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Chase County Kansas Historical
Sketches
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UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
Cottonwood Falls, Kansas
Over a century ago - 113 years - Rev. J.C.
Fraker, a Methodist minister, and six members organized the First Methodist Church in Cottonwood
Falls. This was completed January 12, 1859 - before Chase County was a county or Kansas was a
state.
Mr. and Mrs. A.D. Finley and Mr. and Mrs.
A.P. Gandy were four of the six members. Mrs.
Arabella Moore is a grandaughter of the Gandy's;
her mother was organist for the Church and services were often held in the Gandy home before the
building of the first church. Mrs. Blanche Finley's
husband, Hugh Finley, was a grandson of the A.D.
Finley's.
Church services were often held out of doors,
in homes, and in 1862 the County built the first
Courthouse - a log building 16' x 24', on Lot 3,
Block 20 - south of the high school campus, and
the Methodists, as well as many other churches and
organizations held services there.
In 1870-71, the Methodist Episcopal Church
erected a frame building at a cost of $2,500.00, the
Building Committee being Brothers Oles, Finley,
and Cuthbert. In 1911, it was replaced by the present stone building, both being on the present site.
A small parsonage was replaced by the one we have
today in 1902.
As the years have passed, changes have been
made, keeping the building and its equipment up-
to-date. Membership is around 300, and the United
Methodist Women have a membership of around 85.
The Methodist Youth Fellowship and the Presbyterian Youth Fellowship meet jointly, and the Vacation Church School is a project of the two churches,
working together.
The Rev. Robert S. Craig is pastor of the
Church, and is now is his fifth year here.(1972)
Chase County Centennial, 1872 - 1972
by Lorna Marvin
Please submit your historical sketches.
Background and KSGenWeb logo were designed and are copyrighted by
Tom & Carolyn Ward
for the limited use of the KSGenWeb Project.
Permission is granted for use only on an official KSGenWeb page.
The USGenWeb Logo was designed by Linda Cole.
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