History
The Enfield location has a rich history from more than 100 years ago - a legacy which continues today.
The foundation stone of the first church building was laid on Monday 9 October 1854 in the presence of a large assembly of settlers. The church was built on the southern corner of Park St and Main North Rd (now occupied by restaurants and fast food stores). Enfield Methodist church opened on Sunday 25 February 1855, a stalwart in a very stark landscape. The first preacher at the church was Mr William Short who also conducted services for the Wesleyan Methodist Church in his home at California Street, Nailsworth.
Construction on a second church building began in 1881, now the current location, located on the northern corner of Park Street and Main North Road and is still standing today. The second church was opened 1886.
On Saturday 1 December 1926 the first stone of a Sunday School Hall was laid. At that time the Sunday school consisted of 247 students and 32 teachers.
In 1931 the Reverend L.G. Menadue was appointed as the first ordained minister whose sole responsibility was for Enfield.
In 1955 a new kindergarten was built and a pipe organ purchased. At this time Sunday school was attended by 530 scholars. Additions to the Sunday school hall were begun in 1958 and finalised in 1959.
The period after World War II to the 70’s has been called the golden era with many extra curricular clubs, teams and events occurring.
Since then, the Enfield Methodist Church was transformed into Enfield Uniting Church in 1977 when the Congregational, Methodist, and Presbyterian Churches united to become one denomination.
In 1978, a cosy small congregation, set amidst a fairly old and rapidly deteriorating complex suddenly found itself challenged when the area around the church was declared to be a shopping complex area.
1988 saw a new hall built, carpark transformed and continued development of the area around Enfield, Sefton Park and Prospect.
In 2018, horticultural students from Tauondi Indigenous College, leaders of the Kaurna community including Kaurna Warra Karrpanthi (KWK) and the United Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC) were among the many who joined with Second Peoples to create a new garden expression of ‘Maltunthi – Bring Close Together’ along the northern edge of the building.
In 2022, Encounter Church joined with Enfield in a building share arrangement, as a young thriving congregation.
In 2025, both congregations agreed to amalgamate, under the name Encounter Uniting Church.
