The Happy Corner congregation began as a body of about 50 members in 1811. The members met in various homes and made up what was known as the Lower Stillwater congregation. In 1818 the first meeting house was built out of logs near Salem pike and was the first meeting house in the Miami valley. A second meeting house was erected in 1860 on the corner of wolf creek and Salem pike. This became known as the lower house of Lower Stillwater. The upper house was where Happy Corner Church now stands. Services during this time alternated between the upper and lower houses.
Beginning in 1875 three more buildings of worship were built in the next two decades at the upper house location. The first burned before it was completed and the second destroyed by a tornado the same year it was built. Later that same year the white framed building on the corner of Old Salem and Union was built. This building served as a meeting house for more than 100 years. As the church progressed improvements were added including a basement (1896), vestibule (1937), baptistery (1937), and indoor toilets and kitchen (1949).
In 1943 Lower Stillwater (at the current location) adopted the name Happy Corner Church of the Brethren. The church corner had long before been know as "Happy Corner" according to newspaper accounts, due to the children playing in a school yard on the opposite corner, this name was also inscribed on a horse trough in front of the church many years before.
In 1977 the upper house (Happy Corner) and the lower house (Ft. McKinley), united once again at the current location and continued the name Happy Corner Church of the Brethren. The newly formed church body began with 337 members. In 1979 the current building was constructed. A large addition and renovation was completed in 1998.
Many members of the church are buried at the Happy Corner Church cemetery. The cemetery holds 352 graves and the oldest is of Nichole Herroth who died in 1835.
For further information regarding history in this area or family genealogy, contact the Randolph Township Historical Society at www.rths.org.
Cache with confidence! This cache was placed with permission from Happy Corner Church.
Congratulations to Vcuster for making this their first find!
Important notes:
Bring your own writing stick. Look for the cache in daylight hours only. This is a private cemetery so please respect the property and stone markers. Make sure to replace the cache exactly as you found it.