Mount Vernon United Methodist Church

City firefighters work to extinguish a fire at the Mount Vernon United Methodist Church in Hampden. A three-alarm fire caused an estimated $5.5 million in damage to the church. (Sun photo by Elizabeth Malby / August 2, 2008)

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By Gadi Dechter Sun reporter

11:09 AM EDT, August 2, 2008
A three-alarm fire destroyed a 19th-century church in Hampden this morning, causing an estimated $5.5 million in damage and leaving church leaders shaken but vowing to rebuild.

About 15 fire engines responded shortly after 6:00 a.m. to the Mount Vernon United Methodist Church at the corner of 33rd Street and Chestnut Avenue, where the stone and wood church was in flames, said Division Chief Reginald L. Session. Four hours later, firefighters were still shooting water into the smoking steeple, sending slate tiles and shards of timber falling to the street below.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, Session said, but several neighbors reported being awakened by multiple cracks of lightning at around 5:30 a.m., during a fierce storm that swept the region.

There were no reports of injuries or damage to nearby properties, fire officials said.

The Rev. Robin Johnson, the church's pastor, said the church property was insured and that he would meet with congregants tomorrow at the nearby sister church, Hampden United Methodist Church, to discuss the congregation's future.

"In the midst of darkness, we believe in hope, and hope is certainly here today," Johnson said, as members of his small but active congregation stood in the street looking up at the charred steeple and destroyed roof.

Carole Lewis, a parishioner with the roughly 40-person congregation, said the church was the oldest in Hampden. The stone building was built in 1878 by David Carroll, owner of the Mount Vernon Mill, a former textile mill nearby, Lewis said.

The congregation was formed about 30 years earlier and celebrated its 160th anniversary last year, parishioners said.

Session, the fire chief, said the property has been condemned and that building inspectors from the city would determine whether the skeletal remains of the steeple and bell tower would have to be removed.

Johnson said he was told the steeple may have to come down today. A lightning rod and its wiring were clearly visible at the top of the steeple.