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=Earliest Brethren=
In 1879, William Martin recalled in an evangelistic letter (reprinted in May 1967 Words in Season) to his younger brother Dr. A.E. Martin visiting Thomas Broadfoot and his brother Alexander "Sandy" Broadfoot in [[Kansas]] and being led to Christ. William gave A.E. tracts and books including C.H. Mackintosh's "Notes on Exodus" that resulted in A.E. being led to Christ himself.
In 1884, Sandy Broadfoot obtained his medical degree in Toronto, [[Ontario]], [[Canada]] and settled in Enterprise, Kansas to setup his practice.
From about 1894 thru 1973 there was an exclusive brethren family in Dickinson County, Kansas, Judson & Laura M. Bowker Alden. Judson was born around 1835 in New York, and employed as a carpenter by 1870 in Rockford, Illinois, and married Helen "Hattie" Hazard, who was was born in Rockford in 1850. They relocated to the Dickinson county area by the 1890's, and presumed to have setup an exclusive brethren table in their home which was located initially in Manchester from 1894 thru 1904, then there was an exclusive brethren split in 1908/1909 in which the Alden's were included in affiliating with the Tunbridge-Wells brethren (which is the largest exclusive brethren group in the United States today). The Alden's relocated to Talmage from 1908-1923, and Mrs. Alden continued as correspondent thru at least 1933, along with their daughter Grace Alden who continued as a contact for the TW brethren thru 1973 in Abilene.
From the Topeka State Journal, Sept. 14, 1914: '''Abilene Preacher Egged'''; Saloon Rowdies at Breckenridge, Minn., Insult Kansas Minister on Street: "While Rev. F.H. Nicholson of Abilene, a preacher of the Plymouth Brethren denomination, was speaking in the street here, eggs were hurled at him from a saloon in front of which he was standing. A crowd of more than a hundred present at the time, was not slow in showing that their sympathies were with the speaker rather than the rowdies. Rev. Nicholson has been preaching for about fourteen years and is well known in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri and Iowa."
=Grace and Truth=
Robert Alexander Robson, of Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian, left to assist George McBoyle and others to help with an assembly that met for a time on McBoyle's farm. Eventually he donated land at what is now at the corner of Deer & 1400 where they built the Grace & Truth Gospel Hall, which in the 1950's changed names to the Chapel.
It is thought that [[George Gruen]] may have been among the early saints also, who had relocated from the St. Louis area of Illinois to farm, who was involved with exclusive assemblies in the Highland, Illinois area. It is remembered that when George first came to Abilene, he settled with an established Grant exclusive meeting in the area, which may have been among those who eventually started Grace & Truth.
==1920's split==
Around 1927, [[George Gruen]], Benjamin F. Jury (1870-1947), and Linneas Engle (b. 1862 PA) took their families from Grace & Truth down the road to rent a space at the old Newbern Brethren in Christ church building, and setup an exclusive table that met thru about 1932. Christopher Frederick Schwarz may also have been involved with this separate meeting, who had emigrated in 1884 to Solomon.
==1930's==
Leaders at Grace & Truth included Frank H. Nicholson and Robert Alexander Robson. In ''Light and Liberty'' in 1935, an annual conference was reported at the Gospel Hall beginning on a Thursday evening on Oct. 24th and continuing thru that Lord's Day. In 1936, John Walden had a series of tent meetings south of Abilene, KS. The attendance averaged over 100 nightly for the entire campaign, with good interest.
===1936 split===
Evidently in 1936 there was another split that resulted in another exclusive meeting in Abilene, courtesy Orville Robson via Marvin Studnicka. In obituaries for Carl & May (Jury) Botz, Christopher (b. 1869 Germany - d. 1946) & Mary Katherine Grimm Schwarz (b. 1872 NY - d. 1959), Fred & Anna (Jury) Peak, and Arrol William Taylor McBoyle (b. 1884 Abilene, KS), they were each noted as involved with a "Plymouth Brethren church" as a church different from Grace & Truth, and may have been part of this split. Fred & Anna (Jury) Peak may have had a connection to the forementioned Judson Alden family thru the Botz line.
