Church of Christ, Leon

GRADNER, PORTER, BRADFIELD, THATCHER WITTER, SHAKELFORD, MCELVAIN, ELLIS, MCCLELLAND, BRADLY, WELDON, POLLY, FISH, BROWN, LEVEY, BERRY, GATON, CORNELL, HEDRIX, LEMON, HEBENER, KIRKPATRICK, DARR, KEMP, CHASTAIN, BADWIN, MARVIN, RUMLEY, CAMPBELL, SEVEDGE, CLARK, ANDERSON, CAMPBELL, KEERUM, LUCE, MARVIN, GARSUCH, GORAUCH, HAMILTON, STUMP, MEEK, HARVEY, PIPER

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 1/23/2014 at 23:24:51

Church of Christ
Leon, Iowa

The CHURCH OF CHRIST was organized the first Sunday in June, 1854. The early members were: JOHN GARDNER and wife, CHRISTINA A. GARDNER, FRANKLIN GARDNER, J.C. PORTER and wife, ANNA BRADFIELD, CATHERINE GARDNER, WILSON I. GARDNER, ANNA THATCHER, JACOB WITTER AND wife, REUBEN SHAKELFORD and wife, ANDREW MCELVAIN, J. MCELVAIN and wife, JOHN W. GARDNER and wife, W.W. ELLIS and wife, DR. J.R. MCCLELLAND and wife, DANIEL BRADLY and wife and NANCY WELDON. The house of worship used by this church was erected in 1867, at a cost of $4,000. It is 40 x 60 feet in size, and is on Main Street, three blocks south of the court-house square. The parsonage, built later, cost $1,000. REV. J.C. PORTER was pastor of the church for the first eighteen or twenty years after its organization. Since then there have been REVS. JOHN POLLY, W.B. FISK, O.E. BROWN, J.C. LEVEY, T.V. BERRY, JAMES GASTON, A.B. CORNELL, S.H. HEDRIX and others. The present preacher is REV. H.A. LEMON.

The membership is 150. DR. J.R. MCCLELLAND, L.W. HEBENER and J. KIRKPATRICK are elders; W.J. DARR, ANDREW KEMP, J. CHASTAIN and HORACE BROWN, deacons; REV. H.A. LEMON, clerk. ANDREW KEMP is superintendent and LOU BALDWIN secretary of the Sunday-school, which has an average attendance of fifty-nine.

Copied by Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert

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Church of Christ
Leon, Iowa, Organized 1921

The oldest Church building in Leon was erected as the First Baptist Church in 1883.
On March 6, 1921, the church building was purchased by the members of the Church of Christ.

Church of Christ of Leon – The Beginnings
At a meeting of the church at Eden Prairies, February 20th, 1921 it was decided that the members of that church living in Leon should begin the worship of God in that place. J. C. Campbell, J A. Marvin and A. J. Rumley were appointed as trustees to see about renting or buying a building for a place of worship.

The Baptist chapel in Leon was rented for six months beginning March 1st, 1921. The first meeting for worship there was held Sunday, March 6th, 1921.

A protracted meeting was held by William J. Campbell, W. A. Sevedge and J. R. Clark from March 20th, to April 11th, 1921. During this meeting the Church of Christ of Leon was organized with the following Disciples of Christ as Members:

Charter Members

Florence Anderson
James Anderson
Maude Anderson
Cora C. Campbell
James C. Campbell
Jennie Campbell
Willers Garsuch
Junia Gorauch
Myrtle Hamilton
Grace M. Harvey
Lee B. Harvey
Laura A. Keerum
Eithel Luce
James A. Marvin
H. Ray Marvin
Mary J. Marvin
Sarah A. Marvin
David Meek
Ruley Meek
Mary Piper
Andrew J. Rumley
Lucinda Rumley
Mrs. S. J. Stump

The preceding information was taken from a file at the Decatur County Museum entitled "Church of Christ of Leon Organized 1921."

Transcription and Submission by Sara LeFleur, Decatur County Historical Society Museum, January of 2014

Photograph courtesy of Decatur County Historical Society Museum

Decatur Documents maintained by Constance McDaniel Hall.
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