First Congregational Church (Burlington, Iowa)
Encyclopedia
First Congregational Church is located in Burlington, Iowa
, United States
. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1976.
. The congregation was involved in social ministry, civil rights, public education and free libraries. It was a champion of the abolition of slavery and was a stop on the Underground Railroad
.
When the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches
merged with the Evangelical and Reformed Church
and formed the United Church of Christ
, First Congregational Church joined with about 200 other Congregational Christian churches in choosing not to join the merger, mainly because of the issue of congregational polity. It became a part of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches
, which was created in 1955. The church is a member of the National Association, the Iowa-Nebraska Association of Congregational Churches and the Burlington Area Council of Churches.
Burlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,663 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1976.
History
The congregation was organized in 1838. The Rev. Horace Hutchinson was the first pastor and the congregation met in the home of James G. Edwards who was the publisher of the Burlington Hawk-EyeThe Hawk Eye
The Hawk Eye is a general-circulation newspaper based in Burlington, Iowa, and boasts itself as "Iowa's Oldest Newspaper."-History:The newspaper traces its roots to the Wisconsin Territorial Gazette and Burlington Advertiser, which was established July 10, 1837, by James Clarke, and Cyrus Jacobs...
. The congregation was involved in social ministry, civil rights, public education and free libraries. It was a champion of the abolition of slavery and was a stop on the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
.
When the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
merged with the Evangelical and Reformed Church
Evangelical and Reformed Church
The Evangelical and Reformed Church was a Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. It was formed in 1934 by the merger of the Reformed Church in the United States with the Evangelical Synod of North America . After the 1934 merger, a minority within the RCUS seceded in order to...
and formed the United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
, First Congregational Church joined with about 200 other Congregational Christian churches in choosing not to join the merger, mainly because of the issue of congregational polity. It became a part of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches
National Association of Congregational Christian Churches
The National Association of Congregational Christian Churches is an association of about 400 churches providing fellowship for and services to churches from the Congregational tradition. The Association maintains its national office in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee...
, which was created in 1955. The church is a member of the National Association, the Iowa-Nebraska Association of Congregational Churches and the Burlington Area Council of Churches.