First Methodist Episcopal Church

First Methodist Episcopal Church. Old Academy Drive. , In 1811, the Methodist Society was formed in Blairstown. In 1838, John I. Blair donated the land on which this First Methodist Episcopal Church stood. The church was a plain stone structure, with Gothic windows and two front doors that opened into the audience room. The building was rough cast, similar to the old Academy, and had neither spire nor belfry. The Old church or meeting house was built in 1838 at the total cost of $1,638 and dedicated about November 1st., By 1873, the old church had become dilapidated and the congregation had grown very small. It was decided to replace the existing church and in August of 1873 the corner stone of the new church was laid. Upon completion the building measured 40 x 60 feet in size and cost $7,400. The church was dedicated in January of 1875, by Reverends Dun, Buttz, and Mayham (pastor). The bell for the edifice was presented by Hon. John I. Blair. The steeple clock was purchased and put in place by the community. The Bible and hymnal for the pulpit were presented by Mrs. Sophia S. Vass., On Sunday night, May 22, 1955, the townspeople noticed flames pouring from the steeple. A fire was sweeping through the church. Fire Chief Babbitt and the Blairstown Hose Company saw the immediate need to call three outside fire companies. This decision saved the adjacent parsonage and the Branigan home however, the church structure was a total loss. Gone was the church, along with town clock and bell that had rung throughout the Paulinskill Valley for eighty years. As a result of the fire, the Methodist congregation relocated and built the church that now stands on Stillwater Road. Today, the original concrete steps are the only remaining evidence of the Methodist Episcopal Church that once stood so visibly on the hill.