By: Mary E. Mortimer
On October 27, 2024, the Redemption Bible Church, formerly known as the Logansville Christian and the Logansville Community Church, will celebrate its 200th anniversary. The following excerpt is from the History of the Logansville Church written by church members.
In the summer of 1815, a circuit-riding preacher of the New Light or Christian Faith from Cane Ridge, Kentucky visited the early settlement of Logansville. The meeting was held at a farmhouse and was well attended by the local settlers. The meetings were routinely held with various preachers until 1824. At that time, the families of the original pioneers united in the formation of the first religious society in Pleasant Township. Not long afterward a log meeting house was built in Logansville.
A few years later, a society of Presbyterians was formed in the Logansville area. In early 1876, the Presbyterians and the Logansville Christian Church united in the construction of a comfortable framed church. The church building was completed and dedicated on October 16, 1876, by Rev. Mickols Eumerbell, and Thomas Heston, the first pastor.
In 1898, the church was remodeled, and the front vestibule and back alcove were added.
In the years 1921-1922, the church dining room and kitchen were finished, and rooms were added to either side of the vestibule. The church had a rededication celebration on Sunday, July 10, 1921, by Rev. W. H. Thompson of Sidney, the regular pastor.
The 125th anniversary was held on November 13, 1949, with a full day of entertainment, gospel singing, and a carry-in dinner. The house across the road from the church was purchased for a parsonage in 1963. The next year, stained glass windows were installed in the church and a new cement floor was poured in the basement.
For the church’s 150th anniversary in 1974, a new belfry was constructed to replace the deteriorating structure, and additional improvements were made. Restrooms and a nursery were added to the church in 1982. That same year, three acres of farm ground adjoining the church was purchased from Leo Knight.
By the fall of 1984, membership at the Logansville Christian Church was less than twenty. The faithful few faced the sad possibility of the church closing reality as they were not able to pay the pastor’s salary and expenses.
While church members Anita Rohrer and Luella Baughman were attending the local Christian Women’s Club, they learned about Village Missions. In January 1985, their prayers were answered when Village Missions sent Rev. Larry Shetenhelm to pastor their church. In 1986, the church members voted to change the name to the Logansville Community Church.
By 1989, the old church became too small for the increasing congregation. Plans were made in January 1990 to construct a new larger church nearby. The church was completed and dedicated on January 21, 1991. The next year, the parsonage was sold, and a new one was constructed on County Road 24.
During the school months, the Church provided Awana and Word of Life bible study programs for children and teenagers, these programs continued until the early 2000’s.
On August 8, 1999, church members, friends, and neighbors gathered to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the Logansville Church. Over the next ten years, they had several pastors, and although church attendance dwindled, they remained stable in their worship services and outreach ministries.
In January 2012, Dana Kidder came from New Hampshire to fill the pulpit. Once again Logansville had a minister who was enthusiastic about the Lord and the members of the congregation. Attendance slowly began building and there was new spiritual growth.
By 2014, the old 1876 church building had gone into significant disrepair and the decision was made to raze it.
Starting in about 2016, a considerable number of visitors came to the Logansville church. These were families who were seeking a church dedicated to simple worship in spirit and truth, with expository preaching at the center of the service, and membership grew substantially.
Starting in January 2020, the church also began live-streaming its sermons. This became very beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic. The congregation was equipped with “home liturgies” with passages of scripture to read, hymns to sing, and prayer requests. During the COVID crisis, the Logansville Church grew in attendance. Generosity among the members, both in helping one another and giving to the church treasury, never waned during the entire crisis. Once it was safe to meet at the church again, they began twice-monthly carry-in lunches so that the members and visitors could meet each other and begin to develop connections.
It soon became apparent that the church needed more space, especially for Sunday School classrooms. The elders and deacons agreed that something needed to be done, but adding to the meeting house was complicated, expensive, and time-consuming.
In early 2022, the opportunity came to purchase the former Jubilee Mennonite Church building in Bellefontaine. It seemed to have everything that Logansville Church needed. The only issue was leaving the plot of land where the church had worshipped since its inception. The elders weighed this decision heavily and decided that the move to Bellefontaine would be better than trying to creatively add on to the current building. They then began the journey to Bellefontaine for the first time in its history.
The spring of 2022 was spent doing many internal renovations to the new church building. After much discussion, the elders ruled that the church’s name needed to be changed if they were no longer meeting in Logansville. It was decided that the Logansville Community Church would be renamed the Redemption Bible Church. As of mid-year 2024, attendance averages 180-200 a week, a number that the church would never have dreamed of in the past. The ministry of Redemption Bible Church has always been family-oriented, with services, programs, and activities for all ages. The name of the church has changed, but the heart of the church remains strong, faithful, and loving.
For more information visit their website at https://rbcbellefontaine.com/ or their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RBCBellefontaine.
A special thank you to Redemption Bible Church Paster Dana Kidder and church members Kim Comer, Matt Jones, and Sandra Jones for sharing their church history and photos.
Visit the Logan County History Center at 521 E. Columbus Ave., Bellefontaine, Ohio 43311, to learn more interesting aspects of Logan County History. The History Center is open for tours Wednesday – Sunday from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm.
