History of East Harrison Street Church of God
Our church was first organized on May 9, 1874 in the home of John P. Hall who lived south of Charleston near Kickapoo Creek. The original group consisted of six members.
The little flock met in various places during which time five persons professed faith in Christ, were baptized, and united with the Church. A protracted meeting was held in February 1876 with the Church meeting in a schoolhouse near Rice P. Hackett’s home. The meeting was conducted by Elders A.T. Sargent, Silas White, and George Sandoe (the Pastor).
Having no permanent place of worship for almost two years following the organization, a meeting was called in the home of Rice P. Hackett on February 17, 1876, to decide on building a place of worship. An agreement was reached to build on ¼ acre donated and deeded by Rice P. Hackett on the northeast corner of his farm.
The house of worship was quickly erected and named Mt. Pleasant Church of God. On June 11, 1876, the Bethel was dedicated with the Rev. I.E. Boyer of Decatur delivering the sermon.
On April 17, 1902, the Church voted to erect a new house of worship on the northeast corner of the James Stevens farm after rejecting the idea of relocating the present building to open land near the Huckaba Cemetery. At this meeting, a funding drive raised $980. The Rev. O. B. Huston was the pastor. The new building was completed and dedicated on November 2, 1902. The Rev. J. Bernard of Decatur delivered the sermon. The cost of the bethel was $3,000, and it had been dedicated debt-free.
The 50th anniversary of the organization of the Church of God at Charleston was celebrated on August 31, 1924, a few months later than the actual date to have more favorable weather. The speaker was the Rev. C. F. Rogers, the pastor of the First Church of God at Decatur, IL, and our former pastor.
Some protracted revival meetings were held through the years. On December 29, 1895, a revival began by the Pastor D. H. Rupp that lasted 5½ weeks. During that meeting, there were fourteen conversions and three rededications with all of them being baptized, most likely after breaking the ice in the river. A 4-week revival meeting began on December 30, 1897. Some of these revival meetings consisted of both morning and evening services.
In the 1950’s, the church was a small one-room building with approximately 20-30 people attending. Sunday School classes were held in each corner of the church, and the nursery was in the basement.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on November 20, 1966, for a 4,500 square feet addition to the church facility. This two-story addition included a pastor’s study, a baptistry, a small chapel, a nursery, a kitchen with fellowship hall, several classrooms, and two restrooms. The outside of the 1902 church building was given a new look. An amber fiberglass steeple was installed, and an entranceway was constructed. A lighted cross was affixed to the outside wall facing the street.
New timbers were installed in the church tower that housed the bell, which had not been rung in several years. But the bell was rung 100 times for the centennial celebration in 1974. Legend has it that the bell was from the original courthouse in Charleston.
Groundbreaking ceremonies for a new church facility was held on November 14, 1982. The two-story building was designed to include a kitchen, pastor’s office, associate pastor’s office, secretary’s office, and 19 classrooms.
The new Family Life Center was dedicated on April 18, 1999, with the Rev. Wayne Boyer, Executive Director of the Churches of God, General Conference delivering the message: “Temporary Residence” from 2 Corinthians 4:7-18.
Our church was first organized on May 9, 1874 in the home of John P. Hall who lived south of Charleston near Kickapoo Creek. The original group consisted of six members.
The little flock met in various places during which time five persons professed faith in Christ, were baptized, and united with the Church. A protracted meeting was held in February 1876 with the Church meeting in a schoolhouse near Rice P. Hackett’s home. The meeting was conducted by Elders A.T. Sargent, Silas White, and George Sandoe (the Pastor).
Having no permanent place of worship for almost two years following the organization, a meeting was called in the home of Rice P. Hackett on February 17, 1876, to decide on building a place of worship. An agreement was reached to build on ¼ acre donated and deeded by Rice P. Hackett on the northeast corner of his farm.
The house of worship was quickly erected and named Mt. Pleasant Church of God. On June 11, 1876, the Bethel was dedicated with the Rev. I.E. Boyer of Decatur delivering the sermon.
On April 17, 1902, the Church voted to erect a new house of worship on the northeast corner of the James Stevens farm after rejecting the idea of relocating the present building to open land near the Huckaba Cemetery. At this meeting, a funding drive raised $980. The Rev. O. B. Huston was the pastor. The new building was completed and dedicated on November 2, 1902. The Rev. J. Bernard of Decatur delivered the sermon. The cost of the bethel was $3,000, and it had been dedicated debt-free.
The 50th anniversary of the organization of the Church of God at Charleston was celebrated on August 31, 1924, a few months later than the actual date to have more favorable weather. The speaker was the Rev. C. F. Rogers, the pastor of the First Church of God at Decatur, IL, and our former pastor.
Some protracted revival meetings were held through the years. On December 29, 1895, a revival began by the Pastor D. H. Rupp that lasted 5½ weeks. During that meeting, there were fourteen conversions and three rededications with all of them being baptized, most likely after breaking the ice in the river. A 4-week revival meeting began on December 30, 1897. Some of these revival meetings consisted of both morning and evening services.
In the 1950’s, the church was a small one-room building with approximately 20-30 people attending. Sunday School classes were held in each corner of the church, and the nursery was in the basement.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on November 20, 1966, for a 4,500 square feet addition to the church facility. This two-story addition included a pastor’s study, a baptistry, a small chapel, a nursery, a kitchen with fellowship hall, several classrooms, and two restrooms. The outside of the 1902 church building was given a new look. An amber fiberglass steeple was installed, and an entranceway was constructed. A lighted cross was affixed to the outside wall facing the street.
New timbers were installed in the church tower that housed the bell, which had not been rung in several years. But the bell was rung 100 times for the centennial celebration in 1974. Legend has it that the bell was from the original courthouse in Charleston.
Groundbreaking ceremonies for a new church facility was held on November 14, 1982. The two-story building was designed to include a kitchen, pastor’s office, associate pastor’s office, secretary’s office, and 19 classrooms.
The new Family Life Center was dedicated on April 18, 1999, with the Rev. Wayne Boyer, Executive Director of the Churches of God, General Conference delivering the message: “Temporary Residence” from 2 Corinthians 4:7-18.
Expanding the vision...
We know that the future of East Harrison Street Church of God is dependent on training our current children and youth to become leaders in the church. Please join us in this endeavor in prayer and by joining with our congregation to train those that the Lord leads to us.
(Photo from Yee-Haw VBS, July 2019)
(Photo from Yee-Haw VBS, July 2019)
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