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Crowville United Methodist Church (Crowville, La.) records

 Collection
Identifier: LACUMC-2023-022

Scope and Contents

This collection documents the activities of the Crowville United Methodist Church (Crowville, La.). This collection includes membership records, administrative records, attendance records, financial records, correspondence, and bulletins. Administrative records from the 1960s also include information about the nearby Baskin Methodist Church (Baskin, La.).

Dates

  • 1962 - 2023

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

Crowville United Methodist Church (Crowville, La.) is located on Cypress Road, one mile east of Louisiana Highway 17.

On May 10, 1889, the Baptist Church of Christ in Crowville bought a one and a half acres of land on the Harrisonburg Road (Hwy 578) and built a church on the southwest corner of the plot. The rest of the land was used as a free burial ground. Since the Methodists and Presbyterians had helped in the construction, on May 23, 1889 an agreement was drawn up to allow those two denominations to worship in the structure on the second and fourth Sundays.

The Methodist congregation was organized by Rev. D.C. Barr in 1913. After a visiting minister from Mississippi held a revival there in 1915, the Methodists were inspired to build their own church.

They held services and Sunday School at the Crowville School (at the corner of Hwy 17 and Hwy 577) while they raised money. The Sunday School was a Union gathering of various denominations. The community pulled together to haul the lumber from the train station and build the church.

In 1952, the church decided to build a parsonage. After buying a lot for $5 from Ellis G. Gmbe on April 4, 1953, a parsonage was built. In 1956, the orphanage in Ruston suggested that they exchange a home (that had been left to them by Mrs. Mamie Bush) with the Crowville parsonage. It was approved in 1958.

In 1968, the church began construction on a new church and education building. The church was later dedicated in 1975.

Crowville United Methodist Church disaffiliated from the United Methodist Church in 2022.

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 MO-24.

Extent

1 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement

Arranged by subject, then chronologically.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Unknown person dropped off collection at First United Methodist Church (Alexandria, La.), then transferred by Sheila Foreman (Alexandria District Office administrative assistant) in 2023.

Title
Finding Aid to the Crowville United Methodist Church (Crowville, La.) records
Author
Jasmine Jones and Chris Brown
Date
2023
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