Birch Grove Mennonite Church (Port Allegany, Pennsylvania, USA)
The Birch Grove Mennonite Church, Port Allegany, Pennsylvania, USA emerged from a hunting club organized in 1946 and composed of Mennonite men from the Lancaster area. The club purchased a camp in Wrights, Pennsylvania. Mennonites offered a Summer Bible School in the area beginning in 1952. In 1953 members of the Maple Grove Mennonite Church surveyed McKean County for a suitable building in which to launch a church plant. They utilized a former Lutheran mission that had been built in 1897 and closed in 1917.
Maple Grove initiated Sunday School and worship in 1954 on the last Sunday of each month. Calvin Kennel became the first pastor in 1955. In 1960 the Mennonites purchased the former Lutheran building, and in 1962 installed a basement under the church. A fire in 1970 caused extensive damage, but services resumed in several months. In 1985 the congregation broke ground for a new church building on the same property; it was dedicated on 14-15 November 1987.
In 2021 the congregation was part of the Atlantic Coast Conference of Mennonite Church USA. The minister was Dale Detweiler.
Bibliography
"Atlantic Coast Conference Church." Atlantic Coast Conference Currents 6, no. 4 (July-August 1985): 1.
Binder, Anna Margaret. "Birch Grove dedicates new building." Atlantic Coast Conference Currents 9, no. 1 (January-February 1988): 2.
Stoltzfus, Grant M. Mennonites of the Ohio and Eastern Conference; From the Colonial Period in Pennsylvania to 1968. Studies in Anabaptist and Mennonite history, no. 13. Scottdale, Pa: Herald Press, 1969: 245, 305.
Additional Information
Address: Box 292, Port Allegany, Pennsylvania 16743
Location: Intersection of Two Mile Road & Dolly Brook Road, Port Allegany, Pa.
Phone: 814-642-2110
Website:
Denominational Affiliations: Atlantic Coast Conference
Pastoral Leaders at Birch Grove Mennonite Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Calvin S. Kennel (1911-1987) | 1955-1959 |
| Alvin E. Miller (1913-1978) | 1959-1975 |
| John H. Lapp (1932-2015) | 1975-1997 2008-2012 |
| William Rimondi | 1989?-1990? |
| Neil A. Binder | 1998-2008? |
| W. Dale Detweiler | 2012-present |
Membership at Birch Grove Mennonite Church
| Year | Membership |
|---|---|
| 1960 | 14 |
| 1970 | 28 |
| 1980 | 55 |
| 1990 | 28 |
| 2000 | 33 |
| 2007 | 33 |
| 2020 | 33 |
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | February 2022 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Birch Grove Mennonite Church (Port Allegany, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. February 2022. Web. 27 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Birch_Grove_Mennonite_Church_(Port_Allegany,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=173144.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (February 2022). Birch Grove Mennonite Church (Port Allegany, Pennsylvania, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 27 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Birch_Grove_Mennonite_Church_(Port_Allegany,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=173144.
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