USA > Indiana > Sullivan County > A history of Sullivan County, Indiana, closing of the first century's history of the county, and showing the growth of its people, institutions, industries and wealth, Volume I > Part 21
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In 1840 the New Lebanon circuit was organized, with H. S. Talbott presiding elder, and S. H. Rogers preacher. The pastor labored faithfully till September 3, 1841, when he was laid to rest in the Burnett graveyard.
In 1847 (?) a committee (J. R. Williams, Solomon Walls and John Mahan) reported that the cost of a house of worship for Sullivan would be $380, and plans were then made for a frame building, 35 by 40 feet, with 12 foot story, and J. Earnhart, J. R. Williams and Solomon Walls appointed building committee. The lot west of the court house, about the middle of the block, was chosen as the site. The first class in the vicinity of Sullivan was called Gilkerson's and met at his house about a mile west of the court-house square on the Merom road. It is first mentioned in the minutes April 17, 1830. The class moved to town when the church was built.
At the conference held at New Lebanon August 17, 1850, the Sullivan circuit was constituted, on the report of a committee consisting of J. Pinkston, J. Peters, Anthony Mason, J. Earnhart and E. W. Burgess. The New Lebanon circuit was to contain the charges of New Lebanon,
283
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
East Chapel, Providence, Merom and D. Pinkston's. Sullivan, Mt. Tabor, Pierce's, Weir's, Ebenezer, Bethel and Fairbanks constituted the Sullivan circuit.
Sullivan Methodist Church.
On the west side of the public square of Sullivan a frame church was constructed in the year 1846 for the religious home of the Methodists. A peculiar interest attaches to this building, not only because it was the first church edifice in Sullivan, but also because of the pious men whose zeal and efforts made the structure possible. It is said that some of the earliest Methodists who came to this part of the county contributed the timbers which went into the building and helped in the raising of the framework and the nailing on of the boards and finishing the interior and exterior, while the pastor of the flock at that time, Rev. James R. Williams, led on the workmen, himself handling a saw and hammer when occasion required. Some of these church builders were Jordan Peter, Solomon Walls, M. E. Chace, Reuben Crapo, and others, who hewed out the tim- bers, whipsawed the boards and worked with right good will for several months in constructing a place where worship might be conducted else- where than in the county seminary and private houses, where the good Methodist folks had congregated up to that time. The membership of the society in that year was only twenty-five, but with the building of the church an increasing number came into the habit of regarding with affec- tion the church home on the square and assembling there on days of wor- ship. During the eighties the membership rolls contained over three hun- dred, and the Sunday school, which had been started with six white and two colored scholars, being the first class for Bible instruction in the town, had likewise grown in numbers and influence.
The old frame church was occupied a little more than ten years. In 1858-59, under the labors of William H. Cornelius, a brick church was
284
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
built on the site of the present church. A parsonage was erected in 1880, while J. A. Ward was pastor. On May 19, 1889, the last service was held in the old church, plans having been made for the building of a new church to cost over $12,000. In July the old building was wrecked, and the contract for the new was let to J. F. Hoke at $12,073. September 2d, the corner-stone was laid, and in August, 1890, the present church edifice was dedicated by Dr. Earl Cranston. The Epworth League of this church was organized February 24, 1891.
Carlisle Methodist Church.
If we except the movements and labors of the early French Catholic missionaries within the territory now comprised in Sullivan county, the first preacher of the gospel whose record can be found affecting this region was a Methodist. It is said that Rev. Joel Collins came among the few settlers living about the blockhouses near Carlisle in 1806, and his voice was often lifted up in exhortation and in blessing the labors of this people dwelling on the edge of civilization. As a minister he was quite remark- able for his frontiersman hardiness and bravery. He was expert with the rifle, and a very practical Christian. It was his son, Madison Collins, who was severely wounded in the Indian massacre where Dudley Mack lost his life, and it would not have been strange if the old pioneer minister allowed himself a feeling of vengeance against the savages who had almost taken away one of his family.
