Our Beginning
        Formally organized on June 11, 1938, Monahill Memorial Freewill Baptist Church has served Monaville and the surrounding communities as a place of worship for over sixty-two years. Over these many years the congregation has had to endure many hardships and difficulties finally to attain the beautiful facilities with which God has blessed us with today.
        Mona comes from the name of Mona Steele, whose family were landowners about the
turn of the century; the small community of Monaville and a coalmine was name after
her. In 1926, the Mona coal mines processing tipple burned and all of the coal from the mine was transported by underground railcars to Rossmore and then processed and then ship to market.
Our First Sanctuary
        In 1934, Rev. Earl Whitten of Rossmore, W.Va. was responsible for giving the people
of Monahill their first place to worship. Under his leadership, the Mona Store basement        was acquired, and the people of Monahill began to clean and paint the basement so            services could begin being held. The "Basement Church" was a concerted effect of               both the white and black so the church was shared by both groups, one having services in the morning and the other having services in the evening, alternating periodically. It was not long until the Mona Store burned, so the people moved to Rossmore and then to Monaville YMCA to continue having church.
       Being a very dedicated and determined group, the Monahill people acquired an old        Blacksmith Shop in the middle of Monahill. With the help of the black people again,
services resumed in the spring of 1938 in the Blacksmith Shop Church. It has been told
to keep from getting wet from heavy downpours; you would have to sit under an  umbrella during services!
      But being thankful for what God had provided, Brother Earl Whitten and other area    
ministers thought it was time to formally organize the Monahill Church, on June 11, 1938.
The three organizing ministers were Rev. Earl Whitten, Rev. Roades Newsome, and
Rev. W.H. Nichols. Forming the membership circle that first day were Brothers WetzelBall, Charley Frye, John Hankins and Sisters Opal Napier, Irene Vance and MargaretTabor. Brother Whitten became the first pastor with Brother Newsome serving as his assistant and Sister Tabor became the first clerk with Brother Hankins being firsttreasurer. The first appointed Deacons were Brothers Wetzel Ball and Charley Frye who was both later ordained as ministers;
       In July 1938, Sister Ruby Trent and Sister Goldie Frye became members, along with
Brother Bryan Vance, who also was appointed as a Deacon. The church continued to grow with Sister Coralee Steele becoming the next member.
      On October 8,1938, the Community Sunday School of Monahill F.W.B. was organized.
TheBlacksmith Shop Church, along with other locations along Monahill, served as the place of worship for the community during the church?s formative years. The congregation then acquired a two-room house in the middle of Monahill that would serve as the church for the next few years.
This is a partial listing of some of the earliest members follows:
One of the founding fathers of the church
Brother Cecil Trent, January 1939
Sister Ethel Whitt, January 1939
Sister Ruth Vance (Mullins) Wooten, April 1939
Brother and Sister Arthur Smith, July 1940
Sister Beulah (Collins) Vance, April 1946
Brother and Sister Turley Collins, May 1947
Brother Arville Browning, February 1950
Brother and Sister Orville Henderson, February 1954
Monhill congregation, circa 1940
Building acquired circa 1940
This is a partial listing
of former Pastors:
Rev. Earl Whitten;
Rev. John T. Vance
Rev. Oliver Privett;
Rev. Tommy Clay;
Rev. Brooks Spurlock
Rev. Arthur (A.C.) Cox;
Rev. Rufus Johnston;
Rev. James Dalton;
Rev. Levi Curry;
Rev. Roy Adkins;
Rev. Wayne Damron;
Rev. Joseph Mahone;
Rev. Andy Maynard
Another Move
     As the congregation grew, it became necessary to tear down the house and build a new
     sanctuary. This sanctuary would serve as the home of Monahill Church for almost forty
     years. Various improvements were made to the church over the years, which include
    adding classrooms around the rear of the church, construction of a new fellowship hall,
    a major addition to the front of the church, with more classrooms, a nursery, and a new
    entrance added, along with bricking the entire church. With age taking its toll on the aging
    sanctuary, it was decided in 1980 that it was time to construct a new church on the site of
    the existing one. This old sanctuary was demolished in early 1981, and construction
    began.
Sanctuary constructed in 1982
    By the late summer of 1982, the construction of the new 350-seat sanctuary was complete, which also included a 120-seat youth sanctuary, thirteen classrooms, and all other modern conveniences. During the construction process, services were held in the fellowship hall of the church, while Sunday school classes for the youth were held in Sister Ruth and Brother Harvey Mullins apartment building approximately one-half mile away from the church.
A cold, cold wintry day.
This church service as home for almost ten years, during which we saw our membership grow and the Lord blessed us more than ever. In 1991, The Lynn Branch Coal Company, which owned the land on which the church was built, decided to mine the coal reserves located around the church. Without any obligation to do so, the coal company purchased the church building and paid for all relocation expenses. In June 1991, the last service was held on Monahill.
Our Present Sanctuary
During the construction of the new church in adjacent to Dog patch, the coal company provided the congregation with temporary facilities at no cost for as long they were needed. Finally, in June 9,1993, the congregation moved into its brand new building, which is even more beautiful than the one on Monahill.
Monahill Memorial Freewill Baptist Church today
During the years that Monahill Memorial Freewill Baptist Church has been in existence, it has had to endure its share of trials, but the Lord has truly blessed all of us to go from the basement of a store to one of the finest building in the area. However, one thing has not changed, the church?s Love for the Lord. Whether we worship in a shed or our beautiful facilities with which He has blessed us, our Love for Him will never change.
Our sanctuary as seen from the balcony
Our name, Monahill Memorial Freewill BaptistChurch, was chosen because of:
Monahill-Named after the community
Memorial-In the memory of the old church
where last service was held in June of 1991.
Freewill-Free to worship the Lord as you Will in your heart
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