USA > Nebraska > Buffalo County > Buffalo County, Nebraska, and its people : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 26
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HOPE CAMP NO. 316, M. W. A.
Hope Camp No. 316, M. W. A., was instituted at Kearney in April, 1887, with seventy-six charter members. Its first officers were: W. A. Howard, V. C .;
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J. R. Churchill, W. A .; C. H. Henderson, clerk; Ira Johnson, banker; C. A. Bartz, escort; C. O. Jackson, W .; W. Wilson, S .; A. L. Fitch, B. F. East and W. C. Holdem, board of managers.
In the year 1915 the camp had 220 members. Its officers : J. A. Allhands, V. C .; Roy Jacobs, W. A .; Charles Shahan, banker; G. E. Haase, clerk; T. A. Tollefson, escort; John Mannins, W .; C. Knorig, S .; T. J. Scott, William Lantz, James Cleary, trustees.
KEARNEY COUNCIL NO. 12, LOYAL MYSTIC LEGION
Kearney Council No. 12, Loyal Mystic Legion, is located at Kearney. Its officers, elected for the year 1916, are: Rachel Jenkins, W. C .; Olive R. Springer, W. V. C .; H. T. Clark, secretary ; J. N. Jenkins, W. P .; F. E. Hutch- inson, W. P. C .; Dr. M. A. Hoover, J. N. Jenkins, P. E. Hutchinson, trustees.
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
St. James Council No. 1728, Knights of Columbus, was organized with a charter membership of ninety, April 21, 1914. The first officers: Dr. E. A. Watson, G. K .; Prof. B. H. Patterson, R. S.
The object of the order as stated : "To perpetuate and keep alive the memory of Columbus by fitting and appropriate ceremonies on October 12th of each year."
Membership, 1915, 120. Officers: R. B. Daugherty, G. K .; A. H. Berbig, F. S.
TRIBE OF BEN IIUR
Kearney Court No. 108, Tribe of Ben Hur, was instituted September 16, 1903, with a charter membership of thirty-five, the officers being: Dr. M. A. Hoover, chief ; E. A. Miller, scribe.
In the year 1915 the membership was ninety-five. The officers: E. E. Gard- ner, chief ; Laura M. Berbig, scribe.
HISTORY OF THE FIRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF KEARNEY, NEB.
John N. Dryden
The first official reference to this church is contained in the report of A. G. White, presiding elder of the Omaha District, made at the annual session of the Nebraska Conference, held at Plattsmouth, April 18, 1873. The Nebraska Con- ference then comprised the entire state. Kearney Junction Circuit was at that time a part of the Grand Island Mission. The report referred to contains the following :
"The Grand Island Mission was an extensive field, requiring the labor of two men. Brother J. S. Smith, the pastor, preferred to confine his operations to the east part of the work, and he consented voluntarily to divide the missionary appropriation with another man, if he would take charge of the western part of
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the circuit. I therefore employed Rev. William Morse, a supernumerary of Wisconsin Conference, appointed him to the western portion, and called it Kear- ney Junction Circuit. Brother Morse has labored very efficiently, and reports a large increase of membership."
This indicates that the work at this point began after the preceding annual conference, which met at Nebraska City on the 20th of March, 1872, at which conference the records disclose that J. S. Smith was appointed to Grand Island. The membership at Kearney at the end of Reverend Morse's first year was forty-five. At the Plattsmouth conference of 1873 the Kearney District was formed, with A. G. White presiding elder. The report of the elder for the suc- ceeding conference year, from 1873 to 1874 (the time of holding the conference had in the meantime been changed, and that of 1874 was held October Ist of that year, making an interim of eighteen months between the conferences of 1873 and 1874) states :
"Kearney Circuit in Buffalo County was left to be supplied, and Rev. D. A. Crowell, a supernumerary of Erie Conference, was appointed pastor. The suc- cess of his labor is evidence that he is a workman that needeth not to be ashamed. A neat church has been built, 30 by 50 feet in size, with a projecting tower and bell, at a cost of $4,000, and the membership has been increased by the addition of nearly 100."
