Call Number:

10

Repository:

Historical Society of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church

Extent:

1.25 linear feet

Language:

English

Date:

1897-2009 (inclusive)

Creator:

Prospectville United Methodist Church (Prospectville, Pa.)

Abstract:

Prospectville Methodist Episcopal Church (later Prospectville Methodist Church) in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania began meeting in the late 19th century and may have been discontinued in the early 1950s. Prospectville Evangelical United Brethren Church began meeting in the 1940s and was formally established in 1953. It was originally called Prospectville Methodist Mission Church, was renamed Prospectville United Methodist Church in 1968, and was discontinued in 2009. Most of the Prospectville Methodist churches records, 1897-2009, are records from Prospectville Evangelical United Brethren Church (also called Prospectville Methodist Mission Church and Prospectville United Methodist Church), with a smaller amount of records from Prospectville Methodist Episcopal Church (also called Prospectville Methodist Church). Included are membership and vital records (baptisms, marriages), board minutes, Charge Conference materials, and various other papers such as photographs, histories, and property-related documents.

Methodism is a protestant Christian faith based in the teachings of John Wesley (1703-1791), who preached "practical divinity," emphasis on Christian living, and putting faith and love into action. The Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1784 in Baltimore, Maryland with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as its first bishops and held its first general conference in 1792. In May of 1939, the Methodist Episcopal Church; the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; and the Methodist Protestant Church united to form the Methodist Church (U.S.). In 1946 the Church of the United Brethren in Christ (New constitution) and the Evangelical Church united to form the Evangelical United Brethren Church. In 1968 the Methodist Church (U.S.) and the Evangelical United Brethren Church united, forming the United Methodist Church (U.S.).

Prospectville Methodist Episcopal Church in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania began meeting in the late 19th century. The first pastor mentioned, in 1918, was Mr. F. B. Garrett. At the time, the church was meeting in a hall on Limekiln Pike adjacent to the Whitemarsh Memorial Park. By 1935, there were 71 people on the church roll. Prospectville Methodist Church may have been discontinued in the early 1950s.

Prospectville Methodist Mission Church began meeting in a small church building on the grounds of Whitemarsh Memorial Park in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania in the 1940s. In 1953 the church was sponsored by the Juniata Park Evangelical United Brethren Church to become a mission church of the Evangelical United Brethren Conference. A new church building, located at the corner of Davisgrover Road and Horsham Road was dedicated in 1965. At the time the Evangelical United Brethren Conference approved a merger with the Methodist Church of the United States, resulting in the Prospectville church's name change to Prospectville United Methodist Church in 1968, membership was approximately 180. Membership declined, however, especially in the late 1980s and 1990s. A nearby Korean church entered into a partial ownership agreement for Prospectville United Methodist Church's church, parsonage, and property. In 2001, with only 26 members and most of them over the age of 55, Prospectville United Methodist Church began to discuss closing the church. It was officially discontinued in 2009. (Outland)

Bibliography:

Outland, Alvan E. "History of the Prospectville United Methodist Church." 2009. Document found in collection.

Most of this collection is records from Prospectville Evangelical United Brethren Church (formerly Prospectville Methodist Mission Church and later Prospectville United Methodist Church), with a smaller amount of records from Prospectville Methodist Episcopal Church (later Prospectville Methodist Church). From Prospectville Evangelical United Brethren Church, the collection includes membership records (1953-2009), administrative board minutes (1981-2001), and Charge Conference materials (1977-2008). Prospectville Methodist Episcopal Church records consist of official board minutes, 1918 to 1946, and member and vital records from 1897 to 1952 (members, 1897-1911, 1911-1952; marriages 1902-1908, 1912-1952; baptisms 1897-1911, 1911-1952). Various other papers in the collection include photographs, histories, and property-related documents. A folder-level inventory for the collection is available.