First United Methodist Church of Wauchula

First United Methodist Church Of Wauchula

Edited by Spessard Stone from Jean B. Burton’s, The Story Of Our Church, First United Methodist of Wauchula et al

The Methodist church in Wauchula originated in 1867 when the Rev. William Penn McEwen, a circuit rider, settled about a mile and a half south of present-day Wauchula at the site of old Fort Hartsuff. In 1876, Rev. John W. Hendry, a Baptist minister, founded Fort Hartsuff Baptist Church, north of now Louisiana Street. As Rev. Hendry was often away weeks at a time ministering to his other churches, the Rev. McEwen would preach in his absence to both Baptists and Methodists.(1)

The present-day church was organized by Rev. Samuel B. Carson in 1888 in the former Baptist Church log meeting house near Moore’s Mill as the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Tampa District, Florida Conference. Charter members were: Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Long Bostick, Mr. Wiley Hill, Mrs. M. A. Maddox, Mrs. Effie Spivey, Mr. & Mrs. C. G. West, and Mr. & Mrs. Thomas G. Wilkinson. (2)

Church construction followed as a deed for Lot 4, Block 4, Town of Wauchula, was recorded by the trustees of Trinity Church, Arcadia Mission on May 5, 1890, and then on July 16, 1903 to its successor, M. E. Church, South. In August 1900, a Methodist parsonage was under construction. A frame church was begun in the summer of 1903, but it was blown from its foundation by the hurricane of September 1903. The church was then built on a quarter of a block next to the railroad and the corner of Oak Street. In 1907, Mr. & Mrs. A. C. Clavel deeded two lots on the northwest corner of Seventh Avenue and Palmetto Street and three more adjoining lots in 1908. The church was then moved to the corner of Palmetto Street and Seventh Avenue and was completed in 1910. A two-story frame parsonage, located at the site of the present-day Fellowship Hall, was built in 1911 and, thanks to the ladies of the Missionary society, was debt free in March 1914. (3)

The church, led by Rev. J. L. Griffitts, proceeded with plans for a 97x67-foot $10,000 red pressed brick building. On June 19, 1914, the cornerstone of the new church was laid:
FIRST M.E.
CHURCH, SOUTH.
1914
J. L. GRIFFITTS, PASTOR
_______________________
BUILDING COMMITTEE.

H. M. ALEXANDER, CHM
D. O. RATLIFF. T. G. WILKINSON
J. W. EARNEST. J. E. TOWNSEND

The frame church was moved back on the alley, but completion took nearly three years and about $2,000 in additional costs. On January 5, 1917, it was announced the church has been wired for lights, the carpenters were preparing the way for the plasterers, plans and specifications had been accepted for the completion of the church, and the order had been placed for the metal ceiling. The first service, in the new church was conducted in May 1917 by Pastor D. B. Sweat. The old church was used for the Sunday School.(4)

Conference Minutes in February 1916, which covered the previous quarter of 1915, recorded that Rev. W. H. Funk wrote that he had been invited to preach at the Vandolah Church the next Sunday at 3:00 p.m. and was expecting to preach every month there where services were held in the little red school house, which with the hotel and grocery store, was located near the railroad. Rev. Funk also conducted regular preaching services at the convict camp once a month and had established preaching at Torrey, which was a community between Wauchula and Bowling Green in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Besides the railroad station, there was a school, Methodist Church, and parsonage, the latter two having since burned. (5)

In May 1927, Rev. M. H. Norton appointed a building committee, composed of W. W. Whitehurst, Carl Hanna and Harry Metheny, for a new Sunday School annex, the Men’s Bible Class. In April 1928, the building, 24x36 feet, west of the main church, was completed. It was furnished with ladies and men’s bathrooms and a kitchenette. In August 1936, the primary Sunday School building was razed. (6)

