Emmanuel Presbyterian Church in East Liverpool, OH, sits on ground donated to it a century ago by famous composer and songwriter Will L. Thompson.
Will L. Thompson’s name can be found in almost every Protestant church in the United States. While he wasn’t Presbyterian, he was famous for composing hymns that can be found in many Presbyterian songbooks, with his most notable being “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling.”
But there is one congregation where the songwriter’s name holds special significance: Emmanuel Presbyterian Church in East Liverpool, OH. That’s because the mansion where Thompson grew up is located across the street from Emmanuel Church, and the land on which Emmanuel Church is located was donated by the composer himself.
“Will L. Thompson is tied to the history of the church and the community,” said David Kelly, who is the worship leader and pianist at Emmanuel Church. “He’s not only tied to the community but also in the actual, physical founding of the church. He even suggested the name for the church.”
The congregation does its best to honor the composer’s legacy on random Sunday mornings, and that’s something David cherishes.
“What I wish to commemorate is the spirit of the donation and the spirit of the purity of Will Thompson’s legacy,” he said. “Here was a man who had success beyond any measure of material success – he was a millionaire of his own volition because of his music publication. He had everything. He was the epitome of success at that point and yet he retained his common touch. He was beloved.”
The Thompson name is also synonymous with the East Liverpool area due to the fortunes of Will’s brother, for whom C.C. Thompson Pottery was named. Will’s brother and father were both involved in the family business that ran from 1868 until 1938, which at the time was one of the largest pottery businesses in the world.
However, Will did not follow in the family’s footsteps, choosing instead to follow his musical dreams and create a legacy of his own.
“A lot of people hear the name ‘Thompson’ and they lump everything together, but Will Thompson was definitively apart from his family in the fact that he became a music writer, publisher and he had his own music businesses,” David explained. “He was very, very successful apart from his family’s success in the pottery business. A lot of people really don’t make that distinction.”
Thompson’s most famous hymns beside “Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling” are “Lead Me Gently Home, Father” and “Jesus Is All the World to Me.”
The house where Will Thompson’s grew up can be seen from the front steps of Emmanuel Presbyterian Church.
“Will Thompson was immensely successful in his own right. He was one of the very first music composers to sell a million copies. It (‘Gathering Shells at the Seashore’) was a Victorian sentimental song, but nevertheless, it cemented his success.
“At the end of his life he was able to write a song ‘Jesus Is All the World to Me.’ That encapsulates the purity of his donations and his involvement with the church.”
The inner meaning of the songs and impact Thompson had on the Emmanuel Church are things David highlights when he performs one of the composer’s songs on a Sunday morning.
“I try to capture the essence of his life, his donations and his involvement,” David said. “As a worship leader, it’s very humbling and challenging to express that purity.”
Emmanuel Church’s roots begin in the late 1890s when it was a Sunday School for the local children, gathering Sunday mornings on the back porch of Thompson’s sister and sister-in-law’s house.
“The two ladies just had a very informal Sunday school just to gather up the neighborhood gangs of kids and give them a little bit of direction,” David said.
As attendance steadily grew, it eventually turned into an independent congregation called the Community Church that needed its own building.
“I think an overlooked aspect of Emmanuel Church is that it had such a grassroots origin,” David said.
By the early 1900’s, the congregation became affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and the church changed its name to the Emmanuel Mission. At the same time, Thompson donated a piece of land located across from his estate for this new congregation to call home. He also paid 50 percent of the costs associated with constructing the new building. It was Thompson’s idea to name the church “Emmanuel,” which means “God with us.”
Today, the church continues to thrive and is still a vital outreach to the community.
“Emmanuel Church is in a growing phase right now,” David concluded. “We’re gathering new members, and Pastor Margie (Zellars) is very committed to the ideals. It’s a community church. It’s the continuity of the original concept. It should be for the community and worship should be beautiful and true to the spirit. The truth of Will Thompson’s music needs to be part of that continuation. It shouldn’t be superficial, it should be authentic.”