SIDNEY — For several months research has been underway on the publication of a directory of area religious institutions. Titled “The Churches of Shelby County – Past and Present,” the publication is a project of the 2019 and 2020 Sidney and Shelby County Bicentennial celebrations.

Entries in the directory will include active as well as bygone churches. Active churches will have information on the ministers, service times, contact information, and more. Bygone churches will list former locations. Both will include historical data. Students from all ten Shelby County schools as well as several other individuals have assisted in gathering facts and photographs for this effort.

What Shelby County churches had their beginnings in the homes of congregants? Can you name the three separate entities that eventually merged to form GreenView United Church of Christ? What religious outreach program is sponsored by Sidney First United Methodist Church? Did you know that a former Sidney church was named after a martyred missionary? How many St. Jacob Lutheran churches are in Shelby County? This church was once led by the father of a nationally known children’s author.

What bygone church was located on the site of the current Hardin-Houston School? In order not to interrupt services, this community constructed a new edifice around the existing church. The Petersburg Cluster includes what Shelby County churches? These questions and many more will be answered in “The Churches of Shelby County – Past and Present.”

In order to make “The Churches of Shelby County – Past and Present” as complete and accurate as possible, the community’s help is needed. If unsure whether a congregation has been approached concerning this project, contact Greg and Priscilla Wilt by March 1, 2020. They may be reached at 937-497-8118, 937- 726-4805, and/or [email protected].