There were many additional constructions, improvements, and property acquirements. On July 21, 1952, Rev. John B. Gill, Jr. was pastor when groundbreaking was held for the new Sunday School building, and the 40x94-foot $25,000 furnished structure was dedicated on November 1, 1953. In 1954, plans were made to attach a youth wing to the new primary building to be named the Educational Building and further add to the combined building an attached Fellowship Hall. On June 1, 1955, Rev. George Harper presided at dual ground breaking ceremonies for the new parsonage at 214 Illinois Avenue and the Fellowship Hall at an estimated $75,000 cost. The old parsonage was removed to make way for the 300-seat Fellowship Hall, built in 1955. The Youth Wing was finished in the spring of 1956. The cornerstone of the Educational Building was laid on April 15, 1956, was soon completed, and the mortgage burned on March 30, 1958. On April 7, 1959, Carlotta C. Stewart and husband, Dr. J. F. Stewart, deeded to the church Lot 4, which was used as a parking lot next to Fellowship Hall. In 1973, renovations of the Fellowship Hall, consisting of installing carpets, window draperies, air conditioning, and lowering and paneling of the ceiling, were realized. (7)

Further refurbishments were made. On December 1, 1980, the north lot of the block and a portion of the next lot was acquired for $30,000 from Ila C. Corley. In March 1983, major construction, consisting of renovation of the sanctuary, a new roof, and furnishing and restoration of the organ (originally purchased in 1941), was finished at a cost of $400,000. On May 3, 1985, Gladys Clavel, administrator of the Carlotta Stewart Estate, donated two lots adjoining the church; the church now possessed the east half of Block 9 of the Carlton & McEwen Addition. In 1985, the choir loft was enlarged and renovated at a cost of $42,500, with a stained glass rose window behind the choir loft installed at this time for $2,400 and dedicated on September 29, 1985 with Rev. Guildmar Blair. (8)

In 1968, the church’s name was changed from the First Methodist Church of Wauchula to the First United Methodist Church of Wauchula. (9)

A major project commenced on December 30, 1993 when the church voted to proceed with the building of a new parsonage on property donated by Mr. and Mrs. Joe L. Davis, Sr. on the southeast corner of Ohio Avenue and West Palmetto Street. A construction contract between the Board of Trustees and contractors, J. L. Kirkland and Benny Hash, was drawn in October 1994 for $176,594. Plans were completed and the home at 911 West Palmetto Street was started in November 1994 and completed on May 7, 1995. Constructed of frame with brick veneer exterior walls, it consists of four bedrooms, three bathrooms, living room, dining room, kitchen, breakfast nook, family room, study, screened porch, utility room, storage room and a two-car garage. (10)

In May 1998, the church purchased two properties opposite the church on North Seventh Avenue. The Strickland house was bought for $40,000 and the Edwin Albert Long property, also for $40,000. Extra expenses added $235.42 to the total costs. The house at 218 N. 7th Ave. is the "Youth House." On November 22, 1998, the church voted to utilize one or two rooms in the Long House at 212 N. 7th Ave. by Mary Fitzgerald of Job Connection of Goodwill Industries. It was also a meeting place for Girl Scouts. On December 7, 2004, the church approved the removal of the three houses owned by the church located at 212, 214, and 218 North 7th Ave., Wauchula. Subsequently, a bid from BJD Enterprises for a sum of $17,000 to demolish the structures and remove the debris was approved, and the three houses were razed. (11)

On August 4, 1999, it was reported that the roof replacement of the Education Wing had been completed at a cost of $8,918 and the termite treatment of the Education Wing & Fellowship Hall had been completed for $2,500. In early 2002, extensive repairs, painting, and remodeling, including the kitchen, were completed. (12)

On June 27, 2005, repairs to the sanctuary by Green Construction for hurricanes Charley, Frances and Jeanne began. Morning church services were held in the Fellowship Hall from June 26, 2005 to February 5, 2006.. As of August 2, 2005, $262,903.00 had been expended for hurricane repairs, with insurance covering all but 20% of the work. Final expenditures are unavailable to this writer. In June 2006, the church purchased from Roy E. Shaw III the house east of the church at 210 North 7th Ave. for $60,000. The sanctuary was reopened on February 12, 2006. In June 2008 rebricking of the sanctuary was completed. (13)

