Our Story

Our History

On July 21, 1878, a meeting of citizens was held at three o’clock in the Christian Church to consider organizing a Congregational or Presbyterian church. After several meetings, much discussion, and reconsideration, an organization was established in August 1878 under the name Union Congregational Church of Mitchellville. The majority of its members were Presbyterian. On September 10, 1878, Rev. C. E. Wingate and 25 council members voted to formally adopt the Congregational affiliation.

The first Congregational Church building was constructed in 1881–1882 and dedicated in May 1882. It seated 100 people and cost $1,500. The building stood east of our current church.

From 1881 to 1903, a 217-pound iron triangle hung from a tree and was rung to announce church services. Its sound could be heard up to six miles outside of town. Years later, Charles Wallace came across the triangle at a farm northwest of Mitchellville, where it was for sale. When he inquired about it, he was told it had come from the Congregational Church in Mitchellville. Recognizing it as the same triangle he remembered hanging from the tree when he was younger, he purchased it for $25 and brought it back to the church.

The cornerstone of our current church was laid in 1903, though the building process took more than ten years. A celebration was held in 1913, and in 1937 the sanctuary was restructured so that the beautiful Good Shepherd window could be seen by everyone in the room.