Fallsnewspress.com - Pilgrim United Church of Christ turns 175

Courtesy of Cuyahoga Falls Historical Society The First Congregational Church (now known as Pilgrim United Church of Christ) is shown as it appeared some time between 1913 and 1927. The building to right is the parsonage.

Courtesy of Pilgrim United Church of Christ A view of First Congregational Church's sanctuary in 1934. A center aisle was established when the pews were updated in the 1980s. The church's name was changed to Pilgrim United Church of Christ in the 1960s.

Courtesy of Pilgrim United Church of Christ The funeral of Charles Faust, the first soldier from Cuyahoga Falls killed in World War I, took place at First Congregational Church on Sept. 18, 1921. He was killed on July 18.

Courtesy of Pilgrim United Church of Christ A member of First Congregational Church, Ellen Crawford was the first female School Board member in Cuyahoga Falls, elected before women could vote.

by Steve Wiandt

Reporter

Cuyahoga Falls -- From its steeple which was struck twice by lightning, to the basement where escaped slaves hid, Pilgrim United Church of Christ is filled with 175 years worth of history.

The church was founded as the First Congregational Church of Cuyahoga Falls by Elisha Sill, Ogden Wetmore and Henry Newberry. Located to this day on the corner of Broad Boulevard and Second Street, this is the oldest church building in Summit County.

The founders had been attending the Congregational Church in Tallmadge, until one cold winter day they decided "an oxcart's ride to Tallmadge was too far," said the Rev. Kirk Bruce, pastor of the church since 2000.

The church was established on Feb. 14, 1834. While a nearby schoolhouse was being used for services, Sill became a driving force to build the congregation's own facility. The church building was completed in 1847.

While the charter members recognized they had to have their own place to worship, they placed a greater importance on each person who entered.

"The Congregational Church, out of which Pilgrim came, has a long history of equality of all people," Bruce said. "Women, African-Americans -- [the church] believes very strongly in the equality of all people."

Bruce said the church maintains to this day that everyone is welcome. He said that fact was driven home when, in the 1980s, a ramp from the ground floor to the sanctuary was built for persons who could not climb stairs.

Crawford was early role model for women

One early member of First Congregational Church who lived what she believed was a teacher named Ellen Crawford.

"Ellen believed in the education of children and all people, and the equality of all people," said Bruce. "She was a very forward-thinking person, and she ran for Cuyahoga Falls City School Board before women could vote."

Crawford was crossing Second Street one wintry night on her way to a School Board meeting when she was hit by a streetcar. She was carried into the parlor of the church, her spiritual home for 51 years, where she died. The former Crawford Elementary School was named after Ellen Crawford.

Just as Ellen Crawford was encouraged by her church's beliefs that women were equal to men, the congregation was taught that blacks were equal to whites. Racial equality was taught in the Congregation church, not only in words but in deeds. Beneath Pilgrim Church's sanctuary is another sanctuary of a different kind.

All people are
created equal

First Congregational Church was a stop along the Underground Railroad, Bruce said. Runaway slaves were lowered through the removable floor of a closet into the church's basement where a tunnel had been dug into a dirt wall. The bottomless closet and the tunnel remain popular stops during the occasional tours of the church.

Another historical feature in the church is the Sill-Danner Window. Located in the church's social hall, which was added in the 1920s, the round stained-glass window was originally in the sanctuary. The window was dedicated in 1888 in memory of Elisha Sill and his daughter, Mary Sill Danner, wife of the church's pastor at the time, the Rev. Edgar Danner.

Rev. Danner, however, died of pneumonia following a trip to Washington to witness President Benjamin Harrison's inauguration and never got to see the window installed or dedicated.

The founders of First Congregational Church came from Windsor Church in Windsor, Conn., said Bruce, "the oldest Congregational Church in North America and the seventh oldest in the world. We are a direct descendant of them. And they were descendants of the folks who came over on the Mayflower."

The church changed its name to Pilgrim United Church of Christ in the 1960s to reflect the formation in 1957 of the new denomination.

A special service took place at Pilgrim United Church of Christ on Feb. 15 to mark the church's 175th anniversary. More celebrations are on the way, Rev. Bruce said. An open house will take place on May 1. More events and dates will be announced in the future.

Pilgrim United Church of Christ is busy place

Pilgrim's United Church of Christ is used every day, said Rev. Bruce. Sunday morning is worship and Sunday evening youth fellowships take place. Girl Scouts meet here on Monday, and on Tuesday, the church is where Cub Scouts and the Church Board meet.

On Wednesday, the Sharing America's Resources Abroad mission group sorts and packs medication samples to send overseas.

Thursday night is Emotions Anonymous. Friday night, once a month, a group packs groceries for the needy. Saturday, once a month, is a free lunch. Alcoholics Anonymous meets at the church every Saturday evening.

E-mail: swiandt@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3141