For many years, until well within the memory of people now in middle age, there stood on one of the streets of Carlisle a building which in later years was much dilapidated and was used as a cooper's shop. When first built it had served a very different purpose, and the voices of the workmen and the sounds of the shop were like a material echo of the hymns of praise and thanksgiving and prayerful worship of the pioneers
285
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
who years before had assembled in this building. The old cooper shop was the first church building in Carlisle and the county, built in 1818 by the Methodists, but used at various times by many sects and for various pur- poses. It was a landmark in the town for two generations. Men and women were christened under its roof, were married there, and at death were taken there for the last rites. It was not till 1874 that the con- gregation left the old home for a new and larger church, but even after that for years the memories of many of the worshipers would often recall the scenes that were associated with the little old building that still stood near the new one. The new church was dedicated in October, 1874, the president of Asbury University (DePauw) being the principal speaker. M. S. Heavenridge was pastor in charge.
New Lebanon Methodists.
New Lebanon was one of the principal strongholds of Methodist doctrine and influence in western Indiana during the last century. It was the scene of camp meetings that attracted worshipers from far and near, and many of the older residents of the county remember how they traveled by wagon over the roads that centered at the New Lebanon camp ground, where the tents were spread and for a week or more the Meth- odists and their friends participated in the now old-fashioned custom of worship and social commingling amid the pleasant surroundings of out- door existence, and usually following the harvests when people had their crops garnered and were in a particularly grateful mood.
The pioneer settlers on Gill prairie were only little behind the people about Carlisle in organizing for Methodist worship. The house of William Burnett was, so far as known, the first place of worship for the Methodists of Gill prairie. Rev. John Schrader had begun preaching here in 1813, and soon after a class was formed consisting of the following: William and Mary Burnett, William and Anna Gill, James Black and wife, Berry
1
286
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
and Elizabeth Taylor, Deborah Graham, Catherine Strain and Patsy Hol- lenbach. In 1814 James McCord succeeded Rev. Schrader and continued preaching at Burnett's, but after three years the class was broken up by the removal of its members. William Burnett removed to the vicinity of the present town of New Lebanon, and again his house became a place of worship. Here, about 1816, James McCord formed a class of four mem- bers-William and Mary Burnett and Berry and Elizabeth Taylor-but the following year ten new members were added-Henry South, Charlotte South, Christian Canary, Nancy Canary, John South, Jane South, William South, Margaret South, David Howard and Sarah Howard.
In 1818 occurred the first recorded camp meeting held on the Mt. Zion camp ground. This was called the "bark camp meeting," called so on account of the material used for tents. Many conversions resulted from this meeting, so that the Burnett home was too small, and the congre- gation then built, on the camp ground, a hewed log church, the logs being covered with oak boards, and named it the Mt. Zion church. This was the scene of many revivals and was the center of worship for this community until 1830, when a frame church was built at New Lebanon at a cost of about one thousand dollars. This church continued in use until 1871, when the floor gave way. The brick church was then built, at a cost of about $6,000, being at the time the finest church building in the county. It is said the bishops presided at the dedication of both the old frame and the new brick church.
East Chapel, a part of the New Lebanon circuit, was one of the early churches of Gill township. The first church was built there in 1861, at a cost of three hundred dollars, and on December 18, 1892, this congrega- tion dedicated a new church.
Merom was a station in the Honey Creek circuit in 1821, but no data have been found relating to the church during its early years. In 1837
287
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
the congregation built a house of worship at a cost of six hundred dollars. During the present century the Methodists at Merom have attained con- siderable strength as an organization, and in 1908 the society erected a new brick church at a cost of $4.500. The church was dedicated on Sunday. July 5th.
The Providence church in Turman township, about six miles west of Sullivan, originated about the middle of the last century and was for- merly a part of the New Lebanon circuit. The church building, which was erected at a cost of $1,200 in 1872, was destroyed by fire in January, 1886, during the progress of revival meetings.
Rose Chapel, supplied from the Merom church, was dedicated in June, 1892.
In May, 1893, the Methodists at Fairbanks dedicated a frame church building.
Presbyterian Churches.
