Our Storied Past

Farmers and Factories

Mount Lebanon is a country church that was built to serve the farmers of Talleyville and the factory workers of the small Rockland community down the hill.  As early as 1724 the fast waters of the Brandywine River provided energy for grist, paper and cotton mills.  Families moved to Rockland to work the mills and the community grew.  The village that formed around the mill contained two churches, a hotel, a post office and twenty-eight company-owned houses in addition to the buildings on the mill complex.

The Church on the Hill

To serve these families’ spiritual needs, the area around the small community of Rockland was included as part of the Chester Circuit.  Circuit riding ministers and lay leaders held religious services in private homes and school houses as early as 1812. These services mark the beginning of Mount Lebanon United Methodist Church.

In 1834, Thomas and Hannah Aldred, a farmer who owned 400 acres in the Talleyville area, gave the beautiful site for our current church building and cemetery. The Brandywine granite church on the hill was one of two that served Rockland and the surrounding farms of Talleyville. 

A walk through the cemetery offers a view into the past.  There, members of families from Brandywine Hundred’s history lie in rest.  Graves date from 1836.  There are six Civil War veterans from the Civil War buried there, including one wounded in the Battle of Gettysburg.   

Growing to Better Serve

As the church grew, the building changed with it.  In 1872 the pitch of the roof was raised, a narthex added, and the exterior walls treated with stucco.  In the 1930’s stained glass windows were installed. In the 1940’s a local tattoo artist painted the Bible and dove mural in the sanctuary.  The Fellowship Hall was built in 1952, adding facilities for meetings and church events.  Later, a second floor with Sunday school rooms and a nursery were added.  The choir grew as music ministries were expanded and an active Women’s Society sponsored community dinners throughout the years.

Looking to the Future 

Originally, Mt. Lebanon Methodist Episcopal Church, the congregation changed with the times and now sits in the midst of suburban homes and beautiful county and state parkland. Today our church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  We are grateful for its rich history and deep spiritual foundation. 

We have become purposefully outward looking as we seek to engage in life changing ministries throughout our community as well as within our congregation. We commit to taking the next steps of faith and are excited to see how God uses our little church on the hill.  We hope you’ll join us soon at any of our upcoming events or some Sunday morning at 10:30. Perhaps God is leading you to become part of the next chapter of Mt. Lebanon’s future!