A century-old building is more than just a collection of wood and nails that’s managed to remain standing.
It’s a piece of living history that can be seen and touched. It’s story that’s been told and is waiting to be told again and again.
This is the story of the Addison township Community Church, located on the corner of Lakeville and Hosner roads.
Today, it’s a simple nondenominational church with a small congregation of about 30 devoted members.
However, when it was constructed in 1903 for the sum of $1,400, it was the Arnold Methodist Protestant Church, also known as the Arnold Church.
A local farmer named Ami Arnold, for whom the church was named, was instrumental in the construction efforts, according to a recently published history of the institution entitled “Addison Township Community Church: First 100 Years of Serving Christ and Our Community.”
“The lumber for the church was actually from Ami Arnold’s farm,” the book stated.
W.S. Casmore was the first pastor of the Arnold Church. He simultaneously served the Methodist Church in Leonard as well.
Arnold Church remained a Methodist place of worship until June 3, 1944, when it was purchased by Rev. William Allen Henke, “a representative of the people of Addison,” according to the history.
Henke bought the church for the sum of $468.25 at an auction – $360 for the building, $6 for the bell, $53 for the pews, $9 for the stove, $3.50 for 14 yards of carpet, $7 for the light fixtures and $2.75 for a rug runner.
Twenty-three couples, 18 individuals and the Leonard Methodist Church all contributed $801.80 toward buying the Arnold Church for the purpose of transforming it into a nondenominational community church for the people of Addison Township.
The first officers of the new Addison Township Community Church were elected on June 8, 1944.
Three days later the first service was held as a “homecoming meeting.”
“Many of our old friends came until the church was crowded. Several speakers brought us a message, including Mrs. Lea Meadows of Oxford, and Miss Helen Mascfield of Detroit,” noted former Church Clerk Lulu Walton.
In 1946, the church was raised to accommodate the addition of a basement.
A Christmas party was held in the church’s new basement in December 1948. Sixty-nine people attended and the Goodfellows of Oxford passed out 50 Christmas stockings.
The church’s nondenominational status was challenged in 1956, when the pastor, Rev. Ben Moore, suggested he be allowed to add the word “Baptist” to the church sign.
“The suggestion was denied, due to the fact that it goes against the Articles of Incorporation as a Nondenominational church,” according to the church history.
Moore preached his last sermon on Oct. 21, 1956 and resigned. “The people that came to the church with him were Southern Baptists and left with him,” the history stated.
In July 1959, the church purchased the Arnold School House from the Oxford Board of Education for $1,100.
From 1858 to 1903, Methodist Church services were held at the Arnold School House, which was renamed Arnold Auditorium in June 1960. The 150-year-old building is located next door to the church, to the west, and is today the home of its Sunday School and church suppers.
In August 1959, Richard Wingett, who owned the land upon which both the school house and church sat, told the congregation he would sell the deeds to them for $200.
“The members believed this not to be enough, so they motioned to pay him $350,” according to the church history.
The next 44 years of the church’s history are a mixture of pastors coming and going, a seemingly endless list of repair and improvement projects and many, many harvest festivals and holiday events.
A lot has changed in the 100 years since the Addison Township Community Church was built, but one thing remains the same – the good people who worship there.
Their faith, resolve, strength, hard work and spirit of community, in the truest and best sense of the word, has kept the church running for a century and will see it through until 2103 rolls around.