Little Brown Church in the Vale.

"Oh come" the song says, and Sue Heyman's parents did, and they were married there a long time ago. Recently, my bandmate in Saints and Sinners shared that news with us, and then the song and the website. I thought I would return the favor.









Part of the song:

The Church in the Wildwood

by Dr. William S. Pitts

There's a church in the valley by the wildwood,
No lovelier spot in the dale;
No place is so dear to my childhood
As the little brown church in the vale.

Chorus

Oh, come, come, come, come,

Come to the church in the wildwood,

Oh, come to the church in the vale;

No spot is so dear to my childhood

As the little brown church in the vale.

The Website:

http://www.littlebrownchurch.org/

Part of the story:

The first settlers came to the Bradford area in 1848 and with an abundant water supply and virgin timber, the town grew. By 1855 the first members of the Puritan-Congregational Church had begun holding meetings. By 1856, Bradford had 500 residents and was the first town in this part of Iowa.

A young music teacher named William Pitts was traveling by stagecoach from Wisconsin to Iowa to visit his future wife. While waiting for the stagecoach horses to be changed, he walked down Cedar Street and saw the empty lot where the church now stands. Being a romantic young man, the thought came to him of what a charming setting the spot would make for a church. Returning home, he wrote the poem “Church in the Wildwood,” and later set it to music. He put it away in a drawer and forgot it. ... the rest...

Isn't church history wonderful, are you making it today for the next generation? I'm guessing that you are in ways you don't even consider.