“Sometime in the fall of 1924, the members of the church, living
in and around Harvest, Alabama, came together and made plans for the
building of a meeting house in the town of Harvest.” These were the
words recorded by Mrs. James Edward Anderson. The Anderson family
and the families of J.E. Hollingsworth, W.E. Edwards, and W.R.
McFarlen met to plan a meeting house that was soon to become a
reality.
The land upon which the meeting house was erected was deeded to the
Church of Christ at Harvest on December 1, 1924. With funds of
$783.35 given by members of the community of Harvest and the
surrounding area, a 30’ x 60’ one room wooden structure was built.
March 8, 1925, marked the day of the first worship service in the
new meeting house. The contribution on that particular Sunday was
$12, due to the irregularly high attendance by area residents. In
the months which followed, the total contribution was normally less
than $1 with an average attendance of 20 people. Services during the
first years were only held on Sunday mornings due to the time and
effort it took for members to get to services.
The one room structure was furnished sparsely. Heat was a wood
stove. There was a platform and podium for the preacher. Light came
from oil and gas lamps. Temperatures were extreme – cold in the
winter and hot in the summer. Windows provided some circulation
during the warm months, but it was still unbearable at times.
Funeral homes provided fans that would have their advertisements on
them and those would be used to fan with when the room was too hot.
Seating was comprised of several plank style bench pews in the
beginning – there were a few to each side at the front facing inward
to each other and the preacher, and then several from back to front
facing the preacher.
Born in 1932, Mrs. Ermogene Anderson Laxson, recalled the early day
at Harvest. Her father, James Edward Anderson, was an elder when the
congregation began. She shared memories of her childhood in the
church building and how things were through her eyes. “The
collection plate was referred to as the ‘penny cup’ because a penny
was normally what we gave as a child.” The Lord’s table had a
starched white cloth on it, and a second starched white cloth was
always laid over the Lord’s Supper. For years she thought the cloth
was a scriptural commandment because it was such a sacred routine as
she watched her mother wash and starch the cloth so carefully in
preparation, but it was used more for sanitary reasons to keep away
the flies. The unleavened bread was homemade, of course, since it
couldn’t be bought in those days. The cup, the fruit of the vine,
was a single glass of juice. Each member would take a sip and pass
on to the next member. When the individual glass communion cups came
along, she thought it was the greatest thing even though they did
have to be washed every week – not to mention the convenience of the
disposable cups used today.
All classes were conducted in the one room of the building. There
would be a class in each corner for various ages of youth and the
adult class would meet in the middle. You learned quickly to listen
closely in order to hear because every class tried to keep things as
quiet and orderly as possible in their respective areas. Mrs. Laxson
said, “You had to be good because your parents could see and hear
you. You were right out in the open.”
“There was no baptistry at the time. We went to the creek if anyone
wanted to be baptized. There were no restrooms inside the structure.
A wooden shack, ‘out-house,’ was located out behind the building.”
“When it came time to go to church, we always wore our best ‘Sunday
clothes,’ as we called them as children, and had our hair fixed up
nice. Going to church was a special time and was not treated
lightly. It was important to look your best for the Lord.”
There were a few cars in the community, but in those earliest days
most people walked or rode in a mule or horse drawn buggy or wagon.
Some families walked as much as three miles one way to services. It
was quite different than the hurried pace of getting to church in
just a few minutes that we take for granted today. And the weather
was obviously an obstacle, but you came just the same – rain or
snow. On cold winter mornings, a fire had to be built to warm the
room before the service began.
“Daddy and Mother usually kept the preacher at our house,” Mrs.
Laxson says, “when we had meetings - which we always enjoyed. I have
always enjoyed being with the preachers and still do today.” The
gospel meeting usually lasted anywhere from 10 days to two weeks.
There would be large crowds to attend from the community and other
areas. Because of the crowding, many times the children would sit on
the platform stage that the preacher stood upon. There were large
crowds outside as well. Some people wouldn’t want to come inside the
building so they would stand outside and congregate near the windows
and listen to the service.
After the day services of the meetings, one family from the
congregation would prepare lunch for all and you would go to their
house for a meal. This would be the routine for most of the meeting
as everyone visited from house to house. “You really got to know
your ‘church family’ in that way. Everyone looked forward to this
time of the year.” It was usually in July after all the men had laid
bye their crops since most families farmed in the community.
As the church at Harvest grew through the years, the building grew
along with it. Electricity came in the 1940’s first giving the
building new light. There were structural additions such as the
baptistry, restrooms, classrooms, foyer, and nursery. The building
was bricked in the early 1960’s. Heating and cooling systems were
also added.
Today we are only faintly reminded of the history of the original
building. Our history is important in understanding the mission of
spreading God’s word and knowing that His glory and bringing others
to Him is our sole purpose as we grow in this building today. We
must all remember that the Church of Christ at Harvest still stands
upon the same foundation today as it did in 1925 – a foundation
built upon the Lord.
