USA > Illinois > Shelby County > Stewardson > Stewardson, the first 100 years : history of the village of Stewardson, Prairie Township and vicinity > Part 3
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and buggy were completed. The parsonage, with rooms added from time to time, served until the 1940's.
When the church was still in the country, members often walked to church using the railroad most of the way because of bad roads. After the village of Stewardson had developed, it was decided to build a church here. A school had been built in 1882, lo- cated at what is now 121 South Walnut. The church was built on a lot donated by Mrs. M. Volkman at a cost of
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LUTHERAN CHURCH
STEWARDSON ILL
This is a picture of the first Lutheran Church and school. The par- sonage is in the background behind the school. This school building was sold to Phil Peters, when a new school building was built to the south of this one and he moved it to north Pine St. He remodeled it into a home and then later sold it to Karl Lugar who lives there now.
Notice the hitchrack in front and the fence around the school. The hitchrack was needed to tie the horses on Sunday and the fence wasn't only to keep the students on the playground, but to keep the minister's livestock from straying. The school yard was used as a pasture, too.
$3300, including the bell which is be- ing used in the present church. This church, which seated about 280 peo- ple, was dedicated in October 1893. Up until 1897, all the services had been conducted in the German lan- guage. In that year English services were begun and were conducted every two weeks. In 1936 German was dropped altogether. In 1945, a $4000
P
S
A picture of the first Lutheran Par- sonage, beside the church to the south and to the east of the present parsonage.
project was completed, which in- cluded a basement and a furnace, remodeling the interior and installation of a kitchen. In 1951 a new parson- age was built at a cost of $12,000.
On the evening of January 28, 1953, the entire community felt the loss when a fire swept through and
totally destroyed the building and fur- nishings. Only the official records and the bell were saved. The congregation immediately made plans to rebuild, and on October 31, 1954, at a cost of $160,000, a beautiful new church, with a capacity of 440, was dedicated.
The Sunday School which was or- ganized in 1908 has classes from nursery to adult Bible class, with an average enrollment of 118. The Ladies Aid was organized on November 12, 1914, and continues to be a very ac- tive organization, with Mrs. Eva Schultz as president. There is the Trinity Youth Society for the young people of the church and there is also a Fellowship Club. The choir was officially organized in 1930, and adds much to the services on Sundays, as well as on holidays.
Thirteen pastors have served up to the present time: Rev. Henry Rincker,
1870 - 1871; Rev. F. W. Schlechte 1872-
1883; Rev. F. W. Brockman 1884 - 1888; Rev. C. C. Koessel 1888 - 1891; Rev. J. Kollmorgen 1891 - 1896; Rev. Paul Kolb 1896 - 1899; Rev. Carl Schmidt 1899- 1903; Rev. H. Beiderwieden 1903 - 1918; Rev. V. M. Keiper 1919 - 1923; Rev. C. Thomas Spitz 1923 - 1930; Rev. T. Dautenhahn 1930 - 1946; Rev. Walter Lieder 1946 - 1957. Rev. George Wil- liams came in 1957 and is the present pastor. It is the largest church in the community with a membership of 412.
Stewardson United Methodist
Methodist Church with the Parsonage to the right.
In 1871 E. S. Warmsley began preaching and formed a society in a schoolhouse near "Dead Man's Grove." The members of this class were Wil- liam Mitchell and family, Michael Strause and family, and Michael Dap- pert and family. Sabbath School was organized about the same time. In 1873, a church was built within one mile of the Grove, costing $1,700 and was dedicated by G. E. P. Baldwin, T. S. Johnson, P. E. with
the following trustees: Michael Strouse, William Mitchell, James Patrick, Michael Dappert, and John Silvers. The first Methodist Episcopal Society in Stewardson was organized by F. J. W. Laoham in September 24, 1875. The church built by the society near Dead Man's Grove was moved to Stewardson and set on lots 11 and 12, block 17, corner of South Cedar and South Second Street, the location of the present United Methodist Church, in 1877. At this time, the Society or- ganized near Dead Man's Grove merged with the Stewardson member- ship and became one society under the name of Stewardson Methodist Episco- pal Church. On Sunday, February 14, 1879, the members of the Methodist Episcopal Church met and organized a Sunday School electing the following officers: Superintendent, C. H. Sloan; Assistant Superintendent, J. A. Tull;
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MA. E.AHVAČE STEWARDSOVILL
An early picture of the Methodist Church with the parsonage to the North of it. This was taken about 1909.
Secretary-Treasurer, H. Martin; Li- brarian, R. W. Martin. The members also named a committee to organize classes, permitting each class to choose its own teacher.
