 1892. Membership numbered 430 people. This is the first reference of the church being called “St. Paul’s.”

1905: The 50-year anniversary of the Methodist Episcopal Church owning its own property was celebrated. Speakers included Rev. James F. Mounts, the oldest living former pastor.

1919: The first Election Day Dinner was held.

1925 to ’26: The present church was built. It was dedicated with special services Oct. 10 to 17, 1926. Lot 272 at Main and Fulton streets was purchased in 1922 and 1925 from Pat Donovan and Charles Lininger for the new building. Services and Sunday school were held in the city hall building while it was being constructed.

1939: The Methodist Church was created via a merger of the Methodist Protestant, Methodist Episcopal and Methodist Episcopal South churches. Also, the Women’s Society of Christian Service was formed (out of the Ladies Aid Society) and women were divided into groups called Circles. (The Martha Circle was well-known at St. Paul’s.)

1941: The church was remodeled and redecorated.

1942: A new parsonage was built at the site of the 1878 parsonage. This building was removed to accommodate the Sunday school wing in the 1960s.

1943: On Jan. 31, 1943, St. Paul’s paid off its debt for the parsonage and remodeling of the church. The total cost (including interest) was $169,307.

1958: Faith By Phone, a 24-hour telephone ministry, was started by Reynolds Galloway. The Rev. Stanley Benton was pastor at the time. Galloway recorded messages daily, a task that was later taken on by pastors and laypeople.

1960: The parsonage at 802 Willow St. was purchased.

1960 to ‘62: The three-floor educational building was built and then dedicated April 29, 1962. It included 27 classrooms and a small chapel, at a cost of $280,000. To make room for this addition, the 1942 parsonage was razed. The Rev. Stanley Benton was pastor at the time.

1962: Worship was divided between 9 and 11 a.m. services with Sunday school in between.

1962: Mid-Week Bulletins were first mailed to members’ homes. About three years prior, monthly newsletters called St. Paul’s News were mailed to update members on the educational building’s progress.

1966: The sanctuary underwent a major renovation. Prior to this, the sanctuary had two aisles and rolling doors at the rear. The layout was changed to one aisle, and the rear of the sanctuary was remodeled to include offices. The Fellowship Hall was also renovated, removing a stage at the east end of the basement. The basement, as well as small rooms off the balcony, had served as Sunday school areas. The current choir room was once the nursery.

1966: The church library was started, with librarian Marie Morrow. The library began with 163 books.

1968: The United Methodist Church was created via a merger of the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church. The church became St. Paul’s United Methodist Church.

1969: The house at 1017 Hawthorne was purchased for the associate pastor.

1972: The Children’s Choir was created via the merger of the Ecclesia and Melodia choirs.

1973: The first directory with photos was published.

1976: The Memorial Lounge and Elevator opened.

1976: Creative Discovery preschool started in the Sunday school wing.

1977: The property at Ash and Anthony was purchased. It was owned by Nettie Now.

1978: The Kindness Cupboard food pantry was started.

1980: Cambodian refugees Am and Lim Ouk and their son Samnit arrived in April through work by the St. Paul’s Refugee Resettlement Committee.

1980: A new organ was installed. The three-manual Moller organ was financed almost entirely by the congregation. Designed specifically for the church, the organ replaced an Estey pipe organ used since 1925. The organ has 23 voices, 29 ranks of pipes and 21 tubular bells. The cost of the new organ was $121,000, not including $8,900 to install.

1984: The Cron property at 324 N. Main St. was purchased for parking. The total cost was $60,000 for the lot, and 35 parking spaces were created. Also, the library was moved to the Narthex.

1984: The Chapel Choir was organized to sing at the early service.

1988: The sanctuary and offices were redecorated. More than 760 yards of carpet and 95 gallons of paint were used.

1989: A new roof, tuck pointing and capstone work was completed.

1992: Dinner theater productions were started.

1994: The canopy was installed on the north side of the church.

1995: The “Greenhouse,” just north of the church on Main Street, was purchased for youth activities.

1996: Homes at Ash and Anthony streets (the Now property) and 100 block of Anthony (Jackson property) were demolished. The Jackson property was paved.

2000: The Now property was paved.

2001: A new sign in front of the church was installed.

2002: Multi-media equipment was installed in the sanctuary.

2002: The church bought the house on the corner of Ash and Fulton streets and named it “The House of Jabez.” This created much-needed Sunday school rooms and some storage in its garage.

Sources: “Our History: Methodist Bicentennial 1784-1984,” “Our History: 1838 to 2000,” and “Our History: 1838 to 2003.” These books are based on newspaper accounts, Mercer County history books, and records from the church and its members.