Jennings United Methodist Church (Jennings, La.)
Biography
Jennings United Methodist Church was located at 710 North Cary Avenue, Jennings, Louisiana.
In the fall of 1888, Rev. P. A. Drown arrived from the Ohio Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church to organize a church. The church's roll as it was organized in December 1888 lists 19 members. Work soon began on the church, which was completed the following year (1889). That church burned down in 1893 but was immediately rebuilt. The (Gulf) Annual Conference for the north branch of Methodism met often in Jennings (one of the largest congregations in the Conference).
In the mid-1940s, plans began to construct new facilities. The old church was sold. Services were held at the Masonic Hall while the education building was built. The education building was completed at the end of the decade and fundraising plans began for a new sanctuary. On October 2, 1955, the first service was held in the new sanctuary. Rev. Crichlow and Bishop Paul E. Martin led the service. The dedication service led by Rev. William F. Mayo and Bishop Aubrey G. Walton was later held on February 14, 1965. In 1958-59, the old parsonage was torn down and a new brick home was constructed. By the mid-1970s, the church was outgrowing its walls again. The facilities were renovated in 1978.
On May 31, 1998, the Trinity United Methodist Church merged with the Jennings congregation. Trinity was founded by Rev. E. J. Church in 1897 as a United Brethren Church. The first church, made of wood with a unique covered entrance and bell tower, was built in 1902. Classrooms were added in 1926 and 1951.
A new church and classrooms were built in 1962. The dedication service for the sanctuary, chapel, and classrooms was held on December 17, 1962. The church became the Trinity United Methodist Church after the 1968 merger. Since both churches were now the same denomination and only three blocks apart, the congregations merged their resources to become one.
Jennings United Methodist Church disaffiliated from the United Methodist Church in May 2023.
Source: Timothy Hebert, “The Historical Register of the Louisiana Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church,” (Louisiana: Louisiana Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, 2004), page LC-25.