February 8, 1998

Oldest Charlotte County Church Marks 125th Anniversary

If God measures piety by years of worship, the holiest place in Charlotte County is the Trinity-United Methodist Church -- oldest here.

It will celebrate its 125th anniversary a week from today, February 15. The public is invited to share festivities -- starting at 10 a.m. with coffee, donuts and music under stately live oak trees.

Regular church services conducted by The Rev. Margaret Johnson at 11 a.m. will feature The Rev. Jim Sheffer as guest speaker. He grew up in the church, and now is minister of St. James United Methodist Church at Sarasota.

The little congregation in the town of Charlotte Harbor has met continuously since 1873 and worn out three church buildings before erecting its present sanctuary in 1950.

The Rev. Johnson is proud of her little flock and of the long line of ministers who preceded her. She points out that though the present church building is "only" 48 years old, the pews date to 1890.

Charlotte Harbor Town was settled in 1862 at a place called Live Oak Point on the earliest maps and later Hickory Bluff.

Jacob Summerlin, a prominent cattleman, and Capt. David McKay, owner of the side-wheel steamer "Scottish Chief," built a dock there during the Civil War to load beeves for the Confederates.

Principal users of the dock were the brothers Joel and Jesse Knight who had moved their herds to the vicinity to avoid confiscation by Unionists.

Joel and his large family settled near the dock. Bob Waterson also built a home there which he later sold to Joel Knight's son Tom. Joel's son Lawrence built a general store at the dock to sell necessities brought back on blockade runs.

Jesse, also an ordained Methodist minister, located at Horse and Chaise (now Nokomis.)

During the War, thousands of beeves were run by Capt. McKay through the Union blockade at Boca Grande Pass.

After the war, the Knights, Ziba King and other area cattlemen shipped so many cargos to Cuba the loading facility became known as the West India Dock. A holding pen was located at what now is the School House Square shopping center.

Tom Knight became a respected rancher, merchant, devout Methodist and the unofficial "mayor" of Hickory Bluff.

As the settlement grew around the West India Dock and store, the cluster of families wanted a church and a school. Knight alone had 10 children.

Area's First Church

A small "box-frame" building with roof of palmetto thatch was constructed in 1873 on the Mathieu and Mary Giddens property for a Methodist church on Sundays and a school on weekdays.

Another part of the Giddens tract was set aside for a cemetery which is still in use today and supervised by Trinity. Joel and many other Knights are buried there.

Lumber for the first church-school was sawed on a steam mill established by Nathaniel DeCoster -- the only one south of Tampa. It was located a block north of Melbourne Street at a spot noted on today's maps as Mill Street.

The old church register discloses that Trinity was accepted into the Tampa Methodist Episcopal District. Bishop E. M. Marvin placed the new congregation under the charge of The Rev. W. P. McEwen. The following year, The Rev. W. H. F. Roberts was appointed pastor.

In the early years, pastors came to Trinity twice a month. However, Sunday Bible School conducted by elders was held every week.

The humble church-school was located on what is now Melbourne Street near the shore "beyond the cemetery." The spot probably was a large Indian mound near the intersection of Melbourne and Northshore Drive.

It was high ground supporting a grove of hickory trees which led early settlers to call it Hickory Bluff. DeCoster platted the landmark for homes and small orange groves.

The mound is believed to have been the base camp of Hernando DeSoto in 1539. The "bluff" was leveled during the Florida Land Boom of 1926-29 to provide building lots.

The location was convenient for ranchers coming to church by wagon down Ziba King's cattle path from Pine Level, then the county seat west of Arcadia. Fishermen came by boat. Hymns were sung lucidly without musical accompaniment, followed by a picnic on the grounds.

A prominent citizen of Hickory Bluff at this time was John Francis Bartholf who had been a Union officer with DeCoster of "colored" troops at Fort Myers. After the war he also stayed in the area, married a local girl, fathered five children, and went into the cattle business.

As a "unionist" Republican in Reconstruction Florida, Bartholf was appointed clerk of courts and superintendent of public instruction for Manatee County which then included what is now Charlotte, DeSoto and Sarasota counties.

To emphasize that the post office served all of the bay area, he named it Charlotte Harbor. Mail to the outer islands was delivered by schooner. In time, the name Hickory Bluff faded away.

Bartholf also was active in promoting the settlement and selling real estate. To this end, he published a booklet titled "South Florida, The Italy of America" in 1888. It described opportunities here:

"As we approach the mouth of Peas Creek ( Peace River), it gradually widens until we come in sight of its outlet and the principal settlement extending about four miles immediately on the water.

