County of church: Callaway County
Location of church: CR-227, S. of CR-230, Earl, NW of Fulton
Phone: (573) 529-1210
Pastor: Rick Matson
Organized: 1854
Church built: 1889
Sign Text:
PRAIRIE
CHAPEL
UMC
SS: 9:00am-WORSHIP: 10:00am
"Who We Are
"Prairie Chapel is an open-country congregation that worships in a traditional style with a little bit of gospel thrown in. We are farmers, insurance agents, educators, engineers, lawyers, homemakers, and just plain good folks from adjoining property to as far as Fulton, Columbia, Ashland, and Jefferson City.
"You'll be welcomed at our door, and expect to see attire from ties to jeans and in between.
"We believe God's grace is available to all and that we all have the freedom to receive it. We would hope that you would experience the grace, hope, and love you need when you visit us." ~ Prairie Chapel
History
"The church is located on the east side of a county road, but its original entrance/front elevation faced south rather than west toward the
county road. The church lot is flat with limited planting, and the cemetery is located to the east. The cemetery retains some historic
planting such as yucca and lilies common to historic cemeteries, notably along the fence line.
"Organized in 1854, this small congregation constructed its first building in 1854-55 at a cost of about $800. The current building was
constructed in 1889. The new church was a simple gable end with two front doors topped by multi-light transoms and decorative
hoods. In the gable end was a diamond shaped window (See Yesterdays in Callaway County, Missouri, p. 15). In 1957, the church
underwent a “facelift.” This may have included the construction of a basement/new foundation and the construction of a foyer/narthex
addition. More recently, a stylized Gothic window has been added to the southern elevation of the narthex, along with new window
hoods and siding.
"This example of the gable end church type displays many of the common changes to the type over time in Callaway County, notably
the addition of a basement and front foyer, likely in the mid-20th Century. The original block of the frame building has a rectangular
footprint with a broad gable end under a steeply pitched gable roof. The east and west elevations have three evenly spaced 9/9, double
hung windows with modern Colonial Revival style hoods flanked by fixed shutters. The foyer addition projects from the south façade
and is shorter and narrower than the original block, though the gable roof shares a similar pitch to that of the original building. The
south elevation of the foyer contains three windows shaped and grouped to mimic a Gothic arch. These windows are multi-pane with
some colored glass panes. The primary entrance is on the west wall of the foyer. It is a paneled door with a modern Colonial Revival style
surround consisting of a broken pediment supported by pilasters." ~ Rural Churches in Callaway County, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, PDF page 278