Dover, Tennessee
The very first indication of the creation of our Church is found in a book labeled Church Registry, M. E. Church South. The first page is an Introduction by L.D. Palmer, printed by the Southern Methodist Publishing House, Nashville, Tennessee, July 1, 1882. It states:
“The Discipline of our Church provides that every Society shall have a permanent
Register, in which the Secretary of the Church Conference shall enter in chronological
order the full name of all who shall join the Church, with the time and manner of the
reception of each….”
As you turn the pages the first grouping is a list of pastors with J. M. Oakley as the first. Turn a few more pages and you find the first member to be registered is Thomas S. Sykes admitted through profession in 1866. With the print date of the book being 1882 and the first member listed as 1866 I am sure the list was transcribed from another document but the record does state that our first member was recorded in 1866.
There is no notation of where or how often they met, just that we had membership. The desire to have a formal Church was displayed with the transfer of 3 acres of land from Woods Yeatman and Company to Mr. James. M. Taylor on February 5, 1868. The land was dedicated to be “for a Church and no other purpose.” The quick-claim was filed in Feb with the formal deed being registered with County Clerk, W. Cook on July 6, 1868.
The Trustees of the Church during the time of construction of our first building were James M. Taylor, E. Dawson, Isaac Parker, Sr., W. Keel and G.R. Keel. They oversaw the construction of a small one-room building that was used until 1989. The location was the same as our present Fellowship Hall. The only change in the original design was the addition of two Sunday School rooms in the 1970’s.
The door of the building faced the cemetery instead of the road. Bonnie Crutcher, our longest standing member, remembers being told that several years before she was born there was a window behind the pulpit that did not suite one of the Ministers so it was removed and the back wall enclosed.
During the early years of the Church and until the mid 1940’s a large pole with an iron bell similar to a dinner bell was located in front of the Church at the edge of the cemetery. The bell was rung to alert the community of any tragedy or a death. Usually the ringing of the bell alerted the men of the area that a grave needed to be dug. In the mid 1940’s the bell disappeared and was a mystery until 2015.
In the early part of May, 2015 Mr. John Sykes of St. Louis, Il. contacted our Pastor, Rev. Phoebe Jowers stating he was in possession of the Taylor’s Chapel Methodist Church bell and would like to return it. He stated that his Great Great Grandfather, Thomas S. Sykes who is listed as the first member of the Church and is buried in the cemetery, had purchased the bell for the Church. When his Grandfather was in the process of moving to the St. Louis area, he found the bell on the ground. Thinking the Church was in a state of ill repair and was going to disband, Mr. Sykes chose to take the bell to preserve it. Through the years it moved from his Grandfather to his Father and now to him and he wanted it to be returned to its home. On Sunday May 24, 2015 Mr. John Sykes attended service and presented the refurbished bell with a plaque stating it was in honor of his Great Great Grandfather Thomas Sykes who had originally purchased the bell.
One tradition of our Church that can be tracked at least to the early 1900’s is the Easter Egg hunt held after the Easter Sunday service. The hunt has always been held in the cemetery unless the weather did not allow. During bad weather the hunt was held in the Church with the eggs hidden in the pews, windows any other spot that will safely hold an egg.
The list of members added to Church Register in 1868 covered a page and a half. Some of the family names that were added in 1868 were Green, Fitzhugh, Taylor, Folks, Andrews, Pegram, Boyett, Earhart, Holly, Hogan, Parker, Ross, McClanahan, Russell and Settle to list a few.
Records of the early years are sketchy but all changed in 1926 with the formation of official Districts.
In 1926 we find the Taylor’s Chapel Methodist Church aligned with Asberry, Horton Chapel, Leatherwood, Pleasant Valley, Lost Creek, St. Mary and Standing Rock to form the Standing Rock Charge. Our Charge was a portion of the Dickson District of the Tennessee Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
In the 1927 report of the Charge Pastor, J.P. Rowland, he states:
“I am glad to say that we arrived here in this Charge Friday November 13th,
1926 finding some of the finest people on earth….”
