Martinsburg Mennonite Church (Martinsburg, Pennsylvania, USA)
Martinsburg Mennonite Church, a member of Allegheny Mennonite Conference, located on the southern outskirts of Martinsburg in the Morrison's Cove area, Blair County, PA, dates back to 1790 when Mennonites migrated to this area from Pennsylvania's eastern counties and Virginia. The original settlers included families with the names of Rhodes, Kauffman, Snyder, Shank, Newcomer, Stoner, and Bassler. In the early days, a log building was used for worship and school purposes. In 1853 a new frame church was erected about one mile east of the 1950s building. This was used until 1916, when a brick building was erected on the outskirts of Martinsburg.
Because the congregation was scattered another meetinghouse was built about three miles (5 km) south of Martinsburg in 1900, known as the Pleasant Grove Church. Church and Sunday-school services were alternated between these two places until 1945, when Pleasant Grove was abandoned. This congregation established a mission station at Ore Hill in 1902, and took an active part in the opening of Altoona Mission. The congregation at Roaring Spring, about five miles west of Martinsburg, where a meetinghouse had been erected in 1898, was at first a part of the Martinsburg congregation. In 1912 it seceded to join the General Conference Mennonite Church.
The earliest ministerial help for these people came from Huntingdon County. The first resident minister and bishop was apparently Frederick Rhodes, who was ordained about 1840. A prominent leader was Abram Metzler (1862-1924, ordained bishop 1906). In 1956 the bishop was D. I. Stonerook and the pastor Clyde Fulmer, with a membership of 86. Ministers ordained at this place who served elsewhere included Henry B. Ramer (1901), Duchess, Alberta; Isaac Metzler (1913), bishop at Accident, MD; Clayton F. Derstine (1914), bishop at Kitchener, ON; and A. J. Metzler (1924), bishop at Scottdale, PA.
In 2006 the congregation's membership was 106; Jeff Shull served as pastor.
Bibliography
Kaufman, Ammon "Martinsburg Mennonite Church." Southwestern Pennsylvania Conference News (March-April 1948).
| Author(s) | E. C Bender |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1957 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Bender, E. C. "Martinsburg Mennonite Church (Martinsburg, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 18 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Martinsburg_Mennonite_Church_(Martinsburg,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=58360.
APA style
Bender, E. C. (1957). Martinsburg Mennonite Church (Martinsburg, Pennsylvania, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 18 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Martinsburg_Mennonite_Church_(Martinsburg,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=58360.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 517. All rights reserved.
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