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Churches
Almost
as soon as the first settlers arrived in 1856-57, one of the
first things done was the establishment of a church. The first
being the Hope Baptist Church with Nelson Frazier preaching
the first sermon in an old log school. Their first pastor
was Rev. C. P. Wilson who served from about 1868-1870. In
1892 land was purchased from Joseph and Mary Gregway where
they built their Church. In 1962 their present church was
built in Hope at 5525 North Hope Road. Their current pastor
is Neil Wiggins.
The Hope United Methodist Church was started in the early
1860’s. After meeting in homes for many years, a permanent
church building was built in 1889. Their first pastor was
Rev. C. H. Theobald who served from 1888-1891. Their church
is located at 5278 North Hope Road and their current pastor
is Patrick R. Poag.
In September, 1912 a Union Holiness Camp
Meeting was held in Hope Township in a wooded area owned by
Alden Raymond. The meeting was held in a large tent with a
sawdust floor and benches made from planks nailed to posts
sunk into the ground. Music was provided by an organ which
was brought by wagon. The tent was lit for the evening with
mantel lanterns. The evangelists were Rev. J. A. Harvey of
Seymour, Indiana; Rev. Clark Flohr of East Palestine, Ohio;
Rev. F. Thomas of Chicago, Illinois; Rev. V. Buston of Grand
Rapids, Michigan; Rev. C. L. Bradley of Berlin, Michigan;
Mrs. Thomas Hartwell of Gladwin; and Rev. Wm Flock of Beaverton.
Many different Sunday Schools and churches began after this
Camp Meeting. One such church began in the old “Pansy
Store” on the corner of Curtis and Middle Roads with
Albertus C. Clark (my great-grandfather) as minister. Later
,as some of the people moved to Midland, the church moved
also and they organized the Church of the Nazarene there.
Three
other churches have been added since those early days. The
first being the North Hope Church of God which started in
1924 as Cottage Prayer Meetings Louis Wagner was their first
pastor. A permanent building was built in 1936 on land donated
by the Grice family. In 1967 the old building was replaced
with the present one which is located at 6424 Middle Road
Their current pastor is Jim Parquette. Under his leadership,
the name of the church as been changed to New Hope Community
Church of God.
The Pilgrim Holiness Church, which was located
in Hope, was started in the summer of 1945 with Albert Lacey
as their pastor along with his wife Ruth. Originally they
met in the Block School before a permanent church building
was erected. Their early members included Blanche Smith, Ashley
Mills, Margariete Smith, May Smith, Clara Mills, Earl and
Margaret Thomas, Floyd and Gilbert Thomas, Robert Parlett,
Harley and Mary Wells, Ida and William Borland, Ira and Nina
Manges, Percy and Myrtle Sterling, and Earl and Mable Fillmore.
Eventually the church was closed and the church made over
as a house, likewise, the parsonage is now the home of Bruce
Dundas.
The
Mt Hope Fellowship Church was founded in 1976 by their leader
Buddy Dodge. Originally, they met at the Midland Christian
School until 1980 when they moved to Hope. They are located
at 1352 East Curtis Road and Dan Shaefer is their current
pastor.
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