As of September 9, 2001, there were over 400 members. Attendance, however, from April to September 2001, averaged 70 for Sunday School and 142 for church. From October 2001 through March 2002 when the winter visitors were present, attendance averaged 76 for Sunday school and 168 for church services. During this period, the highest attendance for church services was Easter Sunday, March 31, 2002, when 213 attended. Beginning in the latter years of the pastorate of Rev. Ramsland, attendance began to decline. From January through December 2006, attendance for Sunday School averaged 37 per Sunday, while attendance for morning church services averaged 86. From January to September 2007 attendance averaged 36 for Sunday School and 91 for Sunday morning services with 130 for Easter Sunday being the greatest attendance. Attendance for January to June 2008 averaged 33 for Sunday School and 91 for Sunday morning attendance. (14)

Pastors of the church and years served are: Samuel B. Carson, 1888; G. W. Sellers, 1889; A. J. West, 1890; F. J. Jones, 1891; R. T. Higgs, 1892 & 1893; John Dodwell, 1894; W. B. Tresca, 1895; J. H. D. McCrae, 1896; R. T. Higgs, 1897; J. T. Coleman, 1898; J. T. Mitchell, 1899-1902; A. H. Cole, 1903; F. J. Fink, 1904; E. J. Hardee, 1905-09; W. B. Tresca, 1910; A. H. Cole, 1911 & 1912; J. L. Griffitts, 1913 & 1914; Charles W. White, 1915; W. H. Funk, 1916; D. B. Sweat, 1917, 1918 (1 quarter); E. S. Hobson, 1918 (1 quarter, temporary); J. T. Mitchell, 1918 (2 quarters); James T. Mitchell, 1919-1922; Howard Dutill, 1923; W. C. Norton, 1924-1926; W. J. Palmer, 1926-1928; J. E. Woodward, 1928-1930; Karl H. Koestline, 1930-34; James W. Rogers, 1934-1935; John P. Gaines, 1935-1936; James A. Hendry, 1936-1937; A. Hughes Cole, 1937-1939; William E. Bryant, 1939-1940; J. R. Hill, 1940-1944; Charles H. Voss, 1944-1948; Marshall E. Myer, 1948-1950; John B. Gill Jr., 1950-1954; George L. Harper, 1954-1958; M. M. Meredith, 1958-1960; Whitney J. Dough, 1960-1963; Claude Stanfield, 1963-1968; John A. Briley, 1968-1969; M. A. Shaw, 1969-1970; James E. Ulmer, 1970-1973; William C. Swygert, 1973-1976; A. E Donavon, 1976-1979; Guildmar J. Blair, 1979-1987; George F. Bourne, 1987; Dr. Robert K. Turner, 1988-1990; H. Fred Spencer, 1990-1993; Jeffrey R. Ramsland, June 1993-June 2, 2000; Ronald R. "Ronnie" Jones, June 2000 to June 2003; William E. "Bill" Knight, June 2003 to June 2007; Richard "Rick Walker, about June 27, 2007 to June 30, 2009. (15)

Rev. Danielle Warner assumed her pastorate on July 1, 2009.

The common consensus is the sanctuary of the church is the most beautiful in the county. The story of the First United Methodist Church is one of loving, dedicated service to the Lord by the many congregations that have passed through its doors.

Endnotes

(1) Jean B. Burton, The Story Of Our Church, First United Methodist of Wauchula, 1990, pages 1-2; Spessard Stone, “William Penn McEwen 1815-1883,” South Florida Pioneers 51/52 (Jan./Apr. 1987); T. C. Underwood, "A Brief History of the First Baptist Church, Wauchula, Florida," 1976; Florida Christian Advocate, October 31, 1912.

