Bacon Chapel

When it comes to awesome names for a church, Bacon Chapel currently takes the top spot.  

Bacon Chapel is a Methodist church that was organized in the fall of 1837.   There was no church building or structure at the time but the group met in the Lewis cabin about a mile north of the present building.  The original members of Bacon Chapel were: John B. and Charlotte Lewis, Charles Hunt Christian and wife Dolly Ann Wiley Christine, Mary I. Wailes, Margaret A. Moore, M. Wheeler, David Wood, William Wood and Stanford Drain.  Rev. James Pryor of Ohio, held protracted services at the Lewis Cabin, and was the first Methodist minister in Shelby Co, MO.  Worship then moved to a large log cabin built for George Bacon of Hannibal, Missouri, but was never occupied as a dwelling.  It was deeded to the chapel by Mr. Bacon, hence the name.  In 1845 the first church was constructed on land donated by Mr. Bacon.  It was a log structure covered with clapboards and cost $1,900.  Father Eads "Old Father Eads" held the first service before a clapboard floor was put in place.  This initial service was after the Pilgram's style of 'deep humility and fervent sprit.  The congregation at that time consisted of 217 members with a John W. Wailes as superintendent of the Sunday School.  

The first church building stood for twenty years.  In 1870, the current building was constructed.  

Bacon Chapel is the oldest church in Shelby County and is known as the "Mother of Methodism" in Shelby.  In 1938, the chapel was still active.  A remarkable fact about Bacon Chapel in 1938 is that many of the members that were currently attending were descendants of the pioneer settlers who organized the congregation.  
Some of the ministers who have served this congregation are:  Revs. William Pryor, Conley Smith, T. Ashby, Tyson Dines, Martin L. Eads, James M. Green, P.M. Pinkard, Jocob Sigler, James Wainright, James B. Callaway, George Smith, J.B. Baker, M.Birch, L. Newmann, James Light, E.K. Miller, William M. Bush, James Monroe, Jospeh Dines, E. Hudson, T. DeMoss, L. Bush, W.M. McMurry and B.A. Spencer. 

As of 2005, services had been held twice a month at the building.  I am not sure if it is still in use or what the current situation is with Bacon Chapel.  
There is a large graveyard behind the chapel. 


Sources and further reading:

http://www.iowaz.info/moshelby/baconchapel.htm

Elliott, Katherine. "Place Names of Six Northeast Counties of Missouri." M.A. thesis., University of Missouri-Columbia, 1938.

Looney's Creek Old School Baptist Church

While researching old, historic and abandoned churches in Missouri, I came across a photo and post on Looney's Creek Old School Baptist Church.  The name immediately caught my attention.  In my opinion, that has to be one of the most unique and cool names for a church that I have yet come across (though Bacon Chapel, which I will be writing about in a future post, is probably the coolest church name I've yet seen).  

Looney's Creek Old School Baptist Church has its beginnings very early on in Missouri history.  Originally founded as Looney's Creek Mt. Zion Church, it formed out of the membership of the Baptist Church at Pleasant Hill in Marion County, Missouri, on 14 May 1836 and met in the home of Caroline Looney on Looney Creek.  Robert Hendren and Charles L. Turner were elected church elders. A log meeting house was erected in 1837 and Henry Louthan became the pastor at the at time.  Louthan opposed the "Mission System" and the church became divided.  Louthan and his followers split off and formed Henry Louthan Baptist Church (which would later be called Looney's Creek Old School Baptist Church) and the other church continued on as Looney's Creek Mt. Zion Church.  Louthan pastored Looney's Creek for 34 years and was known as the man "who preached without charge and labored with untiring energy." F. M. Turner took over as pastor after Louthan.  The church was organized before the Baptist split into two factions, the Old School and the New School. 
Looney's Creek Old School Baptist Church was still in active in 1938.   

Throughout its existence, the church has been known by many names including: Primitive Baptist Church, Hardshell Baptist, Old School Baptist.  (Interesting note concerning the name "Old School", within Baptist circles there were churches that stressed being "old school" or "new school" in response to the First Great Awakening in the 18th century.  In Presbyterian circles they were called "Old Path" or "New Path".  The old school/path churches opposed the revivalism and new fads that grew out of the First Great Awakening and stressed a simple, more traditional and conservative approach to church services and Christian life. New school/path churches embraced revivalism and the new trends (including Sunday School, missions societies, experiential services) and adapted their church services and life to include such.

The Old School Baptist denomination used to be quite prominent in northern Missouri.  It is now currently known as Primitive Baptists and the denomination as a whole is much smaller and nowhere near as prominent as it used to be.  The name "primitive" simply means that the church or denomination sought to mirror as closely as possible how the church is described in the New Testament of the Bible.  No alter calls, no fancy "concert-like" musical service, etc, but rather the simple style of church service as seen in the Bible itself.  

