Center Grove United Methodist Church - Dubuque, Iowa - Methodist Churches on Waymarking.com

Center Grove United Methodist Church is centrally located right off highway 20 next to the Best Western Hotel & Champps. We are a church with an easy-going, relaxed family atmosphere and are eager to step out in faith and in mission work to make an impact in our community and the world. Whether you seek a deeper understanding about your spiritual life or wish to connect with individuals who share your same passion for sharing God's love with one another, we welcome you with open hearts, open minds, and open doors. Come join the movement!

Children's Sunday School (3-12yrs): 9:30am. Sunday Worship: 10:30am.

- Center Grove United Methodist Church Facebook Page

My Commentary:
The one-story rectory to the left of the main church building, the ramp to the main entrance, the wide steps up to the main building and the awning over the main building entrance are not original. The awning especially has detracted from the look of the church as it has caused the transom over the doors to be filled. The original building starts at the southern portion of the eastern facade where the cornerstone marks the fact:

Founded
1852
Rebuilt
1886.

The letters of the cornerstone are carved in the stone - they have been painted in with black paint so they can be seen.

The church is the second building on the site - the original building was constructed in the town of Center Grove by English miners so they would have a place to worship. This building was constructed in 1886 to replace that original building - hence the rebuilt term in the cornerstone.

The red brick building is a typical midwestern Gothic Revival building of the era - central entry tower; arched entryway; tall, narrow, arched windows with the roundel windows. The central tower entry consists of both the new ramp and wide steps leading to two heavy wood doors with wrought iron mounts. As mentioned before, the transom has been filled due to the awning that covers the entrance to the church and rectory. A large roundel window is above the transom. Above the roundel, there is an area of lap siding with slatted windows - this does or did contain bells. There is a wood cornice that rises to a pediment in the center on all sides of the tower. A small steeple tops the tower with a cross.

The rest of the eastern facade has two, tall, narrow windows - double hung on the bottom portion, plain plate glass on the top. The windows have a stone sill. There is a run of yellow brick, then darker red brick, then another of yellow brick that extends around the building and highlights the peaks of the arches and acts as a lintel. Centered in the facade above these windows is a roundel window. The cornice is wood. The northern facade consists of three of the arched windows.

There is a cemetery on the grounds. It is approximately 4 acres in size and it contains approximately 2300 graves. Most striking is the grave of James Brunskill. It is hard to miss as it is topped by a stone Civil War Soldier at parade rest, holding his rifled musket barrel between his hands and the buttstock on the ground. The soldier is dressed in uniform with his overcoat. He is wearing his kepi. The headstone reads"

James Brunskill
Born in Gunnerside
Swaledale England
July 8, 1841
Came to Dubuque, IA.
May 1849
Enlisted in Dubuque
in Co. C, 21 IA
Vol. Inf.
Aug. 16, 1862, with
Gen. U.S. Grant
All through
Vicksburg, Miss Camp.
In 1863 with
Gen. Granger
Mar. 27, 1865
at Spanish Fort
and Blakley, Al.

Active church?: Yes Year Built: 1886 Service times: Children's Sunday School (3-12yrs): 9:30am. Sunday Worship: 10:30am. Website: [Web Link]

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