Mt. Union Cemetery Westminster

1046-1124 North Gorsuch Road, Westminster, MD

Westminster Maryland

We visited this cemetery on May 3, 2015. The information below is taken from the metal sign on the property. There are many stones that we were unable to read, but we have left the photos in the group. If you have any information on the unreadable stones, please share with us at germanmarylanders@gmail.com.

On the 21^st day of May, 1853, Jacob and Ruth Sellers sold this scenic tract of farm land to the Trustees of the United Brethren in Christ Church Group for the sum of five dollars. The Trustees were Samuel Deahoff, Thomas Bosley, Henry Keller, Henry Shaffer and Solomon Sentz. These men were then assigned the task of planning for and erecting a house of worship that would be used by this farming community and their church going members. According to the minutes from the Pennsylvania Conference, the Mt. Union Church Building was built in 1858 and was located seven miles east of the town of Westminster Maryland. The first seats in the church were made of slabs of wood and the Church was there after named ‘Slab Union’ by its membership. It is said that the Camp Revivals on the Grounds of ‘Slab Union’ were quite emotional affairs and very popular among everyone in the community. The local Methodist Church members also used the Mt. Union Church for their services, however, in 1883, they moved into their newly constructed Church at Shiloh. During March 1912 the trustees voted to build a new church building following a tragic fire that was caused by a dropped oil lamp during an evening service. A cornerstone for the new church

was laid on Sunday August 25, 1912 and all that donated to the building fund had their names placed within the cornerstone. Located just inside the cornerstone was a metal box that held Church artifacts and heartfelt memories. The new Church Building was constructed for a cost of $2,000 and was dedicated on March 30, 1913. In 1927, the Pennsylvania Conference Minutes state that the services at the Mt. Union were suspended on July 10, 1927 as most of the members became active within the Greenmount United Brethren Church. In 1933 Dick Spencer paid $206 for the rights to the materials of the church building. Mr. Spencer then went to reuse the material from the Church to build a home for a Mr. Fred Byers, whose home is located on the Old Manchester Road, located just outside of Westminster. During the Spring of 2008, the Mt. Union Historic Church and Cemetery Association was formed in order to protect both the memories and resting sites of our family members and the rich American Heritage that these historic grounds are remembered for.