For more than a century, people have been gathering and worshiping at the Herculaneum United Methodist Church, but that will come to an end this month.
The church’s last service will be held on Sunday, June 30, and then will close its doors for good, said the Rev. Jimmy Sansom, who has been the pastor there for the past five years.
“People look at closing of a church as a sad thing, but I don’t look at it that way. I think it’s a testament that we’ve been around for (almost) 110 years, and that church has a life cycle,” said Sansom, 66, of Bonne Terre. “God has called Herculaneum United Methodist Church at a certain time in a certain place for a reason. Then, once that reason has been served, then the life cycle of the church changes and sometimes you’ve done your duty here and now it’s time to close it.”
Sansom’s wife, Shannon, 65, said the church is closing due to low attendance.
It currently has about 30 members, with a weekly attendance of between 18 and 20 people, she said.
Shannon Sansom said the church had much higher attendance before the closure of the Herculaneum Doe Run lead smelter.
After regulators reported high levels of lead near the smelter and in the blood of local children in 2001, Doe Run completed a large cleanup effort, which included purchasing and demolishing about 160 homes in the affected area. The church and its parsonage were among the last buildings left standing in the area.
The Sansoms believe the removal of the homes took a hefty toll on membership.
“Everybody picked up and left after they were bought out,” the reverend said. “We had numerous families leave.
“We’re the last building on Main Street and I think that affected membership,” his wife added. “There’s a big empty field that used to be filled with houses that were torn down.”
Historical ties
The roots of the church began in 1798, when Methodist Rev. John Clark preached its first sermon from a boat in the Mississippi River. It was the first Protestant sermon in the Louisiana Territory. Protestantism was illegal at the time in the Spanish-held territory, according to the church’s website.
From then until the early 20th century, Herculaneum had no Methodist church building, but instead relied on Methodist circuit riders to hold services intermittently. In 1916, congregants organized, and in 1918, the current church building was erected on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, near the spot where the Rev. Clark’s sermon took place. The church has operated out of that building ever since, the website says.
As for the fate of the historic church building and parsonage, it will become the property of the Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church, Shannon Sansom said.
The reverend said he thinks it is possible the property eventually could be sold due to the the upcoming container-on-vessel port being developed nearby.
Closing celebrations
The church will have two events open to the public to celebrate the church before its closing.
A benediction of music will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday, June 29, in the church’s sanctuary. The event will provide a time for people to meet up with old friends to sing and share memories of what the church has meant to them over the years. Refreshments will be served, and attendees will have the chance to take a final walk through the building to reminisce.
The church will have its last sermon at 10:45 a.m. on Sunday, June 30. The worship service will be live streamed on the church’s Facebook page for those who aren’t able to attend, and it will also be recorded so it may be viewed at a later date. Following the worship service, a catered barbecue lunch will be served in the fellowship hall. The church asks all those who plan to eat lunch to RSVP.
To RSVP for the lunch, call the church office between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Friday at 636-479-3385.
Shannon Sansom said the church will hold one last food bank from 9-11 a.m. on Friday June 28.
“It’s home”
Cathy Pieper, 82, of Pevely has been attending the church for 43 years and has been serving as the church’s administrative assistant for the past 15 years.
“We’ve been here forever. I have five kids, and all five of them were confirmed here, and they got married here, and family has been buried here. So we have a long life here,” Pieper said.
Pieper said the church has provided her comfort all those years.
“If something is going wrong, I know I can always come here and talk to God, and it’s much better when I leave.”
Pieper said the church’s attendance was its highest in the 1970s when about 170 people regularly showed up for services.
She said she fondly remembers the times when the church had large celebrations that drew in people from the community, like the fall festival.
“That was really neat. It took up to two big areas, and we had hay mazes, and everybody just had a great time. It was always fun to be able to get involved in it and work with it,” Pieper said.
Pieper said she is excited about the upcoming celebrations but is disappointed by the closing of the church.
“It’s sad. You can’t be somewhere 43 years and have all the memories that you have and think it’s going to be glorious and happy. I will try to make it the best I can, but it’s sad to give it up,” Pieper said. “It’s home.”
Pieper said she doesn’t know what will happen to the building but hopes it’s preserved.
“It would be very sad if they tore it down.”
Pieper said she anticipates joining a new church, but she hasn’t decided where just yet. “Anywhere God is, that’s where I want to be,” Pieper said. “I know God’s here, and that’s what counts.”