Parsonage History

This article is from Faye Salley’s History of Mt. Olivet which can be found online at https://mtolivetumc.net/who-we-are/our-history. Written to celebrate our 175th anniversary, it contains many very interesting facts about our parsonage and church.

When Davidson Charge dropped to a four church charge the Charge Parsonage was on the Salisbury Road, today’s NC 150, on the West side "two houses" above Disher’s Store (today’s Exxon station). Reverend Sam Needham, his wife and five children lived there in 1929 when the Charge Conference voted to build a new, larger Parsonage. The Trustees acquired 4.6 acres of land on the West line of Mount Olivet for $275.00. They acquired another 0.1 acre from Mount Olivet’s Trustees for a "car barn". Material for the new educational building was already on the ground across the road.

A regular Quarterly Charge Conference in September of 1930 heard the good news that the Educational Building was complete, except for painting and chairs. A Special Charge Conference later that same September was called to consider a more serious matter. The Conference voted to ask the Church Board of Extension for $1800.00 to help with the parsonage. Brick to veneer the Sanctuary, given when the Educational Building was being built in 1930, was to remain on the ground until 1937. The stock market crash of less than a year before was apparently beginning to be felt. The Conference report for February 1932 says: "Both Parsonage fund and Educational building being struggled with". Pastor Needham and his family were the first occupants in 1931.

Pastor John Church followed Pastor Needham into the parsonage in 1932. He had a fine horse, which he rode into Winston Salem when business took him there. The new parsonage shortly had a new horse barn to go with it’s new car barn. After Pastor Church moved to a new appointment the barn was never used again except as a play house for parsonage children..

The Ladies Missionary Society took an active part in supporting the parsonage. In 1935 they paid $35. for a "cement sidewalk". In 1937 they bought curtains, recovered settees and chairs and put linoleum on the kitchen floor. The linoleum cost them $16.90 "in place". In 1949 they replaced the wood cook stove with an electric range. They bought shrubbery in 1963. Something always seemed to need painting...

In 1958 Davidson Charge became a two point charge with Centenary and Mount Olivet. The land, parsonage, and furniture were valued at $14,350. Arcadia and Good Hope were paid for their shares. That same year the parsonage furnace was changed from coal to oil. Dixie Furniture made a gift of painting for the Church and Parsonage the next year.

Mount Olivet became a station church in 1982 with 292 members. The land, parsonage and furniture was valued then at just under 60 thousand dollars. Centenary was paid for their interest and they too became a station church.

The second floor was air conditioned in 1991. While many repairs to roofs, floors, chimneys and other parts of the parsonage were done regularly over the years, the last major effort at refurbishing the parsonage was in 1998. A yard fence and a ramp were added at that time. Pastor Dan Hester and his family lived in rented quarters for three months while the work was done. The parsonage was then sixty seven years old...