UNITY METHODIST CHURCH

The Unity Methodist Episcopal Church was located in the northeast corner of section 27,  Highland Township.  In 1881 seventeen men joined together to contribute $574 for the construction of Unity Chapel.  Their pledges were to be made in three installments.  The church was built in 1882 and 1883 by Afton carpenter Truman Briggs.  The church held services every other Sunday, the minister coming from Arispe and preaching in the morning and then traveling on to Valley Chapel to preach in the afternoon.   In the days before the automobile, the church was a community gathering place and many ice cream socials and oyster suppers were held.  Over the years there was a steady decline in attendance and finally in 1917 services were discontinued. In 1922 the trustees of the church deeded the property to the trustees of Highland Township and the church then became known as the Highland Township Community Hall and was used for public and community meetings for several years.  In the spring of 1951, the 68 year old church was sold at auction and was bought by the Assembly of God Church in Afton so that they might use the lumber in the church they were building.