Twelve years ago, the Old Daphne Methodist Church Museum was created with the care and dedication of area residents who sought to preserve the history of a quaint bay village that, over the past few decades, has grown into the population center for Baldwin County.

The church building was constructed in 1858, even though burials in the adjacent cemetery predate that event. In recent years, the church sat empty for a period of time, served as a thrift store and was almost destroyed by Hurricane Frederick.

In 2001, the church was revitalized as it became the home to artifacts and displays that recount the unique history and culture of Daphne. For years, Mickey Boykin headed the effort to preserve local documents and artifacts and display them in the historic church.

Ken Balme, the current president of the museum, has worked toward the goal of expanding its mission, improving the exhibits and encouraging more involvement from the community.

Balme, who moved to Daphne in October 2009 after retiring from a 35-year career with the Carrier Corporation, sought a way to give back to the community. Prior to retirement, Balme had been incredibly busy as vice president of marketing communications, running a distribution operation within the company and working with builder programs.

So when Balme moved to Daphne, he wanted to remain active, and volunteerism seemed to be the solution. Balme first approached the Daphne library to volunteer where he found out about the museum's need for assistance. He quickly became involved in the local effort to maintain the museum and since has worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the facility while increasing local participation by volunteers.

The museum features a varied collection of items that reflect the long history of Daphne — its businesses, homes and residents.

It houses a set of newspapers known as The Standard that display the character of early Daphne. The scope of the collection represents a time span from 1902 to 1905. Also featured are photographs, pottery, a jubilee display and numerous other indicators of what life in Daphne was like over the past 100 years. Of course, there is the church building itself, which is an amazing piece of 19^th century architecture.

“I think the building is a jewel,” Balme remarked. “It’s really something that a lot of cities don’t have and never will have. I think it’s an important focal point for the city that can be used in a number of ways.”

Promotion of the museum, as well as expansion of the activities offered by the Daphne Museum, has been a primary goal for Balme.

“One of the things we’d like to do is work with a couple of teachers,” Balme said. “We’d like to create a curriculum, so when they bring school students on a tour, what they hear and see will be relevant to what they’re learning.”

For the past few years, the museum has been active in the historical display featured at the Baldwin County Fair. Most recently, the museum has plans for an April 20 event that will feature the 15^th Confederate Cavalry. The day’s activities will focus on a Civil War era doctor’s tent and the museum’s collection of Civil War artifacts.

The Old Methodist Church Museum of Daphne is located at 405 Dryer Avenue in Daphne. It is open from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Interested visitors or volunteers can call 251-621-9620 for more information.