Chesterton First United Methodist Church History NOTE: In 1936 the Rev. Henry M. Braun wrote a history of Methodists in Chesterton in time for the tenth anniversary of the construction of the building at Porter Ave. and Second Street. Supplements were added in 1962 and 1987 when the church celebrated other anniversaries. The following uses those histories along with a record of events from 1987 to 2007. A complete list of pastors appears at the end of this history. It should be noted that in 1840 Porter County had a population of only about 2200 half of which was concentrated in the Valparaiso area, and even by 1850 the county was still only had about 5000 population with a good portion located in the Valparaiso area. This puts a light on how difficult it was for the ministers which are listed a little later in this history to serve the little clusters of church members scattered around the countryside. For our record of Methodist activity in Chesterton we need go back no further than 1822 for the proper perspective. That year marked the appearance of the fur trader Joseph Bailly. By 1824 his trading post at Baillytown on the banks of the Little Calumet River was well established and he was living in a substantial log cabin. This French Catholic was the only white resident in what is now Porter County. In 1831 a road, really not more than a rough path, was cleared between Detroit and Fort Dearborn. Mail was carried between the two points on the backs of soldiers. Early in 1833 a stage line was established and coaches made three trips a week. Actual settlement of the township by white families began with the opening of this stage line. First to appear was Jesse Morgan who established his residence early in 1833 on Sand Creek east of the present Chesterton. The mail was entrusted to him and the post office called Coffee Creek. It was kept by him until 1852 when it was moved to Calumet. As the stage road passed his farm he called his home “Stage House” and often entertained travelers. His daughter, Hannah, born February 11, 1834, was the first white child born in Westchester Township and the first girl to be born in the county. In 1834 others came and settled in the township: William Thomas, Sr., William Gossett, Jacob Beck, John Hageman, John I. Foster, William Coleman, and others. Most, perhaps all, of these named were Methodists. Jacob Beck, if not licensed as a local preacher, was certainly the class leader. It was he who looked after Methodist interests between the visits of the preacher, teaching the Sunday School, leading the prayer meetings, admonishing evil-doers, and praying with the sick and dying, even burying the dead. Joseph Bailly, sick unto death in 1835, and realizing that there was no Catholic priest conveniently near, turned to Beck to make his funeral arrangements. When he died early in December of that year it was Beck who buried him. In 1825 in the newly organized Illinois Conference there was made the first pastoral appointment within the bounds of what later became the Northwest Indiana Conference and that was at Crawfordsville.In the fall of 1832 our state was separated from the Illinois Conference and organized as the Indiana Conference. At this session James Armstrong was appointed the superintendent of a missionary district that must have included practically all of the state north of the Wabash River. He, himself, was responsible for the LaPorte Mission which included the territory in which we now live. At the session in October, 1833, it became the Northwestern District and James Armstrong was made its Presiding Elder. During this conference year, if not in the winter of ’33 then positively in 1834, Armstrong held services in our township. On September 12, at the age of 47, and a month before conference, he passed to his reward. At the session that fall the name was changed to LaPorte District and 30 year old Richard Hargrave, another famous early itinerant, was named as his successor. Hargrave must have preached in our township that year since there was no other pastoral appointment in his district nearer than South Bend. In October, 1835, he was again Presiding Elder, and M. C. Meek was appointed to the LaPorte Circuitwith another preacher to be supplied. However, in this year (1835) a missionary, Stephen Jones, formed the Deep River Mission and probably took over responsibility for the work in Porter and Lake Counties. In 1836 marriage records indicate there were