How it all started...
Settlement in the Kittitas Valley began in the 1860’s. For the next decade, residents met for Sunday service and prayer meetings in private homes and schools. Every few months, itinerant preachers would visit Ellensburg to help build Christian interest.
In 1879, the Rev. Robert Hatfield became the first resident pastor of the Ellensburg Methodist Episcopal Church. The first Methodist Church building was constructed at the corner of Third Avenue and Ruby Street in 1884; but this church building, along with most of the downtown, was destroyed in the great Ellensburg fire of 1889.
Quickly rebuilt at the same location, it seated 200. As the population increased, the need for more room became evident. Our current church was completed in 1921. At the time, its auditorium was the largest in the city; thus, baccalaureate services for both the Normal School and the High School filled it to standing room only. Today, on average, we host about 75-100 people in worship each week.
Our church has a rich history of working towards social justice. In the 1990s, EUMC became one of the first Methodist churches in the Pacific Northwest to openly support marriage equality.
In 1879, the Rev. Robert Hatfield became the first resident pastor of the Ellensburg Methodist Episcopal Church. The first Methodist Church building was constructed at the corner of Third Avenue and Ruby Street in 1884; but this church building, along with most of the downtown, was destroyed in the great Ellensburg fire of 1889.
Quickly rebuilt at the same location, it seated 200. As the population increased, the need for more room became evident. Our current church was completed in 1921. At the time, its auditorium was the largest in the city; thus, baccalaureate services for both the Normal School and the High School filled it to standing room only. Today, on average, we host about 75-100 people in worship each week.
Our church has a rich history of working towards social justice. In the 1990s, EUMC became one of the first Methodist churches in the Pacific Northwest to openly support marriage equality.