This building served the Methodists in the village of Stewardson until the spring of 1905. The building was sold to the congregation of the Free Meth- odist Church of Stewardson and moved to lots 5 and 6, block 8, of C. Weeds subdivision across from the Stewardson Park.
Plans for a new church were begun during the pastorate of Rev. Andrew Warner and followed through during the pastorate of Rev. J. W. Whitlock. A new church was erected on the same site as the previous one in 1905 and was built of concrete block at a cost of $3,000. It was dedicated November 28, 1905, with a sermon by Rev. G. W. Hughey and Rev. Parker Shields.
In 1939, the name of churches of the conference was changed from Meth- odist Episcopal to Methodist Churches. In early 1951, under the leadership of E. B. Davies, DD. a $35,000 building program was begun. Changes were made to the front which included a new foyer, new stairways, and the re- moval of the bell tower. To the rear
of the building, classrooms, rest rooms, and a kitchen were added. Dedication services were held from September 16, 1951 to September 19, 1951, including the dedicatory sermon by D. Preston E. Horst, Decatur, and dedication of the parsonage which had
been constructed during the pastorate of Rev. John Lee Bilby. In 1968, a new lighting system was installed. In 1969, a new organ was purchased. In 1970, a new heating and air condition- ing unit was installed. In 1973, the front and rear doors were replaced with steel clad doors, and awnings were added above the doors.
After the general conference voted in 1968 to merge with the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the new name United Methodist Church was adopted. Through the years the church has had many organizations for its peo- ple. The Women's Missionary Society was organized in February, 1913. It was reorganized in 1939 as the Wom- en's Society of Christian Service and included the Ladies Aid Society. On May 10, 1973, it became the United Methodist Women's Organization. Classes were organized to serve all ages in Sunday School. Mr. R. A. Peters served as Sunday School Super- intendent for 32 years. At the present time, there are 15 classes and an en- rollment of 167. There is the Metho- dist Youth Fellowship for the young people of the church.
The first assigned pastor came to the village in 1879 and was the first of 38 pastors to serve the Stewardson congregation. At the time the pas- tons also served circuit churches in the area. The pastors and their approxi- mate dates of service are as follows: Rev. W. F. Shoemaker, 1879 - 1880; E. Gollagher, 1880 - 1881; J. O. Collins, 1881 - 1882; J. Gliek, 1882 - 1884; M.
K. L. Morgan, 1885 - 1886; S. W. Balch, 1886 - 1887; A. M. Campbell, 1888 - 1889; E. M. Sutton, 1890 - 1892; M. E. Hobart, 1892 - 1894; S. N. Wake- field, 1894 - 1896; J. M. Tull, 1897 - 1898; J. M. Eldredge, 1899 - 1902; A. Warn- er, 1902 - 1904; J. W. Whitlock, 1904- 1906; Selby, 1906 - 1907; O. T. Pilch, 1907 - 1909; George Penell, 1909 - 1910; Grant Johnston, 1910 - 1911; D. T. Black, 1911 - 1912; H. C. Munch, 1912- 1914; H. G. Swope, 1914-1915; W. A. Schell, 1915 - 1917; D. O. McRoberts, 1918 - 1921; E. K. Crews, 1921 - 1923; W. C. Montgomery, 1924 - 1927; H. A. Litherland, 1927 - 1928; William J. Ed- munds, 1928 - 1935; Arthur Miles, 1935- 1936; C. W. Ivie, 1936 - 1939; Gilbert Dude, 1939 - 1943; Guy Holmes, 1943- 1945; John L. Bilby, 1945 - 1950; E. B. Davies, 1950 - 1953; George Baldridge, 1953 - 1955; A. C. A. Lee, 1956 - 1958; Charles Fradenburgh, 1958 - 1961; R. T. Wofford, 1961 - 1966; and Rev. An- drew Procell, who came in 1966 and is presently serving as pastor for the 238 members of the congregation.
The Seventh Day Adventist
Seventh Day Adventist Church on North Spruce Street.
On September 27, 1862 the Illinois Seventh Day Adventist Conference was founded. In 1902 the state was di- vided between the north and south and Stewardson became part of the south- ern division. Services were first held in a building near where the Springer Chevrolet Garage is now. In the sum- mer of 1907 an Evangelical Team of the Southern Illinois Conference of the Seventh Day Adventists visited the community and held a tent meeting in the Village Park, resulting in the ac- ceptance of their faith by many citi- zens of the community. The number and enthusiasm was such that a church was organized and building plans were started. In January 1907 A. J. True- blood had purchased from William H.
