South Seattle's New Gothic Sanctuary
A growing neighborhood celebrates the dedication of the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church, a community effort built on faith and fundraising.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The Wesley Methodist Episcopal church, of South Seattle, was opened yesterday with appropriate and interesting ceremonies, which were witnessed by quite a number from the city proper and a large crowd from the immediate neighborhood. The proceedings were begun at 10:30 in the morning by a fine service, at which preaching was done by the presiding elder, Rev. T. B. Ford, D. D., who was assisted by Rev. N. B. Buckner, of Olympia; Rev. E. S. Stockwell and Rev. T. J. Massey, A. M. After the service, a neat lunch was served. The ladies of the church had spared no pains to make this a great feature of the day's delights. At 2 o'clock in the afternoon there was a mass meeting, at which $300 was raised. The building is a neat structure in the Gothic style, and will seat about 150 people. It cost about $2,000 and stands on ground about 110x110. The pastor of the church is the Rev. F. M. Pickles.
“The ladies of the church had spared no pains to make this a great feature of the day's delights.”
In 1892, churches acted as the primary hubs for neighborhood identity and social services in Seattle's burgeoning south side. Today, while the specific congregation may have evolved or relocated, the struggle to fund community gathering spaces remains a cornerstone of urban development in the Pacific Northwest.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.