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Faith and Fifty Dollars

    In the Spring of 1932, the Women's Auxilliary of Old St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, sent $50 to the Rev. David Trimble, then Rector of St. Matthew's Parish, Oakland,  At that time, $50 was a considerable sum, and Rev. Trimble decided to consult with Bishop Helfenstein about how it could be used.  The bishop promised an additional $50 which brought the total to enough money to support a theological student who could develop a new congregation under Trimble's direction the following summer.  The venture was clearly experimental, but Samuel Johnston, then a candidate for Holy Orders, was appointed to the task.  For two months he worked at Wilson and Altamont, two settlements located at the summit of the Seventeen-Mile Grade of the B&O Railroad.  This was a strictly rural community, consisting of farmers and railroad folks, and lacking in adequate Church ministrations.  The local one-room schoolhouse provided temporary housing for the newly organized church school and simplified church services.  It was a promising start.

    The following summer, Judge and Mrs. George Stewart Brown, summer residents and Presbyterians, who owned a large tract of land, offered the growing congregation a lot for a church and sufficient chestnut timber for a building if the members desired to build a chapel of their own.  The offer was accepted and an architect donated the plans and friends volunteered labor, materials and furnishings.  The cornerstone was laid on August 15, 1933 by Mrs. Brown, with three hundred people in attendance at the ceremony.

    A year later, the church was consecrated by the Bishop of Maryland and a large confirmation class was presented at the same time.  The church was named Our Father's House, after the name of a chapel in Ethete, Wyoming, but Western Maryland tradition has referred to it as The Log Church.

    For many years the church was open year 'round.  Today it serves as a quaint summer chapel for the residents and visitors to Deep Creek Lake, open from mid-June through Labor Day.  The simplicity of its construction and the faith which built it still speak deeply to the simple sense of the Spirit which dwells in all of us.



The Log Church opens for the 2006 Summer Season June 25, 10AM

 

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This site was last updated June 5, 2006
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