MARBLE HILL CHURCH STRENGTHENED AFTER FIRE

The basic structure of Lutesville Presbyterian Church has remained intact since its cornerstone was laid near the turn of the century. Parts of the church sanctuary were destroyed in a 1978 fire caused by a gas explosion.

MARBLE HILL -- Alpha Ricketts, doesn't remember hearing the blast that ignited a fire at Lutesville Presbyterian Church, but 20 years later she can remember the rescue and cleanup.

"It looked like a big snow that you walked through," said the 99-year-old Bollinger County native. "It smoked all day." Ricketts lived only a few houses from the church then. She now lives at Bond Nursing Home.

For the past week, Ricketts, like many other members of the church, have been remembering the fire and tragedy that shook an entire community.

On June 14, 1978, a fire erupted following an explosion from a gasoline tanker refueling pumps at a service station along Railroad Street. Nearly two blocks of Marble Hill erupted into flames from the explosion.

One person died in the blast, and three others were injured. Firefighters from all across Southeast Missouri were called to fight a blaze that took five hours to extinguish.

Yet, despite the tremendous explosion and fire, members of the Lutesville Presbyterian Church have rebuilt their lives and their place of worship.

The congregation chose not to remember the fire in any formal way during services, she said. But it has had an effect on members by helping draw them closer together over the years, said the Rev. Nancy Gillard.

"I grew up in a church that had burned and people realized that the building is not the church," Gillard said. She thinks the same lesson has been learned by the Marble Hill congregation, which continues to grow.

"You can't always look at the past," said Pat Lukefahr, who has been a member of the congregation since 1955. "It's another day that you just go on."

Although the fire destroyed the building, it didn't destroy the church body. She said, "It's like your own family -- you rebuild."

And that's exactly what the church membership voted to do. About 40 people worship at the church, which has been a mainstay in the small Marble Hill community since 1904.

Days after residents and church members gathered on the streets to watch firefighters battle the blaze, people were allowed to salvage materials from the church.

A piano, hymnals, Bibles, pews and a pulpit lectern were salvaged. Many of the items were cleaned and used while the congregation worshiped in a temporary location.

As the church rebuilt, many of the furnishings were dedicated in memory of past members.

"This church has more plaques than I've ever seen," said Gillard, with a laugh.

Shards of the stained-glass windows that had lined walls on either side of the sanctuary were saved but never able to be repaired. When the new sanctuary was built, a new stained-glass window was installed.

Even now, many members can't recall exactly how the sanctuary had looked before the fire. What they can remember is that the pew arrangement was reversed so that the stained-glass window is at the rear of the sanctuary instead of the front.

Services were held in a school gymnasium or fellowship hall until sanctuary construction was completed nearly two years later.

The church tries to repay the community for its help by making its building available for civic and Scout troop meetings, Gillard said.