The History of Columbia

On December 10, 1900 a group of concerned persons led by Mrs. Lavina Marshall met because of the growing concern over the lack of a meeting place for the children of the community to both learn about God's blessing and worship God in prayer and song.

The result of the meeting was the organization of a Congregational Sunday School in the home of Mrs. Marshall at 1002 Wooster Ave. West. The Sunday School was so successful that it moved to a store building at 1011 Wooster Rd. West on February 1, 1901. On September 8, 1901, the Sunday School was officially organized as Columbia Congregational Church of Barberton, the official membership was recorded as 14 members.

On February 4, 1902 construction on the building located at 978 Wooster Rd. West was begun. The land for this building was donated by the Columbia Chemical Company.

In 1958, the constitution of the newly formed United Church of Christ was approved by a congregational vote of 71 to 4 and the church was renamed Columbia United Church of Christ. The year 1965 turned out to be a crucial year for the church. Decisions needed to be made about the building and the future did not look bright. Thanks to the cooperation of its members and the spirit of its founders, the congregation decided to renovate the existing building.

In 1999, Columbia had gone through another renovation project. The project included the widening of the sanctuary and chancel area, the addition of the new offices on the ground level, and the addition of new space for a preschool. Thanks to the members of the church there is no outstanding dept for this project.

In 2001 Columbia celebrated it's 100^th Anniversary. With pride in our past and faith in the future, we look forward to the next 100 years.