Here is the Coopersburg Church, Where is the Steeple?

by Charles Graves, Church Council Vice President   

St. John’s United Church of Christ    

As a young child many of us played a fun little game with our hands:  “Here is the church and here is the steeple.  Open the doors and see all the people.”

Traveling about the countryside in early England, Europe and later here in America, the first hint that people were to be found was a steeple, rising to the sky behind a faraway hill.  Often down in a valley, villages tended to be built alongside rivers and streams.  But for all to see and hear, pointing to the heavens and rising above the village roof tops, would be their church’s steeple, housing the all-important church bell or in some cases, bells.

Rung, pealed or tolled weekly, the bell signaled a time for worship. In the years before telephones or radios, it also alerted the people to a fire or other disaster or to celebrate an important event.  It might be said that one of the most important possessions of an entire village was its church bell.

In a way, sadly, as villages and towns grew and grew the church steeple has become so much less prominent than it once was and no longer is the bell so essential to everyday life.  But: drive north into Lehigh County on Route 309, and as you come over the crest of the hill just south of Coopersburg, on the left is a landmark that travelers have long recognized both day or night:  The steeple and bell tower of St. John’s United Church of Christ on Thomas Street, a few doors east of Coopersburg’s Main Street.

Founded in 1890 by a congregation of the German Reformed Church in union with a group of Lutherans, what is now St. John’s United Church of Christ was built.  And while some parts of the building have been remodeled and updated, the steeple and its still-important bell are the same as they have always been right down to the heavy rope hanging down just inside the front door by which the bell ringers are pulled up off the floor each Sunday morning.

Time, the sun, the rain and snow have taken their own toll on the old steeple and the present day congregation was faced with a decision.  Because this church and its steeple have meant so much to so many; from the borough’s early settlers to folks today who know it as the home of the local senior center, three girl scout troops and the annual Community Outreach Benefit block party, restoring the steeple in some manner was an imperative.  The big questions were:  How much do we do and how much do we spend?

The church’s capital improvements committee, headed by Council president Bob Wuesthoff, thought first of compromising some of the ornate detail on the wooden portion of the tower and maybe substituting some modern material for the original slate on the spire.  Fortunately, the selected contractor, RTS Construction Contractors LLC of Quakertown had at its disposal a craftsman who could duplicate with sheet aluminum, exactly the detail that has always been there since 1890.  It could also supply genuine Vermont slate that should guarantee the protection of the spire for another 121 years.

Looking at the steeple today from 309 or anywhere around Coopersburg, it can be seen that the old steeple is totally encased in construction scaffolding.  But like a butterfly, the plan is for it to emerge in just a few weeks to again become the beacon and welcoming sign to the Lehigh Valley it has always been.  And beneath it will be the friendly congregation of the St. John’s United Church of Christ, Coopersburg, opening its doors to see all the people.