I grew up in this church and my grandparents went here all their lives and my grandad lived to be 98!!
This church's history can be traced back to 1834
when Rev. Solomon Altamouse began preaching in
Weaver School near Valley Cemetery. This group became
Valley Church, an Evangelical Association
Church. They put up their first building in 1840. By
1865, they had expanded into a new building, and by
1889, the Valley Church, which still stands, was constructed.
As the population of Salem Township grew
rapidly, Rev. G.W. Cupp of Valley Church started
three more congregations, including Mt. Lebanon at
Crossroads. On June 10, 1874, Henry Myers deeded
half an acre of land to Samuel Rossman for a building
site.
When a denominational split around 1894 led
to the formation of the United Evangelical
Church, the Mt. Lebanon congregation
remained intact. In 1906,
the property was purchased back
from the Evangelical Association. The
church’s name became Crossroads,
then Bethany.