The oldest financial statement I can find is for the Charge’s quarterly report of 1926. It gives us an overview of what was available and how the money was dispersed. The report states that the eight Churches contributed a total of $163.93 with the Presiding Elder receiving $18.24 and the Pastor $145.69. Taylor’s Chapel’s contribution was $21.00.
It also states that there were expenses of General Work $3.00, Conference Work $2.00, Sunday School $5.44, incidentals and other purposes $20.00 and Missionary special $3.26.
In 1933 Taylor’s Chapel joined into a partnership with the Churches of Standing Rock, Lost Creek, Leatherwood, Horton’s Chapel, St. Mary’s, Pleasant Valley, Asbury and Stribling to replace the parsonage, which had been lost in a fire. A Building Committee was established consisting of Mr. T.H Stavely, H. L. Dillon, and J.A. Parker.
On August 1st, 1933 an unfinished house in the Standing Rock area was purchased from F.A. Ewer for $100.00. The remainder of the bill reads as follows:
| August 3rd 1933 | Lumber from F.A. Ewer 4 Bundles of shingles from F.A. Ewer | $68.70 $2.40 |
| August 28th 1933 | Lumber 2756 feet from F.A. Ewer9 doors and 11 windows Freight on doors and windows Nails, locks, lime and hinges, etc T.H. Stavely for 8 days labor | $56.59 $54.75 $1.50 $20.02 $12.00 |
| Total | $315.96 |
Each Church paid a portion as follows:
| Sanding Rock Lost Creek Leatherwood Taylor’s Chapel Horton’s Chapel St. Mary’s Pleasant Valley Asbury Stribling Outside donations | $64.00 $23.25 $18.00 $14.30 $12.70 $8.20 $5.50 $3.50 $1.25 $161.40 |
| Total | $312.10 |
It was noted in the report that this left a deficit of $3.86 but there is no information as to how this portion was paid.
The string of financial reports through the following years indicate ups and downs in membership but reflect a continued desire to remain active and supportive of the community and the Church’s duties.
In 1939 all of the branches if the Methodist Episcopal Church South, Methodist Episcopal Church North and Methodist Missionary Church banded together to form the Methodist Church.
April 23, 1968 the Methodist Churches were banded with the United Brethren Church to form the United Methodist Church. The union of our Church and the Standing Rock Methodist Church was designated as the Standing Rock Charge.
In 1989 the congregation of Taylor’s Chapel United Methodist Church agreed that the old Church building was no longer structurally sound and there was a need for a new building. Our beloved, fragile building, built in 1868 had survived being twisted by a tornado, and 121 years of use. It had served its purpose. We met Sunday, May 14, 1989 (Mother’s Day) for the final service in the original building.
On the following Monday the building was stripped of all usable items and wood, then the remaining structure was destroyed. During the time of the construction we met in the local fire hall just a short distance from the Church. The fire trucks would be moved out and chairs set up for the service.
Under the direction of Church members Carl Wesley Cottrell, Carter Cottrell, Eddie Cottrell and with the aid of Barry Elliott of the Standing Rock Church and several volunteers, the new building was completed and we held our first service in the new building on June 18, 1989 (Father’s Day). This building consisted of the entrance area, a Sanctuary (presently the Fellowship Hall) and the 2 classrooms directly behind the pulpit. The location is the same spot as the original building but the entrance now faced Taylor’s Chapel Road instead of the cemetery, which was quite a change for the membership.
On July 30, 1989 a Dedication service was held and officiated by District Superintendent Luke Dunn and Minister Ben Falls. During the construction phase we found out that we had violated a few Conference rules by destroying the building without first informing the Conference to get permission. Our Minister Ben Falls took a lot of grief over our actions. But at the dedication service District Superintendent Dunn stated if he had known we would replace the old building with such a beautiful Church he would have been here to help with the demolition phase.
