Asbury United Methodist Church

Asbury United Methodist Church was organized as the Highland Park Methodist Episcopal Church in 1889 in the home of a charter member. (This church is not to be confused with the Highland Park Methodist Episcopal Church, South, which became St. Andrew’s Methodist Church.) The congregation’s first place of worship was on the second floor of a lodge hall at the corner of Chamberlain and Hickory. A picturesque frame sanctuary was quickly completed and was used for the next twenty years.

The existing beautiful brick gothic sanctuary was completed in 1909 and dedicated on July 9, 1911. The name of the church was changed to Asbury Methodist Church upon the merger of the Methodist Episcopal Church and Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1938.

A large multi-purpose educational building was completed in 1954 and dedicated on March 9, 1958. It was named in memory of Shelby R. Brammer, whose family had been prominent members of the church for many years. By the 1970’s, the area demographics had changed quite a bit and the sanctuary was too large for the smaller congregation. A beautiful chapel was dedicated on January 11, 1981, and named in memory of the Rev. Sullins Dosser, pastor of the church during its period of earlier great growth. Asbury served as the host institution for the Contact Telephone Ministry and the Methodist Neighborhood Centeres. Fourteen people who grew up in the Asbury church later went on to join the ministry.

On July 1, 1984, the church was closed and the Asbury congregation merged with Brainerd United Methodist Church. The Asbury property was sold to Highland Park Baptist Church, which renamed the former Asbury sanctuary the Asbury Chapel.

The first organ was Moller Op. 2168, a 2-manual of 16 registers installed in 1916. It was replaced by Pilcher Op. 1833 in 1937. The Pilcher was originally installed as Op. 1370 in 1927 in the First Baptist Church of Aulander, NC. The organ was repossessed by Pilcher and moved to the Asbury church, where it was installed for $3,000. The dedication service was on September 19, 1937, with organist Miss Ruth Stivers playing. The prelude was “Alleluia! Alleluia” by Theodore Dubois and the postlude was “Triumphal March” by Jacques Lemmens. The anthem was Franck’s “Psalm 150.” A Musicale was presented that evening at 7:45pm. After the church closed in 1984, the organ was eventually parted out.

Henry Pilcher’s Sons, Inc., Opus 1833, 2/9, 1937

GREAT (enclosed)

8′ Open Diapason (unenclosed)
8′ Melodia
8′ Dulciana

SWELL

8′ Violin Diapason (common bass with Stopped Diapason)
8′ Stopped Diapason (common bass with Violin Diapason)
8′ Salicional
4′ Flute Harmonic
8′ Oboe (reedless)

PEDAL

16′ Bourdon
16′ Lieblich Gedeckt 12 SW

Our thanks for Bill Barger for the stoplist and history of the organs.