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Collection Title: CL 192 Central Christian Church CollectionCreator:Chemung County Historical Society
Processed By: Dan Weaver
Date Completed: November 2021
Provenance:
The items in this collection were donated to the Booth Library by the Central Christian Church in 2018.

Terms:
Elmira (N.Y.); Churches

Historical:
The Elmira Central Christian Church’s origins can be traced to 1893 when a group of local worshippers began meeting as an informal outgrowth of the national Disciples of Christ movement. In October 1898, the group moved to a two-story building at the corner of South Main and Partridge Streets. The group was formally incorporated in November 1898 as The First Church of Christ, Disciples, and moved into a newly-built church on the South Main St. site in 1906.

In January 1951, the organization changed its name to the Central Christian Church, though it remained a local branch of the Disciples of Christ denomination. The church remained active for the next six decades, with highlights including the establishment in the 1980s of a World Outreach Committee, responsible for significant charitable work, and the establishment in 2004 of Spanish language services (the Hispanic Ministry project). In 2013, the church legally disassociated itself from the Disciples of Christ and dissolved in 2018. Notable pastors included: Clayton Chandler Crawford (1896-1909), who served as minister to the initial Disciples of Christ group; Charles M. Kreidler (1909-1924), whose efforts were instrumental in saving the church from financial crisis in its early years; Ronald L. Parker (1970-1974) and Harry L. Taylor (1974-1981), who provided leadership in reconstruction projects following damage to the church caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972; and Ramon Osorio Jr. (2004-2011), who initiated the Hispanic Ministry project.

Scope:
The Elmira Central Christian Church contains church newsletters and annual reports, 1940s-2010s; service programs, 1930s-2017; correspondence, 1898-2017; meeting minutes, 1910-2017; administrative documents, 1896-2017; photographs and albums, 1910s-2000s; assorted documents.

Extent: 6 linear feet
Date Span: 1896-2018
Abstract:
This collection contains documents and photographs associated with the Central Christian Church of Elmira.