(2) Burton, page 1; Jean Plowden, History of Hardee County, 1929, page 70; “Friendship Cemetery, South Florida Pioneers 15/16 (Jan./April 1978), page 21; “DeSoto County: Record Of Wills # 1,” South Florida Pioneers 14 (October 1977), page 19. Rev. Carson was born October 13, 1816 and died October 10, 1898, with burial in Friendship Cemetery, Zolfo Springs, Florida. The will of Samuel B. Carson was dated June 1891, DeSoto County, Florida. He named his daughters, Mrs. Elizabeth Clurry of Benton Co., Miss. and Martha Wilson of Arkansas; “3 children of my decd. son R. P. Carson of Benton Co., Miss.”; sons, Thomas B. Carson of Jackson, Miss. and John W. Carson of Benton Co., Miss.; granddaughter, Bonnie Carson, daughter of son Joshua Carson; my present wife, Martha J. Carson, extr. The will was filed August 29, 1891.

(3) Burton, pages 3-5; The Florida Times-Union, August 30, 1900; The Tampa Daily Times, March 9, 1914.

(4) Burton, pages 6-9; The Tampa Daily Times, March 9, 1914; Plowden, 70; cornerstone of church; The Tampa Morning Tribune, January 5 and February 1, 1917.

(5) Burton, 78.

(6) Burton, pages 11-12, 14.

(7) Burton, pages 18-22.

(8) Burton, pages 24-28, 52.

(9) Burton, pages 78-79. The church was initially the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Wauchula.

(10) First United Methodist Church “Parsonage Fund Report,” December 7, 1996. At that time, the balance owed on the approximate $200,000 cost was $2,504. See also "Did You Know?" October Newsletter," October 2007.

(11) The Herald-Advocate, June 4, 1998, 3-B, and June 11, 1998, 12A; “Minutes of Administrative Council Meeting,” December 7, 2004. The purchase of the former, the Strickland house, was: Frank & Jannell McKinnie to First United Methodist Church of Wauchula, Inc., $40,000. The latter was sold by Edwin Albert Long to First United Methodist Church of Wauchula, $40,000. See also “Financial Committee Report on Purchase of Long and Strickland Properties June 7, 1998, church bulletin of June 14, 1998, and “Finance Report of August 4, 1999.”

(12) “Finance Report of August 4, 1999.”

(13) "Minutes of Administrative Council Meeting” of July 5, 2005 & August 2, 2005; Roy E. Shaw 111 to First United Methodist Church of Wauchula, $60,000, The Herald-Advocate, 7C, June 22, 2006. (14) Report on attendance on church bulletins, April 2001 through March 2002 and January through December 2006; Charge conference with Bishop Aldo O. Martin, District Superintendent, September 9, 2001. As of November 2004, church membership was 398.

(15) Burton, Appendix 1, pages 79-81; Jeff Ramsland to church family, “Good News!,” June 2000; church bulletins of June 8 & 15, 2003. Rev. Jones preached his last sermon at FUMC on June 8, 2003. Church bulletins of June 8 and 15, 2003. Rev. William Edward "Bill" Knight, a Tampa native, received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Tampa in 1973 and a Master of Divinity degree from the Methodist Theological School in 1981. Pastoral service includes: First Seminole (1981-84); Citra/First Lochloosa (1984-86); Chaplain, U. S. Army (1986-2002), during which he served in Germany, the Netherlands, Panama, and several stateside locations; Clinical Pastoral Ed. Residency, Florida Hospital, Orlando (2002-03). He is married to Terry, and they have three grown children. His last sermon at FUMC was on June 24, 2007. The last Sunday of Rev. Rick Walker was on June 28, 2009 when at the morning service he gave a singing concert. On June 30, 2009, he sent out a farewell phone message with the blessing from Numbers 6:24-26. He and his wife, Linda, were reassigned to a church in Tallahassee.