Providence Church - Linn County, OR
Posted by: 
ddtfamily
N 44° 37.486 W 122° 48.210
10T E 515587 N 4941287
Completed in 1898, this historic former Baptist church is now a Vineyard Fellowship
Waymark Code: WMHE9T
Location: Oregon, United States
Date Posted: 06/30/2013
Views: 3
This church congregation was Baptist for more than 100 years, from the founding in 1853 until at least the 1970s (the state historic inventory
nomination form, completed in 1976, listed the church owner at that time as Providence Missionary Baptist Church). In the early 1990s, the church became Providence Vineyard Christian Fellowship. Service is held Sunday morning at 10:15 a.m. Adjacent to the church is a well-maintained pioneer cemetery containing more than 1,300 graves.
Built between 1893 and 1898, the building replaced an earlier log building that served the congregation from 1853 to 1898. It is located about 7 miles southeast of the town of Scio in rural Linn County, surrounded by farms. Architecturally, it is a common, vernacular structure typical of country churches of the period. The original stone foundation was replaced with concrete, adding a basement, in the 1960s or 70s.
The church was well-known state-wide in the early days and experienced rapid growth. It was founded by the dynamic Baptist preacher, the Reverend Joab Powell, who became “the most famous preacher and circuit rider ever to proclaim the gospel in the Northwest.” (according to Floyd Mullen in his 1971 volume “Land of Linn.”) Powell was called upon to perform the invocation at the first regular meeting of the Oregon State Legislature in 1860 and while known for lengthy sermons, Powell expressed a short sentiment with modern appeal when he said “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
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