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Washington Church
Fagan and wife Elizabeth Lot 2 Block 5 Hurlbutts second division to Stew- ardson for the sum of $125. Mr. True- blood and wife Hannah deeded to the Southern Illinois Conference of the Seventh Day Adventists this site on which to build the church. He also furnished all the rough lumber for the church building. The church lo- cated in the 300 block of what is now Spruce Street was completed in the autumn of 1907 and Sabbath School and other departments were organized. The membership included the families of A. J. Trueblood, W. S. Proctor, Wiley Pleasant, Frank Hubbard, Mrs. Frank Williams and Ambrose Whit- acre. For a time the church was quite successful, but in the 1920's and early 1930's the interest dwindled and the doors were closed. This condition did not exist long. Back in 1908 a group had been organized in the King- man vicinity east of Stewardson, hold- ing five church night meetings at Liberty Hall Community Building and braving snow three and four feet deep and winds up to 25 and 40 miles an hour. This group and a group in the Clarksburg area which had been meet- ing in homes and elsewhere combined with the Stewardson congregation and reorganized and reopened the Stew- ardson Church. New interest prevail- ed and in 1970 and 1971 under the leadership and direction of Pastor Richard Muir, the building was en- larged, remodeled and put into its pres- ent condition. Much interest is being shown and progress is being made under their present pastor, Donald E. Lund. Their officers at this time are Elders Wayne Figgins, Douglas Deck- er and Dewey Sidwell. Sabbath School Superintendent Shirley Figgins, church treasurer, Mrs. Leah Phillips, church clerk Mrs. Wilma Decker, organist, Beulah Idleman, pianist, Judy Syfert. Church board members are Pastor Donald E. Lund, chairman; Wayne Figgins, J. Dewey Sidwell, Leah Phil- lips, Wilma Decker, Douglas Decker and Irvin Figgins.
In the early days of the church they sent one missionary, Durward Wil- liams, to China. He gave his life in the service of his church and is at rest in the lands of China. (24). The beliefs of the Seventh Day Adventists are that the seventh day is the Sab- bath and the second advent of the coming of Christ.
For a number of years services for the Washington congregation were held in the schoolhouse where the Wash- ington Church is now located about 21/2 miles northwest of the present village of Stewardson. As the church flour- ished under the leadership of the fam- ilies of William Shumard, William Wil- liams, Samuel Bailey, James Koontz, John Homrighous and others, more space was needed. The schoolhouse was moved 1/2 miles south to the corn- er and planning for a new church on the vacant site began. Mr. Homrighous donated the ground and offered to furnish the timber if the men would cut and haul the logs to the sawmill to be made into lumber. Mr. Koontz also donated lumber. Rock for the foundation was hauled by the mem- bers. The ladies also did their part. Mrs. Will Shumard was one of a group who rode horseback collecting money. Even children contributed their part by taking money to school for the church project.
In 1892 with much prayer and hard work, the church was built and ready for services with the pastor from the Stewardson Methodist Church doing the preaching. In order to purchase a new organ, the ladies of the church made a quilt. The quilt was pur- chased by Mr. Witmer, Nona Engel's grandfather. Nona still has the quilt. The Washington Church was on a cir- cuit with the Stewardson Methodist for a time and so both churches were served by the same pastors. It was during the time that Rev. W. A. Schell (1915 - 1917) was pastor that the Stew- ardson congregation decided to become a separate church and the door of the Washington Church was closed. Some of the members transferred to Stewardson, but it was not convenient
for others to do so. After a time, Mr. John Collins, one of the devout leaders of the church, opened the doors and started Sunday School again. Rev. D. O. McRoberts of the Metho- dist Church and Rev. Martin of the Christian Church each held services and several evangelists also held meet- ings.
The church has continued to pro- gress. In 1947 Mrs. Robert Hillard organized and became the sponsor of a group of young people called the Lighthouse League. Through the years this has been a very active group, helpful to the church and to the mis- sionary work of the church. In 1948 the men of the church lowered and re- paired the belfry and built a new chim- ney. More rooms were needed, so again through cooperative work, a classroom was added to the west side of the church and a furnace room on the east and new shingle siding was put on. This work was com- pleted and dedicated on August 15, 1956. Since 1956 the sanctuary of the church has been remodeled, the ceil- ing of the church lowered and new light fixtures put in. The furnace, piano, and pulpit furniture were re- placed with new ones. In 1961 a new altar was given to the church in memory of Irven Kessler by his im- mediate family. In 1965 new seats were installed and new storm win- dows put on. The walls of the church were panelled in 1968. In 1972 new carpet was laid in the church and Sunday School rooms. The heating system of the church was repaired and electric heat put in the Sunday School rooms in 1973.
