Ebenezer Baptist Church Open Air Steeple - near Fulton, MO - Unique Steeples on Waymarking.com

County of church: Callaway County
Location of church: MO-Z, N. of CR-119, 2½ miles Northeast of Fulton
Date built: 1878 by historical societies; 1879 church sign

This bell tower is open. I have seen that in brick churches, where the tower is also a look-out of sorts, but never before in a frame church.
Reason is unknown to me why. This open air look makes this steeple unique to me.
The bell is still active, pulled during the announcement of church services.

Marquee Text:

"Organized in 1878, a historic photograph from c. 1911 shows this as a simple frame gable front church with medium pitched roof and two front doors. In 1928, the congregation constructed a two story classroom addition on the front and added a basement below the building in 1949. It is unknown if the two-story projecting front gable dates from 1928, 1949, or more recently. To the south is a large frame addition with gable front, connected to the original building by a hallway.

"According to a resolution passed by the MO General Assembly, the church was organized by members of the Richland Baptist and Unity Baptist Churches who lived too far away from their respective churches to attend regular meetings.

"The church is located in rural Callaway County northwest [sic - s/b northeast] of Fulton, Missouri. The church faces east and sits close to State Road Z. To the north and west is the associated cemetery with graves dating from c. 1880 to the present. The grave stones face east and run in long north-south rows.

"Constructed c. 1878 as a two-door subtype of the gable-end church form. The original/early church building is still extant, though more recent additions to the front and side of the building hide the original building from street view. The oldest block of the church consists of the original c. 1878 building to the west, a two-story classroom block with hipped roof constructed c. 1928, and a projecting two-story tower with gable roof of unknown date. The copper topped spire with open belfry and fishscale shingle decoration that tops the tower may indicate that the tower dates to c. 1928, or that the spire was moved from the original church building to the tower as the church expanded. The tower contains the paired entrance doors that are sheltered beneath a hipped roof porch. Above this is an octagonal window. Though clad in vinyl siding, the windows in the church building appear to be early or original. Connected to the south elevation of the church by an enclosed breezeway is a modern gable front addition." ~ Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Rural Churches of Callaway County, PDF page 255