The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1902-07-17
MAY GIVE UP CHURCH.
Plank Road Congregation, Divided on
Church Matters, May Abandon
Old House Of Worship.
RELIGIOUS LANDMARK OF KENOSHA
Old Church is More Than Half a Century
Old, and This is the First Serious
Division of the Congregation.
(From Saturdays Daily

The old Plank Road church IN the
town of Bristol, one remaining land
mark of the early religious history Of
Southern Wisconsin is threatened with
abandonment. The church is the old
est house of worship in the county left
standing, and few if any of the
churches of the Protestant denomina-
tions were built at an earlier date.
For more than fifty years the church
stood as the monument to the piety of
the towns of Bristol and Paris. For
all this time the simple, kindly folk
who composed its congregation stood
willing to do the religious and charit-
able work of the communities, but
after rounding out this half century of
good work the congregation has be-
come hopeless1y divided and it is now
stated that it will close its doors never
to be reopened by the old flock.
The trouble is of recent growth. A
month ago services were being held as
usual, and on each Sunday morning
the people gathered at the church for
their usual worship. The Rev. Edwin
H. Andrews was the pastor and a
month ago he handed in his resigna-
ton to the church. The resignation
came as surprise and few days
later it was learned that number of
the younger members in the congre-
cation had asked the minister to re-
sign. This was the stone on which
the congregation split, and when the
friends of Mr.. Andrews heard of the
action of the others they turned from
the church in disgust, and they now
refuse to have any further connection
with the congregation.
AS the number of members is very
limited neither of the factions can
support a church so the doors will have
to be closed, and the old meeting place
will probably soon degenerate into a
sleeping place for wandering tramps
and Migrants. Years ago the Plank
Road church was the most influential
Cong regational church in this part of
the State. 1t had large membership
and the members took an important
part in the work of the church in the
State.
It's ministers we're well paid and the
best to be had were secured. Many of
the men who afterward became noted
in this and other States as ministers of
the church began their career in the
pulpit of the old Bristol church.
But time played havoc with the
membership and at the present time
the membership is but fifty and many
of these have moved away while others
are mere ornaments, members in name
only. During the last two or three de-
,cades the church lost its prestige and
the people who went there to worship
were forced to be satisfied with the
services of student earning his way
through college, or else with one of
the old ministers, who having worked
his life out in the service had been
given the little country church as the
solace of his declining years.
The spirit of the congregation is
broken and the historic old temple will
never be able to withstand the results
of it's first church quarrel. The last
minister closed his work today and
has moved his family to Chicago.