In typical Baptist fashion, the church building is a simple, unadorned structure.  It is a wooden frame, single-room building with a gable style roof.  Inside there is a small, slightly raised platform at the front of the building for the preacher.  There is a door on the back and the main two doors on the front of the building.  There is also a graveyard associated with this church. 

Pleasant Praire Church

 Pleasant Prairie Church is an abandoned Presbyterian church in Shelby County, MO.  Though the graveyard is kept up and the outside of the building is in good shape and got a fresh coat of paint and some upkeep done in 2017; inside it is but a shell of its former self and provides shelter for the occasional wild animal. 

Pleasant Prairie church was founded in 1866 with 15 members.  The present frame building was constructed in 1869, at a total cost of $1,500.  A Rev. Mr. Wilson preached in the church for many years, before retiring from all ministry work in 1909.  He was a much loved and desired preacher and minister for funeral services and marriages.  

I am not sure when the church stopped being used for services, but it appears to have been a few decades since it was last used.  The cemetery, on the other hand, is still visited fairly often by those with loved ones buried there.  

NOTICE: I have been unable to find very much information on this church online and I would be very, very appreciative if anyone who has stories from this church or information about it to reach out to me.  Thank you in advance!  

Immanuel Lutheran Church

Immanuel Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod, was founded in 1855 by Rev. August Lange near Prairie Home, MO.  Though it was founded in 1855, it's history actually starts just over a decade earlier in 1844.  

The original founders were part of St. Peter's Evangelical and Reformed Church, which is located about a mile to the south.  For several years, St. Peter's was a "united church" with a mixed congregation of Evangelicals and Lutherans.  But over the years, due to differences in doctrine and practice, the Lutherans of St. Peter's left and formed their own church.  

The church was organized in 1855, and a building was completed that same year.  The building that currently stands was constructed in 1896 due to an increase in church membership.  Up until 1944, the church building also served as a school, with the minister undertaking both teaching the children as well as pastoring the church.

Today, church membership stands at 22 people with a weekly average attendance of eight persons.  

There is also a graveyard and a parsonage on the property.  

For more information on this church: 
https://cooper.mogenweb.org/Churches/Pleasant_Grove_Immanuel_Lutheran_Church.pdf

Pleasant Hill Free Methodist Church

Pleasant Hill Free Methodist Church was established on October 2, 1942. According to an Architecture/Historic Survey by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, it is believed this church was originally built in 1880 as the Pleasant Hill Baptist Church. It has a gable style roof with a frame building, and the large foyer is believed to have been added on in the mid-20th century. Judging by the sign out front, it looks like the building is still in use, though where people park isn't clear unless they pull up on the grass an park in front. A small graveyard is also associated with this church along with two outhouses. The Free Methodist Church denomination was organized in 1860 in New York. It separated from the Methodist Episcopal Church. It holds to Wesleyan-Arminian theology. An interesting fact about the Free Methodist Church, they called themselves "free" for multiple reasons. One being that they were anti-slavery, and another, rather interesting reason, in that they wanted pews to be free for all people, regardless of race or status. I find it really mind boggling that some churches believed in selling or renting pews for their services.

Oakley Chapel A.M.E. Church

Oakley Chapel A.M.E. (African Methodist Episcopal) Church was founded in 1878 by freed slaves in the area.  It is a simple one room, wood frame, gable style roof church building.  Oakley was the first of three A.M.E. churches to be built in Callaway County, and was the last active A.M.E. church in county as well.  It sits on one acre of land which was purchased for the sum total of $1 from William L. Kidwell, a Virginia born farmer.  On a very interesting note, Kidwell's wife, Winifred, was the granddaughter of Presley Neville, who was a friend of George Washington and aide-de-camp to Marquis de Lafayette.  Ben McCollough was Oakley's first pastor, and the church served the local community through services, revivals and community events.  Oakley Chapel also served as a schoolhouse for black children in the area, who still experienced segregation and oppression within the public school system.  The church stood strong through the economic ups and downs and the Great Depression, and absorbed the members of the other two churches after they closed.  The last church service was held in the 1980s, though occasional events were held in the building up until the 2010s.  

Sadly, in 2021, a group of teens broke into the building and vandalized it, causing extensive damage.  There are plans to repair the church and possibly move it into a more visible area where local residents can keep an eye on it.  

There is also a parsonage/dining hall located next to the church and a small graveyard located behind the church.   

More information on Oakley Chapel can be found here: 
https://www.oakleychapelame.org/history.html