Belle Key Methodist Church and Cemetery - Churchyard Cemeteries on Waymarking.com

Brief History of Belle Key Methodist Church
by Brandon A. Cowles (Spockishere)

Updated April 5, 2013

DEED and Mt. Nebo to Belle Key

Mt. Nebo Methodist Church was established in 1856. The church was known by that name until about 1885 when Mary Belle Key Hamilton Renfro passed away after giving birth to twin daughters Nora and Lola. They died not long after they were born. Mary Belle’s husband John Robert Renfro offered to build a new church for free if renamed after his wife. He built the church building as monument to his late wife Belle Key and his daughters Nora and Lola. He put the first hand pointing toward the sky on the steeple.

Belle and her twins are buried here in the cemetery. John Robert Renfro is buried in Vernon Texas.


The deed for this property was filed at the county clerk’s office on 12/22/1856. The Grantor was James Parrish and the Grantee where the trustees of Mt Nebo: John Hawkins, William Capps, and D JL Ford.

Belle Key Church was a old time Methodist Church which allowed for cooperation with local old time United and Missionary Baptist Churches namely Beaver Dam UBC. Beaver Dam and Belle Key helped each other in their revivals.

FORMER PASTORS AND LEADERS

Some of the former pastors where Bro. J.W. Cassada, Bro. George Mas(z)ackeo (pronunciation only, do not know the spelling), Bro. Fred Moody

Leaders: Two I know of was my great uncle Almond Sturdivant and Paul Houchin

2 Surviving Members

Siblings Sister Virginia Scott and Sister Sally Ison.

Some Old Time Baptist Preachers to preach here

Bro. Rayburn Parker in 1952 in a revival. December 1964 Bro. Callie Slaughter and Bro. Lawrence Vincent held a revival. Bro. Charlie Ray helped officiated a funeral here.

Bro. Willie Doyel at a revival in 1968 Bro. Willie DeWeese preached here once a month and at least held one revival. Bro. Ryan Sego from Fairdale UBC in Louisville KY at a Special Service in 2010

Bro. Kenny Decker from Jock UBC at a Special Service in April 2012 and Homecoming in Sept 2012. Bro. Robert Chip Bennett in March 2013.

Last preaching Willie DeWeese and Last Revival

Bro. Willie DeWeese preached once a month for the congregation of Belle Key once a month until his death. It is not known when he started preaching once a month for them. Probably the last great old time revival was held in 1968 conducted by Bro. Willie DeWeese and Bro. Willie Doyel. Sunday School here continued until around 1978.

The following is the Bowling Green Daily News article about the service on 3/30/2013. This newspaper is based about of Bowling Green, KY
Special service keeps church's history alive

By LAUREL WILSON The Daily News lwilson@bgdailynews.com/783-3240 | Posted: Sunday, March 31, 2013 1:51 am

RHODA — Nestled in this small community in Edmonson County, Belle Key Methodist Church and its adjoining cemetery have mostly sat empty since the 1970s, when the one-room church closed because of a lack of members.

“It just faded away,” said Roma Slaughter of Edmonson County, who attended the church as a child. “(Attendance) started dying off, and it never did pick back up.”



On Saturday, Slaughter and several dozen others temporarily brought life back to the church with a special service to remember the church’s heritage. It was established in 1856 as Mt. Nebo Methodist Church. When the church was rebuilt in 1885, the name was changed to Belle Key in honor of Mary Belle Key Hamilton Renfro, who is buried in the church cemetery along with the twin daughters she died giving birth to.



The 1900s saw multiple revivals at the church, but when the church closed in the 1970s, only Sunday school was being offered.



A few years ago, church trustee Brandon Cowles had an idea to host a special service at Belle Key as a way to raise awareness about its history and for those who had attended the church to visit it again. Since 2010, Cowles has organized several special services at Belle Key. Brother Robert Chip Bennett of Cedar Springs United Baptist Church preached during Saturday’s service, which also featured singing, praying and testimony from those in attendance.



Sitting in a pew at Belle Key on Saturday, Elmer Madison teared up remembering his childhood visits to the church.



“He got saved here on one of these benches,” said his wife, Ella Mae Madison.



The Edmonson County couple both attended Belle Key while growing up and being in the church again brought back memories. “It feels good to be here ... it was a good one,” Ella Mae Madison said.



Slaughter recalled how he used to walk over a hill next to the church to attend Sunday school at Belle Key.



“They’d give you a little card that you had to memorize by next Sunday,” he said. “Then you would go to Beaver Dam (Baptist Church) for church service. They just had preaching here (at Belle Key) once a month.”



Virginia Scott also grew up attending Belle Key. “It’s home,” she said.



As a child, she lived less than a mile from the church.



“All my life, I walked,” Scott said. “It’s the only way I had of going.”



She moved to Louisville when she got married, and Belle Key had closed when she returned to Edmonson County.



“When I got back here, they done quit having services here,” she said.



Scott tries to come back to the church whenever there’s a special service.



“I like to be here if I can ... they’ve really got it fixed up nice,” she said.

Name of church or churchyard: Belle Key Methodist Church and Cemtery Approximate Size: Medium (51-100)

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