Pastors who have served over the years and other churches in the cir- cuit include Rev. Kosher, Rev. Dill, Rev. Morton, Rev. Ernest Duling, Rev. Peas, Rev. Arthur Waters, Rev. Bost, Rev. Smith, Rev. Clark Tate, Rev. John Hubner, Rev. Earl Stier- walt, Rev. Delmar Redmond, Rev. Ronald Sneed, Rev. Eugene Downs, Rev. Jack Fairbanks, Rev. James Williams, Rev. D. E. Angle, Rev. Harold Hamilton, Rev. Harold Carrell, Rev. Durward Harris.
At the present time Rev. Don Graham is the pastor on a circuit with Strasburg, and Gaskell. The present church membership is 48, Sunday School enrollment 73, and the Lighthouse League Youth Group has 18 members.
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The Free Methodist Church
Free Methodist Church building on West Main Street as it looks today. Dale Moran owns it and is using it for a storage building.
In the years previous to 1905, in- dividuals and families of the Village of Stewardson and rural areas were affiliated with and were members of the Free Methodist Church with churches located in Shelbyville, Sulli- van, Fancher, Effingham, and else- where. Their numbers constantly in- creased and it became evident that a Free Methodist Church was needed in Stewardson. Under the leadership of E. H. Robertson, Joe Spearman, Ben Gawthrop and others, a group met and proceeded to elect officials and establish a meeting house. At this time the Stewardson Methodist Congre- gation was planning to build a new church because the old facilities were no longer adequate with the increased membership. The old building was offered for sale. It was purchased by the Free Methodists and moved to Lots 5 - 6 Block 8C Weeds Subdivi- sion to the village of Stewardson, which is now 411 West Main Street.
The building was painted on the out- side and redecorated within. Some- time later when services were dis- continued at the Free Methodist Church at Kingman, members, in- cluding the Charles Boldt and Robert Koester families, transferred to the Stewardson Church. The church grew and thrived several years as a single unit. Although the membership was never very large, it was a devout and dedicated one. In 1915 the Stewardson Sylvan Circuit was formed. While this arrangement in a degree changed the well established services, the church moved on without showing ad- verse effects. In the years 1930 - 31 a building program was begun. The church building was reconstructed using much of the old material and its present appearance was attained.
This was under the direction of Rev. H. A. VanHorn church pastor at that time. Dedication services were held Sunday, April 12, 1931 followed by two weeks of Revival Services conducted by J. L. Mayhew, District Elder.
Changes were again made in the cir- cuits. In the year 1938 the Stewardson church formed a circuit with the Eff- ingham Free Methodist Church. In 1948 Stewardson was placed with Sylvan and Fancher. In 1949 Sylvan was located with Shelbyville, leaving Siewardson and Fancher as a circuit. In 1960 the Tower Hill Free Methodist Church was placed with the Steward- son, Sylvan circuit. By the year 1961- 62 membership and attendance had dropped below ten, and the Central Illinois Conference declared it aban- doned. Soon after the building was sold at auction. It was purchased by Kenneth Moran. It is now owned by Dale Moran and used for storage purposes.
One of the first ministers to serve the church was Rev. C. H. Coates, a young unmarried man who rode a bicycle to Stewardson, conducted serv- ices and visited his parishioners. He later married, but now is quite ill in a nursing home with his wife in Greenville, Illinois. Other ministers included Rev. J. C. Sills, R. J. Boling, Mayme Gardner, T. H. Eaton, Albert Barrett, J. G. Yeck, M. Harvey, C. W. Brandle, H. A. Van Horn, Homer Faster, C. A. McDonald, S. L. Phelps, E. G. Wyman, H. E. Goldshars, V. G. Kackley, C. E. Ring, Ruth Emigh, Ralph Allen, R. K. Fry, E. C. Hamm, Waldo Dooley, and Harold Brown.
Baptist Church
The Baptist Church in this place originated about the year 1875. A prominent citizen, Mr. S. B. Fick, moved here from one of the cities. He and his family had been accustomed to attending Baptist services.
