First United Methodist Church, Perry, New York - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

In 1816 a man named Henry Wallace became the first Methodist in Perry, NY. Henry Wallace was born on September 23, 1742. He came to this area from Worchester, Mass. Henry settled in Castile, NY in 1816 and died February 1, 1870, at the age of 81 years old.

The first known meeting place where Christians gathered in this area was at the Wallace log cabin on the Slack farm, near Castile. There were 6 members who attended. In 1816, Henry Wallace heard that the first Bishop of the Methodist Church, Francis Asbury, was to be near Caledonia, NY for a quarterly conference. He walked 30 miles to see him, and requested to be put on the circuit. A Pastor was to be sent to Perry. In the fall of 1816 a Pastor by the name of Reverend Robert Minchell arrived. A meeting was held in the log cabin home of Henry Wallace, near the Castile towneline. The meetings were then held in Reverend Minchell's home opposite the Perry record building.

In February of the next year, Rev. William Miles, a local preacher in the Methodist Church, from Seneca, Ontario County, came to Perry with his family. This was a great addition. "Father Wiles" was a known man of property. He owned the greater part of Main Street, and the most valuable water power on the outlet. His house became the second meeting place for The Church.

The present church is of English Gothic architecture. The well-known architects' names are Jay Fay and Otis W. Dryer. The sanctuary design is called "The Akron Plan". The original design displayed a beautiful sanctuary and stained glass windows as are viewed today. The sanctuary was separated by huge sliding doors with etched glass panels that were closed for the worship services. Behind their folding doors was a large "rotunda". This was the focal point for Sunday School, as the class rooms were to the very back of the church at large. A curving stairway began on both sides of the "rotunda" gracefully curved into a balcony above. This balcony was designed originally for overflow crowds of people attending very large meetings, conferences, revivals, etc. Due to lack of Sunday School space, the rooms were curtained off into sections, developing each of their rooms. Due to church membership growth and activity, the church people once again began renovations in the 1950's. Several additions took place, which made it into a thoroughly modern building. It was consecrated in 1957 and dedicated in 1963. The church continues to move on in service to the community with a new renovation currently underway. 2005 the property at 10 Short Street was purchased, and demolished, to make way for a larger parking lot.

In September of 2006 the church was named to both the state and national registries of historic places.

Pastor Hours are:

Tuesday through Friday, 10am-3pm.

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 01/01/1906 Age of Church building determined by?: Church website If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Methodist If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: From: 9:30 AM To: 12:00 PM If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Sunday Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: 11:00 AM Street address of Church: 35 Covington St Perry, NY USA 14530 Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: Not listed

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