Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Historic Church Waxes, Wanes, Comes Full Circle
The Churches of West Washington County
PRAIRIE GROVE — At somewhere around 132 years old, Prairie Grove Christian Church has been a waxing, waning and now definitely waxing presence in the town for longer than the town has been incorporated.
Church records show land was purchased in May 1885, at the southeast corner of Bush and Kate Smith streets to build a sanctuary for First Christian Church of Prairie Grove. Prairie Grove became an incorporated town three years later in 1888.
The Original Building
It’s not clear what happened to the original sanctuary, but the building that still stands at the downtown location was built in 1928, according to church history, which also says, “For many years, it was the only place in town with a kitchen and room for banquets.” Records state a 1970 addition opened up 10 classroom spaces and many church dinners were served in the basement.
Pastor Vance Eubanks, with the church since 2001, brought out a church ledger from the earliest years he and his wife Lynda found when they were going through boxes. One monthly record of donations in 1892 showed the church received $18.30. Eubanks said now the church operates on a budget just over $1 million.
The Bush and Kate Smith location rests in a neighborhood of Victorian and more modern houses, with several other churches visible a block or two away in various directions. Sidewalks connect them all to each other and to the main street through downtown. The narrow streets are smooth and even, and cars take turns moving through the four-way stop with few drivers noticing the old church building and its crumbling walkways, sidewalks and torn and ragged lace curtains in the glass front doors.
Craig Campbell, a member since 1973, remembers the damp propensities of the basement. He said sometime in the 1980s, a pump failed to kick in, and people arrived at church to find all the acoustical ceiling tiles in the sanctuary had fallen onto pews and the floor.
Church Growth
Campbell said his wife Kathy has been a member since 1970, and he said in the early ‘70s, the congregation totaled about 35 to 40 members. “I remember that there were about nine women to every man, and there were few children,” Campbell said.
The church history states “average attendance … was 30” in 1980, but by 1990, it had quadrupled to 120.
Current church administrator Sarah Kahl, a member of the church since 1990, remembers only about 70 members at that time, which attests to the challenges written histories can encounter.
Campbell credits the leadership of Harley Ihm, pastor from 1985 to 1987, and Monte Shoemake, pastor from 1987 to 2001, with the growth of the church. Campbell said, “Harley set up good leadership, and Monte built on it.”
In 1994, in what seemed a radical move at the time, the church leadership purchased eight acres of land from Wayne Villines just under one mile east of the Bush and Kate Smith location, directly across the highway from the Prairie Grove Battlefield Park’s east lawn and up the hill from a liquor store.
Campbell and Kahl both said that when the church bought land so far away from downtown “out in a big hayfield,” people “thought we were crazy.”
At that time, U.S. Highway 62 was the main route through town and the bypass was many years away. Now, U.S. Highway 62, commonly known as the Prairie Grove bypass, Highway 62B and Wayne Villines Road create a rough triangle for the church’s 16-acre grounds.
A gravel road recently was extended from the bypass to the church grounds, which offers quicker access. In today’s car-oriented society, the one-mile difference from the old downtown location seems miniscule.
Name Change
Eubanks said the church changed its name with the move and became Prairie Grove Christian, an autonomous, non-denominational church with instrumental music. Membership totals have grown to between 650 and 700, and the church serves all of western Washington County.
Eubanks said the sanctuary, which has a large stained glass feature behind the pulpit and an octagonal, wooden ceiling that rises high to a point and is framed in dark exposed beams, was built by Eldridge Management Co., from Stilwell, Okla.
The church has added several education wings and extensions for various age groups and activities, built a separate building for teens and is currently expanding its foyer to better accommodate the shift of congregants between each Sunday service. Classrooms for the young are painted and decorated according to themes including outer space and the ocean.
The name change of the church in 1994 was seen as “a new name for a new generation,” Eubanks said, adding the church as a whole seeks to be a “true spirit for Prairie Grove.” The church motto, “Love God, Love Others, Serve Others,” is stenciled onto the back wall of the sanctuary for congregants to see and remember as they leave Prairie Grove Christian Church, an historic church with a young attitude and youthful spirit.