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Highland United Methodist Church - History 1894 to Present The story of our church begins with a small cottage at 1035 Bardstown Road which was rented for a Sunday School in October 1894 by a group of parents from down-town churches who found the transportation of those days too difficult. The mule cars stopped at the Cave Hill turntable! The Sunday School grew rapidly and so did the desire for a new church, which became a reality on October 27, 1895, when the cornerstone of Lander Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was laid on Slaughter Avenue near New Broadway, now Cherokee Road. The name "Lander Memorial" because the Lander Family made a substantial contribution to the building fund. The first pastor was Reverend Frank Thomas, who preached his first sermon in the small cottage on October 6, 1895. During the Spanish-American War he became an Army Chaplain. A Pastor's Aid Society was organized October 14,1895. This grew into a Home Missionary Society, later the Women's Missionary Society and the Women's Society of Christian Service and is now the United Methodist Women. The Weslyan Service Guild was organized in 1942 by Mrs. S. G. Hickman. On August 10, 1898, a parsonage at 1246 Everett was begun. In 1944 a new parsonage at 1261 Willow was purchased, and another in 1972 at l634 Almara Circle which has since been claimed by the widening of Watterson Expressway. Under the leadership of H. G. Kellogg, one of the first Boy Scout Troops in Louisville was organized in 1911. Mr.Edmond Bottomly was Scoutmaster for many years and under his leadership "Troop 19" grew into one of the best units in this area. In May, 1919, under the guidance of Reverend E. F. Goodson, It was decided to build a Sanctuary. On October 1, the name became Highland Methodist (the M. E. and South were dropped In 1939). After considerable delay, the first service was held in the new auditorium on October 24,1924. During the 1937 flood our church was used as a Refugee Center, housing over 100 victims for a week. During World War II, Highland was home for many out-of-town service men, Additionally, Highland helped our servicemen overseas. In the spring of 1960, under the leadership of Dr. Gilbert Robertson, it was decided to buiid an education building on the site of the old Lander Memorial Church. The work began in the fall of 1962 and was consecrated on June 23, 1963. In 1968, Highland became Highland United Methodist Church and in October, 1994, we began "Celebrating 1OO Years of Caring. This condensed outline of our church history cannot record the great contributions of our pastors and members over the years. Their sacrifices and spirit of service to the Master inspire us to greater effort in our generation to carry on a glorious tradition. |
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