History of Sicklerville United Methodist Church

The name "Sicklerville" was derived from John Sickler who settled in the area in the early 1800’s. John Sickler was a farmer and preacher having three sons, Christopher, William and John. Other early settlers of the community were John, Jacob and George Ware (from which the area was sometimes referred to as "Waretown"). This early settlement was originally called Sicklertown and was a stop on the railroad serving the growing communities outside Philadelphia. The exact time that Sicklerville began being commonly used instead of Sicklertown is unknown.

The first religious meetings in this locality were held in private houses with most of the preaching done by John Sickler, a part time Methodist pastor. The original attendees included John’s sons; Christopher, John, William and their families along with the Joseph Jones family. In 1837, William Sickler donated an acre of land for church purposes, and soon after the community united in building a small farm house on Church Road where school classes were held during the week and religious meetings on Sunday. This original building was used until 1859, when a small church was erected in its place. This small church still stands today and is used for Sunday school classes and by developing churches. Sometime after the 1859 church was erected, the Sicklers donated an additional acre of land to establish a cemetery next to the church building.

These early religious meetings and the small wooden frame structure on Church Road was the beginning of the Sicklerville United Methodist Church. Church records indicate that the Tansboro, Atco and Sicklertown churches were on the same Methodist circuit around 1872 and remained that way until 1904 when the circuit became known as the Tansboro-Sicklertown church. This action and increased attendance prompted a need for a parsonage in Sicklerville. A half-acre of ground was given to the church by Frederick Clark and a parsonage was erected for the use of the minister of the church. This parsonage was occupied until 1928 when the pastor began living in Tansboro. At that time the parsonage was torn down and the ground used for additional cemetery space. In 1939 a new circuit including the New Brooklyn church was formed and remained until 1942 when Tansboro,New Brooklyn and Atco were broken off leaving Sicklerville as a new standalone congregation. The first wedding on record ever performed in the new Sicklerville church took place on October 4, 1947 uniting John (Jack) Thornton and Alice McClintock. In 1953 there became a need for additional space where Sunday School classes and fellowship meetings could be held and the cement block structure currently housing The Lord’s Clothes Tree and Youth Center was built. Most of the work for this building was done by the men of the church under the leadership of William Albertson, a local contractor and trustee of the church, at a cost of $5,218.

The church remained a relatively small congregation with fewer than 100 members until the mid-1970s when growth in the Winslow community flourished. In 1976 to meet the communities needs a new church building was built on four acres of land directly across Church Road from the original church. This building was converted into the current Fellowship Hall when a new sanctuary was built in 1990. Growth in attendance, the transformation of lives and making of disciples remained a priority for the members of SUMC throughout the 1990’s prompting additional building projects adding classrooms, offices and meeting areas. In 2010 the church purchased additional property on Church Road where the current parsonage is located and where the church hopes to build a new Family Life Center in the near future.