"The settlement of Hickory Bluff comprises about one dozen families, its store, post office, church, and school house. There are several new and handsome private residences which would reflect credit upon any locality.

"In addition, is an extensive cattle wharf from which load after load of fine beef cattle is annually shipped to Cuba."

The church and school, of course, was Trinity Methodist. It was not an imposing structure even by standards of that day. Nevertheless, it represented civilization in a frontier wilderness.

The Manatee County School Board gave $1 per child per term to help pay the $15 monthly salary for a teacher who boarded with various families. Parents paid a small tuition fee to make up any difference in school expenses.

Second Sanctuary

By 1890, the town had outgrown the original church- school. The roof leaked badly. The Giddens then deeded a site at the corner of Palmetto (now Parmely) and Seneca streets where the church has remained ever since.

Trustees accepting the gift of land were Thomas S. Knight, John W. Barry, Benjamin J. Edwards, Young G. Lee, and Mathieu F. Giddens. The Rev. Thomas M. Strickland was sent to fill the pulpit.

The new, larger church, was of wood-frame construction. A school of two rooms was built next door.

The hurricane of 1910 destroyed Trinity number two, but the pews were salvaged. The school survived. Trinity number three was constructed that same year under the leadership of Pastor W. J. Everton.

The late Esther McCullough of Charlotte Harbor remembers the little two-room school well -- having taught there as a young woman from 1914 to 1916.

"I caught the mail boat at Punta Gorda early Monday mornings. After school on Friday, A fisherman would take me across for 25 cents. During the week I would stay with the Tom Knights or other families.

"It was my first job. I taught grades 1 through 4 the first year. My salary was $12 a month. The next year I got a raise to $15 for teaching grades 5 through 8. There were only three girls in grade 7.

"The school was of wood with vertical siding and a tin roof. In those days, hogs ran loose. Several made their home under the school house. Their oinks were annoying at first, but the children were used to it, and I became so after awhile."

Another hurricane in 1926 blew the church off its foundation. Men of the congregation moved it back, but the building was weakened and grew progressively worse over the years.

In 1928, The Rev. John W. Branscomb was appointed pastor. One church member saw the new minister, for the first time, playing baseball with boys of the area. The member harrumphed to a friend, "Is that young whipper-snapper what they sent here to preach?"

The young minister turned out to be a good preacher and distinguished himself by going on to become the first bishop of Florida Methodism.

The sanctuary was strengthened with braces in 1941. However, the repairs were not enough. Mrs. Lela Willis, Trinity's historian, recounts the demise of the 1910 structure in a booklet prepared for the congregation's centennial:

"One really windy day in 1944, during the morning service, the church swayed back and forth with the wind. It began to take on the appearance of the leaning tower of Pisa.

"Although no one left the church, and Reverend W. M. Mullens finished his sermon, there were several people who felt that even though it was a cool day, the pastor's shirt must have been wet with perspiration.

"The official board met and decided to go out by twos asking for financial help for a new building -- since the present building was no longer safe.

"Someone went to the school board to find out if the vacated Charlotte Harbor School (demolished for School House Square shopping center) could be used on Sundays.

"It could, so the women cleaned it. The men brought out the pews which were badly weather beaten and worn because the old church had leaked so badly.

"Then, every man, woman and child helped in the task of tearing down the old building. Nails were pulled out of the old lumber so it could be made into frames for pouring concrete. The work was carried on in fine style by The Rev. M. E. Myer appointed for the conference years 1945-48.

"It took six years for the Trinity congregation to raise money for a new, masonry church; but the goal was reached in 1949. Construction on Trinity number four got underway immediately, and the new sanctuary was dedicated November 9, 1950.

"Every one was caught up in the excitement," says Mrs. Willis. "The pews were given a fresh coat of shellac, but the shellac was old and did not dry quickly.

"The pews were still not dry by the day before dedication. Someone said to spray them with cold water. So the pews were placed all around the lawn and sprayed about every hour in hopes of drying them.

"The tile was laid that day. People worked until the wee hours of the morning. About midnight, the shellac on the pews was set enough so it wouldn't stick to clothes.

"By morning of dedication day, everyone was tired but happy. Bishop Roy H. Short presided over the ceremonies. Then everyone adjourned to the lawn to enjoy basket lunches."

God was surely there also.

cutline - old church

Photo courtesy of Trinity Methodist Church

The 1910, third, sanctuary of Trinity Methodist Church at Charlotte Harbor Town.

By Lindsey Williams, columnist for Sun Coast Media Group newspapers