At the beginning of the 20th century, Stephen J. Seneca (1837-1918), a local businessman and former mayor, offered to build the Havre de Grace Methodist Episcopal congregation a stone church at the corner of Union and Congress Avenues, provided that they would install heating, lighting, and furnishings. The congregation dated back to before the burning of Havre de Grace in 1813 and at the time of his offer held its services in the building at 109 North Union Avenue (now an apartment building). Seneca’s offer was accepted and he had William Lewis Plack (1854-1944) of Pennsylvania design it. The cornerstone was laid in October 1901. The church was built by Eli S. Sentman and Sons in a modified Gothic design, of random ashlar granite, quarried locally at Port Deposit. The three arches on the building contain painted and stained glass windows. Stephen Seneca and his wife, Annie, dedicated it in June 1902.

The sanctuary is arranged on the “Akron Plan” that groups worshippers in three semi-circular sections around a central pulpit. The window settings are Indiana limestone; the altar rail, pulpit, furniture, organ and choir front are San Domingo mahogany; and the pews are of quarter-sawn white oak. The exterior front doors slide into pockets in the wall. Large restorations/renovations to the church were completed in 1929, 1957 and 1968, and an education wing was adjoined to the south elevation in 1962. The original 1902 pneumatically operated pipe organ was replaced in 1968 with a custom-built Moller Pipe Organ with 1,092 individual pipes, 20 ranks, and chimes.

Most of the sanctuary is devoid of religious symbols, the exception being the stained glass windows above the balconies. Other stained glass windows carry out the building’s architectural design. The only other religious symbol is an open Bible carved in limestone and opened to Psalm 117 above the outside front entrance. Artwork throughout the church combines German and French art forms, such as the fleur-de-lis window over the north choir door. The elaborate decorations in Victorian style are unusual for a Protestant or United Methodist congregation and are seldom seen outside of large eastern cities.

The congregation undertook a massive interior restoration/renovation beginning in 2001, made possible by an unexpected gift willed to the church by a Havre de Grace resident. It included a complete upgrading of all utility systems and a major conversion in the Memorial Hall resulted in the creation of a Heritage Room for permanent historical items. The completion of all this work coincided with the celebration of 100 years of worship in the Sanctuary on June 16, 2002. This property received an award from the Havre de Grace Historic Preservation Commission in 2003.

The United Methodist Church remains the grandest scale historic structure in the city and serves as a well-known landmark. The church is led by the Rev. Norman Obenshain.

County Records
Built 1900.11,230 sq ft, stone exterior, 16,680 sq ft lot.