Storm Lake, IA - United Methodist Church

On the banks of Storm Lake was a newly emerging village fostered by the hope of the new railroad. Around the lake were the first homestead farms. One of these farms belonged to the Chamberlain family and was the sight of the first Methodist service to be held in the area. On October 4, 1868, a certain Rev. Whitely of the Des Moines conference brought ten families together for worship. Rev. Whitely was a saddlebag preacher whose circuit included fifty-four miles up and down the Little Sioux River. In those days, a weekly service of worship with clergy leadership was rare. People made do. Lay people led their own services in their farm houses.In the next two years, circuit riding preachers would stop at Storm Lake only twice and it was not until Sunday, October 7, 1870, that serious talk was made to the end of making the society into a fully organized church. On that day, Rev. J.R. Horswell spoke in Storm Lake at the Illinois Central depot. The one hundred people present constituted the first religious society in town. In the months to follow they would worship in a room over the Eadie and Gulliford store, the German mill, and a hall over the Smith Brother's store. Eventually they would share the use of the Presbyterian church that was located where St. Johns Lutheran church now stands.Following Rev. Horswell was Rev. O.S. Bryan, a man whose Methodist roots went back to the founding figures of the faith for his father had been baptized by Francis Asbury on the plains of Ohio. During Rev. Bryan's pastorate, Storm Lake became a key center of the newly formed Northwest Iowa Conference. Much experimentation was tired as the conference was formed. Along with Rev. Bryan, two other pastors served the Storm Lake church in 1872. They would ride the rails from Manson to Alta, preaching at every whistle stop along the way. Other accounts suggest that while at Storm Lake they would ride out into the countryside, preaching at farm houses along a fifty mile circuit.Such changes in pastorates and then to be spread so thin was not conducive to developing the potential of the rapidly growing Storm Lake. Surely this must have been on the mind of the conference as they appointed Wilmot Whitfield who stayed in Storm Lake for two years. During his pastorate, several revivals were held and the church grew to a membership of 142. The church gave $5.00 to missions work in 1874. A small parsonage was built and a church was erected at the corner of Third and Cayuga Streets. The little white framed church was 36 feet by 72 feet in size. It faced the east. It had wooden boardwalks and hitching posts for the convenience of its worshipers. The total cost of the church was $1,700. Such costs were met in a single day - $1,300 was given at the morning service and $400.00 at the evening service! The dedication of the First Methodist - Episcopal Church included a sermon by Rev. J.W. Clinton who traveled all the way from Marshalltown. In 1875 that was a good long journey, but then it was also a very special day. Within three years of its founding, the Storm Lake church had grown to a membership of 125. There were 74 in Sunday School with an average attendance of 60. Not only did the church have a traveling or ordained pastor of its own, it also was the center of the Storm Lake circuit that provided as many as four saddlebag itinerant preachers at a time to the surrounding area.
We know very little about the closing years of the first decade of the church. Records are sparse. We do know that it was a time of tent revivals. One such revival was held in the dead of winter (probably in the church sanctuary) in 1879 and it brought 80 converts into the fold. The growth of the church was also marked by a growth in lay leadership. John R. Lemen from this congregation was elected as a conference representative to the General Conference held in Cincinnati, Ohio, in May of 1880.The closing footnote to the first decade of the church is in reference to the first social event. It was an oyster supper held on November 5, 1879.The 1880's were times of rapid growth. They were also years of issues, the issues of a more settled church. In 1880, the issue was the development of a church for German speaking Methodists. In 1884, it was the closing of the saloons. In 1885, it was the issue of the Annual Conference held in the sanctuary and in 1886, it was the issue of debate with the universalist church down the street. In the summer of 1887, work was begun on an addition built to the north of the church that measured 24 by 26 feet. The additional space was of particular importance to a growing, vital church education program that in 1887 was celebrating its tenth year of service. The Sunday School began with 11 teachers and 201 scholars with an average weekly attendance of 108. In twenty years the enrollment had climbed to 327 with 188 in attendance. In 1888, the Northwest Iowa Annual Conference of the Methodist-Episcopal Church held its meeting at Storm Lake as pastors from throughout this quarter of the state tried to decide where to establish a new Methodist university. Of all the sight considered, the choice that year boiled down to Storm Lake and Ida Grove because they were of "pure and wholesome environment". Eventually, what became Morningside College, went to the more worldly, wicked, carousing, drinking Gomorrah called Sioux City. Still the memory of that annual conference draws attention to the fact that Storm Lake was at an early date a choice appointment for any pastor and a vital fellowship for the many worshipers that were still pouring in from the east on the Illinois Central Railroad, looking for a new land to call home. During the 1890's the previous emphasis on evangelism was continued. One notable ecumenical revival in 1893 jointed Methodists and Presbyterians in services that brought sixty converts. Another such service held ten years later that lasted for four weeks brought three hundred eighty-three persons to Christ. Much of the work and support of this ministry came from the Methodist Church. In the 1900's it was time to build again. The new sanctuary was to be 70 feet by 70 feet. It was to hold four hundred people with the back of the sanctuary opening to a Sunday School area that would hole three hundred twenty-five scholars. Should the need arise, the two areas could be combined to seat as many as one thousand people. It was a sanctuary that would be fitted with the finest stained glass windows that told in picture form the ministry and sacrifice of Christ. Upon completion, the church would be one of the most noble sanctuaries in all of northwest Iowa and certainly the finest house of worship in Buena Vista County. On September 30, 1906, the dedication of the new church was held. The pastoral leadership of the 1920's had inherited what the Storm Lake Pilot Tribune called "The most efficiently organized church in the country." With the help of all involved, that organization