Historical Account of DeBows United
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Early recordings indicate that the Christian
education for children, adult bible study, and worship were held in the DeBow
School House close to the present church. The original book cupboard with
some of the books of this Sabbath School is still in possession of the
church. According
to the wording of the Articles of Incorporation of DeBows Methodist Episcopal
Church, a formal church was conceived and promulgated Ezekiel Thomas 5
years Two parcels of land were purchased at the northeast corner of
the Freehold-Mount Holly Road and the Allentown- Lakewood Road. This land was
originally owned by James DeBow and Thomas DeBow respectively. Joseph DeBow
owned a near-by water powered sawmill from which lumber was obtained for the
church building. It is assumed that for these reasons the church was named
DeBow. The first
minister was Francis (Frank) A. Fielder and actually being a carpenter by
trade, supervised and helped with the erection of the church building. Now
firmly established as a permanent place of worship the growth of the church
was eminent. On In 1923 a
belfry was built on the front of the church building and a bell was purchased
from Sears Roebucks. This enhanced the mode of worship, but the church
edifice was only a one room sanctuary. On May 15, 1926 the church bought from
Millstone Township the one room school house which was a short distance from
the church proper. Land attached to this was both donated and purchased on
May 4, 1929 and April 9, 1929. The donated parcel was in memory of Robert C.
Graham to be used for social fellowship, harvest home dinners, and Sunday
school education. The acquisition of the school building enabled the
congregation to grow financially as well as in numbers. In the
year 1939 The Methodist Episcopal Church united with the Methodist Episcopal
Church South, and The Reorganization
or change usually spurs more activity and in 1949 a choir loft was built
along with the need for an extension of the communion rail. Because
of increased travel the roads at the intersection were widened which left the
church building in a dangerous spot. July 1956 found the congregation making
plans and hard at work. The church was moved back over a full basement which
provided room for a new central heating system and an additional educational
and social fellowship room. Also, an extension, office, a vestibule, and side
entrance were added. The sanctuary itself was completely renovated with
noticeable changes. The space heater was removed, all the chestnut pews were
sanded down to a natural finish, the pulpit centered altar was enlarged and
redesigned into an alter centered chancel and new oak pulpit furniture acquired.
In addition to this, the members and friends of the church adorned the
refinished sanctuary with a new electric In 1959
through the efforts of the Women's Society of Christian Service the kitchen
of the school building, now known as the church, was remodeled. On April
20, 1963 a forest fire swept through Holmeson and most of the Jackson area.
This fire completely razed the church hall leaving the church without a
building to hold suppers and social affairs. The spirit of DeBows was not
disheartened. They continued to serve the community with Christian endeavor.
A Vacation Bible School was first instituted at the church during July of
1964. The project was originated and sponsored by the DeBows Christian
Stewards, a young people's group which began in 1960. The Vacation Bible
School continued each summer until 1967. Since the
loss of the church hall the Trustees and Official Board were seeking a new
fellowship hall for informal activities. An architect was hired to submit a
plan for an addition to the church. The plan was approved, $15,000 was
borrowed from the bank, and in the spring of 1965 construction started. Many
improvements were incorporated; two bathrooms, a nursery, church office for
the minister, and fellowship hall large enough to seat 100 persons for
dinner. Included was a completely furnished kitchen and a platform stage. The
cost of this addition was approximately $30,200. It did
not take long to complete the building. On October 9, 1966 the congregation
dedicated the new addition. With new modern facilities the congregation spirit
was uplifted. The following year, 1967, the men of the church partitioned the
church basement into three Sunday School rooms. Also in
1967 a children’s choir was organized which sang at special services.
It was composed of first to sixth grade children. Junior high school children
formed the junior choir; however in 1969 this choir disbanded and joined the
senior choir. The children’s choir was then extended to include all children
through eighth grade. Up and
above the every member pledge canvass to aid payment of the mortgage, the
church held extra dinners in the new hall. This hard work proved to be highly
successful as the church achieved its goal and burned the mortgage on October
10, 1971. 1971
found the church celebrating seventy-five years of Christian endeavor.
Various special recognition services honored each phase of the DeBow's
church, especially a rededication service. October 10, traditionally Old Home
Day for this year was called Reminiscence Day. In June
1972, The
intent of the parish was to provide the availability of an ordained elder to
administer the sacraments, and unite the small congregations in cooperative
programming. A parish 'news' paper was published monthly wherein all events
of the five churches were made known. Some parish wide services were held at
DeBow's which, indeed, uplifted the worship experience of the members. One of
the goals of In 1979,
to help point the way to On
October 19, 1980, Resident Bishop C. Dale White presided at the Old Home Day
service. To Our knowledge, this was the first time a Methodist Bishop has
preached at DeBows. In 1984,
it became apparent that the five churches embracing the Western Monmouth
Parish proved too demanding for one ordained elder to care for. David Wilson
served as senior pastor of the parish for seven and a half years, after the
five years served by Horace Frantz. At the Charge
Conference in 1985, the parish was dissolved and Between
1986 - 1996 improvements were made to the church building and grounds. The sanctuary
was painted and adorned with new paraments, window blinds and valences, and
paddle fans. The education classrooms in the basement were painted and
re-furbished with new windows and carpet. A telephone with answering machine
was installed in the church office. A new
roof, complete with gutters, downspouts, and underground drainage was
installed on and around all three sections of the building. The driveway and
parking area was paved and timber curbing was installed. This enhanced the
appearance of the premises. In 1990,
DeBows Church became a single charge and was served by interim pastors and
part time local pastors. In 1994, due to an evangelistic outreach to new
housing developments in the area, worship attendance steadily grew. The
increase in membership promoted expansion of the program activities. The Women’s
Society was reorganized; a youth fellowship and adult Bible class was
established. In 1996,
the church celebrated her 100th year of Christian witness. Special services
were held throughout the year to mark the event. To be continued . . . |