Besides the Methodists, another little congregation worshiped in the Methodist church building at Carlisle. William and Mary McCrary, James, Mary and Martha Watson, Rachel Porter, Mary Gould, Lydia Silliman, and Ann Broady were a little band of the Presbyterian faith who were organized into a society on January 31, 1819, by a missionary named Fowler. For the first few years, only at intervals, a Presbyterian preacher came to Carlisle, an occasion that was marked by a full assemblage not only of members of this faith but of other denominations. On the first Sunday in June, 1841, a church building was dedicated to the home of the Presbyterians, and in 1877 a much larger and handsomer church was erected, being dedicated in October of that year.
Sullivan Presbyterian Church.
· The old Methodist church on the public square in Sullivan was a center of early religious activities, apart from those of the particular
288
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
denomination to which it belonged. Baptists and Presbyterians worshiped within these hospitable walls. This church, the court house and private homes were for some years the abiding place of the early Presbyterians of Sullivan. Sixteen members of that faith were organized in the Meth- odist building on August 31, 1857, into a society. Just before the war they subscribed $1.700 for the building of a church. The contract was made by the committee with the builders, when the outbreak of the war caused the committee to endeavor to annul the contract, but without success and the building proceeded, and by unusual self-denial on the part of the members the obligations were faithfully met right in the midst of the crucial events of the war.
An issue of the Democrat in March, 1864, states that some members of the church favored the sale of the building for schoolhouse purposes in order to discharge the obligations which still rested on the congregation. There was at that time little prospect of securing a minister acceptable to all, and the life of the organization seemed about to expire. A few weeks later, however, it was reported that the Presbyterians had secured the services of Rev. P. B. Cook as pastor, and services were to be held every Sunday. An interesting feature of the service, given prominence in the newspaper, was that the services would be accompanied by melodeon and choir, the melodeon being understood to be the gift of James Kelley.
The dedication of the church occurred in August, 1866, the principal sermon being delivered by Rev. Mr. Smith of Vincennes. A small sub- scription was taken, sufficient to pay off the indebtedness. For several years previously the building, though occupied, was unfinished.
In August, 1907, just fifty years after the organization of the church, the last service was held in the old building, and preparations made to erect a modern religious edifice. The last meeting in the old church was made notable by an address from Rev. Montgomery, one of the early
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY 289
ministers of the congregation, who gave a historical account of the church, and paid a tribute to the personnel of officials and influential members, and recalled with special affection and praise the leadership of such men as Murray Briggs, Dr. Thompson, Harvey Wilson, Mr. Hutchinson, Lafay- ette Stewart, all of whom were identified with the early growth of the church. Mention was also made of George Goodwin, who had been a member of the church forty years and who at this time was elder. The church membership in the preceding fifty years had fluctuated between seven and two hundred.
The actual work of construction on the new church was not begun until the summer of 1908. The new church is built of brick and Bedford stone, on a modern plan of church architecture, and with seating capacity in the auditorium for five hundred. On August 20, 1908, the corner-stone was laid with ceremonies, among which the principal address was by Judge G. W. Buff.
Sullivan Christian Church.
Only the oldest men and women recall the little frame building that half a century ago stood on Section street, with its cupola and small bell whose ringing at intervals called together the Disciples of Christ or Chris- tians, as they are best known. As it originally stood, the church was built about 1849, and about five years later an addition of fifteen feet gave a more commodious interior, and at this time also the cupola and bell were added to give distinction to the house of worship .* The society that found its first home in this building had its inception sometime in the thirties,
*The first Christian church building, after being abandoned as a church, was used as a carpenter shop, and until finally it was cut up into several sections, becom- ing wood-house, stable, etc., and thus passed into oblivion. It originally stood two squares north of Washington street, on Section.
Vol. 1-19
290
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
when Joseph W. Wolfe and A. P. Law were both ordained ministers of this denomination in Sullivan county. The organization was a growing one, so that in 1866 what was then deemed a large brick church, 50 by 75 feet, and with considerable pretensions to architectural dignity, was con- structed at a cost of $8,000, being dedicated in May, 1866, by Elder Black of Putnam county. A larger bell from its cupola summoned the people to worship, and the prosperity of the church went on without serious inter- ruption. This was the parent church of several smaller Christian churches in the county.
A parsonage was built at a cost of about $1,200 in 1889, being form- ally opened July 25th, while Rev. Ireland was pastor.