Filter By:
Title Document Box Number Folder Number Location
Booklet documenting individual transfers out of Elmira Central Christian Church, 2004-2010. Booklet 04 15 01
Typed memo from church historian Jake Vetter noting items added to the church's historical collection in 1985. Memorandum 04 16 01
Letters documenting the incorporation of the First Church of Christ of Elmira, N.Y.(dated October 15, 1898) and the church's change of name to Central Christian Church (1951). Letters 04 16 02
Elmira Sunday Telegram article - "Church Choir Presents Pageant on Stephen Foster's Life," dated December 1, 1940. Article 04 16 03
Typed text, "Taken from the Dedication of the Emblem, March 21, 1976." Document 04 16 04
This section contains (12) photographs including: "Our First Permanent Church-1898-Corner of S. Main and Partridge Sts"; "Original Photograph Of The Room In The Storefront Building Which Was Used For Worship, Activities, Etc. (used approximately between 1898 and 1906)"; photograph of church members with several people identified including Floyd Collson, Jessie Taylor, Vern Wells, Rev. Kreidler, Leon Goodall, Lee Draper, and Bill Collson (ca. 1910s); "Kreidler's Class-Rally Day-Sept. 30, 1917; "Oldest Living Charter Member *1959-Harry Wood, L-R- Arthur Streeter, William Collson, George Vetter, Harry Wood"; undated photograph of organist Edna McKean with church choir: Bernard Hutchinson, Floyd Stanton, Harold Peck, Leon Bailey, R.P. Collson, Max Collson, Summer White, Lillian Peterson, Ms. Hutchinson, Maudanna Robb, Louise Browning, Shirley Hovencamp; photograph of children and adult choirs (note on reverse reads "December 23, 1962, 14 years at the organ for Alice Mae"); undated photograph of women's basketball team--top row (r-l): Rev. Allen Lard, Esther Terry, Orma Stanton, Bernice Taylor, Ida Smith-Bottom row (r-l): Helen Knapp, Leola Scaffidi, Delia Dickens, Arlene Freeman; photograph of church building (reverse reads "Easter Sunday 4/21/1957"); photograph of Jay Parker upon being awarded the Eldridge Award in 1973; photograph of A.M. Laird's Bible Class, dated 1925; undated photo of cross atop church building. Photographs 04 16 05
This folder contains (22) photographs and short biographies of the following pastors: Rev. Charles M. Kreidler, Clayton Chandler Crawford, Allan M. Laird, Rev. John Francis Bellville, Rev. Charles Lane Brooks, Rev. Kelsie G. Martin, Rev. Ronald L. Parker, Rev. Harry L. Taylor, Gregory Lee Howell, Rev. Stephanie Boughton, Everett Gene Callihan, Harry L. Graham, Alan C. Hinton, Richard Elliott, Rev. Ramon Osorio Jr. Documents 04 17 01
This folder contains (15) photographs including: several undated photographs of church congregations (ca. 1940s-1950s); "Watson Homestead-October 1970--L to R: Audrey Lampman, Eunice Valez, Leola Scaffidi, Beatty Bly, Beatty Reed, Dorothy Richards"; "Casowasco Retreat Center-October 1978-L to R: Clio Ryan, Audrey Lampman, Barb Mills, Dorothy Richards, Marian Nichols, Juanita Derrig, Ginny Parker Daniels, Leola Scaffidi"; photograph of Rev. Harry L. Taylor taking a photograph of the demolition of the old Central Christian Church at 309 S. Main St. (ca. 1974-1981); Star-Gazette article with photograph dated November 4, 1997 of Mike Mowers and Elmira Central Christian Church members Larry Gray and Charles Little making wooden crosses for churches in Zimbabwe; Chemung Valley Reporter photograph dated November 1, 1995 marking Elmira Central Christian Church's one-hundredth birthday with church members Ginny Daniels, Barbara Mills, Marshall Terry, Beatty Bly, Audrey Lampman, Esther Terry, and Beryl Turner, with inset photograph of Minister Beryl Bly; undated photograph of Elmira Central Christian Church members Miza Woodward, Evelyn West, Delia Dickens, Cora Collson, Gertrude Shell, Ruth S., Barbara Mills, Leola Scaffidi, Audrey Lampman, Dorothy Richards, Beatty Bly, Dorothy Squires, and Betty Reed; Elmira Star-Gazette photograph dated April 3, 1973 of Mrs. Marshall Terry and Mrs. Jay Parker presenting a banner to Rev. Kenneth Neal of Buffalo; undated Elmira Star-Gazette photograph of Mrs. William C. Collson supervising children in the church's rebuilt nursery. Photographs 04 18 01
This photo album contains (89) photos of miscellaneous church social events, ca. 1990s-2007. Photo Album 04 19 01
This journal contains "Circle 3" meeting minutes for the years 1923-1934. Records 05 01 01
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Collection Title:	CL 192 Central Christian Church CollectionCreator:Chemung County Historical Society
Processed By:	Dan Weaver
Date Completed:	November 2021
Provenance:	The items in this collection were donated to the Booth Library by the Central Christian Church in 2018.
Terms:	Elmira (N.Y.); Churches
Historical:	The Elmira Central Christian Church’s origins can be traced to 1893 when a group of local worshippers began meeting as an informal outgrowth of the national Disciples of Christ movement. In October 1898, the group moved to a two-story building at the corner of South Main and Partridge Streets. The group was formally incorporated in November 1898 as The First Church of Christ, Disciples, and moved into a newly-built church on the South Main St. site in 1906. In January 1951, the organization changed its name to the Central Christian Church, though it remained a local branch of the Disciples of Christ denomination. The church remained active for the next six decades, with highlights including the establishment in the 1980s of a World Outreach Committee, responsible for significant charitable work, and the establishment in 2004 of Spanish language services (the Hispanic Ministry project). In 2013, the church legally disassociated itself from the Disciples of Christ and dissolved in 2018. Notable pastors included: Clayton Chandler Crawford (1896-1909), who served as minister to the initial Disciples of Christ group; Charles M. Kreidler (1909-1924), whose efforts were instrumental in saving the church from financial crisis in its early years; Ronald L. Parker (1970-1974) and Harry L. Taylor (1974-1981), who provided leadership in reconstruction projects following damage to the church caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972; and Ramon Osorio Jr. (2004-2011), who initiated the Hispanic Ministry project.
Scope:	The Elmira Central Christian Church contains church newsletters and annual reports, 1940s-2010s; service programs, 1930s-2017; correspondence, 1898-2017; meeting minutes, 1910-2017; administrative documents, 1896-2017; photographs and albums, 1910s-2000s; assorted documents.
Extent:	6 linear feet
Date Span:	1896-2018
Abstract:	This collection contains documents and photographs associated with the Central Christian Church of Elmira.

Title	Document	Box Number	Folder Number	Location

Booklet documenting individual transfers out of Elmira Central Christian Church, 2004-2010.	Booklet	04	15	01
Typed memo from church historian Jake Vetter noting items added to the church's historical collection in 1985.	Memorandum	04	16	01
Letters documenting the incorporation of the First Church of Christ of Elmira, N.Y.(dated October 15, 1898) and the church's change of name to Central Christian Church (1951).	Letters	04	16	02
Elmira Sunday Telegram article - "Church Choir Presents Pageant on Stephen Foster's Life," dated December 1, 1940.	Article	04	16	03
Typed text, "Taken from the Dedication of the Emblem, March 21, 1976."	Document	04	16	04
This section contains (12) photographs including: "Our First Permanent Church-1898-Corner of S. Main and Partridge Sts"; "Original Photograph Of The Room In The Storefront Building Which Was Used For Worship, Activities, Etc. (used approximately between 1898 and 1906)"; photograph of church members with several people identified including Floyd Collson, Jessie Taylor, Vern Wells, Rev. Kreidler, Leon Goodall, Lee Draper, and Bill Collson (ca. 1910s); "Kreidler's Class-Rally Day-Sept. 30, 1917; "Oldest Living Charter Member *1959-Harry Wood, L-R- Arthur Streeter, William Collson, George Vetter, Harry Wood"; undated photograph of organist Edna McKean with church choir: Bernard Hutchinson, Floyd Stanton, Harold Peck, Leon Bailey, R.P. Collson, Max Collson, Summer White, Lillian Peterson, Ms. Hutchinson, Maudanna Robb, Louise Browning, Shirley Hovencamp; photograph of children and adult choirs (note on reverse reads "December 23, 1962, 14 years at the organ for Alice Mae"); undated photograph of women's basketball team--top row (r-l): Rev. Allen Lard, Esther Terry, Orma Stanton, Bernice Taylor, Ida Smith-Bottom row (r-l): Helen Knapp, Leola Scaffidi, Delia Dickens, Arlene Freeman; photograph of church building (reverse reads "Easter Sunday 4/21/1957"); photograph of Jay Parker upon being awarded the Eldridge Award in 1973; photograph of A.M. Laird's Bible Class, dated 1925; undated photo of cross atop church building.	Photographs	04	16	05
This folder contains (22) photographs and short biographies of the following pastors: Rev. Charles M. Kreidler, Clayton Chandler Crawford, Allan M. Laird, Rev. John Francis Bellville, Rev. Charles Lane Brooks, Rev. Kelsie G. Martin, Rev. Ronald L. Parker, Rev. Harry L. Taylor, Gregory Lee Howell, Rev. Stephanie Boughton, Everett Gene Callihan, Harry L. Graham, Alan C. Hinton, Richard Elliott, Rev. Ramon Osorio Jr.	Documents	04	17	01
This folder contains (15) photographs including: several undated photographs of church congregations (ca. 1940s-1950s); "Watson Homestead-October 1970--L to R: Audrey Lampman, Eunice Valez, Leola Scaffidi, Beatty Bly, Beatty Reed, Dorothy Richards"; "Casowasco Retreat Center-October 1978-L to R: Clio Ryan, Audrey Lampman, Barb Mills, Dorothy Richards, Marian Nichols, Juanita Derrig, Ginny Parker Daniels, Leola Scaffidi"; photograph of Rev. Harry L. Taylor taking a photograph of the demolition of the old Central Christian Church at 309 S. Main St. (ca. 1974-1981); Star-Gazette article with photograph dated November 4, 1997 of Mike Mowers and Elmira Central Christian Church members Larry Gray and Charles Little making wooden crosses for churches in Zimbabwe; Chemung Valley Reporter photograph dated November 1, 1995 marking Elmira Central Christian Church's one-hundredth birthday with church members Ginny Daniels, Barbara Mills, Marshall Terry, Beatty Bly, Audrey Lampman, Esther Terry, and Beryl Turner, with inset photograph of Minister Beryl Bly; undated photograph of Elmira Central Christian Church members Miza Woodward, Evelyn West, Delia Dickens, Cora Collson, Gertrude Shell, Ruth S., Barbara Mills, Leola Scaffidi, Audrey Lampman, Dorothy Richards, Beatty Bly, Dorothy Squires, and Betty Reed; Elmira Star-Gazette photograph dated April 3, 1973 of Mrs. Marshall Terry and Mrs. Jay Parker presenting a banner to Rev. Kenneth Neal of Buffalo; undated Elmira Star-Gazette photograph of Mrs. William C. Collson supervising children in the church's rebuilt nursery.	Photographs	04	18	01
This photo album contains (89) photos of miscellaneous church social events, ca. 1990s-2007.	Photo Album	04	19	01
This journal contains "Circle 3" meeting minutes for the years 1923-1934.	Records	05	01	01
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