Hatteras United Methodist Church
Sunday Worship  11:15 AM
Sunday School  10:00 AM
Phone  986-2149

Hatteras United Methodist ChurchAccording to the records of the annual Conference on Archives and History, the first deed for a Hatteras Church was recorded in 1841. Rev. W.W. Pridgen was pastor of the first Methodist Church at Hatteras in 1851 which stood on the beach in the approximate location of the old Atlantic View Hotel. During the Civil War, Rev. Marble Nash Taylor served as minister.  In the memoirs of a Union soldier stationed at Hatteras during the war, the church was described as "a wooden building with a high, steep roof, small windows and a low, narrow door.  Inside, the pulpit was raised above the congregation and approached by steps on two sides.  The pine benches, seating up to two hundred people, were worn smooth with age."  

In 1877, John Wallace Rollinson gave land for a new church, which is where our present building is located. According to his diary, construction began on July 23, 1877, and was completed on February 7, 1880.  George Fulcher delivered the first sermon.  In 1891, a steeple was erected and four years later a bell was installed on September 23.
Methodist Church Prior to 1895

The great hurricane of 1899 badly damaged the structure and another church was built the next year.  Because of its small size and due to a growing congregation, Pastor W.E. Trottman led the congregation in razing this building and constructing a larger one in 1908.  For the next two years, while the new church was being built, services were held next door in the school.


Church Prior to 1910
 

In 1910, J.A. Martin became pastor serving only one year.  His commitment to the ministry in Hatteras was not only one of words, but also deeds.  His father owned a mill in Washington, NC where Martin worked when he was not in school.  With knowledge of carpentry gained from his father's business along with his not being shy of manual labor, he was instrumental in the completion and dedication of the church. Captain Homer Styron of the local Life Saving Station, along with his men, "came over from the beach day after day" to help Martin finish a church that was described as "very nice with beautiful windows."  The church served the people of Hatteras for forty-five years.
Church Served the People Through 1950s

Church in 1945

In 1955, Rev. Dan Meadows led the congregation in constructing the present church.  Under the capable and dedicated leadership of the Rev. Ray Sparrow, the church was completed with all debts resolved. A dedication service was held on October 2, 1960, during which the congregation "praised and thanked God for blessing our efforts in His name, for we realize that with His help we could not have accomplished this work of building this His church.  And we pray that under the leadership of our pastor, the Rev. Van E. Cash, that this our Sanctuary, which is dedicated today, may be used for the Glory of God and a blessing to our lives and to all those around us."  That prayer continues today.