History
of Harlem U. M. C.
In 1845 a “Brother Health” held the
first “class” of Methodists in “Harlem, Winnebago County”.
These twelve persons meeting in the one room schoolhouse included Mr. Asa Taylor, great-grandfather of Mrs. Hurlbert.
At that meeting, Asa Taylor agreed to give a lot for
a cemetery and an adjoining lot for a church site. Ironically, Taylor shortly died of a
farm injury and was the first buried in the cemetery. The cemetery and original
church site are at the corner of Harlem and
Alpine Roads.
In 1870,
under the pastorate of “Brother Blanchard”, the first church building was
begun. That building is still standing on the original site. From 1872 to 1885,
Harlem Church was a single charge, supporting
its own minister. During the remainder of its first one hundred and twenty
years, the congregation was served by students or retired ministers or was
coupled with the Ninth Street Methodist
Church, Rockford,
or First Methodist Church,
Roscoe.
In late
1961 and early 1962 arrangements were made to purchase a new church site at
8509 North Alpine Road, just south of the site of the school house in which the
original meeting of Harlem
Methodist Church
was held and a quarter mile north of the 1870 church site.
In June of
2003, Harlem joined with Evans and Beth Eden
to form the Upon This Rock Cooperative Parish.
History of Evans U.
M. C.
Evans Memorial
Methodist Church
was originally organized in early 1949. The first meetings were held in the
small Harlem Grade
School building and later services were moved to the music
room in the basement of Harlem
School.
Ground was
broken for the Evans
Memorial Methodist
Church in January 1952 on
the lots on the south side of Sycamore
Lane which had been given by the heirs of David
Evans.
In 1969,
Evans united with the United Brethren Church
and became the Evans
United Memorial
Methodist Church
and later the work Memorial was eliminated in 1976.
In 1998
Evans dedicated the slogan “The Small Church with the Big Heart”
In June of
2003, Evans joined with Harlem and Beth Eden
to form the Upon This Rock Cooperative Parish.
History of
Beth Eden U. M. C.
In 1952 Beth Eden Church (Evangelical United Brethren) was
established.
In 1960 Zion
Evangelical United
Brethren Church
united with Beth Eden United
Brethren Church.
In 1970 Beth
Eden United
Brethren Church
changed to Beth Eden United
Methodist Church
In 1989 St. John’s
United Methodist
Church united with Beth Eden United Methodist
Church.
In 1997 Beth Eden dedicated the
slogan “The House of New Beginnings”
In
2003 Beth Eden joined with Evans and Harlem
to form the Upon This Rock Cooperative Parish.
