Oakland-Cambridge Presbyterian Church 1849
When and where
did our church begin? Surprisingly, we are from the same 'mold' as the game of golf!
Everyone
knows golf originated in Scotland, right? Well, yes and no!
It's definitely true that golf as we
know it emerged in Scotland, in its basic form—take a club, swing it at a little ball, and move it from point to point
in as few as strokes as possible. The earliest known reference to golf comes from King James II of Scotland, in the mid 15th
century, yet over the decades the game literally evolved and developed from 'stick-and-ball' games throughout the British
isles during the Middle Ages and later played in France, Germany and other northern European countries.
One-hundred sixty-years ago the Oakland Presbyterian Church had a very similar, yet
enthusiastic beginning in 1849, by a Princeton graduate, Rev. Thomas Frazer, who traveled to eastern Wisconsin. He was 'preparing
the way' for the organization of churches, and later that fall a medical missionary, Rev. William Cargen, who was born in
Scotland in 1793, arrived as our first Pastor, along with his wife, Mary. They were among several Scottish families, and thus
they felt right at home.
The saga of the Oakland-Cambridge Presbyterian
Church has had many peaks and valleys, growing steadily of Scottish decent, along with Norwegians, Danish, Swedish, and German
backgrounds. In the eras of the 1920's and into the 1960's there were gains and losses in membership. In the 1950's we had
almost 240 members, and church groups of the Women's Organization, the Sunday School, and a youth group named Christian Endeavor
flourished. In 1931 an addition was built to the church, a basement remodeling in 1965, and manse improvements in the 90's.
We are in the average size of churches in the U.S. of less than 200 in membership, today. We are in an ideal location on Main
Street (Hwy. 12) in Cambridge, right next to the Lake Ripley Country Club, yet our name includes the township nearby, Oakland,
where the original church was founded. We own and operate the Lake Ripley Cemetery near us on the shore of Lake Ripley.
We are the most eastern Presbyterian church in the John Knox Presbytery, a member of
the PC(USA) and we have gained liberal policies of governance, including women in leadership roles, youth involved in worship,
and traditional and contemporary music for our choir and worship enjoyment; these all have found their way into today's congregation.
Throughout these 160 years, the members have sought to be faithful and obedient
disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know we have faltered, yet with God's grace we have responded to being led by the Holy
Spirit and we continue to share our ministry and mission in the community and in the world. We pledge as a congregation in
our mission statement, “ to minister to all peoples through worship, fellowship, education, and outreach in order to
meet spiritual needs.”
Welcome to our church, welcome to the game of golf, both Scottish Royalties!!
