Date of establishment: Unknown (Active for years)
Location: Bethany, West Virginia

The Old Meeting House (formerly the Bethany Church of Christ) sits on the southeast corner of Main and Church Streets in Bethany, West Virginia.

This structure was completed in 1853 to replace a smaller building that existed on the same site. The first structure was likely built around 1830. The structure that stands today has seen hundreds of ministers, many ordinations, and, for the first time, it has seen the installation of the President of the Disciples of Christ Historical Society.

The Old Meeting House is a humble red brick structure built on a fieldstone foundation with two front doors on the main facade. The foundation stone was saved from the structure that the Old Meeting House replaced. The front doors enter into a narrow vestibule and further enter into the sanctuary from behind the pulpit. This design was to discourage anyone being late to service as upon entering the sanctuary, a guest is face to face with the entire congregation. The pews are divided into three sections with the middle section having a wooden divider running down the center of the sanctuary. Single men were encouraged to sit on the right while single women were encouraged to sit on the left. Families were encouraged to sit together in the center pews.

Demolition threatened the Old Meeting House in the 1910s as the congregation yet again outgrew the structure. Once plans for a new church were hatched, the life of the Old Meeting House was put on a timer. However, many people rejected the idea of destroying such an icon in the name of progress and expansion, most notably was Campbell’s daughter Decima Campbell Barclay. Decima was the last Campbell to live in the Campbell Mansion in Bethany and was dedicated to the preservation of her father’s legacy. She took charge of the opposition to demolition and held on until the plans were abandoned and another plot was acquired to construct the new church. Were it not for Decima, the Old Meeting House would likely not be standing today.

Though the Old Meeting House is not the home to a congregation, the building sees use on occasion throughout the year, especially in the spring and summer months. Special Sunday services are held here and groups come from out of town to use the meeting house for various events. Though this sacred site is empty most of the time, it is certainly not abandoned.

In September 2023, Dr. Joel Brown was officially installed into the office of President of the Disciples of Christ Historical Society. He and many of the invited guests stood and spoke where Alexander and Thomas Campbell, among others, preached to their congregations over 150 years prior. The Old Meeting House at Bethany has become as synonymous to the Stone-Campbell Movement as the Cane Ridge Meeting House and the Alexander Campbell Study.