Founding & History of LCC
In 1872 the pioneers who settled around what would later be the town of Leon, felt the need for a place to worship. So, they called a meeting at the Chenoweth schoolhouse which was located at the West end of High Street. On that June day, they organized a Christian Union Church (the town of Leon had not been founded yet to name the church after), which later became the present-day Leon Christian Church (LCC). Elder John Ellis was instrumental in the organization of the church and Elder E. E. Harvey served as the very first pastor. According to records, he preached here 2 Sundays a month and received $10 per month.
In 1880, church meetings were held at Musselman's Hall. The membership was about 60 at that time. On January 2, 1882, E. E. Harvey held a meeting, and a Sunday School program was organized with W. H. Wooden as Superintendent, R. B. Hathaway as Assistant, and Charles King as Secretary and Treasurer. In March 1882, it was decided a building of their own was needed for the growing membership. Jacob King donated a tract of land and a 30ft x 50ft building was built at a cost of $1,200. The new building was dedicated on November 19, 1882, and Elder Jr. Garrison, of St. Louis, preached the first sermon.
In 1889, the City of Leon was founded and was named by Charley Noe in honor of his wife, Leona, who was called Lana, as a nickname. Mr. Noe was one of the main supporters of the Leon Christian Church during his lifetime. As the many years passed, there were numerous members and families that would donate different items and monies to the church so that it could continue to serve the Lord and not have to worry about debt. There were also many different ministries and committees that members could serve on to not only strengthen their walk with Christ but to spread the Good News to the surrounding communities telling all what Jesus has done for them. From about 1915 to 1963, there were many remodels, repairs, and additions to the original church building.
At a congregational meeting on February 12, 1976, it was announced that a very generous monetary gift of $150,500 had been given by Mrs. Edna Losh, (Edna and her late husband Ted, who passed away on January 2, 1974, were members of the church) to construct a new church building. At a meeting on April 27, 1976, it was officially voted by the church congregation to build a new church building. The last service in the 94-year-old original church building was on June 20, 1976, with Pastor Art Wilson preaching the sermon. The new church building was dedicated to the Lord on June 5, 1977, with Vernon Frantz as pastor. Edna Losh fell ill and was unable to attend the dedication service. She went on to be with the Lord on June 18, 1977 and was the first funeral in the new church building that she gave to this local Body of Christ. Now 150 years later, we are still carrying on and fighting the Good Fight. We continue to stand in The Word of God and spread the Good News far and wide.