wfn.org | Volunteers racing to save birthplace of 'Old Rugged Cross'

[NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG]

Sept. 21, 2000  News media contact: Thomas S.
McAnally·(615)742-5470·Nashville, Tenn.     10-21-71BP{420}

NOTE:  Photographs are available for use with this story.

A UMNS Feature
By Marta K. Dodd*

POKAGON, Mich. (UMNS) -- Volunteers from several denominations are racing
against the clock and weather to restore the birthplace of the beloved hymn,
"The Old Rugged Cross." 

Known today simply as "the Original Old Rugged Cross Church," the building
was originally the Pokagon Methodist Episcopal Church, named for the
southwest Michigan village that it served. There, in 1913, the hymn was
first sung publicly in its entirety, after being written by the Rev. George
Bennard.

Bennard, an ordained Methodist evangelist, was in Pokagon to help the
church's pastor with revival meetings. Having worked on the hymn for some
time, Bennard finally completed it and sang it for the congregation. Church
choir members, an organist and a violinist then performed it from his
penciled notes.

Bennard sold the rights to "The Old Rugged Cross" to gospel music publisher
Homer Rodeheaver Co., of Winona Lake, Ind., a company for which he wrote
many hymns. The song was formally introduced at the Chicago Evangelistic
Institute before a large convention and later was popular in crusades led by
evangelist William Ashley "Billy" Sunday. It quickly became one of the
world's most beloved Christian hymns and continues in wide use today. Many
commercial recordings of favorite hymns include "The Old Rugged Cross."

Shortly after the introduction of the song at the Pokagon church, the
Methodist congregation moved across the street into another building. The
hymn's birthplace passed into private ownership and languished as a storage
barn for more than 80 years. In 1998, a couple from the current Pokagon
United Methodist Church bought the building and adjacent lot and donated
them to their church. 

A multi-denominational, tax-exempt foundation was created to raise the $1.5
million needed to restore the historic building to its 1913 appearance.
Initial contributions of $50,000 are being used to brace the building and
stabilize its foundation. The deteriorating foundation in one area leans at
a 15-degree angle and threatens the building with collapse.

Fortunately, the 28-by-90 building was well constructed when it began its
life of service in 1862 as a hops barn. Though it is still structurally
sound, time and neglect have taken their toll. Before the building was
bought and donated to the Pokagon Church, animals had used it for refuge.
Vandals had scrawled graffiti across interior walls. Decades of dirt and
dust lingered where worshipers once sang and prayed. Trees and shrubs grew
wildly around the building. Plywood patched exterior walls, and sheets of
metal covered the original roof. Daylight, rain and snow entered through an
upper corner of the former sanctuary.  	

Still, the lofty ceiling and unique, pointed window frames give silent
testimony to the building's 40 years as a church. An original, tall, pointed
door connects the former sanctuary and kitchen area. The kitchen floor is
still sound. Hundreds of small pieces of the original leaded, painted
windows lie in dirt and debris on the floor, priceless clues to the windows'
design. Fragments of wallpaper in the sanctuary and kitchen await removal
and documentation for duplication. 

The old church's pulpit is in the current Pokagon sanctuary. An area
resident has the last organ used in the former church and plans to return it
to the restored building.

The restored building will include a small museum of church and local
history. The building will once again be available for weddings and other
special church services.

The Original Old Rugged Cross Church is a registered Michigan Historic Site.
The church is also an official project of Save America's Treasures, a
public-private partnership between the White House Millennium Council and
the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

As part of their fund-raising efforts, volunteers have created a site for
the Old Rugged Cross Church at www.oldruggedcross.org on the Internet.
Information is available by calling (toll free) 800-966-3316, sending an
e-mail message to orcf@aol.com or writing to the Old Rugged Cross
Foundation, P.O. Box 41, Niles, MI 49120.
# # #
*Dodd is a member of the Old Rugged Cross Foundation board of directors. Her
grandfather was the violinist in the hymn's 1913 debut. 

*************************************
United Methodist News Service
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