History, November, 2011
History Facts
Updated November 6, 2011
1) Rev. Cecil Ellisor was minister during much of the construction of our sanctuary building. He served at the location on the corner of Spring Hill Avenue and Florida Street until June of 1948 when he was moved to the Montgomery District as Superintendent. He was succeeded by Rev. C. E. Barnes.
2) The Anthem used at the first service was “ Lift Up Your Heads”
3) The church architect was Howard Ellis
4) The builder was Marvin E. Savell and he was a cousin of Clair Curry.
5) The first sermon ,in this location ,was preached on March 2 , 1952 .
6) The church was air-conditioned in 1956
7) In 1881 the church became a one room building and the minister was Rev. W. T. Rencher
8) In 1881 a parsonage was purchased by Bro. Killough ,for $900.00.
9) In 1945 , “at a Quarterly Conference”, the Building Committee was given the right to purchase land “for the church and a lot for a parsonage.”
10) “On February 24, 1952,at 2:30 P.M. the cornerstone was laid and the church dedicated to the Glory of God.”
11) Our church was originally known as the Four Mile Post Church or the Napoleonville Church.
12) In 1875 J. H. James became the first minister.
13) In 1916 the membership was 250.
14) In 1921 Rev. J. W. Horn became the first full time minister.
15) In 1944 the membership was 742.
16) The first recorded wedding was in 1896 between Miss. Sallie McLean and Mr. W.O. Haas.
17) On April 10, 1957, there were 50 members on the Official Board.
18) In the late nineteen fifties, the church published a weekly newspaper entitled The Gothic Tower.
19) By the early nineteen sixties The Rev. Ben Sawada was the only missionary the church had produced.
20) William H. Chance was the only full - time music director, so far , in the history of our church. This was in the early nineteen sixties
21) The sanctuary was officially completed in February of 1965 .
22) The sanctuary lights were dedicated on Sunday March 7, 1965
23) In 2001 Rev. Dr. R. Hannah Garrett Johnson became the first lady to be a minister at our church
24) Our church traces it beginnings to the house of Mrs. Jane Brightling in 1874
25) The last known written history of our church ends in 1966
26) The ground - breaking was held for our church on Sunday, June 22, 1947.”
27) On March 2, 1952 , opening day, the membership was 894
28) On opening day the minister was Rev. C. Everett Barnes
29) The subject for that first sermon was “We build the House of God”
30) Early ministers were boarded among members
31) In 1891 Rev. J.W. Killough was the first minister to arrive with a family.
32) The first known parsonage was an 81year old log house
33) The Alexander House was built in 1853.
34) The Alexander House became the parsonage in December 1945
35) The stained glass windows in our church where designed by “Mr. Christian M. Senanig of the P. J. Reeves Studios of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania”
36) In the 1954-1955 year, the Woman’s Society of Christian Service had 103 members
37)The first minister to preach at the 2715 Spring Hill Avenue location was Rev. C. Everett Barnes
Submitted by Charles Dupree
