Date in stone of original church building. Date in stone of church addition.
It was 1772 when the first of John Wesley's "Circuit Rider" missionaries set foot in the pristine valley where the villages of Cornwall were growing. Many of the people in this area were British immigrants who had come to Cornwall to find employment in the mines and at the furnace. They were seeking a spiritual fellowship where English was the favored language. Most churches in the area at that time were German speaking congregations.
By 1793 there was an established congregation and in 1832 the church was given the land where the current building stands. The first church building, a small brick structure, was replaced by the original part of our current structure in 1877. Commissioned by the Coleman family, the structure displays a craftsmanship that has withstood the test of time. Planned by the same architect who designed Philadelphia's City Hall, the edifice is constructed of limestone from the Donaghmore quarries and trimmed with brown sandstone from the Cornwall estate.
Today, increased needs of an active congregation have been met by the addition in 1998 of a spacious new wing. Equipped with an elevator and a corridor to the sanctuary, three floors of space include a fellowship hall with kitchen, classrooms, offices and a church library. Many groups and activities keep the entire building busy throughout the week.
The building and its history are significant only because of the role it has played in bringing the message of Jesus Christ to the people who live in this area. Our early predecessors had no building at all but brought hope to all they touched. Today the mission is the same. The tools we have to reach out to children, youth and adults are indeed a blessing for which we are very thankful. But it has always been the people of the Cornwall Church who have made the difference.
