Methodist Episcopal Church Listed in the State Register of Historic Places
For Immediate Release
Methodist Episcopal Church in Marquette, Green Lake County, Wisconsin.
March 4, 2020
State Historic Preservation Officer Daina Penkiunas presents a certificate to Rudy Winther, Arthur Cybul, Renee Cybul, and Jean Winther.
Marquette, Wisconsin - The Wisconsin Historical Society placed the Methodist Episcopal Church (Marquette, Green Lake County) in the State Register of Historic Places on Feb. 14, 2020. State Historic Preservation Officer Daina Penkiunas presents a certificate to Rudy Winther, Arthur Cybul, Renee Cybul, and Jean Winther.
The Methodist Episcopal Church is a quaint clapboard building standing on an old fieldstone foundation and in the small village of Marquette. This church was built in 1860, just before the Civil War, as a community church. Previously, religious groups had been meeting in the Courthouse building which was torn down around 1858, when Marquette lost its designation as the county seat. The church was built by Rev. Joseph Pierce with the help of local volunteers and public donations. They finished construction in time for Rev. Pierce’s twelve year old son to ring the church bell announcing the fall of Fort Sumter in 1861.
The Methodist church is rectangular with clean, classic lines and painted white. It has a charming façade with eight Gothic windows and a gabled roof topped with a belfry. The walls are of plaster and wood, and the floor is of cork. Both the interior and exterior of the Church look much like they did in the 1860s. The Methodist Church was never remodeled although electricity was added. The last Methodist Congregation dissolved in 1959. The church was sold in 1989, and was kept untouched and intact by the owner, who later donated it to the Village of Marquette for a Historical Society. Remarkably, this little church, built with energy and hope by a generation of immigrants, stands practically unchanged and looks ready to welcome them back.
The State Register is Wisconsin's official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin's heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.