Edgewood UMC, serving Hawkins Co. for 136 years

Yet another Hawkins County church with a very long history is the Edgewood United Methodist Church, located at 144 Tunnell Hill Rd. in Rogersville. The church first opened its doors in 1890.

The church is located about 1/4 mile from Burem Road. Way back, Mr. William Bussell donated three acres of land for the church to be built. At the time, the land Bussell donated was full of trees. Men who were interested in building a church cut a number of these trees. These dedicated men cut and trimmed the trees. They then cut the trees into usable lumber, and built the building themselves, using the resources that were already available on the land. They used chairs of their own, benches, or whatever they could in order to worship. Later, they used the trees again, and cut the lumber in order to make the pews for the church.

More than a century after its beginning, a lady I spoke with indicated when she moved from another location, she found Edgewood in a bit of disarray, and there were only four or five people who went to church there.

They were having monetary problems. One example is that the people wanted to display an American and a Christian flag. However, they could not afford them. After several offerings, the $300 was donated for the flags. This began the building and rebuilding of the church. The pews of the church looked sad and were difficult to sit on. They called an upholsterer, and he wanted a $1,600 deposit so that he could order the items needed. This deposit would include the cushioning and fabric. They chose the color raspberry for the pews and a similar color for the carpet. They prayed fervently, and the offering came in above what they needed. The upholsterer then came out and covered them on site. This cost about $2,900. The Lord was providing.

Through the years, the Lord has continued to provide. For many years, there were no indoor bathrooms. The outhouses were on the right side of the church. This was finally rectified around 2000, when a well was dug and indoor bathrooms came into existence. Improvements have continued. They have done a new roof, new electrical wiring, and new windows. They built a picnic shelter and converted part of it into a kitchen and dining area. This dining area is used today in order to serve the community. Every Sunday, they provide meals for lunch. They bring covered dishes and all kinds of food. They invite and welcome everyone.

Other improvements were made in 2020 and 2021. Other things they have done include putting in a heat pump, blacktopping the driveway and redoing the bad flooring. Through these many, many years, they have spent about $80,000 on improvements. Improvements always help. When a need has arisn, God has always provided. There are now beautiful flowers in the sanctuary. Also a gentleman who does wonderful woodworking has carved a prayer out of wood. It says “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” That is knowledge and skill. All these years the Lord has continued to provide.

Through these many years, there have been several pastors. Their current pastor is Floyd Ward. In addition, he is the pastor at Dodson Creek Church in Strahl. Also, he is a bivocational pastor.

This church is a close-knit group. They are now running about 25 to 30 people. They are like family. This group is the church family. They have a wonderful relationship. This churches history should be a great example to other small churches!