In the report of the district superintendents at the conference of 1875, held at Lincoln September 15th, the outlook at Kearney was discouraging. The record says :
"When the church at Kearney was dedicated last year, pledges were taken sufficient to cover the indebtedness, but the grasshopper plague swept away the resources of the people and they were unable to meet their obligations. The indebtedness amounted to $1,246, and an execution was issued for the sale of the premises. We obtained half this amount in the East, including $300 from the Board of Church Extension, and the whole debt was paid."
The charge at the conference of 1874 was left to be supplied, and Rev. William Morse was appointed to the place.
The local history of the church differs somewhat from that reflected by the official records above. The manuscript, written probably in 1874, by the minister in charge, is as follows :
"The territory now included in Kearney Circuit has been mostly settled in the last three years. The first religious organization made took place at Gibbon in October, 1871. Rev. A. G. White, presiding elder of Omaha District, preached in La Barre Hall on that occasion and organized a class of twelve persons and appointed Brother Aaron Ward leader. Two days later Brother White visited the family of Judge A. Collins, living at what has since become Kearney Junc- tion. Notice was immediately circulated among the few settlers of the vicinity that religious service would be held in the house of Judge Collins. In the evening a congregation of thirty persons was assembled in the parlor, and Brother White preached to them, and Brother Collins assisted in the service. A class was then organized, composed of Asbury Collins, Louisa E. Collins, H. E. A. Sydenham (wife of Moses H. Sydenham), Alfred M. Gay and Hannah Jay. A. Collins was appointed leader. Brother Collins is a local elder, formerly a member of
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Iowa Conference, but disabled by protracted sickness and compelled to desist from public speaking on account of ill health. But his efficient co-operation both here and elsewhere has contributed largely to the prosperity of the church.
"These classes were then attached to Grand Island Circuit, and Rev. M. A. Fairchild, the preacher in charge, was instructed to give them preaching and pastoral care as he had opportunity. At a quarterly conference held at Wood River Station, on the Union Pacific Railroad, December 31, 1871, a board of trustees was appointed for Kearney Junction, composed of A. Collins, A. M. Gay and H. E. A. Sydenham. In February, 1872, Judge Collins organized a Methodist Episcopal Sunday school at Kearney Junction and held it in his own parlor.
"At the annual conference held at Nebraska City, March 20, 1872, this part of the work was retained with and formed part of the Grand Island Circuit. But the demands for ministerial labor were so great that the pastor could not supply them, and the presiding elder, by the request of the people and the consent of the pastor at Grand Island, divided the work June 15, 1872, and called the western part Kearney Junction Circuit and appointed Rev. William Morse pastor. The new circuit included at this time forty-five members, divided into three classes, and located respectively at Wood River, Gibbon and Kearney Junction. Also a Sabbath school at the latter place. Brother Morse labored faithfully the remainder of the year and enjoyed some prosperity. And at the close of the conference year, April 18, 1873, he reported a membership of seventy- five. At this conference the charge was renamed Kearney Circuit, and left to be supplied, and Rev. D. Allen Crowell, a supernumerary of Erie Conference, was appointed pastor.
"During the conference year just closed (1874), covering a period of nearly eighteen months" (owing to the change of time of holding the sessions of the annual conference from April to October), "this charge has enjoyed some pros- perity. The membership, including probationers, has increased during the year from 75 to 157, and owing to the increase of population and the growth of the church, the number of preaching places have increased from three to six. At Kearney a neat church has been built, 30 by 50 feet in size, with a protecting tower and bell, at a cost of nearly $4,000. At the conference held in Omaha October 1, 1874, the charge was again divided, Gibbon and Erie being set off, and Kearney Circuit was left to be supplied."
If the local record is correct, the first trustees were A. Collins, A. M. Gay and H. E. A. Sydenham ; the charter members, Asbury Collins, Louisa E. Collins, H. E. A. Sydenham, Alfred M. Gay and Hannah Jay. The only surviving member of the original charter members is Mrs. Louisa E. Collins, widow of Rev. Asbury Collins, deceased, who still resides in Kearney. In 1877 the church was moved from its original location to its present situation on the corner of Twenty-second Street and Avenue A. It was enlarged during the pastorate of D. K. Tindall in 1887, and further additions were made during the pastorate of David D. Forsyth in 1898, and the present beautiful structure, costing $40,000, finished in 1908.