Other Christian Churches.
At his death on May 7, 1890, James J. Snider, a resident of the county, left his estate to be divided, on the death of his wife, among three churches of the Christian denomination. The will was finally pronounced valid, and in 1902 steps were taken to carry out its provisions. The prop- erty consisted of 320 acres of land and about $5,000 of personal property, one-half of which was to go to Providence church at Paxton, and the other half to be divided equally between the churches at Carlisle and Sullivan. The real estate was not to be divided or sold, but to be managed entirely by trustees, and the income used for the support of pastors, repair of build- ings, etc. The personal property was to be converted into government or real estate securities, the income only to be available for current use. In 1903 the first distribution was made, and a total of nearly five thousand dollars was divided among the three churches.
One of the former local preachers of the Christian church in this county was Rev. A. Ward, who died September 22, 1884, in his 67th year. He had been a minister in the church for thirty-five years, twenty years in this county, and had received four thousand into the church.
·
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HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
The labors of Joseph W. Wolfe were identified in several ways with pioneer history of Sullivan county. Before he was public official he was a minister and elder of the Christian church, and in this way was con- nected with several of the early societies of that denomination. At Car- lisle he was one of the two elders who organized the church on October 5, 1866, and was the first pastor of the charter membership of forty-four. The frame church built in 1868 cost five thousand dollars, and the organ- ization was one of the flourishing religious societies of the southern part of Sullivan county.
Baptists.
Many will recall the kindly and venerable Rev. William Stansil, the octogenarian Baptist minister, who, having founded the Baptist church on a permanent basis in Sullivan and led it for many years, later spent his old age in retirement in this county. He was one of the pioneer ministers of his denomination in the Wabash valley, and in this shared some honors with the veteran missionary Isaac McCoy, whose name is so closely iden- tified with the early history of the Baptist church in Indiana. During the early fifties he lived in Knox county, and passed up and down the valley to perform his labors. A periodical journey took him through Sullivan, and he used to stop there and preach in the Methodist church to the small group of Baptists who lived in the town and neighborhood. Finally on April 23, 1853 (see below), the Baptist church of Sullivan was consti- tuted with a membership of sixteen, and Rev. Stansil then took up his residence at Sullivan and continued to serve the church as pastor for ten consecutive years, and after a brief interval for four more years. The house of worship on Jackson street, used for many years by this church, was begun about 1854.
Sunday, May 15, 1904, the Sullivan Baptist church celebrated its
292
HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
fiftieth anniversary. The records previous to 1885 having been destroyed, the members of the church were not agreed as to the exact date of the organization, the majority asserting 1854 to be the proper date, while others fixed the time in 1853. At this celebration some of the original members were recalled, among them being Rev. Stansil, Robert L. Griffith, Mildred J. Griffith, Thomas Black, Stephen Ballard, Willoughby Nichols, Surrell Nichols, J. H. Reed, Zerelda Reed. Mrs. Griffith was the only surviving member at the time of the anniversary.
The church enjoyed quiet prosperity until the pastorate of Rev. Robert Taylor, about 1877, when dissensions arose which threatened the existence of the church for many years. The troubles culminated during the pastorate of D. B. Miller, who was an energetic pastor, secured many accessions to the membership, repaired the old building (in 1885), but at the close of his term the church was barely kept together. In the early nineties it was determined to reorganize. The old church building was sold, the membership roll revised, and services were begun in the court house. Rev. Henry Bailey was called to the pastorate, and from that time the church progressed with new life and harmony. On June 5, 1895. the corner-stone of a new church was laid, and the building com- pleted the same year. After two years Mr. Bailey resigned, but under the successive pastorates of J. B. Thomas and U. M. McGuire (who came in 1899) the church continued to grow and prosper.
The Fairbanks Baptist church was organized in 1828 at the home of James Drake. In January, 1906, the church dedicated a new frame build- ing, costing $2,200. William Stansil and Abram Starks were the minis- ters who took charge of the organization of this church, and the first ' church was erected the same year. The old building was replaced with a new in 1871, and when this was decided to be inadequate and in need of repairs a few years ago, the congregation undertook the remodeling, but
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HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
the building collapsed during the work, and plans were at once made to erect an entirely new house of worship. The money was all raised before the day of dedication.
