The History of St. Paul's Church

[Barbara Wright]

St Paul's Church congregation began when a small group of Milltown residents began borrowing the Methodist Church to hold their own services around 1860. This group was pastorless, but relied on the services of Reverend C. Bank of The Reformed Church of New Brunswick.

They built a wooden framed building in 1873 that they named St. Paul's Church, and united their group with the German Reformed Church of the United States. The first pastor, hired in 1875,  was Reverend G.B. Shick. The original wooden church stood until 1956, and was moved off of Main St and onto Lakewood to as Fellowship Hall when the current stone church was built in 1923. From Gary Conger, "Our granddaughters are 6th generation members of St. Paul’s Church. My grandparents Marie and Willard Garretson were the first couple married in the new (current) church building in 1924." Church member Barbara Petry also claims longstanding family membership in the church, with ancestors going back to Conrad Kohlepp, the church councils first treasurer in 1872. 

Services were held mostly in German, until in 1905 it was decided that the congregants' English speaking children would get more out of church if the prayers were said in English. By 1930, virtually all services were held in English. 

This picture was sent to members of the armed forces serving overseas in 1943. photos courtesy of Brian Harto.

Recently, the large Tiffany Glass window on the church's front wall was restored to its original beauty. 

photo from Barbara Petry