Official records give as the ministers who have served this church: Rev. William Morse, 1872-73; Rev. D. A. Crowell, 1873-74; Rev. William Morse,
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1874-75; Rev. E. J. Willis, 1875-76; Rev. C. G. Lathrop, 1876-77; Rev. J. C. Armstrong, 1877-78; Rev. J. M. Richards, 1878-79; Rev. Joseph Gray, 1879-80; Rev. Z. S. Rhone, 1880-SI ; Rev. A. H. Summers, 1881-83; Rev. G. W. Martin, 1883-84; Rev. W. C. Wilson, 1884-86; Rev. D. K. Tindall, 1886-89; Rev. G. L. Haight, 1889-90; Rev. D. C. Ridgway, 1890-92 ; Rev. R. D. Black, 1892-94; Rev. C. A. Mastin, 1894-95; Rev. B. W. Marsh, 1895-98; Rev. D. D. Forsyth, 1898- 1901 ; Rev. C. A. Mastin, 1901-05; Rev. G. W. Abbott, 1905-09; Rev. R. P. Ham- mno11s, 1909-12 ; Rev. R. H. Thompson, 1912-15 ; Rev. E. M. Furman, 1915 -.
Local historians, in giving the roster of ministers, give the name of Rev. Asbury Collins as the pastor from March, 1871, to October, 1871, and Rev. M. A. Fairchild, 1871-72, and Mrs. Louisa E. Collins corroborates this version of the history. But the conference records as printed, and now existing in the archives of the conference, give the record as hereinbefore stated.
The first presiding elder, Rev. A. G. White, must have been a man of strong character, and was sustained in his discouraging efforts by a fine sense of humor. In speaking of the experience of one of his ministers, he says:
"He expected but little from the people in the way of salary, and he has not been disappointed."
His judgment as to the outcome of the territory in which he worked was prophetic. In his report for 1874 he says, referring to his district :
"The climate is salubrious, the soil unsurpassed in fertility. The people are intelligent and enterprising, but generally poor. Here are the elements of great physical and spiritual prosperity, to be realized in the near future."
And in his report for the preceding year he said:
"Nebraska is becoming known in the distance. We number among our thriving citizens representatives from every state in the Union, and from nearly every nation on earth. Doubts no longer exist as to the richness of the soil, the healthfulness of the climate and the prominence of the state in the near future. There is more gold in Nebraska than in Colorado, more fortunes to be made on these fertile plains than can be found in the mines of the mountains. Industry and enterprise and capital and intelligence are flowing in upon us, and these elements of power must be met by the leaven of the gospel, and won for Christ."
The church suffered, together with every other enterprise, by reason of the grasshoppers. Mr. White, in his report in 1875, says :
"One year ago Kearney District was financially prostrate, for the destruc- tion that wasteth at noonday had come upon the whole land in the shape of prairie locusts. Crops were consumed and people left destitute and helpless. They could not carry forward their church enterprises, or support preachers, or even obtain for themselves the necessaries of life."
This man in 1875 collected for the families of his preachers $2,850 in cash, and $10,460 in other supplies.
The history of the Kearney Church would not be complete without special reference to its one surviving charter member, Mrs. Louisa E. Collins, and her estimable husband, Rev. Asbury Collins. They together wrought largely and most successfully in developing and building up the great commonwealth of Western Nebraska, and built churches at many different points. Mrs. Collins
Episcopal Church
Catholic Church
First Christian Church
New Methodist Episcopal Church
First Baptist Church
A GROUP OF KEARNEY CHURCHES
t
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organized the work of the Woman's Home Missionary Society, and was its president for many years. The first Sunday school was organized in the parlor of the Collins home, and the scholars came from a distance of many miles, and were always welcomed when it must have caused great inconvenience to the home-keeper. She is still spared and mingles with a host of appreciative friends, new and old. Her latest act of devotion to the church for which she has given her life was the conveyance of her home to the Preachers' Aid Society of the West Nebraska Conference, to be used as a home for the ministers and their fami- lies after their retirement, and at the death of the donor.
