History of Creekside Church and the former Elkhart City COB

The original Sixth Street church

ELKHART CITY CHURCH BEGINNINGS

The Elkhart City Church grew out of the Elkhart Valley congregation. Several Elkhart Valley members lived in Elkhart and it is believed home meetings began taking place in the city about 1890. As the city of Elkhart grew and more Brethren left their farms to settle and work in the city, the need was felt for a church to be built inside the city. On September 9, 1892, for the sum of $250, Francis Benham and Elijah A. Benham deeded Lot #34 - Oak Park Addition to the City of Elkhart, to George Hoke, Jonathan Plank, and J. L. Puterbaugh, trustees of the Elkhart Valley church; they, along with Peter Plank and John Barthel, composed the building committee. A frame building, 40 ft. by 58 ft. (with a 40'x50' auditorium) was constructed at 1618 South Sixth Street at a cost of $2,185. The church was ready for dedication by March, 1893. At this time, the congregation was known as the Oak Park German Baptist Brethren. In this same month, shortly after Grover Cleveland was inaugurated as President of the United States, a financial panic struck the country, followed by a depression. The infant congregation experienced some impact from that setback and struggled to pay off the debt on the building, some of which remained when Elkhart City became a separate congregation in 1897.

Church services for the Elkhart Valley congregation were held on alternating Sundays between the Elkhart City church house, known as "Elkhart" and the Valley church house, known as "Brick" from 1893 until 1897. During this time the congregation grew. In 1897 a division in the district caused the city members to decide to separate from the Elkhart Valley congregation. At a council meeting on June 30, 1897, it was decided to formally organize the new group as a separate church. This was accomplished with an election on July 27, 1897, and the name of the congregation was changed to Elkhart City Church of the Brethren. (It is said that the boundary line between Elkhart City and Elkhart Valley was a line of telephone poles south of Lusher Avenue, which marked the south edge of the city. All persons north of that line attended Elkhart City, and those south of it went to Elkhart Valley.) Elkhart City grew to become one of the largest congregations in the Northern Indiana District, having 600 members by 1943.