Despite a long history in the community, two churches in our rural area will be closing their doors this month.
- Sunday, May 17, will be a sad day in Plainfield as Plainfield Methodist Church services will end after 174 years. (This church is formally known as Plainfield United Methodist Church.)
- Our rural church community will suffer another blow on May 24, when the Trinity United Methodist Church on Iosco Road in Fowlerville is scheduled to close its doors after 66 years.
Plainfield Methodist Church
At one time, the unincorporated village of Plainfield was the location of two churches. History indicates a group of settlers formed the Presbyterian Society on June 1, 1838, and built the first church in 1869. That church lasted until sometime in the 1920s. Very little information is available on this long-gone church, which was located on property that currently is part of the Plainfield Cemetery.
The second church was established in 1852 when a group of citizens met to organize the Methodist Protestant Class, a term often used to refer to a small group who met in homes or schoolhouses before a church is built. This local Class first held their services at the Plainfield School. During a meeting of this Methodist Protestant Class on March 11, 1868, a resolution to build a church was approved. The church was built along what is now Michigan 36 (M-36), and it was dedicated Sept. 23, 1868. This Methodist Church was located on the opposite side of the road from the Presbyterian Church…