The Catholic Church

The picture is of the one-time Catholic Church and silent movie house on the move to its new home as the main sanctuary of Bedford Baptist Church.  After the Catholic congregation dwindled to an inactive state, the building remained closed for several years and the property was eventually sold to John Stanley.  The building at the left is the first Bedford Garage Co. shop erected next door to the south.  A. L. Voiers leased the old church building for a while to operate a movie theatre called Florence Theatre, named for his deceased daughter, later selling the movie equipment to Keith H. Hood and Louise B. Logan, who operated the theatre with silent film and player piano accompaniment until 1930 when Standard Oil bought the property and presented the building to the Baptist congregation to replace their burned church.  An enterprising contractor simply put the building on rollers and it is shown in the picture being moved across what is now US 421.  The path led across the yard of the old school building which by that time was Red Men's Hall, and down West Street, finally coming safely to rest on the foundation that had been prepared in the Baptist Church yard.  It has been enlarged and redone several times in the intervening years.

from the Trimble Banner Bi-Centennial Edition