HISTORY

THE EARLY YEARS

In 1922 the church voted to move to Donaldson where a new church building was erected on land donated by the Fuller family. The first meeting was held there in January of 1923. Elder C. M. Monk served as pastor from January of 1923 until February of 1925. Elder Jacob Sandage was joint pastor with Elder C. M. Monk from 1924 to 1925. He continued to serve as pastor until 1928 jointly with Elder E. W. Hargett. Elder John R. Harris was pastor of the church from 1928-1929. Elder Harl Lee served as pastor from 1929 until his death in 1941. Elder Jacob Sandage served as joint pastor from January 23, 1935 until his death in December of 1935. Elder W. A. Clayton served as pastor from 1941 to 1944. Elder H. E. Black served jointly with Elder Clayton from 1942 to 1944. Elder E. W. Hargett returned to pastor at Harmony from 1944 to 1947. Elder Virgil F. Lowrance served as pastor from 1947 until 1965. Below is another picture of the first Harmony Primitive Baptist Church at Donaldson. Notice the sign is missing and the vent is smaller. The front of this meeting house faced the railroad tracks (west).

OUR CURRENT CHURCH BUILDING

Our present day building was erected in 1953. Building costs were kept low by using donated building materials and labor from church members and friends in the community. Can you name the four ministers in the above photograph? Clue: There are two sets of brothers. The women pitched in to help as the building began to take shape. As you can tell from the pictures, there were lots of hours of labor that went into the new building with everyone helping out as much as they could.

Upon completion of the church building, there was still a lot of work to be done on the yard and parking lot. In the scrolling images you can see the side of the building facing Hall Street, showing the entry door to the basement and wood steps leading up to the side entrance of the auditorium. This is the side of our church that has changed the most over the years. Originally the basement had windows directly under each present day upper window and the parking lot was unpaved.

In August of 1953, Elder Charles Sandage was ordained to the ministry and began to pastor Harmony Church jointly with Elder Virgil Lowrance. At that same meeting, Brother Lawrence Clayton (son of Elder William H. Clayton) was ordained as a deacon in the church. He served for 45 years until his death in May of 1998. Elder Sandage and Elder Lowrance served as joint pastors until 1965 when Elder Lowrance resigned. Elder Charles Sandage continued to serve the Harmony Church until 1995.

MEETINGS AND MINISTERS

The Donaldson Peace Meeting was held at Harmony Primitive Baptist Church in 1953 to encourage peace among the sister churches in our nation. Some of the sixty-five attending ministers are pictured here on the steps of the church.

In the second picture, the church appears to be about two years old (1955). Notice that no sign had been installed above the steps and the landscape shrubs left and right of the steps are still very small. The 1949 ¾ ton Ford truck sporting a good set of cattle frames belonged to Arnold Sandage. Harmony Church has enjoyed the fellowship of members from our sister churches for many years and their help in times of need has always been invaluable.

In the third picture, Brother Lawrence Clayton stands on the steps as Elburn Sandage stands to the left while Wendell Davis and Arvil Stafford are on right.

The final image is just before a church service. A 1956 Oldsmobile is on the right of the picture indicates that this image is from the late 50’s or early 60’s. The sign above the steps says church services were held two Sundays each month (2nd and 3rd).

REMODELING IN THE 1980s

A baptistry was added to the church during the 1960s. Our church building was remodeled and bricked in 1981 and the parking lot was paved a short time later. Our present pastor, Elder Neil Phelan, Jr. joined our church during the 1980s and began to pastor Harmony Church in 1995. Over the years, the Lord has blessed us to have many regular and special services in this building. We have enjoyed meals and family gatherings in the basement. There are many fond memories of loved ones that have passed that center around time spent in fellowship and communion with one another in our church.

HARMONY CHURCH TODAY

Many improvements have been made to our building over the years. In 2001 a pastor’s study was added to the building, matching the new building to look like it was always there. In recent years we installed a large awning for the fellowship hall entrance as well as one on the opposite side of the church for drive through access to our elevator entrance for the handicapped (not pictured). We are currently in the process of remodeling our fellowship hall and bathrooms, and upgrading our audio system.

After being our associate pastor since 2017, Elder Daniel Samons accepted the call to become our pastor in February of 2022. Our previous pastor, Elder Neil Phelan, Jr., remains at Harmony in keeping with the biblical pattern of having a plurality of elders in the church. Our Deacons are Mike Burnett, Leon Burris, Jack Clayton, and Murray Draper.