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200th Anniversary
"1824 to 2025"


Union Village United Methodist Church's
200th Anniversary
1824 to 2024
Additional Information about our History
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Here's some information about the history of the Union Village United Methodist Church in New Jersey:
- The church was dedicated on December 18, 1825 in the Union Village hamlet, which is on the border of Warren and Berkeley Heights townships.
- The exact date of the church's founding is unknown, but it was in the early 1800s.
- The first church building was located off Cuthbertson Road in what is now the Champion Forest neighborhood.
The first building burned down, and another wooden church was built on the same site, but it also burned.
- After the second church burned in 1888, the congregation bought land on New Town Road, where the center of the community had shifted.
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WARREN TWP. In December 1825, the United States was nearing its half-century anniversary of declaring independence. Two of its first three presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, were still alive.
And that month, a meeting house to accommodate the growing number of converts to Methodism was built in the Union Village section of the township, not far from the border of Berkeley Heights Township.
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Source: New Jersey Hills Media Group
175 years of faith at Union Village
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Union Village United Methodist Church, at the border of Warren and Berkeley Heights townships, is celebrating its 175th anniversary. The church was dedicated on Dec. 18, 1825 in what was the "Union Village" hamletin the township.
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WARREN TWP. In December 1825, the United States was nearing its half-century anniversary of declaring independence. Two of its first three presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, were still alive.
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And that month, a meeting house to accommodate the growing number of converts to Methodism was built in the Union Village section of the township, not far from the border of Berkeley Heights Township.
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One and three-quarter centuries later, within walking distance of its ancestral home, the Union Village United Methodist Church continues as one of the oldest congregations in the region. The church primarily serves Warren, Berkeley Heights and Long Hill townships and Watchung.
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This Sunday, Dec. 17, the church which has been commemorating its 175th anniversary with guest speakers throughout the year notes the actual anniversary with the Rev. Bishop Alfred Johnson, bishop of the greater New Jersey Methodist conference that serves some 60,000 members in 700 churches. He will speak at the 10:30 a.m. service, which will be followed by a catered lunch. For lunch reservations, call (908) 647-2120.
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'We Are On The Move'
The Rev. David Ravinder, the church's current pastor, said of Union Village, "We are on the move." The congregation presently has approximately 270 members, he said, a decline from its peak of 1,071 in 1970 but typical of church attendance declines "across the board, no matter what the denomination." Between 25 and 30 students attend Sunday School, the pastor added.
Ravinder said Union Village has been aggressive in seeking new members. It sends mailings about 900 at last count, he said to new residents of Berkeley Heights, Long Hill, Warren and Watchung. It's a practice that will continue for "the next couple of years," he added.
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No more than five percent of Union Village's congregation comes from outside its primary area, the pastor said. "We have a few from Scotch Plains and Plainfield, one or two from Chatham," he noted.
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Built On 'Wolf Hill'
The church's inception was probably related to the success of Methodist camp meetings on the site, known as Wolf Hill, in previous years; some drew as many as 4,000 people. The church's construction reportedly included wood hauled from Bound Brook by oxen.
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Early preachers included David Best and William A. Wiggins of the Essex circuit. A local resident, Betsey Crane, wrote in her diary that Best was "an able thinker, but a defective deliverer," thus making him less popular than the more dynamic Wiggins.
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Later preachers, George Banghart and Thomas J. Thompson, helped establish a Sunday school which grew to 75 members by 1835. For most of the rest of the 19th century, Union Village shared its preachers with New Providence.
A Struggling Time
By the early 20th century, Union Village was being served by preachers from the Drew Theological Seminary in Madison; interest in the church declined. In 1904 and 1905, the church was not supplied with a minister and the state Methodist conference ordered the church closed and sold. In 1907, it was purchased by Willis Fletcher Johnson and his brother, who initially were unsure what to do with the property. Eventually, Johnson wrote, the brothers decided "we should not be par ties to the destruction of a church, but instead would do our utmost to have it reopened."
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And that they did. By July of 1908, there was a new Board of Trustees and a sexton hired. Moreover, the building was repainted. Eventually, the congregation increased to 40, with a Sunday school population of 30. While there was a decline in the late 1910s which forced a brief closing in 1921, Union Village bounced back later in the 1920s under the Rev. Peter Lacey so much, in fact, that in 1931 the church formed a committee to consider expansion. In 1938, the church broke ground for an annex, which was dedicated in April 1940. By this time, the congregation had swelled to about 90.
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During World War II, the Red Cross used the new annex as an air raid shelter, and attendance declined due to gasoline rationing.
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Postwar Growth
Like so many suburban institutions, Union Village grew rapidly after the war. In 1948 a new pastor, former U.S. Navy pilot Henry J. McKinnon, took over a congregation of 50. By 1970, just before he was appointed a district superintendent, the congregation stood at 1,071; the growth eventually led to two services each Sunday, with Sunday School between the sessions.
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There was rapid physical development as well. In 1947, a parsonage was built on Hillcrest Road, where an education building was built in 1955. By the early 1960s, a new sanctuary was built on Hillcrest.
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As for the old church on Mountain Avenue, it was converted into a home of a local theater group. The building was sold in 1984, with the annex turned into a private home and the old structure demolished.
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Programs Increase
In the past half-century, the church has added a number of programs, including a senior forum, adult Bible study and a handbell choir. The Women's Society changed its name to the United Methodist Women in 1973, and in the 1980s an interfaith Hospitality for the Homeless program was organized.
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During the 1990s, the church began a men's organization and held annual chicken barbecue and St. Patrick's Day corned beef dinners. Ravinder took over in 1994 and has begun a home Bible study, a grief and loss progand a Friday night youth program.
Source: Wikipedia.United_Methodist_Church. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Methodist_Church​
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Additional History
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The Union Village United Methodist Church was begun by a group of early settlers, who, inspired by a camp meeting on Wolf Hill in 1824, met together for prayer in the home of Joseph Tucker. A meeting house was built at the crossroads, and dedicated December 18, 1825. In 1907 the church was closed and sold to Dr. W. F. Johnson who decided to have it reopened. An annex to the church was built in 1940. The church grew so rapidly that the present Education building was erected on a nearby site in 1955. A Sanctuary was added in 1961.
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Sources:
Echoes-Sentinel Jan 9, 1975
https://www.newspapers.com/article/echoes-sentinel/28618430/
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Courier-News Sep 20, 1950
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-courier-news-courier-news-sep-20195/28626768/
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Please Note:
Information listed on this page has been searched and information place here for informational use, please contact the sources listed here cor any corrections.
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