Written May 10,2024
History of the Williamstown
church of Christ
Our History
The church of Christ meeting on Ninth Street has had a long and interesting history which has seen its share of a variety of experiences. Reportedly Harley W. Bankes preached the first sermon in August, 1919, with the goal of establishing a church of Christ in Williamstown. On June 3, 1920, the Sixth & Washington church in Marietta bought a lot on the corner of Sixth St. and Highland Ave. in Williamstown and, in 1924, the trustees of the Sixth & Washington church deeded that lot to the Williamstown trustees. Later that year, the basement was completed and the church began using that as their meeting place.
An all-day meeting was conducted in September, 1927, and another in March, 1928, with the plan of raising the funds to complete the building. The church began meeting in the upstairs by March, 1932.
During that same decade, Harley Bankes, Fred Dennis, Horace Taylor and Oliver Johnson preached for the congregation.
Several men preached on Sundays during the 1930’s among whom were J.H. Hines, M.O. Willison, John Cohen, G.W. Nicholas, Oliver Johnson, Wellington H. Gallagher, Thaddeus Hutson, John Cochran, Charles Fogle, Silas Settle, W.W. Adamson, Cornelius Abbott and W. F. Parks. The first shepherds and deacons were appointed by Oliver Johnson of the Marietta congregation on June 5, 1931.
The 1940’s saw several more men occupy the pulpit among whom were Walter E. Bankes, Robert Cooper, F.S. Harper, Tom W. Butterfield, Harley W. Bankes, Bond Stocks, C.W. Rock, Kenneth B. Adams and Lawrence J. Stine. Harry Bennett (1945-46) and L.J. Keffer (1948-50) were supported by area churches of Christ as they ministered fulltime to the congregation.
During the 1950’s several other men filled the pulpit as preachers for the congregation which included the following: a preacher with the last name of Fogarty (first name uncertain), Edward Cain, Lawrence Gardner, Burton Newland, John N. Ford, Robert Williams, John Tyler and Ross Swindler.
The congregation’s first Vacation Bible School for children was held in the summer of 1953.
The church has also hosted several series of multiple-day meetings with different speakers…Kyo Ryoun Jhin, Kenneth Adams, Clarence Rice, Bill Heinselman, Ray Dotson, Jesse Rossiter, Robert Cooper, Tom W. Butterfield, Ronald Chaffin, Fred Dennis, Eugene Conger, Paul Gray, Gary White, Hoyt White and Bill Craddock.
Ray Dotson served as the church’s preaching minister as the decade of the 60’s opened.
The year 1964 brought David Powers from Coshocton, Ohio, congregation to Williamstown where he would serve for the next 58 years until his death in 2022. He preached his final sermon on February 27, 2022—just prior to his death on Thursday, March 4, 2022.
In December, 1967, we moved into a newly constructed church building located at 111 W. Ninth St. where the church continues to meet at present. In subsequent years, the congregation undertook 11 different building programs including additional classrooms, an annex, the preacher’s house, a bus garage, a college building and a K-12 school building.
The congregation has also been privileged to assist in schools, a leprosy care program, an orphanage and evangelistic trips in India through the years.
During those years, the congregation experienced a phenomenal growth with a record attendance of 2,416 on Family Enrichment Sunday in 1976. In the late 1960’s, a class for ten young men who desired to preach was conducted on Sunday afternoons. Seven of them became full-time located preachers…Stan Addis, Bob Flowers, Ed Howard, Phil Howard, Everett Hutson, Doug Petty and Ed Powers. Later seven other young men from the congregation also served as full-time preachers…Chuck Boston, Ken Carpenter, Jim Cunningham, Mike Kodrich, Steve Martin, Neil Parsons and David Parks.
During that same period, the church ministered to the community through a vibrant bus ministry bringing in hundreds of people from primarily the Wood County area in West Virginia and the Washington County area in Ohio. The congregation hosted a series of Bus Ministry and Evangelism Workshops beginning in 1973 attracting Christians from 43 different states.
In 1973, Ed Howard was hired as Youth Director, Stan Addis as the Bus Director and Ed Powers as the leader of the Jolly 60’s Senior Ministry.
In 1974, the Williamstown Bible College was opened drawing students from 37 different states followed in 1975 by the beginning of the Williamstown Christian School for K-12 students. Due to financial restraints, both educational institutions closed in 1982.
Throughout the congregation’s history, several men have served the congregation as shepherds and/or preaching ministers. Early shepherds included L.J. Hemsworth, C.E. Staats and G. Miller. In the later years, Glenn Howard, David Powers, Roger Fitch, Marty Miller and Mike Kodrich served as shepherds.
Preaching ministers have included Kenneth Adams (1940-42), Harry Bennett (1945-46), L. Keffer (1948-50), Paul Casebolt (1951), Edward Cain (1952-57), John Tyler (1958-59), Ray Dotson (1961-62), Fred Dennis (1962-64), Stan Addis (1973-early 1980’s), Ed Howard (1973-early 1980’s), Ed Powers (1973-early 1980’s), David Powers (1964-2022), Mike Kodrich (2022-23) and Stan Addis (2022-present).
Ministers to our youth have included Ed Howard, Butch Travis, Dan Canada, Tom Powers, Mitch Fuel, Greg Oral, Ryan Parsons, Les Mills and Gabe Hickerson.
The congregation is presently being led by our spiritual leaders, Stan Addis and Marty Miller, and continues to impact the lives of its members and those in the surrounding area.
Preachers and Preachers’ Wives from the Williamstown church
Thirty-two young men and women from the Williamstown Congregation became preachers and wives of preachers between 1970 and 1980. This does not include those who came to Williamstown from other places. People came from 37 different states to attend Williamstown Bible College.