PHOTOS BY JOHN FRYMAN / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
DEMOLITION PENDING … The 151-year-old Bridgewater Center Methodist Episcopal Church building located off State Route 576 in Bridgewater Center is set to be torn down by the Williams County Land Bank, which is awaiting bids for the demolition.
HISTORIC BELL … A historic bell that was cast in 1892 and later presented by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Marsh to the North Bridgewater Extension Homemakers Club in 1965 sits in front of the Bridgewater Center Methodist Episcopal Church.
By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
One of the oldest historic churches in Williams County could soon meet an unfortunate fate.
The Bridgewater Center Methodist Episcopal Church, which is located off State Route 576 in the small Williams County community of Bridgewater Center, has been a historical landmark for years.
“It’s sad to lose another of Williams County’s heritage buildings, structures that give the people of this area a true sense of place,” said longtime Williams County historian Kevin Maynard.
Constructed in 1875 at a total cost of $2,600, it served not only as a house of worship but also as a community hall, a meeting place for the Bridgewater Township trustees and a voting precinct.
“The former Bridgewater Center Methodist Episcopal served as a house of worship, and also a social gathering point for residents of Bridgewater Township and beyond for approximately 150 years,” Maynard said.
In a news article in The Bryan Times dated May 31, 1966, it was reported the church had closed in 1924.
Wanting to preserve its history, Harry Marsh, who was a Bridgewater Township trustee at the time along with Roy Martin and Clarence Lue, purchased the building for $500.
“Through the generosity of the people of the community, enough money was raised to have the building deeded forever to the trustees of the township for community use,” The Bryan Times reported on May 31, 1966.
At one time, the building was used by the North Bridgewater Extension Homemakers Club, and Marsh presented a bell that now stands in front of the building.
An inscription on the bell, which was cast in 1892 by the McShane Bell Foundry of Baltimore, Maryland, says, “Original M.E. Church Bell, Presented by Mr. And Mrs. Harry Marsh to North Bridgewater Extension Club, 1965.”
Besides the bell, the other item of historical importance is a millstone that was first used in a mill as early as 1844. The millstone, which holds the bell, was placed there by the Williams County Historical Society in 1960.
Maynard commented that the church represents a direct connection to the county’s religious heritage, and that it’s a real challenge for a structure to survive once it has lost its purpose.
“The fact that the former church was repurposed as a community center allowed it to survive much longer than it might otherwise have,” Maynard said.
The building is set to be torn down by the Williams County Land Bank, which is awaiting demolition bids.