In 1843, a "pistol packin' preacher" by the name of James Suggett used a small log building to start a church in what was known as Spouts Spring, across the river from Missouri's 20-year-old state capital, Jefferson City.
Four buildings and 36 pastors later, the Union Hill Baptist Church will soon celebrate the 175th anniversary of its May 20, 1843, founding date.
Union Hill will hold a picnic at noon Sunday at Greenway Park in Holts Summit. Brother Frank Whitney, senior pastor, said the event will be a celebration instead of just an observation of the anniversary. It is open to everyone and includes free food.
Suggett founded Union Hill 18 years before the Civil War, and 27 years before Timothy Holt formed the church's permanent home of Holts Summit around his father's general goods store. It wasn't Suggett's first church in the area, Whitney said, having created New Bloomfield's Providence Baptist Church years before.
"He was a circuit rider preacher, so he basically lived on the back of his horse," Whitney said, citing the stories passed down through history at Providence. "And when he would come in and preach, he would simply set his six-guns on top of the pulpit."
At least, that's "according to legend," Whitney added.
Union Hill has many stories, and most of them are book-ended by that disclaimer, "according to legend." After 175 years, it's no surprise there could be details forgotten or exaggerations. Still, the stories make up the history of a church and its people - filled with incredible moments and times of unity.
The original log building was only around for five years. A new building was quickly built in 1848 on the property Union Hill still uses today.
As the congregation kept growing, so did the need for space. Union Hill would move to a new church, painted white, on the same grounds in 1888. In 1948, the decision was made to add a basement under the church. The building was raised up and put on blocks as construction went on underneath.
"One Sunday morning the janitor was here lighting the fire and a wind - huge wind gust - came up and it blew (the church) off the blocks they had it resting on," Brother LP Cook III said. "So the church just 'phumpf' down on the side. Legend has it, it threw the janitor out the window."
Coming together to save the church, the congregation jacked the church back up and set it back on the original spot. The building would be used for another 30-40 years, Cook added.
"It was kind of an almost legendary status story among the guys who were here because it was at a time when it seemed there might have been just a little bit of tension between folks, the way I hear the story, but coming together to raise that church back up kind of united everybody."
Cook said it wasn't until 1964 that a new brick building was built to be the new church, but the old building would continue to be used as a gym until around 1980. In 2005, Union Hill moved from the brick church into its current home.
Union Hill also has a history of supporting athletics, serving as the mother church for the Sports Crusaders, a ministry that focuses on sports evangelism. According to Cook, legend has it the church was also known for its softball team.
"The old-timers would tell you that in the '50s and '60s they had a softball team (that) couldn't be beat here," Cook said. "The men's fast-pitch softball team that they had would just beat anybody who came. Now, again, I suspect their record is embellished by those men who are still around, but they apparently had some guys who could play and who enjoyed playing."
Union Hill still has two members who claim to be descendants of James Sugget, and many of the people sharing the name of Holts Summit's founder attended the church. Although it will always have its root in history, Whitney said Union Hill has always looked to the future.
"We see ourselves as very much a progressive, on the move church, growing with our community," Whitney said. "It's really important to Union Hill to fit in Holts Summit. This is our community, this is our home. These are the people who we want to relate to and minister to."