1881 Methodist Church
Introduction
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The church, at center, was probably the first church building erected in Cheney.
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Among the earliest religious groups to organize in Cheney, the Reverend D.G. Strong preached the first sermon in a butcher shop with a dirt floor on November 25, 1880. Reverend Theodore Hoagland was appointed pastor to conduct services in Cheney on the second and fourth Sundays of each month. He held his first service on December 28, 1880 with two ladies for his congregation.
In March of 1881 at a public prayer service at the home of John Robbins, plans were made for the building of a church. Reverend Strong donated $100 and selected the lots on which to build the wooden 20' x 36' building located across the street from the present church on the east side of G between 4th & 5th. The church was dedicated June 3, 1881. The building was also used at the time variously as a schoolhouse, a meeting place for temperance societies and suffragists, and place of worship for the Congregationalists and Baptists. On December 25, 1881 a Sunday School was organized for the growing town and membership.
Sources
Cheney United Methodist Church Centennial Celebration 1880 - 1980.
Cheney United Methodist Church 125th Anniversary Celebration 1880-2005.
Cheney 1906 promotional brochure