Jun 28, 2009 6:30 pm US/Central
Century-Old Small Town Church Closes Doors
DUNDAS, Minn. (WCCO) ―
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The Church of the Holy Cross is in Dundas, Minn.
CBS
For more than a century every Sunday a Minnesota community has called a small church home. But hard economic times have forced Holy Cross Episcopal Church to close. It's in Dundas, just south of Northfield.
The church held its last service Sunday morning. It was full of both current and former church members. Mary Spratt came to visit from Fulton, Missouri.
"The big old trees, the little cemetery, there are a lot of very happy memories here," she said.
Almost 140 years worth of memories are attached to the little church.
"I think if these walls could talk, there are a lot of stories that would be told. The weddings, funerals, activities for kids, all the things that have gone on here for the years," said Nancy Haan, a member of the church vestry.
Church of the Holy Cross was founded in the late 1800s by the Archibald family, who owned the mill in town. They believed the town needed its own church and many other families helped build it, including Nancy Haan's great-grandparents.
The parish was consecrated by the Episcopal church in 1870. Haan and other church leaders had to make the painful decision to close.
"It was very hard, we had a lot of tears, a lot of prayers. We tried to come together and think prayerfully and not make a rash decision," she said.
The church's active membership had dwindled to about 30 and with the recession there seemed no way they could keep the doors open. The congregation and many former members said goodbye at the last service.
"It was very emotional for me, it was a very triumphant service, a very beautiful service. It was also very emotional because we know the church for time being won't be meeting for worship," explained Spratt.
Spratt grew up in this church, met her husband here and was married here. But she thinks it's the whole community that will feel the loss.
"It's been a community center, it's been a place where people came for good times and for very sad times," she said.
Her husband George was the pastor here for a couple of years in the 1950s. He wanted to be here for the last service, but not necessarily to say goodbye to the old church.
"I don't think you could say goodbye, you say goodbye to people, that's the main thing, if you have to," said Rev. George Spratt.
For Haan, the church has never known life without the church. She feels like it's a death in the family.
"It will always be where I attend church, even if I'm in another building somewhere. It will always going to be a part of me," she said.
Some of the Holy Cross congregation will be going to the Episcopal churches in Northfield and Faribault. The building is on the national register of historic places. It may still serve the Episcopal community as a retreat or office space.
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