In the summer of 1992 with some growth in the congregation, the membership saw a need for an addition. Again under the direction of our “visionaries” the Cottrell brothers, and many friends volunteering, a Fellowship Hall/classroom was added to the South side of the building forming an ”L” shaped structure. Bro. “Tiny” Cravath was the minister at this time.
In December of 1997 our sister Church, Standing Rock United Methodist Church voted to disband. In January of 1998 we were blessed with several members of the Standing Rock congregation joining us. The union has proven to be a very productive and inspiration one.
Another gift from the Standing Rock Church was the piano the Church had purchased in 1963 when the entire Church had to be replaced after a fire. Our old piano was moved to the Fellowship Hall.
In the early part of 1999 the congregation, again with growth in the Church, felt the need for a larger sanctuary to be built. Construction of a new sanctuary on the north side of the building began in May of 1999 and was completed later that summer. Again we relied upon the vision and skills of the members of the congregation and the blessing of volunteers for the construction of our building. We relied upon the talents of our members for the design of the building and their crafted carpentry skills. We relied upon the ladies of the congregation for the excellent interior design expertise and the food that fed the workers. With the help of all, our present sanctuary was created.
After our present sanctuary was opened the “construction team” of the Church took on the task of converting the former sanctuary into the present Fellowship Hall. The former Fellowship Hall was converted into a classroom and a Lending Library area was later added. Bathrooms have gone from 1 to 2 in the alcove and then one was converted to a handicapped bathroom with another added in the Fellowship Hall.
The growth we have seen in our congregation in the past years has left us with the need of even more classrooms. In 2006 the most recent classroom was added to the south side for yet another age group. Growth by the addition of good, dedicated people has been our blessing through the years.
In October of 2016 our Fellowship Hall suffered a flood. A water supply line in one of the restrooms broke spewing water for a few days before one of the members noticed water spilling out the front door. Repair of this mishap required time for the building and the ground under the floor to dry and the rainy fall season did not help. But in a few months all was repaired and back to normal, until a visitor came.
Drying the ground under the building to avoid mold was the longest part of the process. At one point in the process in January of 2017 a worker left the door to the crawl space of the building open and a skunk decided to explore the area and leave a very aromatic calling card. This is a task that took several months to completely remove, but it didn’t slow our weekly services and attendance.
In March of 2017 one of our members, Connie Cottrell found a Baby Grand Piano, that had been in service at the New Hope Church of God for a few years, was for sale for $5000.00. We quickly took advantage of the opportunity and it was delivered on Monday April 10, 2017.
In March of 2020 the Covid-19 virus struck our country and Churches were directed to discontinue congregational meetings until farther notice. Our doors closed on March 8th but we reopened June 21, 2020 but our worship and community service did not stop. We offered grocery and medicine pick up services. Food was taken to those that needed help.
Taylor’s Chapel United Methodist Church has sponsored an Easter Egg hunt for over 100 years and we could not let the crisis break that record. Since the directive is to m=not gather in groups of more than 10, there was no way to have a hunt at the Church so we sponsored a “Drive by Egg Hunt”.
First, the children were brought to the Church to receive a gift and participate in a learning activity. Then members of the community displayed large pictures of decorated eggs or large wooden eggs in their yard or hanging from trees. The parents drove the children around the community and the children counted the eggs they saw. Even residents of the community that are not members of our Church participated. It was a true, heartfelt Community event full of love for the Lord.
A few weeks later we sponsored a “Drive by Celebration” for a 50th Wedding Anniversary for Carter and Connie Cottrell, long time members of our Church. It was attended by at least 50 people in cars and trucks and one horse and carriage.
As we continue to worship and grow, may we do so in the spirit of our first Pastor J. M. Oakley, our first member Thomas S. Sykes and the man of vision who donated our land Mr. J. M. Taylor. May we show honor through our service, to the members who through the past years have kept our little Church alive. And may we keep our Church strong for those that will follow our path.
Nelma Crutcher