===1938 hive===
Around 1938, some brethren left Grace & Truth to initiate a work south near Gypsum/Canton that became known as [[Elm Springs Bible Hall]] which met thru 1977. Of these included Edna Dyck's father, Mr. Wedel, who helped construct the Hall in Elm Springs.
==1940's==
Aug: L&L: George Gray, 2714 E. 36th St., KCMO: “Spent several weeks recently in KS ministering at Abilene, Elm Springs, and Kanorado. Saints are cheered by these visits and encouraged in their efforts to preserve a testimony to the Precious Name.”
Orville Robson initiated his position as a correspondent before 1947, which he served thru 1969.
==1950's==
In 1951, Kenneth Engle and his wife Mary Lou Leonard Engle received commendation from Grace & Truth, as well as from [[Woodside Bible Chapel, IL|Austin Gospel Hall]] in Chicago to the Philippines where they would serve thru 1975.
Marvin Studnicka visited Grace & Truth while stationed at Fort Riley as a soldier. He played on an assembly basketball team that played other assemblies, including Dave Silver and others. He also indicated that it may have been around 1956 that the name changed from Grace & Truth Gospel Hall (or Abilene Gospel Hall) to Grace & Truth Gospel Chapel.
In the late 1950's, Kevin Dyer (originally from Tasmania, Australia) and his wife Eloise Engle Dyer were commended to the Lord's work with the initiating of Literature Crusades, which would become International Teams, a short-term missions initiative based in the Chicago area.
==1960's==
In the mid-1960's, George Easter, an accountant attending Grace & Truth, started an assembly in his home in Salina, which in the 1970's would purchase a former Jehovah's Witness building that would incorporate as Sunset Bible Chapel, which continues today, and along with Grace & Truth, has commended a number of overseas and home workers, including Jim Gillette of Ireland Outreach.
==1970's==
In 1970, D.W. Robson was serving as correspondent, then Orville Robson served as such 1971-1974. In the early 1970's, T. Lee Gruen and his wife Libby Cormack Gruen were living in Iowa City where Dr. Gruen was finishing his doctorate, and they lost their first three children (triplets), and neighbors ministered to them during this difficult time, leading Libby to Christ, and they were in fellowship with their small home assembly, followed by another small assembly when Dr. Gruen was teaching in St. Joseph, [[Missouri]] before relocating back to their hometown of Abilene in 1976, where they became involved with the Chapel.
Around this time, Jerry Lahr, a nearby farmer was led to Christ thru an inter-denominational evangelistic outreach, and he and his wife Sandy started around 1977 at Grace & Truth. Also, Ken King, a local businessman, and his wife Judy came around 1978.
==1980's==
Elders included T. Lee Gruen, Ken King, Menno Dyck, Jerry Lahr, and Keith Engle and their families. [[Kenneth Ercil Engle]] also shared in the preaching. Others included Earl & Alberta Blair, Edward & Edith Unruh, and Ken & Nettie Moore. Menno & Edna Dyck left for a short time in the mid-1980's to assist with the early days of Community Bible Church, returning soon afterwards, where Menno served as an elder until his death.
==1990's==
=Ministries=
==Hospice==
Orville and Lois Robson were among the earliest volunteers in the 1970's with Hospice visitation in Dickinson County. Ken King, who was in fellowship with the Chapel from the late 1970's thru the late 1980's, including serving as an elder and Sunday School teacher, eventually became an elder and missions chairman at Community Bible Church, and has served 2007-2020+ with a now robust (20+ volunteers) hospice program in the area, along with many others from area churches.
=News=
=Sources=
* [https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82016014/1914-09-15/ed-1/seq-12/#date1=1789&index=4&rows=20&words=Brethren+Plymouth&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1963&proxtext=%22Plymouth+Brethren%22&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 Chronicling America]
* Bob Robson 5-18-2019
* Ken King 11-25-2020