From an account by Rev. Mark H. Creech for Christian Post, Oct. 28, 2013:
Back in the 1870s the Methodists of Swan Quarter, North Carolina, wanted to build a church. So they chose a lot they were convinced was the best location – one on the highest ground that would make the church most visible to everyone in the community. A church committee approached the owner of the property and offered to buy it. But the owner was absolutely opposed and said he had other plans for the space and wouldn’t sell no matter the price. Disappointed, the committee was forced to look for an alternate site and settled for one near the waterfront and started construction.
Then in the Fall of 1876, when the church’s edifice had almost been completed, a hurricane blew in from the sea. The streets of Swan Quarter were soon to be under several feet of water and the foundations of the new church wouldn’t hold. The Methodists were astonished; however, as they watched from their windows the swelling waters literally lift the church like a ship and carry it down the street. Just as if there were a captain at the helm the structure took its course past the houses, businesses, etc., made a sharp right turn at the intersection, and then moved directly into the place that had originally been chosen. The building even amazingly twisted around to face the street and settle into the lot.
At the end of the storm, so taken aback by the whole event, the owner of the parcel of land got in a small row boat and paddled down the flooded street. He was looking for the chairman of the church committee that had sought to purchase the locale. When he finally found him, he instructed the man to come to the courthouse where he promised to sign over the lot free of charge to the Methodists, which he did the next morning.
Obviously, God placed the church right where he wanted it all along. And today it’s appropriately named “Providence” and has a sign out front proclaiming it as, “The church moved by the hand of God.” [1]
[1] Walser, Richard. Raleigh: Division of Archives and History, North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, 1993. pg. 48
Rev. Creech’s account of the founding of Providence United Methodist Church is one of several accounts. The story is confirmed to be “mostly true” by Snopes.
~Éowyn
Back in the 1870s the Methodists of Swan Quarter, North Carolina, wanted to build a church. So they chose a lot they were convinced was the best location – one on the highest ground that would make the church most visible to everyone in the community. A church committee approached the owner of the property and offered to buy it. But the owner was absolutely opposed and said he had other plans for the space and wouldn’t sell no matter the price. Disappointed, the committee was forced to look for an alternate site and settled for one near the waterfront and started construction.
Then in the Fall of 1876, when the church’s edifice had almost been completed, a hurricane blew in from the sea. The streets of Swan Quarter were soon to be under several feet of water and the foundations of the new church wouldn’t hold. The Methodists were astonished; however, as they watched from their windows the swelling waters literally lift the church like a ship and carry it down the street. Just as if there were a captain at the helm the structure took its course past the houses, businesses, etc., made a sharp right turn at the intersection, and then moved directly into the place that had originally been chosen. The building even amazingly twisted around to face the street and settle into the lot.
At the end of the storm, so taken aback by the whole event, the owner of the parcel of land got in a small row boat and paddled down the flooded street. He was looking for the chairman of the church committee that had sought to purchase the locale. When he finally found him, he instructed the man to come to the courthouse where he promised to sign over the lot free of charge to the Methodists, which he did the next morning.
Obviously, God placed the church right where he wanted it all along. And today it’s appropriately named “Providence” and has a sign out front proclaiming it as, “The church moved by the hand of God.” [1]
[1] Walser, Richard. Raleigh: Division of Archives and History, North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, 1993. pg. 48
