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First United Methodist Church of Pacific GroveOpen Minds, Open Hearts, Open Doors |
In the beginning, the church and the city were one and the same. The city
of Pacific Grove grew out of a Methodist Retreat, giving the name "The Founding Church" to the First
United Methodist Church. Most towns are founded out of a commercial necessity or ambition, but Pacific
Grove was a child of religious desire.
On June 1, 1875, a group of ministers and members of the Methodist Episcopal Church met in
San Francisco with Bishop J. T. Peck to form the Pacific Grove Retreat which later became the
City of Pacific Grove. Chautauqua Hall, where Methodists worshipped in the morning and
Episcopalians in the afternoon, was built in 1881. In 1888, under the leadership of the Rev. T. H.
Sinex, the Assembly Hall was built on Lighthouse Avenue and was dedicated in 1889 as a Methodist
Church. For many years the church served as the seat of the Annual California-Nevada Methodist
Conference and was also used for community events and town meetings.
In 1955, the present site on Sunset Drive was purchased. Groundbreaking ceremonies were held on Palm Sunday, April 15, 1962. One year later on Palm Sunday, April 7, 1963, the Rev. Rolfe J. Conrad led the congregation in its first worship service in the new sanctuary. Bishop Donald Tippett consecrated the new buildings.
Twenty years later on January 30, 1983 the mortgage was burned and the building was dedicated to the
Glory of God.
On Sunday, April 6, 2003 the church members and friends celebrated the 40th Anniversary of the Consecration of the present Church site. The church has recently completed major capital improvements, including paving the parking areas and building handicapped accessible restroom facilities.
