History

 

During the summer of 1883 a traveling evangelist, a Mr. Jones, held services in old Bethel Church. At one of the services, s group of eight people told the evangelist they wished to organize a Methodist Church. Mr. Jones then held services for this group in a room over Mrs. Julian Westmoreland's  store. This was the beginning of the Methodist Church in Woodruff.

 

Mrs. Westmoreland succeeded in getting the Woodruff congregation accepted by the Reidville Church as a mission project in 1884. The Reverend R.R. Dagnell, pastor, came to Woodruff once a month, using the room over the Westmoreland store for services.

 

The Woodruff Methodists constructed their first church - a small one-room frame building with vestibule, belfry, and rose colored stained glass windows on West Georgia Street in 1895-96.

 

In 1896 the family of W.S. Gray (Emma Swink Gray) became very active in the work of the Methodist Church. The present Methodist Church was named in honor of this fine woman.

 

In 1909 the Woodruff church became a "station," having been dropped as a mission church in 1906. In 1910 the Methodists bought the original Presbyterian church building and renovated it for use as a parsonage.

 

Plans were made in 1915 to erect a new Methodist church building in Woodruff. During construction o f the new granite building on West Georgia Street the congregation shifted to temporary quarters in a storage room over John S. Roger's store, now Reimer's Department Store.

 

Finally in 1920 the granite church was completed. In 1940 a new parsonage was built, located near the church. The church was renovated in 1952 and in 1958 major work was done on the sanctuary. In the process, the building was air conditioned and redecorated.

 

In 1962 a parking area was constructed, along with a small building behind the church called the Hut, used for the men's Bible class and for youth activities.

 

In 1963 the R. Edwin Lanford Agency donated a tract of land to the church so that the members would have access to both Georgia and Hayne Streets.

 

A beautiful new parsonage was bought in 1973. It is located on Edgewood Circle. The Reverend Robert Boggs is present pastor of the Emma Gray Church.