continued, and, in fact, gained momentum at a time when that was not the national trend. During these years, evangelism continued. Three revivals were held in the twenties. The first revival in 1921 brought fifty-six into the church. The second in 1925 brought forty-two new members, and the third in November of 1927 brought forty-five conversions. By the early 1930's the Storm Lake church reached a membership of one thousand members, and in spite of the economic conditions of the country, it was noted that the spirit and efforts of the church had not dwindled. These years did not pass without a blemish, though. On the evening of January 30, 1931, a passerby noticed that the roof of the church was smoking. A major fire was quickly destroying the north side of the sanctuary. The firemen responded and thought they had extinguished the blaze. They had not. A second effort was needed. The water and fire damage required a new roof, a new chancel, and a new organ. Rumor has it that at least on one occasion during the 1930's, Sunday School attendance hit the five hundred mark. In the war years of the 1940's, plans were made to create a new parsonage and turn the old one into a parish house for educational needs. It was soon obvious that this would be insufficient, and a large educational addition was deemed necessary. Such a task was undertaken during the ministry of Charles Buckwalter. Designing what he felt to be the most advanced church education facilities around, the $144,000 project was begun. Upon its completion, it served two to three hundred students and a congregation approaching two thousand. It was the largest protestant church in town and it was a church that was riding the crest of the baby boom. After much deliberation, the Evangelical United Brethren Church and the Methodist Church combined under the new name of the United Methodist Church in 1968. In 1970, the church sanctuary was remodeled. The pews were replaced. The parsonage was remodeled. The educational building was remodeled. New insulation was installed throughout. These are days of conservation - stewardship, in church terminology. In 1981, the Truesdale United Methodist Church was closed due to its aging congregation. Many members were assimilated into this congregation and some equipment was brought to the Storm Lake church. The Storm Lake United Methodist Church continued to serve its more than 1200 members with each succeeding pastor and associate bringing his/her special talents to the life of the church. In 1994 Joan Rude was chosen to serve as program director of the church. Her duties included supervision of youth work and implementation of special programs, including a live portrayal of a Bethlehem market place at the time of the birth of Christ and a live interpretation of the da Vinci portrait of the Last Supper by men from the church. Secretaries in the office during this time period were Bernadine Foell, Carmen Moody, Jean Ann Seagren, and JoAn Lund. On November 3, 1998, two committees were appointed to explore the possibility of renovating our church facilities. One committee was to focus on the renovation of the sanctuary and the other to consider Fellowship Hall located in the church basement. In 2000, a church conference was called and at this time, the building committee was authorized to move forward with the remodeling plans of the church. Construction was begun in December of 2002. During the project, Sunday church services were moved to the South School Auditorium with Saturday evening services held in Witter Chapel. The general plan included renovation of the sanctuary, adding a wing on the west side of the building to include a new entrance, elevator, unisex bathroom and a library with a hallway leading to the educational wing. A new Family Life Center was to be added on the north side of the church and handicapped entrances were planned for the west corridor and east canopy. Detailed renovation of the sanctuary included: rewiring; adding new sconce lighting and ceiling beams; lowering the platform at the chancel area; securing the floor and adding new carpeting and choir chairs; relocating the new organ; and recovering the pews. In addition, audio consultants were hired to assess the sound in the sanctuary. Their study resulted in new sound and projection equipment and the addition of a sound booth at the rear of the sanctuary to control and audio/visual system. At the same time, the trustees hired Bovard Studios to remove, repair and reset all of the stained glass windows. The metal and glass walls in the narthex were replaced with a wood and glass structure to match the wood of the pews, etc. Chancel furniture was designed in the trefoil theme with a special inlay on the oak floor of a trefoil. This theme was carried to the ends of each pew. A large budded wooden cross trimmed in gold was hung from the ceiling at the front of the church. A removable communion railing was positioned, and new choir chairs were fronted by a coordinating removable modesty railing so that the space could be cleared as needed. Centered in the chancel was positioned an antique ornate communion table given by Mr. and Mrs. Phil Thornton. On the north side of the church, an addition to include an entrance hall leading from a canopied entrance on the east to the educational building, offices and new west addition was butted up to the existing structure. The center of this new structure was designed to be used as a dining and recreational area. On the north side of this addition, a full kitchen was installed. Two restrooms were located on the east side of the building with storage above. More storage was incorporated above the sanctuary. A cement parking lot accommodating 22 vehicles was located at the rear of the building and two additional entrances were added to access the kitchen area.
In 2005 old carpeting and the wooden floor in Fellowship Hall were removed; a cement floor was poured and new carpeting was laid. The new building and the renovated sanctuary were dedicated on April 14, 2002 with Bishop Gregory Palmer presiding at the ceremonies. The expansion and renovation of the physical structure enhanced the beauty, convenience and utility of the church, and more importantly, it led to growth and development of new programs and outreach. Three worship services were now held; a casual service at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday evenings, a traditional service at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings, followed by Sunday School for all ages at 9:45 a.m., and a contemporary service at 11:00 a.m. As our church moves into the next decade, we recognize that we have been blessed with commitments of time, talent and treasures. Our trustees continue in the care of the church property including repairs and improvements to the two parsonages and our dedicated pastor, leads our congregation in continued ministries and new outreach programs locally, nationally and globally.