Ipswich History

The Ipswich Historical Society is sharing articles written by IHS students. The students visited the museum, researched and wrote about events, people and businesses in the community.

Ipswich’s Churches

by Ashton Loken

I chose the churches of Ipswich because it is a topic that interests me, and I really wanted to learn more about them. I looked at the Ipswich Centennial, a book with a lot of information. I learned about how Ipswich has a long history of churches, sanctuaries and different places for prayer; here is some history about four of the first churches of Ipswich.

First Baptist Church first came to Ipswich on January 20, 1884 when several families of the Baptist faith met at was then McNamara Hall, and organized a church with 13 members according to the Ipswich Centennial. The first pastor was W. T. Williams and was ordained by the church according to the Ipswich Centennial. Services were held each Sunday in McNamara Hall, until the Methodist people kindly offered the use of their building according to the Ipswich Centennial. During the time the Baptists were using the building the Methodists moved to other locations, and soon sold the building to the Baptists according to the Ipswich Centennial. The present Baptist Church is in the same building as it was when they had bought it.

The early settlers that came to Ipswich were of the Catholic faith, and started the Holy Cross Catholic Parish according to the Ipswich Centennial. They were pioneers that turned the wide open prairies into productive farms and good homes according to the Ipswich Centennial. The first mass was also offered in what was then known as McNamara Hall according to the Ipswich Centennial. McNamara Hall was found on the west side of Main Street where the present H. L. Woodworth office stood according to the Ipswich Centennial, also the hall was upstairs over the general store.

The Ipswich Congregational Church began in 1883 as a Sunday school at Freeport located one mile east and one-half mile north of what is now Ipswich according to the Ipswich Centennial. The Reverend Belt, organized the Sunday school, and he also preached according to the Ipswich Centennial. Later a union Protestant Church was organized, composed of Methodist, Baptists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Congregationalists according to the Ipswich Centennial.

The first settlers arrived in Powell, on March 22, 1883, and put up the noted Big Shanty, a 20 x 40 frame building, an acclaim occupied by the late Huge Griffith, a leading member of the Colony according to the Ipswich Centennial. This was the first frame building erected on the vast prairie west of Aberdeen and served as a hotel, church and meeting-house according to the Ipswich Centennial. Here, the settlers dined, and slept and worshipped the God who had brought them to this vast wilderness according to the Ipswich Centennial. More immigrants came in the spring of 1884, to the land not already occupied, built a large school-house, and used it as a place of worship until the church was build a littler later. This became the Powell Church according to the Ipswich Centennial.

I am very glad that I chose this topic and I learned a lot about the churches of Ipswich, old and new. Before I researched this topic I only thought there has ever been three churches, but boy was I wrong. I found so much information about the churches of Ipswich, and I cannot wait until I can share this with everybody!