OUR HISTORY

“The history of the First Methodist Church of Arcola dates back to 1858 when the Illinois Conference sent Amos R. Garner to the Okaw Circuit to serve the settlements along the Okaw River.  In the fall of 1859 Rev. Garner organized a class in Arcola,” according to the historical record left to us by Joseph Kagey.  We, therefore, actually date our history from 1859.

The Okaw River is the river that we know today as the Kaskaskia.  In 1856 the settlement that we call Arcola was still called Okaw and some nearby neighbors lived by the river in a small settlement that they called Bagdad.   The year 1856 was especially cold and finally the residents of Bagdad moved their buildings on “skids” into the settlement of Okaw because a railroad was being built through Okaw and everyone could see a great future for that settlement.   When it became necessary to have a post office, Okaw had to rename itself because a town named Okaw already existed in Illinois; and so sometime between 1856 and 1858, Okaw became known as Arcola.  This actually means that our church is approximately as old as the town of Arcola although the Methodists were not officially represented by a church building until 1865.

The Illinois Conference named Allen Buckner as the first full-time pastor of the Okaw Station Methodist Episcopal Church in 1860.  He began working toward securing the funds to build a church building for the members of the church.  When the Civil War broke out, Rev. Buckner became Col. Buckner and within the ranks of his own regiment, the 79th Infantry Regiment out of Mattoon, he raised more than $1,000 toward the building fund.  “When the regiment returned from Federal service in June, 1865, the church building of the Methodist Episcopal Church was completed.”

According to an early history of our church, “Tower of Strength, 1859-1869”, that church building had a seating capacity of 350.  It was located where the present church now stands.  Baptismal services were held at the Okaw River and the Embarrass Rivers as was the custom of the times.  Three methods of baptism were recorded as being used in 1893:  immersion, pouring and sprinkling.

In 1899, the first contribution for a new building was started.   The old church building was taken down on March 1900, and the new building was competed in August of that same year.  During the period of construction, services were held in the old Baptist Church at 116 North Pine Street.  It was at that time that the church bell weighing 1600 pounds, as well as our beautiful stained glass windows were donated by families of the church

The new building had a seating capacity of 508 and was dedicated with a huge celebration lasting 3 days.  The celebration began on September 1, 1900.  There was entertainment by Rev. J. A. Burchett, auto-harpist and humorist and The Modern Woodsmen Quartet also assisted.  On Sunday morning the dedication services were held and Bishop McCabe delivered the sermon.  The Epworth League rally was held on Sunday afternoon.   On Monday night Bishop McCabe gave a lecture and sang two songs.  There were guest solos and then came the announcement during the dedication program that the church had cost $14,000.00 with only $4,963.40 yet to be raised.  By the close of the evening program all but $1,370.00 had been raised.

The Arcola Record-Herald of September 8, 1900, recorded the following speech, 

“In behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Arcola, I present to you this key, that the building may be dedicated and consecrated to the worship of God”, said G. S. Tarbox, President of the Board of Trustees as he handed the church keys to Bishop McCabe, and then and there the beautiful new temple was dedicated.

Notice especially how lovely the tower looked with the open lace-work in the photograph and the lovely spire you can see in the following sketch by N. Rairden.  Both were part of the original building in 1900.  However, pigeons soon became a constant problem in the open tower and the lacework had to be closed off. After the spire was knocked off twice by lightning it was not replaced.

There have been some famous speakers at our church over the past century.  According to the “Tower of Strength”, p. 16, which was published on the occasion of the church’s centennial in 1959, on the afternoon of April 8, 1908, “The great evangelist, Billy Sunday, and his singer, Homer Rodheaver, held a men’s meeting and the church was crowded.”  Notice that only men were allowed to hear this particular sermon!

Another special event occurred in 1943 when “an overflow crowd listened to Dr. John W. Holland, pastor of the Little Brown Church of Radio Station WLS.  The collection that evening amounted to $84.42.  The pastors, guest ministers, and evangelists have added spiritual growth to the church.”  Considering that this was in the middle of World War II and one had to spend 12 cents to buy a loaf of bread, $84.42 was a considerable amount of money to be donated in such a small community.  According to p. 13 of our church publication “Celebrating the 90th Birthday of our Church Building”, the pastor’s salary for an entire month in 1943 was recorded as only being $125.00.

Over the years many improvements have been made to the church building.  In 1947 a three-year program of repairing the exterior, decorating the interior, re-arrangement of the seating, installation of carpet and improvements to the chancel were completed.   It is also recorded that in 1948 the hitch rack was authorized to be removed from behind the church.  Apparently no one was using horses and buggies to come to church anymore!

 In 1957, discussion began about the need for expansion.  A committee was formed, plans were made and a fund drive began.  On May 26, 1957, a ground breaking ceremony was held that would add nine new class rooms and a large new dining room. Mr. Claude Roberts and Mrs. W. E. Seaman turned the first shovel of dirt which officially allowed the project to begin construction. 

It was at that time that a new narthex was added to the south of the Sanctuary.  This would allow entry to other areas of the church without one passing through the Sanctuary. The new addition was consecrated on January 26, 1958

The interior was also remodeled by church volunteers at that time.  Padded pews were added, birch cabinets were built and installed in the kitchen and a new room was added for board meetings.  That room was referred to as a “living room”.   One large improvement was the conversion to gas heat with four separate zone controls! 

