Where Our Church Story Begins
We trace our roots as far back as 1894, when a one-room wooden Methodist Church was built on the beach in Upper Matecumbe Key. This building was later moved-probably floated between two sailboats - to the shore near the present-day Cheeca Lodge and Spa. The 1935 Hurricane destroyed much of Upper Matecumbe Key, including the Methodist church building. The church bell, however, was found and used to announce the worship service in a home. Through faith and hard work a new building for worship was constructed just north of the Hurricane Monument - the present location of the church.
Click here to see the list of Matecumbe Pastors that have served the church since 1881
Islamorada’s Original Methodist Church - 1894
Victoria Kattel, our church historian, has researched the early history of our church from its beginnings in 1894 when founded by Richard Pinder. Here are the first several paragraphs of her historical account of the church:
In September 1900, Preston Pinder made a promise to his grandfather, Richard Pinder, to continue the work of the Church and Sunday school Richard started on the Island of Upper Matecumbe in 1894. Preston and Johnny Russell had to conduct many services themselves since pastors from Miami only did the Keys circuit once a month. Church services were announced by the ringing of the church bell. People arrived from Matecumbe and surrounding keys. Some walked, others arrived by sail or rowboat.
The little wood frame church was located on the East end of Upper Matecumbe island. In 1901 it was to be moved to a more central location. Two large rafts were made and lashed together. During high tide they were brought up on the beach as far as possible. Then, while the tides were changing, the building was rolled down to the water’s edge and placed on the raft. When the tide came up again, the rafts set sail with the church riding to its new location. That site was on what is now Cheeca Lodge’s beach. Not long after that, a church cemetery was established next to the church.
In 1912, the Flagler Railroad finally finished the extension to Key West. Preachers could now arrive more quickly by train, rather than boat. “Uncle Johnny Watkins”, a Key West preacher, became the “regular” pastor for Matecumbe. Regular meaning once a month since he was still a circuit preacher. Special occasions often had to be delayed waiting for him to return. If the family didn’t want to wait to be married or have a child baptized, they could “import” a preacher from Key West.
The church remained there until the 1935 hurricane destroyed it. The bell that tolled at the little church was found months later by a group of fishermen on Rabbit Key, eleven miles from its original location. It was brought home and hung up in a buttonwood tree for a long time but eventually, someone took it. The bell that called people to worship for over 50 years was lost forever.
Soon after the storm, the survivors gathered on the site where the church once stood and decided to rebuild as quickly as possible. The new location would be a spot on higher ground. Hugh Matheson donated the land for both church and parsonage so the people of Matecumbe could begin building a new church. They started building both using wood, nails, and other materials from the destruction that littered the keys after the storm. The new church was named Carlson Memorial Methodist Church after their pastor who had perished in the Labor Day storm. The graveyard however, was and still is, located on the beach.
Near where the old church stood, they still found ways to study the word of God. An old wrecked Buick had been pulled over. Four men would sit on what had been the back seat of the car while another was in the front teaching an adult bible class. The women and children were sent to Miami for a few months while the island and structures were being rebuilt. Some were now gathered next to the stump of an old tree having a children’s Sunday school class. Old boards were leaned against the tree to offer a little shade.
By 1945 a Sunday School annex was added to the church to meet the challenge of the growing congregation. The growth didn’t stop and by 1956 a campaign was started to raise funds for a new church. Funds were acquired and by 1958 a new church was erected along with a new name. By this time R.E. Carlson’s hometown had also named a church after him and the Methodist Church Conference didn’t want two churches with the same name in the same Conference. Therefore, the name was changed to Matecumbe Methodist Church. We worship in this same sanctuary today.
A small group of people had organized a Baptist Church following and were in desperate need of a building to hold their services. The Carlson Memorial Methodist church was donated to them in 1956 after the completion of the new sanctuary. The Homestead Baptist church donated the money to have the church moved south to its current location. It was renamed the First tist Church of Islamorada and continues to serve the community.
With a new sanctuary and Sunday School building, the need for a new parsonage now became apparent. Construction for the house on Johnston street started in 1960. Hurricane Donna damaged the half-completed structure but not so much that it couldn’t be repaired. In 1961, the pastor and his family moved in.
1964 brought yet another addition. Bert Pinder owned and ran his business in the building that sat next to the church annex. He sold his building to the church when he retired. With this acquisition the church now owned an entire block except for the corner containing the hurricane monument.
Our church today offers a number of ministries and programs open to members and visitors alike. We continue to thrive and strive to do the work of God that the founders of our congregation began 125 years ago. Matecumbe Methodist Church may no longer have our beloved bell but our chimes continue to ring throughout our community every day as a reminder of our faith and our place in the history on these islands.
Rev. Robert Emmanuel Carlson
Using wood, nails and other materials from the destruction that littered the Keys after the storm, members constructed a new frame church at the current site. It was named Carlson Memorial Methodist Church after the young pastor who died in the storm.
Rev. Robert Emmanuel Carlson had married Maud Magill in 1931, before moving to the Florida Keys in 1935 for their new assignment at the Methodist Church in Islamorada. Several months after their arrival, the Labor Day hurricane of 1935 hit. The Carlsons could have escaped but felt that their place was with the members of the congregation who were staying to ride out the storm.
Rev. Carlson helped board up buildings as the storm approached. The hurricane destroyed the Church and the parsonage was swept off its foundation. Both Rev. Carlson and his wife died in the storm. He was 38 years old. Maud was 35.
Rev. Jean U. Guerry’s Article about the Church History
Rev. Jean U. Guerry served as pastor of the church from 1966 - 1970. While pastor at the church he wrote an article about the history of the church.