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Church of the Foothills records, 1858-1981.
MVC029  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Provenance/Source of acquisition
  • Processing Information
  • Biographical / Historical
  • Scope and Contents
  • Arrangement
  • Related Materials

  • Contributing Institution: Museum of Ventura County
    Title: Church of the Foothills records
    Creator: First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and Santa Clara Valley.
    Creator: Church of the Foothills
    Identifier/Call Number: MVC029
    Physical Description: 2.74 Cubic Feet (3 boxes)
    Date (inclusive): 1858-1927
    Abstract: Church of the Foothills was the first Protestant church in Ventura County. Throughout its first hundred years, Church of the Foothills consisted of two churches: The First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and the Saticoy Community Church. Church of the Foothills was officially established in 1971 after these two churches merged. This collection contains archival records of the First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and Santa Clara Valley, the parent organization of Church of the Foothills.
    Physical Location: Stored off-site and advance notice is required for timely retrieval. Please request materials 2-3 days in advance. Researchers MUST make a research appointment on the Research Library website.
    Language of Material: English .

    Conditions Governing Access

    Open for research. Advance requests can be made to Research Library staff via email.

    Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

    Property rights to the physical object belong to the Museum of Ventura County. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where the museum does not hold the copyright.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item], Church of the Foothills records (Collection MVC029), Museum of Ventura County, Research Library, Ventura, California.

    Provenance/Source of acquisition

    Church of the Foothills; gift; 1995.

    Processing Information

    Processed by Library Staff in 2011. Processed by Peter Smilanick under the supervision of Krystell Jimenez, 2022

    Biographical / Historical

    Church of the Foothills is the oldest Protestant church in Ventura County. The church was established as the First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and Santa Clara Valley in 1867. Church services took place in a tent from 1867 to 1870. Originally, it consisted of two churches: the First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and the Saticoy Community Church (Congregational). The Saticoy church merged with the Ventura church in 1971 and is now called Church of the Foothills.
    Prior to the church's formal organization, several preliminary developments took place. The Union Sabbath School was established in 1862, with George S. Gilbert as superintendent. There was no other Protestant church present in the county at the time, so the American Home Missionary Society (AHMS) sent Rev. M.B. Starr to preach in Ventura in the autumn of 1867. The first meeting for the church organization took place in January 1868. Congregational minister Rev. S. Bristol began to preach in Ventura, alternating with Rev. Starr. He left after one year and was succeeded by Rev. Bristol. Bristol became the central influence in the church's development. Bristol Road is named for the reverend. He was a Yale graduate, an abolitionist, and had served pastorates in Wisconsin before settling in. Although the church was served by various pastors, Bristol would consistently fill in any gaps in leadership and was a guiding influence. Bristol was an advocate for inclusive church communities, and in the 1870s Bristol welcomes Chinese immigrants as members of the church and set up schools for them to learn English.
    The church has had various locations over the years, and the Community Church was built in 1928 after the religious community federated with the Presbyterians. The church then "un-federated" in 1960 and started a meeting of Congregationalists at the Poinsettia Pavilion. The churches former building is now called Community Presbyterian Church. The church eventually moved to the site it now occupies on Foothill Road. The church currently identifies as an LGBTQ+ affirming community.
    The church belongs to the United Church of Christ (UCC). This is a mainline Protestant denomination formed in 1958 from the English Congregational/Christian Church tradition and the German Evangelical Reformed Church. It also has roots in Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions. The UCC is known for an emphasis on interfaith and ecumenical work.
    (Portions of this history are based on the Church of the Foothills website. )

    Scope and Contents

    This collection consists of archival records of the First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and Santa Clara Valley, the parent organization of Church of the Foothills. It also includes materials from any of churches that are part of this religious community's history. Materials include church registers, record books, correspondence, guest books, and meeting minutes.

    Arrangement

    This collection does not have series and is described at the item level.

    Related Materials

    Additional historical information related to this material may be accessed by referring to the following subjects in the Research Library's book catalog : Congregational Church of San Buenaventura, First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura, Saticoy Community Church, and Ventura Community Church.

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Church records and registers -- Ventura (Calif.)
    Church of the Foothills -- Records and correspondence
    First Congregational Church of San Buenaventura and Santa Clara Valley. -- Records and correspondence
    United Church of Christ -- Ventura (Calif.)