The group is doing a great job of identifying historical relics in the community and sharing the history with community and visitors. Most impressive is their effort to restore the chapel that reflects the town’s connection with the African American community post Civil War.
We moved to New Haven a few years ago to renovate a historic building that had been the town library. One of the first things we did was join the New Haven Preservation Society. The Preservation Society has been very helpful in providing access to information about our property and the many other historic properties in town. We strongly support the organizatin's current efforts to restore Anna Bell Chapel, the former AME Church of New Haven.
I was born in New Haven in 1945 and lived there until the end of college in 1968. As a member of the Emory Memorial Methodist Church, I was well aware of our fellow Methodists at Anna Bell Chapel. Ironically, both the Anna Bell and Emory church buildings are no longer used for worship. Many important religious and community events took place in these buildings. During and soon after the Civil Rights Movement, the ties between the two Methodist congregations strengthened in ways that make me proud of my hometown. Ultimately, there will be few reminders left of the effects of these congregations on the community. The Anna Bell Chapel is an important reminder of this history and deserves the attention that the New Haven Preservation Society has bestowed upon it. I am grateful for the Society’s efforts to ensure that future generations can experience this history first-hand.
I have been a member of New Haven Preservation from the founding and have served in various capacities over the years. We started with a very small group of active members in the beginning with the purpose of saving our elementary school which was in danger of being sold and possibly being demolished. We were fortunate to receive enough funding from a local family to make the purchase. Our first big project was to send a solicitation to all former students asking for donations and inviting them to join our new organization. Our membership has grown over the years and we continue to actively solicit members. We are happy to have welcomed new people who are contributing with new ideas and skills. The Anna Bell Chapel project has required hard work and fundraising. Though we have secured the building, we don’t yet have the funds to complete the interior and we still have rooms at the school that need attention. In a small community, there are many organizations which are competing for our time and money.
I’ve been a member of the New Haven Preservation Society for several years. Over the years our dedicated members have worked many hours preserving and sharing local history. We saved the old New Haven Elementary School from demolition in 1989 and turned it into a multi-purpose space, as it includes both a history museum for remembering our past as well as gathering rooms for meetings or banquets to serve the community today.
Through both donations and much volunteer work we have managed to preserve another local treasure in 2022, The Anna Bell Chapel, a small AME (African Methodist Episcopal) Church, which the Society worked to get listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. A new foundation was placed under the church in 2023, but much work remains to be done to complete restoration of the interior.
While not always successful (the 1890 Fire House was demolished in 2022), the Society works hard to preserve the buildings and traditions of the City of New Haven and every donation gets us one step closer to reaching our goals.
I have been involved with the New Haven Preservation Society for over twenty years. It is a group of amazing individuals who are dedicated to collecting and preserving local history. Their archive contains a huge collection of artifacts and memorabilia documenting the history of the local community. Periodically, the organization recognizes residents who have made a contribution to local preservation projects. There current project is the restoration of an African-American Church which was in jeopardy of being lost because of physical deterioration. The church is one of only a few surviving churches of the black community still standing in east central Missouri. Their dedication to preservation efforts is surely to be conmmended . I'm proud to be a member.
I am fairly new to the New Haven, Missouri area. The New Haven Preservation Society was one of my first groups that I attended and was so impressed.! This is a very committed group and have so much information regarding New Haven. My husband and I recently purchased an old house close to the downtown district. This has been a great resource to see the history of the town, and know that our little house was also a part of that. I'm anxious to see what 2024 has in store for us with connecting the past with the present and future.
I have been very impressed with all that New Haven Preservation Society does to tell and to preserve New Haven’s history!
They saved the old school and have completely made the whole first floor for community activities and a small museum. Community organizations can hold meetings there for no cost. The kitchen in a large classroom and an adjoining classroom can be rented for family gatherings, concerts, classes.
Part of the basement has been renovated as a large museum. The old kitchen area needs yet to be renovated.
A room on the second floor is an archive room. Two more classrooms that desperately need to be renovated are used for storage.
How wonderful that the society has this space available for the community and tourists to learn our history.
The big project at the moment is saving the Anna Bell African-American Methodist Episcopal Chapel. The foundation which termites had eaten has been repaired, but there is much more to do before the furniture can be returned and it can be open again for tours, meetings, concerts, a service now and then.
In my 10 years of living in New Haven I’ve been very thankful for the New Haven Preservation Society.
New Haven Preservation Society has championed saving our town’s history for the future for many decades. New Haven Missouri is a small town on the Missouri River. The Preservation Society has preserved the old public school and converted it into a very nice museum and community meeting room with kitchen facilities. Current projects are planned to raise money to preserve Anna Bell Chapel which is an historic Black church in need of extensive repairs. We also have purchased plaques to display on buildings downtown with historic significance. Members have volunteered to maintain and run our museum, to work at several yearly festival food booths, to act as hosts when a group rents the community room, and have donated time to work on building maintenance as well. One gentleman has written books on history, donating all proceeds to the NHPS. We have need of resources both financial and volunteer hours to accomplish our goals. We have many members who believe in our goals and are working hard and faithfully. A volunteer donated this schoolhouse quilt which is a backdrop in this photo of me enjoying a night of music with my daughter.