Bishop Osie England
(1877-1957)
Bishop of the Household of Faith (Wesleyan Methodist Church)
Founder of Intercession City (City of Prayer)
The life of Bishop Osie England is recorded in “The Book of Osie or The Life of Bishop Osie England” by Clarence Allison Maddy. Osie, Osee or Hosea means Salvation (Romans 9:25). Osie was born April 7, 1877, in the hills of Ross County, Ohio . Her parents were Mr. and Mrs. A. W. England. Osie grew up in Chillicothe, Ohio where she attended school. At age 13 she was studying hard and was ready for high school. Her parents were unable to send her to the Chillicothe school, so she took the 8th grade work the second time. While repeating the 8th grade her teachers taught some high school subjects to her. Osie subscribed to The Youth’s Companion, carried library books back and forth for four miles, and rented an organ for the school to give lessons to those who wanted to learn music. She studied under a private instructor and regularly attended the summer sessions at Ohio University. Miss Osie England became a school teacher and drew her first pay check one day before she turned 16 years old. Boys and girls were enrolled in her classes that were older than herself but she
wisely kept quiet about her age lest her youth have a bad
effect upon the discipline of her school.
In 1900 her father, A. W. England suddenly developed pneumonia and was taken from them almost instantly. This bereavement shocked all the loved ones and especially Miss Osie. She had a nervous breakdown, accompanied by a heart ailment, traces of tuberculosis and an anemic condition and she went down to a shadow of her former self. In spite of her physical condition, Miss Osie accepted a school at Locust Point, Ohio, in order to provide support for her widowed mother and to meet debts which had been incurred by her family. In the middle of the term a strange thing happened. A lady with her husband and three small children moved into a tenant house and placed her two little girls in the school. One eventful evening, Miss Ossie, when on her way home from school, was met by the mother who asked permission for a certain minister to come to the schoolhouse and conduct a two-weeks meeting. Her face glowed with a heavenly light as she told of how she had been led to the Lord through the preaching of this man. Miss Osie tried to refer the woman to the school board but the mother replied, “ I have been to the school board and they said it was just whatever you said. Miss Osie said it would be alright. The preacher was not at all what Miss Osie expected but was sent by God for that community. The terms he used, such as, “conviction,” “salvation,” “restitution,” “conversion,” and “being saved,” were all new words in the vocabulary of his congregation. The next night people began to come from every direction and some of the best people of the community began stepping out to the altar where they prayed earnestly and received a great blessing for their repentance and contrition. Soon Miss Osie’s students began walking past her on their way to seek the Lord. She also went forward but without conviction. The meeting closed but the people who had become spiritually aroused by the
meeting opened their homes for prayer service. On the night that special service was to be conducted from the England home, our teacher was feeling the need of a Savior as never before. When she saw the people who lived all around them singing, shouting and praising the Lord in their newfound joy, she slipped into an adjoining bedroom and there had it out to the finish with the Lord. She vowed she would never leave the place where she was kneeling until the Lord satisfied her soul. As she was seeking earnestly, the Lord came suddenly into her heart and she never had reason to doubt her wonderful conversion.
Bishop Osie England’s home located at 1547 Tallahassee Blvd., Intercession City, FL
House is still standing across the street from the Community Wesleyan Church
Miss Osie quickly advanced and became Vice President of the Ohio State Teacher’s Association and was getting offers of advancement from many parts of the state. She now had to make a great lasting choice to continue her success as an educator or choose the humble way of the cross. Osie chose the call of God on her life. Of all the hundreds of friends she lost in the educational field, she gained thousands for the Lord in a spiritual vineyard. If she had failed to fulfill her call, numbers would likely never have found the Lord. When the Lord called Osie out of that schoolroom, He told her that He no longer wanted her salary, which she had been very liberal with in helping the poor and needy but He wanted her. This led her to a needy world and soon she and her co-laborers founded the West Virginia Training School in Point Pleasant, West Virginia in 1923. At this time Miss Osie was 46 years old. The first session of the West Virginia Training School was in 1923-24, a three-month term with an enrollment of 40 boys and girls who accepted training for missionary work at home and abroad. No charge was made for board, lodging or books. Each succeeding year they had from 3 to 4 months of school. The course provided the study of the Bible, general history, Latin, English, algebra and practical nursing. In small groups the students were trained by some experienced leader to visit and minister to the sick and needy, hold street meeting and jail services. Osie England became Bishop for her district of the Wesleyan faith in West Virginia.
In 1934 Bishop Osie England answered the call to the Southland in search for a warmer climate for her orphanage. This part of her life is covered above. After the first year, the orphanage was moved back to Point Pleasant because the State would not issue a permit due to the condition of the building. Instead, a Bible College and Missionary Training School was established in the renovated buildings in Intercession City. A Church was built named Morrison Memorial Church and Osie England became the first Pastor. Prayer cabins and centers went up throughout the City. There was a library, chapel, dormitory, and other structures built including Osie England’s home across the street from the Church which still stands today. The Lord blessed and produced many preachers, home and foreign missionaries from this humble group. Miss. Only Eternity will reveal the fruit Bishop Osie England and her followers produced from those two small towns of Point Pleasant and Intercession City. Osie England also had a heart for the elderly and had homes for the elderly in West Virginia, Florida and Kentucky. The following are a few of her many activities for the Kingdom of God:
Bible Training School
Orphanage in West Virginia
Homes for the elderly in West Virginia, Florida and Kentucky
Camp meetings in West Virginia and Florida: 100-Day Camp meetings in Intercession City
Tabernacles for Camp Meetings built in Wet Virginia at three different locations
Home and Foreign Missions training center: Missionary sending society to many countries.
Street Meetings
Prison, Hospital and Elderly visitations.
Radio Station Broadcast
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