Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church (Leonard, Missouri, USA)
The Cherry Box Mennonite Meetinghouse near Cherry Box, Missouri, began in the mid-1860s, when Mennonite settlers from Illinois began moving to Missouri after the Civil War. Benjamin Lapp, a minister, organized a congregation likely before 1868, with about 20 members. Another minister was his brother, Abraham. Benjamin Hershey, who had been ordained as bishop in Illinois, moved to Missouri in 1871 and served until he died in 1888.
The small group initially held services in homes, and later in the Oak Hill schoolhouse just north of Cherry Box. The first meetinghouse was built in 1872, south of Cherry Box. The building was shared with the Church of the Brethren. Indeed, Abraham Lapp and Deacon Chris Lapp joined the Church of the Brethren, and Benjamin Lapp moved away, causing early distress within the congregation. The congregation sold this building to the Church of the Brethren in 1899 and built a new meetinghouse closer to Cherry Box. It remodeled this building in 1950, adding a basement and installing additions at each end.
With the new 1899 meetinghouse, the congregation used the name Mount Pisgah. This name is first mentioned in the Herald of Truth in October 1899.
Mount Pisgah was part of the Missouri-Iowa Mennonite Conference of the Mennonite Church (MC), and in the early years served as the location for annual conference meetings in alternate years. In 1921, it became part of the Missouri-Kansas Mennonite Conference (later called the South Central Mennonite Conference). In 2023, the South Central Mennonite Conference withdrew from Mennonite Church USA and, in 2024, chose to become a district of LMC: a Fellowship of Anabaptist Churches. Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church thus became part of LMC.
Bibliography
Brundage, Daniel. "Account of a journey to Illinois and Missouri." Herald of Truth 6, no. 2 (February 1869): 25.
Erb, Paul. South Central Frontiers: A History of the South Central Mennonite Conference. Scottdale, Pa: Herald Press, 1974: 71-77, 465.
Kauffman, Nelson E. "Short history of Mt. Pisgah." Mennonite Historical Bulletin 7, no. 2 (June 1946): [3].
"Report of the S. S. Conference held at Mt. Pisgah M. H. in Shelby Co., Mo., Sept. 25, 26, 1899." Herald of Truth 36, no. 20 (15 October 1899): 314-315.
Shellenberger, Abraham. "From Missouri." Herald of Truth 8, no. 8 (August 1871): 124-125.
Additional Information
Address: 892 State Hwy B, Leonard, Missouri 63451
Telephone: 660-762-4400
Website:
Denominational Affiliations:
LMC: a Fellowship of Anabaptist Churches
Pastoral Leaders at Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Benjamin Lapp (1826-1897) | 1865-1870s |
| Abraham Lapp (1831-1925) | 1868?-1870s |
| Benjamin F. Hershey (1814-1888)(Bishop) | 1871-1886 |
| John L. Brubaker (1844-1924) | 1876-1895 |
| Lafayette J. Johnston (1866-1940) | 1894-1940 |
| Wallace J. Kauffman (1865-1899) | 1897-1899 |
| George Bissey (1877-1942) | 1902-1942 |
| John M. Yoder (1878-1967) | 1920-1951 |
| Daniel Kauffman (1916-2011) (Bishop) |
1948-1951 1951-1959 1961-1985? |
| John Otto | 1960-1962 |
| Tim E. Horst | 1982-1987 |
| James V. Johnston | 1989-1999 |
| Darrell E. Zook | 2000?-2004? |
| Janet B. Dellinger | 2005?-2008? |
| John Thomas | 2008?-2018 |
| Timothy Worstell | 2020s?- |
Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church Membership
| Year | Members |
|---|---|
| 1868 | 20 |
| 1880 | 13 |
| 1893 | 25 |
| 1908 | 28 |
| 1915 | 19 |
| 1920 | 42 |
| 1930 | 34 |
| 1940 | 29 |
| 1950 | 32 |
| 1960 | 44 |
| 1970 | 44 |
| 1980 | 55 |
| 1990 | 47 |
| 2000 | 51 |
| 2009 | 58 |
| 2020 | 26 |
Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article
By John M. Yoder. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 759. All rights reserved.
Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church (MC)), located about five miles northwest of Leonard, Shelby County, Missouri, and sometimes known as the Cherry Box congregation, was organized probably about 1868, with perhaps 20 charter members. Benjamin Lapp was the first minister and Christian Lapp the first deacon. In 1870 Benjamin F. Hershey, from the Science Ridge congregation, Sterling, Illinois, moved into this community and is thought to have been the first bishop of the congregation. The first church was built probably in 1872 about one and one-half miles south of Cherry Box. It was replaced by the present church, located a quarter mile south of Cherry Box, in 1899; this church was remodeled in 1956. The congregation has never been large; the membership in 1956 was 48. Other bishops who served the congregation were David Kauffman, Daniel Kauffman, J. M. Kreider, Nelson Kauffman, and Daniel Kauffman, the present bishop. Other ministers who have served are John Brubaker, Wallace Kauffman, L. J. Johnston, George Bissey, John M. Yoder, and Daniel Kauffman (ordained bishop in 1952).
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | November 2025 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church (Leonard, Missouri, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. November 2025. Web. 19 Jan 2026. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Mount_Pisgah_Mennonite_Church_(Leonard,_Missouri,_USA)&oldid=181350.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (November 2025). Mount Pisgah Mennonite Church (Leonard, Missouri, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 19 January 2026, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Mount_Pisgah_Mennonite_Church_(Leonard,_Missouri,_USA)&oldid=181350.
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