Places Of Worship
- Apr 15
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 28
Churches and Meetinghouses of Sadsbury’s Faithful
William Penn, a Quaker, founded Pennsylvania in 1681 as a haven for religious freedom and tolerance, attracting diverse religious groups and establishing a colony known for its religious pluralism. Penn envisioned Pennsylvania as a "Holy Experiment," a place where people of different religions could live together peacefully and practice their faith freely. He actively promoted Pennsylvania as a refuge for persecuted religious minorities in Europe, offering them a place to practice their faith without fear of persecution. Pennsylvania became known for its religious tolerance, attracting settlers from various religious backgrounds, including Quakers, Anglicans, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Lutherans.
Presbyterianism came into Pennsylvania with the arrival of the Scotch-Irish; however, it did not gain in strength until churches were organized.
Upper Octorara Church was established in 1720 by a group of Scots-Irish immigrants. While it is located in what is now West Sadsbury Township, it was in Sadsbury Township at the time of its founding. The first regular minister, Reverend Adam Boyd, who was mentored and recommended by New England’s celebrated Cotton Mather, was ordained in the original log meeting house in 1724. He traveled by foot or on horseback going from settlement to settlement to reach his parishioners. During his 44 years as pastor, 17 daughter and granddaughter Presbyterian churches were established.
The log meeting house accidentally burned and a stone church building within adjacent session house was erected in 1738. In 1840, stones and all usable building materials from the stone church were carried across the road and used to construct the sanctuary worshipped in today.
Reverend William Foster (1768–1780) did much to stir the flames of freedom during our nation’s struggle for independence. His stimulating sermons were published and circulated in the surrounding area to arouse patriotism and keep the “fires of liberty burning.” The British attempted to capture Reverend Foster and burn down the church. However, the Reverend, with the help of neighbors, outwitted the British by leaving the territory before he could be apprehended. In the adjoining cemetery, you can find several headstones marking the remains of those who took part in this important conflict for independence.
Sadsbury Meeting: In or around 1725, this Quaker meeting was granted permission by the Quarterly Meeting to erect a meeting house. At the time of its indulgence, this area was in Chester County until 1729, when Lancaster County was organized and the Township of Sadsbury established in the newly formed County.
It was located on the edge of Lancaster County, although many of its members lived in Chester County. In 1747, a larger meeting house, the present stone building, was built. The building suffered damage during the Revolutionary War. The woodwork was burned, but Joseph Guest restored the meeting house, putting a ceiling where the galleries had been.
Methodist Meeting House: Around the year 1832, the itinerant Methodist preacher Reverend Thomas Miller held a sermon in Sadsburyille during his travels. Shortly thereafter, members of the Coatesville Methodist Episcopal Church established a mission church at that place on land given to the congregation by John Kendig and Frances Hoffman. A one-story brick structure was erected in 1833-1834 on the high ground north of the village, and a small graveyard was laid out alongside.
In spite of its early promise, the church was never particularly successful; burdened by debt, its trustees unsuccessfully tried to sell the church and grounds in 1851 and 1858. Following these unsuccessful sales, the church was closed for many years. The church experienced a revival of interest during the 1870s and 1880s, headed by entertainments and a Sunday school which many local residents remembered fondly.
But these heady days did not last. Though the church was rebuilt after it was destroyed by fire in 1894, a subsequent fire in 1901 spelled its end, and the graveyard slowly fell to ruin. By 1918, it had become overgrown by trees and was generally considered to be an eyesore in the neighborhood.
Sadsbury Chapel: The first Presbyterian Chapel was erected in 1836 through the efforts of James Latta, pastor of Upper Octorara Church. The first school of the village was organized and conducted in the Chapel basement in 1836. Miss Jennie Miller taught the pupils, who sat on long backless benches and were disciplined with a birch stick.
In 1894, the Chapel burned and was rebuilt the same year. The only items salvaged from the fire were the clapper from the bell and a bench that was subsequently kept in the Octorara Session House Museum.
Sources:
History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with Genealogical and biographical sketches, John Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope, 1881.
A retrospect of early Quakerism: being extracts from the records of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and the meetings composing it, to which is prefixed an account of their first establishment, Society of Friends Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, 1860.
https://digital.history.pcusa.org/islandora/object/islandora%3A13900
Conestoga Crossroads, Lancaster Pennsylvania 1730-1790, Jerome H. Wood Jr., 1979.
Sadsbury Township Historical Society Tricentennial booklet, 1982