two Methodist ministers in our county, Stephen Jones and Cyrus Spurlock, who was the county recorder. Spurlock must have been a located minister, that is, he had given up the regular itinerant work and had located in a permanent home. His ministerial orders would have permitted him to perform weddings. In October, 1839, it became the Kankakee Mission and William J. Forbes was the pastor. At this time the name of the district was changed to South Bend District. In 1840 Forbes was reappointed to the work, but it was known as the Valparaiso Circuit and still included Lake County for four years more. In 1852 the church in Valparaiso was made a station and pastors served the remaining thirteen preaching points scattered about the county as the Valparaiso Circuit, namely: Morgan Prairie, Kankakee, Ohio, Hanna’s Mill, City West, Jackson Center, Griffith’s Chapel, Horse Prairie, Hebron, Union Chapel, Twenty-mile Grove, Salt Creek (or Gossett’s) and Louis Pennock’s. We have come to the day of the railroad. In 1850 the first activity for the construction of a road was commenced. Two railroads, the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern and the Michigan Central, were pushed from Chicago to Michigan City, which was the market for produce and supplies in the early day. They crossed near a little village called Calumet (after the Calumet River). When the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern was completed this far in 1852 the town had grown to about twenty houses. In two years after the completion of the railroad it boasted a population of 300, the majority of whom were Irish. In 1852 the Northwest Indiana Conference was organized. The next year there appears in the LaPorte District the appointment of Wiley P. Watkins to the Calumet Circuit. We assume that with the coming of the railroad and the deterioration of isolated City West the class at that point was abandoned and the one in Calumet took its place. At the end of his year’s labor Brother Watkins reported 180 full members, 57 probationers, and two local preachers. There were four meeting houses valued at $2,000.00 but no parsonage. There were four Sunday Schools with 28 officers and teachers and 150 scholars, four Bible classes, twenty scholars in the infant classes and the expenses of the school had amounted to $12. He had collected $26 for missions. His quarterage claim (salary) had been set at $200. He had received $185 of it. In 1854 he was reappointed. That year his claim was $200 for quarterage, $100 family expenses, $30 house rent, and no traveling expense, a total of $330. He was paid $300, so the deficit was only $30. His successor in 1855 was J. F., McDaniel who had at least seven preaching points on his circuit: McCool’s Class, Flint Lake, Twenty-mile Grove, Union Chapel, Curtis’s, Calumet and Carter’s. In 1856 he was followed by Houghton W. Brown. This year the membership rose to 277 and 100 probationers, and there were six Sunday Schools. The next year two men were appointed to the circuit, Henry O. Huffman and DeWitt C. Farrington. The appointees to the Calumet Circuit thus far were all young men having received only deacon’s orders, except the last named who had been only just received on trial in the conference. This year the claim of $429 was paid in full. Then followed P. H. Dutch in 1858, William J. Forbes in 1859, George Guion in 1860, and Daniel A. Grime in 1861. The oldest membership record dates back to the appointment of Rev. Mr. Grime who began an excellent set of books on November 9, 1861. This date probably represents the formal organization of the Calumet class into a society of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the election of a board of trustees. The name Calumet continued to be used until 1871 when church records were changed to Chesterton. From 1862 to 2007 the church has been served by 50 pastors. In the years 1862 through 1877 the men served only a year and one less than a year. After 1878 it became more common for pastors to serve at least 2 years and in more recent years many have served seven years or more. Since 1960, 11 associate pastors have served this church. In 1861 besides the Calumet class becoming a society of the Methodist Episcopal Church the members embarked on the ambitious task of building a rather substantial building at what is now the northwest corner of Indiana Ave. and Second Street. It was the first Protestant structure built in Calumet. Construction