Dr. Joseph Ditzler came to Marion in the early part of 1864, and preached at the Williamson County Courthouse, which was then located in the southeast corner of the square. Dr. Ditzler, a brilliant man who wrote 22 languages and spoke 17, organized a church on September 17, 1864 and called it the Evangelical Church. It was Methodist in doctrine and congregational in government.
Among the charter members were: Dr. and Mrs. A. N. Lodge, Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Edwards, Mr. and Mrs. Zack Durham, Mrs. William Cook, Mrs. Wiley, Mr. and Mrs. Jeremiah Rice, Mr. and Mrs. James Hudspeth, Mr. and Mrs. S. S. Vick, Mr. and Mrs. John Edwards, William S. Evans, George N. Moore, and Mary L. Moore. These founders were people of strong faith, intellect, and character who loved God with their whole hearts and believed in pure gospel. In 1867, the congregation came under the jurisdiction of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
The congregation first met for services in the court house, and then moved to the school house, which was near the site of the present Williamson County Courthouse (Note: This refers to the old Washington School.)
In 1870, Reverend W. P. Nance came as pastor, and through his untiring efforts and energy, the church purchased for $1 a lot on the southeast corner of Jefferson and Liberty Streets. Rev. Nance died in November 1871, soon after the new church building was completed.
Nance’s son-in-law, Reverend R. P. Howell, was pastor when the congregation purchased a lot for $360 at 305 South Market Street. A new church building was completed in 1892 at a cost of approximately $3,000, and dedicated in May, 1893, completely free of financial debt.
In 1939, the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and the Methodist Protestant Church united forming one body called The Methodist Church. With unification, the church voted to select a new name.
The pastor’s wife, Mrs. O. A. Sweckard, suggested the name “Aldersgate,” a historic Methodist name which stresses the inner, heart-warming experience through faith in Christ for salvation. It was the name of the street on which John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, felt his heart touched by God and his sins forgiven. The congregation took the name by a unanimous vote. A complete remodeling of the church was done in 1942.
The people of Aldersgate have been a people with a vision for the future. Seeing the need for more space due to the increasing size of the congregation, in 1964, the church stepped out by faith and purchased approximately four acres at the northeast corner of North Fair Street and East DeYoung Street while Reverend Eugene F. Black was pastor. The price was $40,000. Under the leadership of Reverend Mode Powell, Jr., a fund drive for construction of a new parsonage and church building began in March of 1967. The parsonage was completed first, with the new church to follow. The first service in the new building was a prayer meeting on June 4, 1969.
By July 1980, the $300,000 facility was free of indebtedness and the church’s sanctuary and educational wing was formally dedicated in a service with Bishop Hodapp preaching.
The congregation had continued to grow and in January 1980 had purchased an additional 1.2 acres on the eastern boundary of the church property. Pastor James Slone led as the congregation now moved onward with a second building phase. A multi-purpose building called the Abundant Life Center was completed in 1982. The contractor was Ray Smith, who also built the parsonage and the original structure at this site. The addition included more classroom space, a modern kitchen, additional bathrooms including shower facilities, and a large multi-purpose room which could be used for social gatherings, special events, and recreational activities.
The tornado which tore through Marion in May, 1982, showed how versatile the facility would be. It became a clothing distribution center when trucks of clothing came pouring in from all across the Midwest. Meals were served for the American Red Cross, and a counseling center for children who were victims of the tornado was set up shortly after the storm.
The facilities actually became “home” to volunteers from The Church of the Brethren, The Reformed Church of America, and the Mennonite Church who lived there while rebuilding homes and cleaning up the city. Those showers and bathrooms and the classrooms turned into living quarters allowed several volunteers to stay longer with some celebrating Thanksgiving with the Aldersgate congregation.
All indebtedness on the $325,000 addition was paid. Exactly one hundred twenty-five years from the date of the founding of the church, the addition was dedicated and the mortgage was burned on September 17, 1989.
The founders were a people who believed in salvation by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Through the years, the congregation has believed in sharing this good news with others. In 1924, they purchased the Crossroads Church in rural Marion and helped support that congregation until a tornado destroyed its building in the late 1930s. In the 1960s, the congregation built two churches in the Kantanga Province, the Congo in Africa. Currently, it is involved in mission projects with Redbird Mission in Kentucky, and helps support Paul and Judy Utley, missionaries from Aldersgate in Thailand. In the late 1980’s it worked closely with mission projects in Mexico and was a major catalyst in the Carbondale District’s founding of the Hispanic Ministry in Southern Illinois.
The 1980s were a time of tremendous growth. In 1989, the average attendance was over 450 for the two morning worship services. The radio ministry can reach thousands of additional people each Sunday. With the increased growth has come an increase in staff. Besides a full-time pastor, a full- time associate pastor, a part-time assistant pastor, a full-time minister of music, a part-time music director, a full-time church secretary, and a custodian have been employed. There are also six retired ministers who are part of the congregation.
One measure of the health of a church is the number of workers it sends into full-time Christian service. The records are incomplete, but it is clear that several pastors were called out of the Aldersgate Church. One of those called during the 1930s is William Collins who served as a pastor in the Methodist Churches in Illinois, Minnesota and Ohio for several years and came back to be a part of Aldersgate after his retirement.
In 1989 there were two ministers who were pastors of United Methodists Churches, two in other denominations, and one in the mission field. In addition, four young men were enrolled in seminary (three of whom also serve in local churches) and one was enrolled in college-level ministerial studies. There were three wives of United Methodist pastors from this congregation.
What will the future hold for Aldersgate United Methodist Church? There is a need for additional space, and the church is a looking at alternatives for meeting the challenges of growth.
A rich heritage has been passed down. In turn, as ambassadors for Christ, Aldersgate wants to share the great news of His love for all humanity. Because of this great love, God gave his only son that people might be saved through faith in Jesus Christ. Aldersgate wants to be a church with a warm heart and fervency for God. “We preach not ourselves, but Christ the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.” II Corinthians 4:5 has been on the worship bulletins for nearly 20 years; the church tries to live by that in carrying out the ministry to which God has appointed it.
Note: The old M.E. Church on S. Market Street was demolished in 1986 after sitting across from the public library for almost 100 years.
( Some photos and article written by Thelma J. Malone for the 1989 Sesquicentennial History book; other photos from Edward Bridges Collection and Williamson County Historical Society; article revised by Sam Lattuca on 01/06/2013)
Notes from Diana Angell, October 2024:
My father purchased the original Aldersgate church in the mid 1970s. I was married there in 1976. The church was demolished due to a fire breaking out in the attic. My father Rev Donald E Bowers started the
soup.kitchen in the basement of the building. When the church burned the soup kitchen was over and became the ministerial alliance soup kitchen. My grandmother who was a retired Methodist minister and
grandfather worked in the kitchen from the inception. Rev Mary L Erwin and Carrol J Erwin. Mary was the first female ordained minister in the medthodist church in the state of Illinois. My father Don spent most
of his ministry in the Methodist church as well. When he purchased the church he named it Full Gospel Trinity. I thought you might want to add this to the history of the church as it is very relevant. Thank
you.