|
| |
A BRIEF HISTORY OF WHATCOAT
U. M. CHURCH
Whatcoat United Methodist Church is located in Dover, Delaware on the Delmarva Peninsula Eastern Shore. The current edifice has been located at 341 Saulsbury Road for 25 years. The original church was incorporated in 1870. The cornerstone of that building was laid on Slaughter Street in Dover, Delaware in 1871.
In 1852, a meetinghouse was built on the southwest corner of North and Queen Streets. This newly organized church chose for its name, Whatcoat Methodist Episcopal Church in honor of Richard Whatcoat (1736-1806), a pioneering English Methodist itinerant who became Bishop in 1800 and died in Dover, Delaware.
From 1852 until 1864, Whatcoat was a mission charge in the Philadelphia Conference. When the Delaware Conference was organized in July 1863, Whatcoat became one of the few founding charges of that conference. In 1865, the church, a four-point charge, had two hundred members including two local ministers.
After the church was formally incorporated, a new structure was built on Slaughter Street. The old meetinghouse was moved to “the South of North Street” and became the first parsonage. The cornerstone of the new structure was laid on Sunday, October 22, 1871. Following extensive renovation, the church was rededicated in 1935.
On December 12, 1976, the final worship service was held on Slaughter Street. The Call to
Worship began services in the Whatcoat United Methodist Church at 341 Saulsbury Road in Dover, Delaware.
Since 1970, Whatcoat United Methodist Church has been “The Servant Church of Dover.” It declares as its vision that Whatcoat will be a place of compassion and hope, where persons who hurt find healing, the grieved are comforted, the lonely find friendship, and the broken become whole.
Our Mission Statement uplifts our tasks: To make disciples! To repair the fabric of people’s lives through holistic ministries of nurture, outreach, and witness.
The 400-member congregation is visible throughout the Greater Dover communities and areas through more than 30 outreach programs. These outreach programs provide community-based services to children, youth, and their families. The major purpose of these services is to assist in building stable families and strong communities.
Return to Whatcoat UMC Home
|
