Columbia Methodist Episcopal Church, South

Columbia Methodist Episcopal Church, South. . , Side 1 , History suggests that, in the early 1820's, circuit riding preachers from the South Carolina Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church arrived in the newly settled town of Columbia. Assigned to the Early County Mission in Georgia, these men served settlements on both sides of the Chattahoochee River. About 1832, a one room Methodist preaching house was established about two blocks west of this site. In 1889, a wooden structure at this location was completed at a cost of $2,000 and the first service was conducted on July 14 by Rev. J. M. Brown. The church was dedicated on September 27, 1891, at the close of the 11 o'clock service. In 1949, the building was bricked and annexes were added in 1956 and 1979., Side 2 , On June 26, 1883, a Good Templers Lodge was organized at the church with about 25 members to promote temperance in the community. Prominent church members have included: Rev. Alpheus Reid Adams (1859-1933), a Methodist preacher of early churches in Barbour and (old) Henry County; Dr. John Fletcher Yarbrough (1864-1950), who was involved in work to eradicate pellagra; Mr. William L. Lee (1873-1944), a distinguished attorney who served southeast Alabama; Bishop Clare Purcell (1884-1964) who was elected President of the Council of Bishops; and Dr. William Graham Echols (1892-1982), minister and professor of religion at a number of colleges and universities.