Our Story
The Bee Ridge Church is believed to be the oldest, continually operating church in Clay County, Indiana having been established in 1832.
The Bee Ridge Christian (Congregational) Church was the eventual result of settlers and/or clergy attending the Cane Ridge Revival held in Cane Ridge, Kentucky in August, 1801. This revival has been described as the largest and most famous camp meeting of the Second Great Awakening and was arguably the pioneering event in the history of frontier camp meetings in America.
The attendees returned or later settled in Clay County, Indiana on a forested ridge named by the settlers for numerous “bee trees” nearby. During the period 1828-1838 many families settled in the area and the people realized the need for spiritual guidance and regular worship meetings. The first services were conducted in homes and in 1837 a log church was constructed on ground donated by a church Elder. Land adjoining the church property to the south was cleared for a cemetery also in 1837. Regular services were held once a month and other services were held by local ministers. The first baptisms by immersion were conducted at nearby Otter Creek in December 1833. The group sang “If Your Hearts Be Warm, Ice and Snow can Do No Harm” which was a Congregationalist hymn of the period. The church was also used as a school until a public school building was constructed.
The log building served the congregation until a new wood frame building was completed in 1870 on the original site. The building had a wooden bench seating capacity of nearly 250. The building included a belfry which housed a bell used for summoning the people to church services and also tolled when there was a burial in the cemetery. In 1923 this building was remodeled. A basement was added, furnace installed and walls redecorated. In 1927 the plain glass windows were replaced by memorialized stain glass. On May 30, 1936 fire was discovered at 2:30 am by someone passing by. Help was called but the building could not be saved.
Insurance payment for the destroyed building amounted to only $2,000 but a decision was made to rebuild on the same location. With the assistance of many people in the community a new brick building was dedicated on June 13, 1937 with no mortgage or debt. In April 1939 additional land to the north was purchased to expand the cemetery. Many other interior and exterior improvements to the building occurred through the years including a side entrance and wheelchair ramp for main floor access.
During the early 2000’s it was realized the brick church building was no longer large enough to accommodate the changing needs of a modern congregation. The existing land site was not large enough so nearby land was acquired for a future building at the corner of County Roads 1000 North (Hendricks Street) and 300 West. Construction began in May 2019 and the first service held in the new Bee Ridge Church building on March 15, 2020.
A more complete history and photos of Bee Ridge Church can be found in a booklet prepared in 1982 for the 150th anniversary. The booklet pages have been scanned and are available here.