HOPE: My youngest son Marc,married the love of his life, Allison, at Hope Chapel on October 28, 2006...a beautiful 1900's white clapboard steeple building.History from
1830:
The intersection of 24 Mile road (Whiskey Road) and Van Dyke was once the unincorporated village of Disco, Michigan. In 1830 the farmers who settled this area from New York referred to it as "Utica Plains." By the late 1840s they wanted a higher education facility similar to the Romeo Institute or the Rochester Academy. In 1849, the same year the village of Disco was platted, ten acres of land was donated toward the creation of the Mutual Literary Institute. It was renamed the Disco Academy in 1855.
Religious groups used the larger of the two buildings. The lower floor was used by the school trustees; the upper floor by the Methodists who organized in 1863, and later by the Congregationalists.
1890, The congregation of The Methodist Protestant Church continued to grow and the upper floor of the Disco Academy was not large enough to contain the flock. The church appointed a building committee and on September 13, construction started on a new church building at a cost of $1,300. The land, later known as the Metz farm was donated by Mrs. Flora Keeler. Floras parents were Mr. And Mrs. S. Preston of Prestonville. Pastor Wilber S. Ostrander, of the Disco Methodist Protestant Church, formally dedicated the new church building on December 20, 1890.
1921, Electricity is installed. The electrical lines in the Utica-Disco area were installed in the early 1900s and operated by a number of small electrical companies. In 1916 the small electrical companies were consolidated with the Edison Illuminating Company. It took five more years before the church was wired.
1927, The building is raised and repositioned on a basement. A new coal furnace is added to heat the building. Previously, a pot bellied stove, placed at the front of the church where the organ used to sit, was used to heat the building. The new basement was used for Sunday school classes and social meetings.
1962, A new 15 x 28 foot addition was added to the back of the church. The addition consisted of an all purpose room for social affairs or Sunday school, and rest rooms. Church members had used outdoor facilities until this time.
1979, The name of the church was changed from the Disco Methodist Protestant Church to Hope United Methodist Church. By this time the word disco had taken on new meaning and most people in the area were not aware that the Village of Disco existed here and was the reason for the churchs name.
1980, The old house that sat on the south side of the church was demolished for more parking spaces. The house was probably first used as a parsonage around 1895 after it was purchased from the Keeler/Cameron family. When Rev Simpson (1969-1973) was appointed to the Disco Church, he would not take the appointment unless the church supplied better living accommodations for him and his family, so the present parsonage was purchased.
FALL of
2006 Weddings and Christenings are allowed
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