A Brief History of the Nelson United Methodist Church
 
"...it was done by people who were proud of their Christian heritage..."

It was on January 21, 1833 that Methodism officially came to the town of Nelson in the form of an organized church. When this took place, the town itself was established for just 26 years. Elected that day as Trustees (the first official act of the newly organized "people called Methodists") were: Abijah Hyatt, William W. Clough, Ethan Allen, James Anderson, Nehemiah Smith, Jeremiah Sayles, and Abel L. Peirsons. According to the Church's records these men performed their duties well.

Nelson was a part of the Lenox Circuit as an outpost of the Cazenovia Church, served by preachers who traveled mostly by horseback, from Canastota to Clockville and on to Perryville, Milestrip, Chittenango Falls, and Nelson. The first Methodists of Nelson met in a Chapel, which was built on West Main Street, for twenty years. In 1853 it was made a separate charge with Chittenango Falls as the outpost. That year, 1853, was also the year in which the present property was purchased from the Presbyterian Church. That summer extensive repairs were made, and the building was dedicated September 9, 1853. In the summer of 1877, extensive repairs were again made to the structure, a basement was dug out, a new addition of a session room was built at the rear of the building, and the second floor level was designated as a "ladies parlor." In that year also, the present stained glass windows were installed. Work continued on and in the building through the years, and it is presumed it was done by people who were proud of their Christian heritage, and who took their role of being good stewards of the property entrusted to them seriously. By taking a look around you, at either the inside or outside of the building, it is easy to see that this tradition continues in the stewards of today.

In 1856 the home on Route 20 (now owned by Ronald Davies) was purchased as a parsonage. In 1866 an exchange was made for the Sidney Meredith home, two houses to the west. In 1913, the residence of the pastor was moved to Erieville, and it remained there until the current parsonage was built in Nelson (May 1964) and occupied in February 1965 by the Reverend M. Edward Lincoln, his wife Carol, and their three children. According to tradition, in a multiple-point charge, the name of the community or town in which the parsonage is located is listed first; thus, this charge has been referred to as "Nelson/Erieville", "Erieville/Nelson", and again "Nelson/Erieville", as the parsonage migrated from Nelson to Erieville and back to Nelson.

It is interesting to note that all through the years of this church's history, there has been little fluctuation in the membership. In 1879 there were 103 members of 10 different Sunday School classes. (In those days you were automatically enrolled in a Sunday School class when you became a member of the Church.) In 1882 membership increased to 110, and remained stable at that figure for many years. Currently (in 1983) there are 125 members on the rolls which reflects a stability that is lacking in many other local churches.

It is also interesting to note that in 150 years, the Nelson Church has been served by 49 pastors. While more recent pastors (beginning with Reverend Buies in 1928) have enjoyed tenure of relatively longer duration, prior to 1928 most appointments lasted 1 or 2 years. It must have been difficult for the members because of this, but by the same token, they knew they were depended upon for leadership.

A Brief History of the Nelson United Methodist Church" as taken from the bulletin of the Nelson United Methodist Church Sesqui-centennial celebration, 1983.