Adaville United Methodist Church (2021)

ADAVILLE

Posted By: Linda Ziemann, Volunteer (email)
Date: 7/19/2024 at 19:15:49

150 Years and Counting

By Beverly VanBuskirk
LeMars Daily Sentinel, July 6, 2021

A rural Plymouth County church will celebrate its 150th anniversary with a special service and catered meal on Sunday, July 11, 2021. Members and friends of Adaville United Methodist Church, at 21212 C-38, will worship as they always have, and will take time to reminisce about those who worshipped in the church so long ago. Plans call for a mass choir, too.

Recently, members Margaret Talbott, Cleone Brown, Lorvan Hawkins, Allan and Carol Feuerhelm and Mark and Diana Brown, and the Rev. Lisa Millen, shared their memories of the church, where all but Carol, have been life-long members.

Margaret is the oldest member at 95, with Cleone and Lorvan following at 91 and 90 respectively. The group of members were asked what they liked about the church or special memories. Diana said of why she loves the church. “I have gone to bigger churches with my kids, but there’s just something about a small church, knowing everybody, it’s friendly.”

“The first I thought of was listening to the men’s quartet many, many years ago,” Margaret said. “Three of my uncles, all Johnsons and Warren King, (Lorvan’s grandfather) sang. There was nothing I liked better. They sang all kinds of hymns. I especially love “The Little Brown Church.”

Music has continued to be a strong tradition in the church throughout the years.

Then, the others reminded her that she married the pastor’s son. A second career pastor, the Rev. George Talbott came to the church in 1939. A few years later, his son Don, and Margaret were married.

“The thing that comes to my mind is that it is a family church,” Allan Feuerhelm said. The Feuerhelm family is one of several who has had multiple generations as members, starting with Allan’s great-grandparents to his son, Scott. “Mark and Diana Brown count generations back, too,” Allan said.

“My great-great grandfather, Jacob Brown, was one of the first preachers. He gave the land for the church,” Mark said.

Names that have continued through the years include Gabel, Philips, Tindall and Brown.

In preparation for the 150th event, Diana has eight file drawers of items, including Secretary and Treasurer’s books of the church, women’s organization, Sunday School and youth group, pictures, directories and more.

“They kept track of a lot of history, but a lot of it is just facts,” said Millen, pointing out a handwritten receipt from 1893.

The church had its beginning in 1871, a farmer preacher was assigned to this mission then known as Pleasant Valley. In 1878, grasshoppers completely destroyed the small grain and then hail storms destroyed the corn. Rev. Brown received $80 that year for his salary. Many families moved from the community to seek work elsewhere.

While the area was first known as Pleasant Valley, later, it had to be renamed due to postal regulations, as there already was a Pleasant Valley, Iowa. “That’s how, in 1922, we became Adaville,” Diana said.

The first church was built in 1880. Lumber from the schoolhouse the congregation previously met in was used in the building. Jacob Brown gave the land for the church. In the fall of 1908, construction on the present church was started and completed in 1909.

The Women’s Missionary Society was organized in 1916 by Diana’s great-grandmother, Agnes Tindall, she recalled.

In 1922, the basement of the church was built with the men of the church doing the work. More remodeling was done in 1939, with a new parsonage completed in 1942. Still more remodeling was done in 1948, with classrooms added to the south and the basement enlarged to include a kitchen, classrooms, and restrooms.

A major change came for the congregation when on Nov. 16, 1946, the United Brethren and Evangelical Churches united under one denomination with the name changed to Evangelical United Brethren.

“We weren’t happy about that at first,” Margaret said.

For many years, the congregation held evangelistic services for an entire week. That later became a week of spiritual enrichment, and continued into the early 2000s.

Lorvan Hawkins is remembered for teaching Sunday School, usually the older children. He was called in to teach a group of younger boys. They later became his high school class students, and remembered him for his discipline.

Another tradition was Sunday School picnics held in August, one which Margaret loved. Those changed to a Fourth of July picnic in the late 1940s and is a tradition that continues to this day. It seemed appropriate that for the 150th anniversary year, July 4 fell on a Sunday.

Youth groups and Vacation Bible School were also special memories for Mark, Allan and Diana.

“As kids, we got to go to church camp near Cedar Falls in the summer,” Allan said.

“It was a tradition that you go at least once,” Mark said.

“There were also rollerskating at Orange City with the area Youth Fellowship groups, Stanton, Melbourne, and Calvary,” Allan said.

In 1968, the Evangelical United Brethren Church and the Methodist denominations merged to become the United Methodist Church. That was a change for the staunch UB members.

“That merger was very controversial as far as the United Brethrens were concerned,” Margaret recalled.

More changes, this time in the building, came about in 1971, the church Centennial year, when a 50-by-20 foot brick addition was put on the south side of the church.

In 2012, the church’s south entrance was extended and stair chair lifts installed making it handicap accessible.

In total, 46 pastors have served the congregation since its beginning. Millen began serving the church in July 2019, and also serves the Merrill United Methodist Church.

In the last 50 years, things have changed, as farms grow bigger and families move away, but those faithful to Adaville United Methodist Church continue many of the things their ancestors did.

“We are a strong mission church,” Diana said. Millen agreed.

“This church and its members are really committed to missions. Their faith is very consistent. They are faithful to the faith tradition to the Gospel,” Millen said.

“Their farm work ethic, to serve the church and participate is strong,” Millen said. “It seems everyone was a teacher for Sunday School, and contributed to the church, by looking at records.”

Today Margaret Talbott, is the oldest member at 95. The most recent baptism was Kaisen Christopher Baldwin, the grandson of members, Dennis and Debbie Baldwin.

Membership now stands at about 108, “on paper,” the group said. A smaller number regularly attend with the connection of family and faith continuing on at Adaville United Methodist Church.
_ _ _ _ _
NOTE:
~Accompaning this news article was a large picture of the 2021 church building, featuring the new brick edifice on the south end of the building. Also included is a smaller black/white photo of the 1909 church building. Also featured is a photograph of Cleone Brown (91) and Lorvan Hawkins (90) and Margaret Talbott (95) seated at a long table with historical pictures and documents laid out on the table in front of them.