Beecher "Bible and Rifle" Church (Congregationalist/United Church of Christ)
Wabaunsee, Kansas
Founded: 1862
Current Building: 1862

In 1854, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which provided that Kansas would become a free or slave state based on a vote by its citizens. The state became a battleground, and a magnet for pro- and anti-slavery settlers, including guerrilla abolitionist John Brown.

One group of abolitionist settlers from New Haven, Connecticut, raised $625 to buy Sharps rifles, and made the long trip to Kansas in 1856. The group constructed the modest stone structure of Beecher Bible and Rifle Church. The church remains in operation today, though the congregation is small, and has no full time minister.

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