Historic St. Andrew Church

Historic St. Andrew Church. The St. Andrew Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in St. Andrews in 1886 and construction of this sanctuary was completed in 1887. In 1939, $600.00 was borrowed to add the front foyer, which covered the glass panes above the door. To alleviate over-crowding in the public schools, a back addition to the building was used for classrooms during WW lI., The sanctuary housed the St. Andrew Methodist Church from 1939 until 1955, when the church built the sanctuary on 11th Street east of Frankford Avenue. The original bell is installed in the steeple there., The First Independent Methodist Church (later renamed Heritage Bible Church) purchased the building in 1970 and added a false ceiling, and cables to tie the walls together to keep them from spreading outward. In 2000, Heritage Bible Church built a new facility and moved to State Avenue., In 2007, the simple wooden clapboard building was stabilized and restored with a grant from the Florida Department of State, Bureau of Historic Preservation, and with the generous support of many friends. In 2018 Hurricane Michael destroyed the steeple and it was rebuilt as the original style, open and with a new bell, in 2023. It continues as the oldest operating church building in Bay County.