As a farmer, he came into contact with three or four families in the ad- joining districts who were farmers and Baptists. After a short time, the Bap- tists were able to secure the services of Baptist ministers. In the early winter of 1887, Rev. D. P. French, missionary of the Illinois Baptist As- sociation for the southern section of the state, visited the place, com- menced and sustained protracted meet- ing with the little church. Before and after this period the congregation had enjoyed the occasional labors of Rev. Griffith, a clergyman living near
Strasburg. Rev. J. H. Phillips, pas- tor of the Shelbyville church, had al- so assisted them by preaching and helping in building their church. In addition to these, Rev. I. N. Hobart, D. D. Superintendent, labored for them and gave them aid in both spiritual and temporal matters. In the follow- ing year, through the intervention of Rev. Dr. Hobart, Rev. H. W. Wilson was sustained as a missionary of the General Association at Stewardson for several months. He received a good number into the church by baptism. In 1877 they built a neat church, lo- cated on what is now East South First Street where Dwight Friese lives. By the year 1881 their membership num- bered about 50 members.
They continued to progress until the morning of Friday, February 23, 1892 when at 7:00 a.m. fire of unknown cause was discovered in the Livery Barn of L. J. Saunders, adjoining the church property. The flames spread to the Baptist Church, burning it to the ground. The church, valued at $800, was never rebuilt. The mem- bership filtered into other societies of the village and the Baptist congrega- tion ceased to exist. October 2, 1892 the Christian Church permitted them to hold their services with Rev. Omstead, minister, preaching Saturday evening and Sunday 11:00 a.m.
Christian Science Church
There were several followers of this faith at one time including the families of Frank Voris, Wesley Duddlesten, Belles and Harry York. They met in the upstairs room of what was called the Opera Hall in what is now the Paul Yakey building.
Catholic Church
Quite a number of years ago Catholic services were held in Stewardson every week-end in a building where the Post Office now stands. This building was known as the F. X. Gress building at that time. Later a block building was erected there by Mr. Hoffman, a doc- tor from Teutopolis, who was a son-in- law of Mr. Gress. Father Foster, a priest from Ramsey came over on the the Nickel Plate Railroad and held services here and then went to Shum- way by the way of the Wabash Rail- road to hold services there. A priest from the Green Creek Parish, several miles east of Stewardson, built an altar in the Gress building and also held sevices.
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Presbyterian Church
At one time there was a Presby- terian Church in Stewardson probably organized between 1882 and 1885. There was a brick house of worship with Elder Zerr as the minister.
Prairie Evangelical Church
The Prairie Evangelical Church of the Indiana Conference was organized more than a hundred years ago, by a small number of families of German descent, including the Bredows, Beck- ers, Rozenes, Tabberts, and Fritzes. Land was donated by the Kasangs and the church was built on the southeast corner of the Kasang farm about four miles northeast of the present village of Stewardson. The services were in German until around 1900 when they were changed to English. Sunday School was held every Sunday, but church services were held only every two weeks, first on Sunday morning and then on Sunday night, because the pastor had three other parishes to serve. Members, taking turns when the pastor was not there, conducted services, which were called class meet- ings.
Rev. Schnitz, Rev. Heldt, Rev. J. W. and A. W. Feller, Rev. Fieldt, and Rev. Kistler served as pastors in the early years. Christmas and Children's
Day programs were highlights of the church year. The singing was without accompaniment until 1911 when an organ was purchased. Because of loss of membership through families leav- ing the community, church services were discontinued in 1921. The mem- bers sought church homes elsewhere. The church building was sold to Ben Klepzig, a farmer living near Stew- ardson.
Wolf Creek Evangical Church
The Wolf Creek Church also be- longs to the Indiana Conference and was organized more than a hundred years ago by early settlers in the southwestern part of Prairie township. The church was built on land donated by Adam Kessler about three miles southwest of the present village of Stewardson near where Charles Reid now lives. The cemetery in the church yard was laid out about the same time. The congregation was served by the same pastors who served the Prairie Evangelical Church with serv- ices every two weeks and Sunday School every Sunday. Transportation in those days was by train, horse and buggy, and bicycle. A few preachers who were extra rugged even walked the distance of several miles and spent the night with the parishioners who took turns providing lodging and
meals, which no doubt were a little more lavish than ordinary. Grunerts, Kesslers, Reids, Corrells, Heidemans, Quigles, Robisons, and Roberts were some of the church families. Services were discontinued about fifty years ago and the membership transferred to other churches. The church build- ing was used by other denominations occasionally. In 1949 the Conference sold the building and the land to Charles Reid for $100. The seats in the church were moved to the Mode Camp Grounds. The church was torn down and a machine shed was built on the site.
111. Religion in Stewardson and Prairie Townships
A. Present Day Churches
1. Stewardson United Methodist Church
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