Skip to main content

Morningside United Methodist Church (Shreveport, La.) records

 Collection
Identifier: LACUMC-2009-020

Scope and Contents

This collection documents the activities of Morningside United Methodist Church (Shreveport, La.) and Cedar Grove United Methodist Church (Shreveport, La.), a congregation that merged with Morningside UMC in 1995.

The Morningside United Methodist Church records include membership records, quarterly and charge conference records, administrative and Board records, committee records, subject files, printed items, and audiovisual materials. The charge conference records (1990-2005) also include reports from Cedar Grove UMC. The folder Administrative Board (1954-1957) includes a Plain Dealing Methodist Church (Plain Dealing, La.) resolution opposing racial segregation (1957 July 8). The administrative records (1983-2006) contain meeting minutes as well as printed items and photographs. Committee records include material from the congregation’s United Methodist Women group and its predecessor organizations, Wesleyan Service Guild as well as Women’s Society of Christian Service. Printed items include bulletins, newsletters, directories, and church histories. A church history scrapbook (1947-1959) includes membership rolls, photographs, bulletins, clippings, correspondence, and newsletters. The audiovisual materials include a Super 8 film and VHS tapes. Also included are audiocassettes, which primarily are recordings of sermons.

The Cedar Grove United Methodist Church records include membership records, quarterly conference records, financial records, committee records, church histories, printed items, photographs, and a commemorative plate.

Dates

  • 1913 - 2006

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Physical rights are retained by the Centenary College of Louisiana Archives and Special Collections. Copyright is retained in accordance with U.S. copyright laws.

Biographical / Historical

Morningside United Methodist Church was located at 5500 Hearne Avenue, Shreveport, Louisiana. The church was organized on September 7, 1947. That meeting was held at 5621 Virginia Street in the home of Corporal and Mrs. John R. Koons. The first service was held in that same home the following Sunday, September 14. The men of the church began constructing the first church on October 6, 1947. The first service in the new church was held on December 21, 1947. A parsonage was ready by the following August. Work began on an addition to the church on May 3, 1949. The Long White educational building was used for classrooms. A new sanctuary was built in 1952, with the first service held in the new church on October 5 of that year. In 1954, the Youth Building was constructed. It was later renamed Herring Hall in memory of Mr. J. F. Herring. A new brick parsonage was built in 1955 at 4112 Fairfax Avenue. In 1995, the congregation of Cedar Grove United Methodist Church merged into Morningside. In 2006, Morningside United Methodist Church closed.

Cedar Grove United Methodist Church traces its origin to the summer of 1913 when Centenary College of Louisiana student Rev. Henry T. Young conducted revival services. The church moved several times throughout the neighborhood before constructing a permanent building in 1914 at the northwest intersection of East 66th Street and Lexington Avenue, Shreveport, Louisiana. In 1942, the congregation dedicated a new church building at 6806 Southern Avenue. In 1989, a new congregation, Faith United Methodist Church, organized and simultaneously began sharing the Cedar Grove UMC facility. In 1995, the Cedar Grove congregation merged with and moved to Morningside United Methodist Church. Faith UMC continued using the Cedar Grove facility until closing in 2009.

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), pages SH-26, SH-52.

Extent

7 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement

Arranged in the following series and sub-series:

Series 1. Morningside United Methodist Church, 1946-2006. Sub-series 1: Membership records, 1947-2006. Sub-series 2: Administrative records, 1947-2006. Sub-series 3: Committee records, 1946-2005. Sub-series 4: Printed items, 1947-2006. Sub-series 5: Subject files, 1949-2002. Sub-series 6: Audiovisual material, 1966-1996.

Series 2. Cedar Grove United Methodist Church, 1913-1995.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Collection consists of multiple accessions. Morningside United Methodist Church records (acc. no. 2009-020) transferred by Yvonne Lee in 2006. Cedar Grove United Methodist Church records (acc. no. 2009-021) transferred by an unknown person circa 2006. Additional material transferred by Sally Cox: commemorative plate (acc. no. 2016-003), photographs and publications (acc. no. 2016-019, 2018-017, 2021-018, 2022-016).

Title
Finding Aid to the Morningside United Methodist Church (Shreveport, La.) records
Author
Chris Brown, Olivia Brignac, Lillian Klingenberg, Maggie Hodges, Lauren Troncoso, and Beth Vogler
Date
2026
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Centenary College of Louisiana Archives and Special Collections Repository

Contact:
2911 Centenary Blvd.
Shreveport LA 71104 US
(318) 869-5462