Group will preserve old church

A piece of Franklin County history was able to be preserved thanks to several concerned citizens and the cooperation of a local church association.
Mt. Pleasant Church, located off the old Highway 24 in Franklin County, was closing its doors and the Northwest District of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church didn’t know what to do with the property, which they would now be responsible for.
But Franklin County Archives director Chris Ozbirn knew exactly what needed to be done.
“I found out about Mt. Pleasant Church from a man who was here at the archives talking about it,” Ozbirn said. “He said they were closing the doors and it could possibly be torn down and I didn’t want that to happen because it’s a piece of Franklin County’s history.”
The current Mt. Pleasant Church was officially deemed a significant landmark by the Alabama Historical Commission and added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage on April 11, 1984.
It is also part of the Hallelujah Trail, which is a grouping of 32 historical churches in North Alabama.
Ozbirn said the original Mt. Pleasant Church was started in 1825 by James Wesley Smith and started out as an old log building.
“Somewhere in the 1870s, they constructed the current building for Mt. Pleasant Church,” Ozbirn said, “which makes it the oldest standing church in the county.”
Ozbirn said she obtained the number for District Superintendent Michael Stonebraker to see what could be done about obtaining the building.
“He told me that they could donate the building but I would need to write a formal letter of request and get two people who would be willing to take over responsibilities for the church,” she said. “I contacted Stanley Champion and William Bishop and they both agreed to help with this project.”
“We thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and take over the church now before someone else got it so we could make sure it’s preserved,” Champion said.
“This church is important to the community,” Bishop added. “We just want to keep it up and make sure it’s properly taken care of.”
Ozbirn said as soon as the final paperwork is completed, the church will officially be turned over to the Mt. Pleasant Church Preservation Committee.
“This group is independent from the Archives,” Ozbirn said. “Since it’s an independent group that doesn’t have funding, we’re really going to need people in the community to become part of the committee and help out. We’ll need all the volunteers and donations we can get to make this a success.”
Champion said the church would be a great asset to the community not only because of its historical significance but because of the potential for tourism opportunities.
“People enjoy seeing historical landmarks and each person we can bring into this county who will turn around and buy gas or food brings in more money to the area,” he said.
Ozbirn said they also hoped to eventually turn the church into a place for people to have weddings and other events.
“This would be a beautiful place to have a little country wedding or a reunion,” she said. “There are many possibilities, but all of these are going to take time and money and volunteers, so we hope to get more people involved in the coming weeks.”
Anyone who would be interested in making a donation to the Mt. Pleasant Church Preservation Committee or who would be interested in volunteering can contact Chris Ozbirn at 256-332-8827 or at P.O. Box 298, Russellville, AL 35653.