Welcome to the East Pittston & Randolph United Methodist Churches

Randolph United Methodist Church and East Pittston United Methodist Church.

Home Contact Us E-Mail Webmaster Privacy Policy What to Expect Meet the Pastor East Pittston UMC East Pittston Worship Schedule East Pittston Programs Randolph UMC Randolph Worship Schedule Randolph Programs Young Friends Photo Album Outreach Links Social Resources

Our mission as East Pittston United Methodist Church is to be a supportive and nurturing community of love and faith as we carry, encourage, spread, and release God’s love to the world.

Our congregation.

At East Pittston United Methodist Church we try to be concerned about things that matter. Your age, race, ethnicity, marital status, disability, financial condition, your clothing, your past, or anything else that might make you feel “different” does not matter. What matters to us is that you hunger to know an abundant life. We welcome you as you are, because we ourselves have experienced God's all-inclusive love.

We seek through worship, study, and fellowship to provide a nurturing environment for personal Christian growth, equipping us to live as the people of God in the world, and empowering us to minister in Christ’s name to those in need.

EPUMC is a community of faith with a long history – beginning with the establishment of the first Methodist “classes” in the late 1700’s to today. We belong to the Randolph/East Pittston charge along with our sister church, Randolph UMC in Randolph, Maine.

We are one of 556 churches in the New England Conference of the United Methodist Church ( www.neumc.org ), and are assigned to the Mid-Maine District ( www.gbgm-umc.org/cmedsoc/ ). We are part of the Jesse Lee Cluster, comprised of twelve United Methodist churches in the Augusta area who come together in order to be involved in cooperative ministry. ( www.winthropumc.org/jesseleecluster ).

Directions.

East Pittston United Methodist Church is located at #3950 Route 194 in East Pittston, Maine, just southeast of the Pittston Fairground.

A Brief History Of The East Pittston United Methodist Church.

(Thanks to Lore H. Ford III for writing this history.)

The little, white Methodist Church which stands gracefully in East Pittston Village has historical ties which stretch back to 1797. In 1793 the Reverend Jesse Lee received his commission to carry the Methodist message to the Province of Maine, which was at that time a part of the State of Massachusetts. With his customary zeal and drive Lee quickly located a few dedicated preachers and put them to work riding circuit and preaching through the backwoods of Maine. One of those itinerant preachers, Aaron Humphry, formed the first Methodist assembly in East Pittston Village in 1797. The members of that group were gathered from both the southern part of Whitefield (known as “Kings Mills”) and East Pittston. While the western part of the Town of Pittston, or what is today Randolph, adopted the congregational and episcopalian faiths East Pittston became a bastion of methodism.

For many years the small assembly in East Pittston was served by circuit riding preachers who conducted services every other week. On alternate sundays the faith was nourished by a number of dedicated lay preachers who held “classes” where bible study, hymn singing and lay preaching were conducted. Up until 1809 services were held in private homes, and when the turnouts were too large to be held in a house barns were used, especially during the warmer months. In 1809 members of the Assembly built the first Methodist meeting house in Pittston at a cost of $900.00, which was raised by subscription and by the sale of pews. The sale of pews may seem odd to those of us living in the 21st century, but it was a commonly accepted method of raising money to build a church in the 19th century. Pews that were purchased were reserved for the use of their owners, but remaining pews were “free”, and anyone could use them. The building was constructed with the help of members of other faiths, based on the understanding that those faiths could make use of the structure when it was not being used by the Methodists. The location of the original meeting house is unknown, but it is likely that it was situated close to the site of the present church.

In 1838 trustees of the church, which was affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal Church, took title to the lot of land on which our present church building is situated, and construction on the building began immediately. The initial cost was $2,400.00 and this money was, again, raised primarily by a sale of pews. In 1846 the building was crowned with a bell which was used, and still is used to call the faithful to services.

Since its original construction the church has undergone substantial renovations. Around the turn of the 20th century the front of the building was altered with one door being closed off and windows being added to the front and sides of the building. Further, the interior was completely redone with wainscoting, which lines the interior of the building. It is likely that the overhead doors which allow the church to be sectioned for multiple uses were added at that time. While maintenance and upkeep continued between 1900 and 1960, the period between 1960 and 2000 witnessed a flurry of alterations and additions, including the full insulation of the building; the construction of a bathroom; the pouring of a full concrete cellar; the installation of a forced hot air furnace, and in 2000 the replacement of that furnace with two furnaces which allow the cellar and worship areas to be served independently; the drilling of a well; and the construction of a septic system. While greatly enhancing the utility of the building and making it a more comfortable place to worship and socialize the changes have been implemented with discretion, resulting in the preservation of the original appearance of this stately, old 19th century house of worship.

The East Pittston church is presently a part of the Randolph-East Pittston “charge”, which means that we share a common pastor and have financial ties with the Randolph church, all within the United Methodist Church. Such a relationship has been the case for most of the life of our church, though our affiliation with other churches has shifted from time to time. For only one period have we had the exclusive services of one minister, and that was between 1927 and 1937 when the Reverend John Clifford served the church. While we have been associated with the Randolph Church for about a half century, in the past we were at various times affiliated with what is today know as the “Whitefield Full Gospel Fellowship” church in Whitefield (Kings Mills village), the “Cavalry Bible Baptist Church” in North Whitefield, formerly known as the church at Turner’s Corner, and the Windsor church, which is located about a mile north of Windsor Fair grounds. These churches were frequently served by a single minister who would be required to deliver sermons at two or three of them every Sunday, no mean feat in the days of horses and buggies!

Any history of our church would be deficient that did not mention church suppers. For many, many years church suppers were a much anticipated social activity for residents of the village. Especially the “harvest supper” in the fall, which could easily have been called the major social event in the village. Members of the church planned and put on these suppers, without running water, as a means of raising money, but they took on a much greater role allowing residents of the village and surrounding areas to meet and socialize with one another in an era when people did not have the extensive array of social activities to which we in the 21st century are accustomed. Unfortunately state sanitation regulations brought these events to a close in the 1960s, but the pleasant memories they engendered are still cherished by many of our older parishioners.

Our church has a long and rich history, and we invite you to come and share in our worship, and experience the warmth and friendliness which are hallmarks of our Sunday services.