This history is excerpted from the book "The Walk" prepared in commemoration of Neelsville's sesquicentennial year in 1995. Topics covered are:
Origins, 1845-1878: Montgomery County was originally part of Prince George's, and then Frederick Counties. Germans from Pennsylvania settled the valleys near Frederick as early as 1710. Frederick county's "centre was occupied by a industrious mechanical and agricultural people, comprised chiefly of Germans, while the lower district (now Montgomery) was settled and filled with an English people." (Scarf). The earliest settlers (1802) at Neelsville may have been the Hughes, a Quaker family, who ran the "Tavern House" inn. The tavern was sold, in 1818, to Joseph Neel of Lancaster, Pennsylvania and renamed Neel's Tavern. The property was on the Great Road (now Route 355), the main road from Washington to the West.
Joseph Neel and William Musser, of Rockville Presbyterian Church, determined to build a Presbyterian church in their vicinity. Neel donated the lot and $50 toward the building at the southern end of the Neel property. Church members came from Laytonsville, Darnestown, Germantown, the present Montgomery Village and Boyds areas, and Middlebrook. In 1845, the Presbytery of the District appointed the Rev. Elias Harrison and John Miller to organize the church. The original 30' by 24' log cabin stood were the cemetery is now. In 1856 the Presbytery of Baltimore changed the church name to Neelsville and Darnestown Church. The joint congregation had 28 members and a budget of $400. Andrew Small, in 1865, gave $5000 in stock to the church(es) with the interest "devoted to the part payment of the salary of the Pastor of the church ..." In 1870, the funds and real estate were divided between the two churches. By the next year each congregation had its own minister. Presbyterians value education and schools related to the Rockville and Darnestown churches preceded the free county school system established in 1866. Session records do not mention the Civil War, even though the road from Washington was trafficked by opposing armies. Perhaps an effort was made to remain neutral as a church and not make record of activities that might favor one side. Top
The White Church, 1878-1933: The white frame church, still standing, was occupied in 1878. Congregational meetings from 1878 were occasionally interspersed with meetings for male members only, until the restriction was declared unconstitutional in 1894. Church expenses from 1878-79, include: $7.72 for Sunday School books, $2.00 for Presbyterial expenses, $16.68 for coal and freight, $10.00 for the organ, $6.00 for church music, $6.56 for hymnals, $9.52 for insurance, $1.75 to reinvest bonds and quarterly pastor payments ranging from $125 to $21. The church roof was replaced in 1883 for $4.00. In 1897 a congregational meeting elected five delegates to the Anti-Saloon League in Gaithersburg. In this era church members were subject to disciplinary action for unchristian behavior. A member was suspended from communion for contempt of the session. Several men were "charged by common fame with unchristian or immoral conduct." One of the accused appeared before the session, and pleaded guilty to drunkenness. He was suspended, admonished, told to abstain, and if he met repentance, granted permission to return in six months for reinstatement. Support of higher education was evident in contributions to the Freedman's group for colleges. In 1911 the session recommended William Mellot to the Presbytery and Board of Education for financial aid for the next school year. Later, in 1918, they approved $50 to assist Mellot at Western Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh. In 1913, the trustees ordered that wiring be installed for electricity if it came to Germantown. Top