 The exterior of the church also received attention.  The “bulletin board” was installed in the front yard, the yard was landscaped, and gravel was added to the rear parking area to provide “all weather service”.   It is interesting to note how many of the “bulletin boards” in front of Arcola churches are of the same style.  Does anyone know if this was a coordinated effort?  On April 8, 1962, the new addition was dedicated, and it was announced that all bills had been paid and no debt was owed!

Apparently one of the most difficult decisions ever made in the history of our church was whether or not we should have a telephone.  In 1914 someone actually had a phone installed at the church.  Church minutes record that on May 25, 1914, the secretary was instructed by the board to secure its removal!  It took nearly forty years for the subject to be brought up again.  In 1957 the request for a telephone was raised.  The topic was discussed in three different official church board meetings, at Finance Committee, and then again in a board meeting with no official action being taken.  A vote may even have been taken at a congregational dinner in 1961 with a majority indicating they were in favor of a phone being installed.  At a board meeting in May 1961 the board officially acted to approve the installation of a phone and the phone was installed in September.

In 1984, ceiling fans were added in the Sanctuary, and in the mid-eighties it became obvious that more classrooms were needed.  Once again church volunteers donated the labor to partition off the west portion of the basement addition to provide those rooms.

In. 1990 volunteers recognized a need and addressed it when they did much of the work to prepare for the plumbing of a restroom in the basement.  I’m sure many young mothers’ plus VBS and Sunday School teachers have given a silent “thank you” for the presence of that restroom.

In 1987 plans began to be made for making our church more easily accessible to those who had difficulty climbing stairs.  Plans were made to use the Todd Fund plus donations for financing.  An entry was designed to allow for the elevator.  The new “elevator-equipped narthex” and covered entryway was dedicated in 1992.

Our stained-glass windows have been moved during various reconstructions and remodeling projects.  In our 1994 Church Directory, John Robert McFarland wrote that the Wm H. Thomas memorial window was once the backdrop of the choir loft.    Later it was covered completely with a white wall which was covered with a velvet hanging in front of which a wooden cross was hung.  In 1993, during the redecoration of the worship area, that wall was cut away to reveal the beautiful scene below and two great men of Methodism according to Pastor John Robert McFarland.  “On the right is John Wesley, the author of Methodism.  On the left is Francis Asbury, the great American Methodist circuit rider and bishop.  In the middle is a scene of great power, a figure clinging to the cross in the midst of a storm. ‘In my hand no price I bring, simply to thy cross I cling.”

What joy these windows, dedicated so long ago, have brought to generations of people who have worshipped under their streaming light.

In 1997 our church received what many of us think of as a modern necessity when the sanctuary was equipped with air-conditioning as were several other parts of the building.  The knowledge that one will be neither extremely hot nor cold in the sanctuary regardless of what the weather is outside often makes the difference in whether someone who is infirm can attend worship services. In addition, while we believe it is our wonderful food that brings large crowds to eat during the Broom Corn Festival, the air-conditioned fellowship hall might also be an attraction on those hot autumn days. 

Music has been and continues to be such an important part of our service.  According to church records, we have been blessed with many fine organists, choir directors, music directors and choir members over the decades.  One interesting story regarding our musical history involves the Hammond organ that was approved for purchase in March of 1950.  According to “Celebrating the 90th Birthday of our Church building”, the new organ was placed so that “the organist Virginia Gilbert could see the hands of pianist Corinne Munson”.  That organ was replaced in 1989 by an Allen Digital Computer Organ which is beautifully played today by Mrs.Vyverberg.  In 1989, with the purchase of the new United Methodist Hymnal, a tradition with which most of us had been raised was changed.  At the end of our hymns we no longer sing “Amen.”   In 2006, supplemental hymnals, entitled The Faith We Sing were dedicated.  Their purpose is add some older Methodist hymns that had been left out of the United Methodist Hymnal and also provide alternative styles of hymns to add to our worship service as desired.

One interesting note reflecting the changing times is that former histories always contained a list of the men who had gone forth from our congregation into the ministry.  These included Boyd McFadden, Frank Poorman, Jacob Kagey, Charles McCown, William Ewing, Theodore Kemp, Thomas Ewing, John Pope, and Dr. Cautious Choate.  Now we proudly add two women from our congregation to that list: Ann Spurgeon and Jennifer Edwards Bertrand. Our congregation also includes another ordained minister, Paige Roberts, who is the minister at Wesley Foundation of Eastern Illinois University.  In another sense, one of ours has come home to minister.  Pastor Bruce Baker was born in Arcola while his father Howard Baker was serving as pastor of this church!

Much has changed since the beginning of our church.  Our church has grown from three members to three hundred sixty-five.   It has seen a change from the need for a hitching rack to the need for an automobile parking lot.  Our communication system has moved from letter writing to telephone use to the ability to use the fax and internet communication systems which were added in 2007.  We have gone from having no building to call our own to having a lovely brick building with many beautiful stained glass windows.   Instead of sitting in a building subject to heat and cold where women used hand fans in hot weather, we sit in a comfortable climate-controlled facility.  Our congregational name has gone through many changes.  We have been the Methodist Episcopal Church, First Methodist Episcopal Church of Arcola, Arcola Methodist Episcopal Church, The Methodist Church, and the Arcola United Methodist Church.  

Our church’s history is as old as the community of Arcola and in one way it is as new as the most recent convert’s heart.  Perhaps our history is truly summed up by the knowledge is held within each of us—the knowledge that the church is more than a building or a name assigned to our congregation.  Hymnals may change. Buildings may change.  Faces come and then must leave us.  However, the church and its history continue to build and grow because the church is the people and the faith that rests within them.  May it be so for many more generations.

Submitted by M. Strader, 2007

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