On a Wednesday evening November 7, 1861 a meeting of a portion of the inhabitants of the Towns of Spring Grove and Jefferson was held at the
Basswood Church in the Town of Spring Grove, for the purpose of building a house for the worship of God. The Basswood Church they met in
was built in 1845 of hewn basswood logs.
A group of 48 persons, hard hit by depression, coming from Centre County, Pennsylvania in 1839 are likely descendants of those early pioneers.
John Seybert, Pennsylvania, called the "Prophet of the Lonely Road", was Bishop from 1839 to 1860 and made many trips on horseback into Ohio,
Illinois, Wisconsin and Canada, he no doubt had much to do with starting the church in the Oakley Community.
When the new Church was built it was known as the Spring Grove Union Church Association. It was written in the by-laws that any denomination
could hold services there. The 28x40 building cost $1400 to build and was dedicated in 1862. Sermons were in German or Pennsylvania Dutch.
By 1885 all sermons were in English.
In 1894 the church was put into the Rock Grove circuit and became members of the Evangelical Association.
A group of young people formed the Evangelical League of Christian Endeavor in the 1920's but there is no record of how long they met in the church.
In July, 1941, this Union congregation with its 34 members voted, on advise of the Illinois Conference, to transfer to the Wisconsin Conference and be
served by the pastor of the Evangelical Church in Juda.
This congregation in a community of 80 to 100 families has a church built on a hill and can be seen for miles around.
May 17, 1951 was the year the Union Church became EUD, the United Brethren in Christ Conference and the Evangelical Association Conference merged and became one EUB Church.
April of 1968 the Evangelical United Brethron Church and the Methodist Church united into the United Methodist Church.
Plans were made at the three Conferences in Wisconsin that year, East Wisconsin, West Wisconsin and EUB Wisconsin Conference in 1969 to have them united into one, which was carried out in June of that year.
Basswood Church in the Town of Spring Grove, for the purpose of building a house for the worship of God. The Basswood Church they met in
was built in 1845 of hewn basswood logs.
A group of 48 persons, hard hit by depression, coming from Centre County, Pennsylvania in 1839 are likely descendants of those early pioneers.
John Seybert, Pennsylvania, called the "Prophet of the Lonely Road", was Bishop from 1839 to 1860 and made many trips on horseback into Ohio,
Illinois, Wisconsin and Canada, he no doubt had much to do with starting the church in the Oakley Community.
When the new Church was built it was known as the Spring Grove Union Church Association. It was written in the by-laws that any denomination
could hold services there. The 28x40 building cost $1400 to build and was dedicated in 1862. Sermons were in German or Pennsylvania Dutch.
By 1885 all sermons were in English.
In 1894 the church was put into the Rock Grove circuit and became members of the Evangelical Association.
A group of young people formed the Evangelical League of Christian Endeavor in the 1920's but there is no record of how long they met in the church.
In July, 1941, this Union congregation with its 34 members voted, on advise of the Illinois Conference, to transfer to the Wisconsin Conference and be
served by the pastor of the Evangelical Church in Juda.
This congregation in a community of 80 to 100 families has a church built on a hill and can be seen for miles around.
May 17, 1951 was the year the Union Church became EUD, the United Brethren in Christ Conference and the Evangelical Association Conference merged and became one EUB Church.
April of 1968 the Evangelical United Brethron Church and the Methodist Church united into the United Methodist Church.
Plans were made at the three Conferences in Wisconsin that year, East Wisconsin, West Wisconsin and EUB Wisconsin Conference in 1969 to have them united into one, which was carried out in June of that year.