Catholics.
The five or six Catholic families who resided in Sullivan during the sixties were organized into a church by Father McCarty, a missionary, and through donations that came mostly from sources outside of this church, a frame structure was built near the railroad depot in 1867-68. The furnishings were very meager, and it was not until several years later that seats were placed in the church. This was a mission church and was attended by a priest from Terre Haute. In the issue of the Democrat for April 26, 1866, it is stated that Mrs. Dufficy had given two lots as a site for the proposed church, and the progress of this denomination is further indicated in the issue of August, 1867, which reported that the necessary money had been secured and that the contract had been awarded to William Greenlee for the construction of the building west of the depot in Gray, Watson and Bloom's addition. In June, 1906, was reported the sale of this old building, the original Catholic church, to the denomina- tion of Holiness Christian for the sum of $800. The old building, after the Catholics erected their new church, was used for a schoolhouse for a time.
U. B. Church.
In February, 1894, the United Brethren organized a church at Sulli- van with nineteen members. A few weeks later they purchased the old Baptist church building on East Jackson street, and installed Sarah B. Whistler as first regular pastor. The church was repaired and formally dedicated in August, 1894.
The United Brethren church east of Sullivan was dedicated by Bishop Castle, May 31, 1896.
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HISTORY OF SULLIVAN COUNTY
One of the diligent and gifted ministers who performed the arduous work of the profession during the early half of the century was Elder John S. Howard, who died at Thurston, Ohio, December 6, 1890. Born in Wilson county, Tennessee, August 20, 1807, he first came to Sullivan to live in 1854 and was here continuously until about seven years before his death. He had been ordained at Russelville, Illinois, in 1846 by Elders Joseph W. Wolfe and B. W. Fields, and was thus introduced to the services of a long and active ministry. He preached over large territories in eastern and southeastern Illinois and southwestern Indiana, and was welcomed along the Wabash valley in many communities. He had a delightful voice and a genius for singing added to his power as a preacher. His daughter, Mrs. Mose Wilkey, lived in Sullivan, and he was buried from the Christian church here.
The following church statistics is from the statistician's report for 1883 (the latest at hand). There have been many additions to all of the items, no doubt, but the relative strength would probably be near the same :
MEMBERSHIP.
Other
and
Male.
Female.
Total.
No. Admitted
to Full Mem-
bership Dur- ing Year.
Lot
Methodist Episcopal .
18
18
920
968 1,100
1,888
160
$28,350
Christian
14
13
900
2,000
150
25,000
Presbyterian
5
5
202
204
406
36
12,000
Baptist Missionary
9
400
489
889
102
12,000
Christian New Light.
2
1
140
160
300
30
1,000
Catholic .
1
1
20
23
43
6
500
Baptist (Hardshell)
1
1
25
28
53
5
500
Second Adventist.
1
10
12
22
20
Total
51
47
2,617
3.084
5,701
509
$79,350
Value of Building,
Church Property.
DENOMINATIONS.
No. of Church Or-
ganizations.
No. of Church Edi- fices.
CHAPTER XX.
TEMPERANCE.
In one form or another there has been in Sullivan county a persistent movement against the liquor traffic for more than sixty years. This move- ment may be said to have culminated on March 3, 1909, when at the county option election, held under the law passed by the last session of the legislature, the "drys" carried the county by 1,821 majority. The six precincts which "went wet" gave only small majorities. Hamilton town- ship voted dry by 213 majority, and Curry, where the real fight had been made between the opposing forces of saloon and anti-saloon, gave a dry majority of 146.
With the exception of the lodge of Masons at Carlisle, which main- tained its organization only a few years during the twenties, it appears that the first important social organization in the county was the Sons of Temperance at Sullivan, organized about 1848. The object of the order was to promote temperance, but, being a secret order, it became more of a social organization or club than otherwise. Most of the charter members were temperate men who were not in the habit of using spirituous liquors as a beverage, but the membership contained some who would be termed at that time "moderate drinkers," and these are said to have continued their convivial custom even after initiation. However, the lodge at Sulli- van had a great influence for the promotion of sobriety in the town and
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