History

This sturdy gray granite church has been staunchly standing on Standfast Hill above the town known by a succession of names – Elysville, Alberton, and Daniels, since 1879. The mill was then owned by the Gary family, and James A. Gary donated the land and built the church, which he named for his father, James S. Gary.

An Episcopal congregation had a chapel adjoining the mill buildings, known as St. Alban’s, and a Catholic church was built on the Baltimore County side of the river. The ruins of St. Stanislas Kostka, destroyed by lightning, are still visible today.

The Evangelical congregation worshipped on the hill until 1918, when St. Alban’s Episcopal congregation vacated their chapel adjoining the mill building. The space was offered to the Evangelicals, with the advantage of free heat. The “church on the green” then became the home of the Gary Memorial congregation. The “church on the hill” was then used for lodge meetings and other large gatherings.

Eventually, the mill needed to reclaim their space, and in 1942 the congregation returned to its original building on Standfast Hill, where it has remained ever since.

In 1932, the church became affiliated with the Evangelical United Brethren, and was known as the Daniels EUB Church. When that denomination joined with the Methodist Church in 1964, Gary Memorial became a charge of the resulting United Methodist Church.

When Tropical Storm Agnes hit in June of 1972, the church sat high and dry above the destruction along the river. The houses were already gone, and the mill itself never recovered. Daniels was fading away. However, many former town residents, mill employees and their families, continued to worship at the church. That loyal core “kept the faith”, and set an example of welcoming love that has attracted many, many more members over the ensuing years, and into the present.

In the years following that flood, Gary Memorial has achieved many milestones, including: