History of the Church Building

     Our church was founded in June 1826 under the

leadership of Joseph Stiles, an evangelist licensed by

Hopewell Presbytery. The construction of the first church

occurred c.1828-1832 on the State House Square. That

building was renovated in 1879 and continued to serve

as the place of worship until the construction of the

present building.

New Building
      In the late 1890's there was talk of building a new church and approximately $2500 had been raised for that purpose, but a financial downturn forced a temporary halt to the project. In June of 1903 George C. Smith, a member of the congregation, offered $5000 to be used for a new building on the conditions that the congregation should raise at least "$2500, that the construction should begin by May of 1904, that it should be on the corner of Wayne and Green Streets, and that it should be built of either brick or stone." By January 1904, an agreement was made with the Trustees of GMC that a new building should be erected on the present site. By that time the church had raised $2500, but church leaders estimated the potential cost to be $12,000 and raised additional funds by offering to place the name of contributors of $1.00 or more on a list that would be put in the cornerstone.

      J.W. McMillan, a member of the church and the building contractor, brought the cornerstone from Haddingtonshire, Scotland. It was laid in October 1904. Representatives of various civic and religious organizations attended the ceremony attendant upon the laying of the cornerstone and the newspaper reported church bells rang throughout the city. By August 1905 the building was nearing completion as the windows and pews were reported to be under construction, and an organ that "will be run by a water motor which has been set and connected with the city water main" was installed. The dedication of the new edifice occurred on January 20, 1906 with an estimated 700 people in attendance. The Baptist and Methodist churches cancelled services so that their members could attend.

Renovations
      In July 1950, the congregation decided to renovate the sanctuary and build an educational building. This project included changing the auditorium from a diagonal to a vertical orientation and the purchase of the present baptismal font, pulpit, communion table and pews. A new organ and five new memorial windows were added. The dedication of the renovated building took place in November of 1951. Further renovations and some additions to the building took place in the 1970s and 1980s, but the next major renovation to the sanctuary took place in 1995 with the replacement of the roof and the addition of a beautiful wooden ceiling. Doors made of a rare wood imported from Africa replaced the old doors to the narthex and the organ was rebuilt.