was interrupted by the Civil War and the building was completed in 1865. It was extensively remodeled in 1912 when the structure was raised three feet, an eight-foot basement constructed and a steam heating plant installed. Rededication took place on February 9, 1913. Trustees were P.A. Johnson, C. L. Jeffrey, A. T. Swanson, A. A. Whitman, Walter Knapp, H. A. Flynn, W. W. Ruge and E. L. Morgan. Some of the trustees of that day were still serving the church in 1927 when the building at Porter and Second Street was built and dedicated. The pastor in 1912 was Rev. Charles A. Brown who was here from 1909-1914 and returned to Chesterton in retirement and lived on Porter Avenue just east of the church. A picture shows a large Men’s Bible Class assembled alongside the original building. Out of this class grew the Men’s Aid shows which continued for many years with parades and performances. In 1917 the congregation purchased property at Porter Avenue and Second Street and began construction on a parsonage. The first pastor to live there was Frank R. Briggs. Church membership was 221. It was ten years later that the church building was built at a cost of $65,100. Building committee members were C. L. Jeffrey, Roger Holcomb, C. H. Smith, H. A. Flynn, J. A. Johnson, Ernest Lillywhite Dr. C. L. Wiltfong, E. L. Morgan and A. E. Bagby. The description of the building in the Chesterton Tribune said: The church is to be built out of buff brick and trimmed in Bedford stone. The back wing of the building is three stories in height and isthe educational department of the church. Dedication ceremonies began on October 9, 1927 with Bishop F. D. Leete preaching. Special events throughout the following week included Young People’s Night, Community Good-will Night, Home-coming Night and an organ recital. Rev. A. E. Bagby served as pastor from 1925 until 1931 when membership was 283 and Sunday School enrollment was 175. The Methodist Church at Burdick had been served by pastors from Chesterton and Rev. Bagby reported that work was discontinued because there were but eight members. The church building at Burdick was built in 1895 and town down in 1935. Pulpit furniture from Burdick came to the Chesterton Church. There was also a Methodist Church at Jackson Center. Records show a Sunday School organized in 1901 with F. M. Goldsborough as superintendent. The building was sold to the Jackson Township Farm Bureau in 1927. Goodspeed’s 1882 History of Porter and Lake Counties says “There is at Furnessville a Methodist Society that holds its meetings in the school house.” The Chesterton Tribune reported in 1929 on the firewhich destroyed the Furnessville Church. The report said the building was originally a school built 75 years ago on land belonging to E. L. Furness. A national merger in 1939 combined three Methodists denominations: Methodist Episcopal, Methodist Protestant and Methodist South and all became simply Methodist Churches. Because of the depression First Church was still laboring under a heavy mortgage from construction of the building in 1927. The Swedish Methodist Church which was founded in 1879 merged with First church in 1946 and the Swedish building on Lincoln Avenue, built in 1905, was sold. That building still remains on Lincoln Avenue but in 2007 is unoccupied. It was used for many years by the Christian Science congregation and for a short time was an antique shop. That merger and sale helped pay off the mortgage on the 1927 building and a mortgage burning ceremony took place on October 17, 1948. The Swedish Chapel on the main floor of First Church is named in honor of the Swedish congregation. The mural depicting the “Anointing at Bethany” which hangs in the narthex originally hung in the chancel of the Swedish Church. It was restored by the Hokanson family in memory of Vandla and Peter Hokanson and all other Swedish Methodists. Swedish Methodist churches were a separate organization and for many years the local church was under a bishop headquartered in Chicago and the pastors came through him. Church records and newspaper archives tell of a Swedish church in Jackson Center which was served by the Chesterton pastor. In the 1950s the church and the Duneland area were growing. Dividers were place in the social hall to allow for several classes to meet there. For a time there were two sessions of Sunday School and two worship services became the norm. In the mid 50s a building planning committee was organized. The church requested a special census of the town and the results showed an increase from about 3,000 in 1950 to 4,197 in 1957. Additional property was purchased along Third Street including a vacant lot and a house. The house was known as the Parish House and was used for offices and youth activities. The lot became a parking lot. The church incorporated in 1960 and purchased a house at 710 S. 4th St. for a parsonage for the associate pastor. It was sold in 1968. 