Custodian, circa 1941, 1951

The Centennial United Methodist Church Records document the history of Methodism in Rockford, Illinois. The records are comprised of nine series:  (l) Historical Records (2) Administrative Records, (3) Financial Records, (4) Memberships, (5) Church Groups and Committees, (6) Audio-visual, (7) Publications, (8) Artifacts, and (9) Oversize. The records date back to1831, but are predominantly from the late nineteenth century through the present day. Arrangement is by series and then loosely by subject and date within each series. The first series contains the historical records of the church. Included are biographical records, building records, pastor and reverend files, and clippings. The second series, Administrative Records, consists of minutes, annual reports, and correspondence and agreements from the administrative bodies of the church from 1877 to 2009. This section also contains conference reports (1858-2016),  additional administrative correspondence (1951-2009), employee records, awards, and service to community organizations records. The third series, Financial Records, consists of ledgers, budget and treasury reports, building and construction funds, expense reports, and bonds. The General Fund Ledgers records are incomplete but date back to 1882, the year that construction began for the present day Centennial United Methodist Church (CUMC). This series contains several records documenting church development, renovation, and expansion, including the Memorial Chapel Fund (1944-1946), the Expansion Plan Building Fund (1950-1951), Education Work Area Budget (1986-1991), and the Brick Restoration Fund (1991-1995). The bonds are evidence of the financial issues facing the church, particularly the strain in the late 1920s documented by the 1926 bonds which were mostly purchased by members. Membership records comprises series four. Included is an incomplete record of church bulletins from 1883 to 2008 and directories from 1893 to 2006. The church newsletters, which date from 1942 to 2009, are mostly complete. This series also contains the membership, baptisms and marriages records from 1859 to 1980. Researchers may also find material related to member correspondence, member events and activities, and programs for baptismal, marriage, and memorial services within this series. The fifth series, Church Groups and Committees, documents the committees, societies, groups, and classes. Groups whin this series that are well documented with nearly complete records are women’s societies: Ladies’ Aid Society (1899-1931), Women’s Society of Christian Service (1888-1991), and United Methodist Women (1968-2009). Records for the Methodist Men from 1947 to 1959 are also a part of this series. Also included are records documenting the education and care of children: Sunday School (1886-1997), Little People’s Place (1989-1996), and Saturday Kids’ Club (1994-2006). Records related to mission work may also be found in this series. Records for CUMC Classes (i.e., Golden Rule, Friendship, Oxford, Builders, Whitman, and Joyful Noise) date from 1923 to 2007 and document the spiritual growth and commitment of its members. The sixth series, Audio-visual, contains scrapbooks, photographs, postcards, ephemera, and a photo albums capturing the development of church buildings as well as a history of congregation members, member activities, and church groups and events. The photographs in this series are loosely arranged in accordance with the collection’s series order (historical, members, and church groups and committees) and then by date. Publications comprise the seventh series, most of which are books related to the history of Methodism or books used for worship. Also included are two issues of Northwest Quarterly, a lifestyle and business magazine for Northern Illinois. The eight series, Artifacts, contains plaques, pins, commemorative plates, a communion set, a travel communion kit, and print blocks and type used for an anniversary celebration. A representative sample of The Reporter,  newspaper of the Northern Illinois Conference of United Methodist, from 1989-2012 is also a part of this series. Oversize materials such as photographs and portrait drawings of reverends, architectural renderings, posters, maps, charters, and newspaper clippings make up series nine.