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Church History In 1897 the Thompson Brothers came to Penngrove to hold revival meetings. The meetings were held in the tent. After the revival the church meetings were held in the Eagle School building at the corner of Adobe and Santa Rosa Hill Road (now Petaluma Hill Road). In a short time a church was built 1/2 a mile from the town at the corner of Formschlag Lane and Santa Rosa Hill Rd. The lot was bought from Mr. and Mrs. James F. Elphick for $50. Hubert G. Comstock bought the land for the church. Another account says Mr. Elphick donated the land. Mrs. Hester C. Elphick was a great worker in the church. She was Ladies Aid President for 25 years. Read an excerpt from an 1898 related article here. In 1910 church attendance was down so it was decided to bring the church to the people. The church was placed on rollers and teams of horses pulled it to its present site on Oak St. In 1923 the Ladies Aid bought the house next to the church from Miss Anna Anderson for $1500. It served as home for the pastors of the church until 1972 when a new parsonage was built a short distance south of the church on property bought from Ruth C. Anderson. In March of 1973 the old parsonage was removed to make space for a much needed parking lot for the growing congregation of the church. In 1937 the church changed its denominational affiliation from the Methodist Episcopal to Congregational Church and its name changed to Penngrove Community Church. Following the merger of the nation bodies of the Congregational Church with the Evangelical and Reformed Church in the 1950's, the church's denominational affiliation became the United Church of Christ. After 9 years of litigation in the 1970's and 1980's, Penngrove Community Church became an independent community church and remains so today. Ground breaking for the new sanctuary and Sunday School rooms was held on May 21, 1955. The original Building Committee was Albert Brians, Merrill Brians, William Toaves, William Wegener, Kenneth Wher, William Potts, and Clifford Knott. Ronald Hargis was minister at the time. In 1992 members of the church built on an addition to the new sanctuary expanding the interior of the church as well as providing a large room downstairs. The cornerstone was laid on June 23, 1957. It bears the inscription: Penngrove Church 1898, 1910, 1957. Dedicated to serving the community in Christian service. [ Back ] |