1962 was established as the centennial year for Chesterton Methodists and a weeklong celebration took place. It climaxed with a banquet at what was then Central School where the speaker was Dr. Robert Bruce Pierce, pastor of the Chicago Temple. The original design of the chancel area of the sanctuary had the choir loft behind the altar with the choir facing the congregation. Probably in the 60s the altar was moved back to the wall beneath thestained glass window of Christ with the children. The choir loft was divided leaving a clear area before the altar. Groundbreaking for an education addition was held on March 28, 1965. This three-story addition included a large social hall, offices and classrooms. Carl Parish was chairman of the building committee. In 1986 the social hall in the addition was dedicated in his memory as the Carl Parish Hall. Another large scale merger, this time between the Methodist Church and Evangelical United Brethren Church, took place in 1968 and resulted in all churches in those denominations becoming United Methodist Churches. The EUB Church in Porter became Porter United Methodist Church. Two houses facing Second Street adjacent to the church were purchased in 1972 and torn down the next year to make room for more parking. The first pictorial directory of church members was published in 1975. A formal dedication of the education building in 1976 celebrated paying off the mortgage. New more stringent standards for parsonages made the 1917 parsonage outdated. It was sold and moved and the pastor was given a housing allowance. Plans for a new organ began in the early 1980s and in 1984 the sanctuary was remodeled and a Steiner-Reck pipe organ was installed. The chimes which were in memory of Eloise Johnson were refurbished and reinstalled in the chancel area. Yet another house was purchased on Third Street in1986. It was rented out until 1998 when it was sold and moved and the parking lot enlarged during the Building Hope project. In 1989 the church again owned a parsonage. Two pastors, Rev. Dean Stuckey and Rev. Roy Eaton, had owned the house at 1012 CR 1100 N. The church purchased it and it served as the parsonage until 2005when it was sold after Rev. Terry Rhine built his own home. In 1994 the theater seats in the sanctuary were replaced with pews. Years of planning and discussion went into the Building Hope project. An elevator fund was started in 1995 and an elevator/entrance task force convened. In 1996 the congregation approved the project toinclude a new entrance, elevator, handicapped rest room and air conditioning. Dr. John Read and Michael Harris chaired the fund drive which resulted in pledges of $705,000. Ground breaking was in May,1997 and the “Grand Hopening” in May, 1998. This major undertaking was followed in 2001 by relocating the office area into newly designed rooms and remodeling nursery and preschool rooms. To further serve the community, First Church in 2003 purchased the former Bethlehem Lutheran church building at Lincoln Ave. and Second Street and renamed it Methodist Activity Center (MAC). Some remodeling was done to make it accessible for many different activities and in 2006 it was leased to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Porter County. The lease has been renewed through 2009. Methodist Youth groups also use the building for their activities. The sanctuary was again remodeled in 2004 with three levels of choir risers, a video projection system and more open appearance. Beginning in 2005 three worship services were scheduled: a blended worship service at 8:15, contemporary service at 9:30 and traditional service at 10:30. Through the years church programs have been carried out by many groups. Early women’s organizations were Ladies Aid, Women’s Missionary Society and Women’s Society of Christian Service (WSCS). UnitedMethodist Women (UMW) of 2007 includes several circles which provide close fellowship for members. These groups are among “small