The Sabbath School, 1931-1965: Membership in 1931 was 120. Dramatic growth of 42 new members in 1932 and 14 the next year is attributed to the ministry of Rev. Kundahl. A new Sabbath School was built and dedicated in 1933 to serve the needs of the growing congregation. Rev. Kundahl was a reformed alcoholic who had made good use of neon signs working in urban ministries. In 1935 he suggested that NPC put up a neon cross. An anonymous donor supplied the money and Jake Snyder, a church member and electrician, installed it. The neon cross has served as a welcome beacon to travelers arriving home after a long trip as well as to pilots flying at night. There was no plumbing in the White Church until the kitchen and basement classroom were added in 1953. It was common in those days for wealthy D.C. residents to escape from the summer heat of Washington to rural areas such as Germantown. Harry Hoskinson was one such who came to church in a chauffeured limousine. Dorsey Unglesbee recalls, "He was another gentleman that was almost always in evening dress with his striped pants and swallow tailed coat," the other gentleman being Rev. Kundahl. During these years both heroes and villains were buried in Neelsville's cemetery. The Carnegie Medal for Bravery was awarded to Alexander F. Dunn, killed in 1926 while trying to save the life of a child. The most infamous person buried here was Vernon Thompson, the last man hanged in Montgomery County. After a long feud, Thompson dynamited a neighbor's house, killing the neighbor and two children. Top
Continued Growth, 1965-1975: A new Christian Education building was occupied in 1965. Worship was moved from the White Church to the educational building in 1966. The new facility was put to good use for the needs of the community. Boy Scout Troop 489 was sponsored in 1966. Alcoholics Anonymous also began meeting at the church in 1966. A weekly Sunday radio ministry over WHMC commenced in 1967. In 1968 the Clothes Closet started using the old Sabbath School to distributing clothing for needy families. In 1972, the old White Church was restored at a cost of $8700 and we returned to it for worship. In 1972 a committee began plans for a new sanctuary; ground was broken in 1974; and the first worship service in our new brick sanctuary was held on December 14, 1975. Top
TheRecent Era, 1975-Present: The new sanctuary was occupied during the ministry of Rev. Stan Bliss's from 1975 - 1983. Rev. Gary Hanson served as pastor from 1985 - 1996. In those years Neelsville was one of the 25 fastest growing Presbyterian churches in the country; membership increased from 234 in 1985 to 484 in 1993. Facilities continued to be shared with the community. The White Church was rented to Messiah Lutheran Church in 1976, and to the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit in 1984. The McIntyre Day Care Program began using the building in 1981. The sanctuary was upgraded and the administrative wing built in 1990. Many of our current programs began in this era, including: the prayer chain (1975), shepherding groups (1976), communicants classes (1981), Germantown HELP (1985), hand-bell choir and CROP walk (1988), and two Sunday services (1989). Local and global mission activities were strong in these years; 20,000 items were distributed by the Clothes Closet in 1987. A full-time Director of Christian Education (Marilyn Johns) was added to the staff in 1994. Technological innovations seen in these years include copy machines (1982), movie projector (1985), VCR (1987), computer (1988), and security system (1995). Membership currently stands at about 500, and the old Sabbath School building was refurbished in 1997 to provide added classroom space for continued growth in our Christian Education programs. Our current pastor, Rev. Christopher Yim arrived at Neelsville in July 1998. Top
The Bell: In 1900, a small chapel was built on Old Germantown Road (Route 118) to serve the congregation during winter when traveling to Neelsville was difficult. Dr. and Mrs. William Carl, in-laws of pastor T.D. Richards, donated a bell for the chapel where it hung until 1936. With completion of the Sabbath School in 1933, the chapel was sold and the bell was stored in a shed behind the manse. Little attention was paid to the bell until 1965 when the manse was sold and the bell was missing. Unbeknownst to the church, the bell found its way to a Rockville scrap yard where it was purchased in 1969 by Eugene Sorrels for his wife, who collected bells. The Sorrels sold their house in 1977 to move to Pennsylvania. The realtor happened to be a member of our session and recognized the bell. The church tried to buy it back but Mrs. Sorrels was not interested in selling. In 1986, the church decided to try retrieving the bell again. The bell was traced to Pennsylvania; Dave and Dorothea Chamberlain found it and negotiated its return;. Harold Hargett bought a replacement bell; and Dave Henry and his son-in-law, Andy Hannon, brought the bell home in 1987. It is now sits in the narthex where it is rung with a cow-hide mallet because the clapper rings too loud for inside. Top