Plainfields, New Jersey
Terrill Road Bible Chapel in Fanwood has an illustrious
history. By the year 1870, a small group of 15 or 20 believers were gathering
together in assembly fellowship in Plainfield. Of the original company, only
one name is remembered, that of Louis Rhéaume. Mrs. Elie Loizeaux was a
step-daughter of his.
Later in the 1880s, Paul and Timothy Loizeaux
with their families moved to Plainfield and met with this small group. They
were the founders of the Bible Truth Depot, later known as Loizeaux Brothers
Publishers. At about this time F.C. Jennings, a gifted writer and teacher,
joined with the group. The assembly grew and the Lord blessed. A little later,
J.D. Loizeaux, the Perrins, the Hardinghams, and the Maugers came into
fellowship.
Toward the end of the 1880s, F.W. Grant, the well
known assembly leader and writer, came to Plainfield with his family and took
his place among this group. (F.W. Grant’s sons, Fred and Frank, and some
members of the Loizeaux family, were associated with a similar assembly in
nearby Berkeley Heights – the Berkeley Heights Gospel Hall – which
continued until World War II.) F.W. Grant produced The Numerical Bible while in
Plainfield. Miss Emily Farmer, who assisted C.I. Scofield in the preparation of
his well known reference Bible, was also in the assembly for many years. During
these years, the assembly was known as Bible Truth Hall in Plainfield, but was
usually called the Front Street Meeting, denoting its location in downtown
Plainfield at 331 E. Front Street.
Soon after the turn of the century,
Samuel Ridout, another well known author, came to Plainfield with his family,
and came into fellowship. F.W. Grant and Samuel Ridout were successive editors
of Help and Food. The Front Street Meeting was quite large at this time. After
Mr. Ridout died in 1930, John Bloore assumed the editorship of Help and Food
for twelve years. He perhaps more than anyone else was used to break down some
of the party lines among brethren. The Front Street Meeting had been in the
‘exclusive’ camp, and with Mr. Bloore’s and others’
efforts, became an ‘open’ meeting.
Others in the meeting in
the first half of the 1900s were James Parker; Hughes Fawcett; P. Daniel, Elie,
Alfred, and Parker Loizeaux, the sons of Timothy Loizeaux; Fred and Frank
Grant, the sons of F.W. Grant; the Armerding family; the Loughs; Carvers;
Inglis Fleming; Ferdinand French; Walter Temple; and for a time, John Smart and
R.E. Harlow. Those who ministered at the assembly comprise a veritable
Who’s Who among the brethren.
Hillside Cemetery, located on the
border of Scotch Plains and Plainfield, stands today as a memorial of many
saints, including those listed. Their tombstones stand as a great tribute to
God’s Word. The entrance of this cemetery is graced by the markers of
three of the original Loizeaux family, whose inscriptions are written in
French.
The Front Street Meeting built a new chapel in the neighboring
town of Fanwood in 1957 and since then has been called the Terrill Road Bible
Chapel. Others in leadership over the years include John Reid, Phillip Carter,
John French, Ledley Perrin, Douglas Haggan, Robert Hansen, and William
Patterson. The assembly has commended several people to the work of the Lord in
Puerto Rico, to itinerant ministry, to Emmaus Bible College, and other areas.
Terrill Road has about 110 adults and youngsters in attendance at this time. *
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