groups” that all church members are encouraged to participate in. Study groups, special interest groups, Sunday School classes, music groups, prayer groups, Alpha and others invite adults to join. Youth activities in earlier years centered around the Epworth League, MYF and UMYF. In the 1970s dozens of young people took part in musicals which they presented many times, sometimes traveling out oftown. The first was “Tell it Like it is” directed by Shirley Winey. For many years Methodist young people have participated in mission trips to locations around the country and attended various church camps. In addition to Sunday School, the children’s department offers Mothers’ Morning Out and Vacation Bible School. Moments for Young Disciples is a part of each worship service. A church sponsored Pre-School began in the fall of 2005. The United Methodist Men organization has a long history and invites all men to monthly breakfasts. In 2001 a study group called the Master’s Men started a Community Prayer Breakfast. A nationally known Christian leader spoke to 200 community leaders each year at Sand Creek Country Club. Methodists also contribute to community work such as the Westchester Food Pantry, United Churches Resale Shop, Meals on Wheels and Salvation Army. In 2005, First Church began a soup kitchen called Jacob’s Table which offers free suppers every Monday night. At 2007 Annual Conference meetings both the North and South Indiana Conferences voted to merge into one conference for the state of Indiana. Details are being made for the merger to take place in 2009. Chesterton First United Methodist Church pastors 1862 W. Copp 1863 Charles L. Smith 1864 William W. Jones 1865 -1866 Samuel J. Kahler 1867 William T. Jones 1868 Milton B. Wood 1869 William V. Rippetoe (replaced by W. Frank Bartholemew) 1870 James W. Harris 1871 David G. LeSourd 1872 J. H. Kennedy 1873-1874 William Wiley Jones 1875-1876 E. A. Andrew 1877 Levi Moore 1878-1880 John B. Smith 1881-1882 William Crapp 1883-1885 Zachariah Lambert 1886 William West 1887 A. H. DeLong 1888-1890 Whitefield Hall 1891-1892 C. A. Jessee 1893-1895 Henry C. Weston 1896-1897 John S. Wright 1898 Albert G. Detch 1899 Brenton H. Beall 1900-1902 A. L. Umpleby 1903-1904 James T. Stafford 1905 Calvin O. Smock 1906 Fred H. Clutton 1907 Glenn Wishard (replaced by John A. Ayling) 1908 J. E. Wilson 1909-1914 Charles A. Brown 1915 Oscar H. Barry 1916-1918 Frank R. Briggs 1919-1921 Henry V. Deale 1922-1924 Alvah H. Lawrence 1925-1931 Alva E. Bagby 1932-1933 Austen Lord 1934-1941 Henry M. Braun 1941-1947 Walter T. Wilson 1947-1955 Robert Ross-Shannon 1955-1961 Clair D. Siple 1961-1967 William E. Hughes 1967-1974 Roy Katayama 1974-1978 James L. Andrews 1978-1982 Dean Stuckey 1982-1989 Roy Eaton 1989-1995 Russell Wilbur 1995- Terry Rhine Associate pastors With Clair Siple: Norris L King With William Hughes: Norris L. King, Robert Bowser, Harry Shewmaker With Dean Stuckey: Jean Reynolds, Paul Anderson With Roy Eaton: Paul Anderson, John Morris, Harold Joyce, Marilyn Brewer With Russell Wilbur: Ted Snider With Terry Rhine: Joanne Kaiser, Cathy Allison Pastors of Swedish M. E. Church 1879-1880 Martin Hess 1880-1881 H. L. Lindquist 1880-1882 Andrew Farrell 2 years 1881-1882 E. A. Davidson 1882-1883 N. Eklund 1883-1884 J. Magnuson 1884-1885 O. C. Simpson 1885-1886 C. A. Anderson 1886 H., Hanson 11 months 1886-1887 C. J. Anderson 1887-1888 C. A. Anderson 1888-1889 P. A. Larson 1889-1890 C. O. Sherman 8 months 1890 Herman Young 4 months 1890-1891 John Paulson 1890-1891 O. N. Ostrom 1891-1893 A. Carlson 2 years 1893-1894 H. W. Willing 1894-1895 Gustav Nystrom 9 months 1895-1896 L. Johnson 1 year, 1 month 1896 Theodore Peterson 3 months 1896 C. F. Edwards 4 months 1896-1897 Eric Gustaf Falk 9 months 1897-1898 C. F. Edwards 9 months 1898-1900 Alfred Ostlund 1 year, 11 months 1900-1902 Carl Simpson 2 years, 3 months 1902-1903 August P. Anderson 9 months 1903-1904 Nels W. Bard 1904-1906 T. J. Adrian 1 year, 10 months 1906-1908 Ole E. Olson 2 years, 2 months 1908-1916 Andrew Reese 8 years 1916-1917 F. L. Hagberg 1917-1919 O. G. Ekstrom 2 years 1919-1921 N. P. Glemaker 2 years 1921-1927 Andrew Reese 6 years 1927-1928 T. O. B. Ring 1928-1930 Oscar Chindberg 1930-1932 C. A. Seaberg 1932-1936 Andrew Reese 1936-1937 Godtfred Bruland 1937-1940 Ture O. Carlstrom 1940-1943 Nels W. Bard 1943-1944 Paul M. Baker 1944-1946 William V. Ischie, Jr

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