The membership of the church at this time, January 1, 1916, is 650. Mem- bership of Sunday school, 400. Officers: District superintendent, George W. Isham, D. D .; minister, Edgar M. Furman, D. D .; superintendent Sunday school, George Burgert; trustee Nebraska Wesleyan University, John N. Dryden ; trus- tees, Dan Morris, N. P. McDonald,. C. J. Burke, A. G. Bower, B. F. Rogers, W. F. Crossley, W. L. Stickel, I. F. Henline and G. S. Dick. One of the most active members in recent years, and especially during the period of the con- struction of the new church, was the late Walter W. Barney, whose strong con- structive influence upon this church will be felt for many years to come.
CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
The Congregational Church at Kearney was organized about January 8, 1873; Rev. Libbins B. Fifield its first pastor.
Writing as to the organization of the church, F. G. Keens states it is from memory and adds: "But there were additional members present at the organ- ization whose names I do not recall." Mr. Keens gives as the charter members : Jennie Grant, Ella J. Grant, William H. Green, Douglas Westervelt, David B. Clark, Francis G. Keens and Mrs. L. B. Fifield. The approximate cost of the church building is given as $8,000. In 1915 the church had a membership of fifty, the pastor, Rev. Wm. Spire.
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
The First Presbyterian Church of Kearney was organized in the year 1873. Of the organization, L. B. Cunningham, a charter member, writes as follows: "About March 7, 1873, the synodical missionary, with Rev. Nahum Gould, organized the First Presbyterian Church of Kearney in the Times Building, with a membership of eight beside the minister: Dr. J. T. Brown, Roswell D. Gould, Mrs. Anna Smith, Edward M. Lord, Mrs. George E. Smith, Emma Greenman, Mrs. C. S. Greenman, and L. B. Cunningham. Roswell D. Gould and Dr. J. T. Brown were elected elders. The first pastor was Rev. Nahum Gould.
The present (1915) church building was erected at a cost of approximately $12,000. The present pastor, Rev. John E. Spencer. The present membership, 320.
FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH
The First Christian Church of Kearney was organized in October, 1874, this also being the organization of the first church of the Christian denomination
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in the county. The charter members were: Robert Haines and wife, Emma I, E. A. Hartman and wife, Sarah, J. M. Thomas and wife, Eunice, and George Hoge and wife, Sarah Ann. At the date of the organization the charter mem- bers were living on homestead claims in Center Township. The first pastor was Evan A. Hartman.
In the year 1912 a church building was erected in Kearney at a cost of $27,500. In 1915 the membership of the church was 295; its pastor, Manson E. Miller.
EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN ZION'S CHURCH
Evangelical Lutheran Zion's Church was organized at Kearney, September 14, 1914; the charter members: Herm Petersen, Otto Wiednanders, H. A. Meyer, W. Baumann, R. Nuttleman, H. M. Kanzler, George Bautel. The first pastor was Rev. A. C. Baumann. In the fall of 1914 a church building was provided at an approximate cost of $3,000. In 1915 the church had a member- ship of 130; its pastor, Rev. W. Jiede.
ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
. A Roman Catholic Church was organized at Kearney in 1885. A fine church building has been erected; also in the year 1915 there was completed a beautiful,. substantial building for the use of the parochial school.
This church, in the year 1914, was reported to have a membership of 800. Bishop of the diocese, Rt. Rev. James A. Duffy. Rector, Henry Muenstermann.
FIRST UNITED BRETHREN CHURCH
The First United Brethren Church was organized, at Kearney, November 5, 1887; the first pastor, Rev. C. M. Brooke. Charter members: Mr. and Mrs. F. F. Scott, Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Hartman, Mr. and Mrs. Perry E. Moler, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Iddings, Mr. and Mrs. George W. Snyder, Mrs. Abbie George, Mrs. Minnie Snyder, Mrs. Rosana White, Mrs. Elizabeth Channel, Mr. and Mrs. A. L. Graham, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Moler, Mrs. Eliza Smith, Mrs. Matilda Campbell, Mrs. Mary A. Webert, Thomas Scott, Mrs. Mary Brice, Mrs. Matilda Wire, Mrs. Lou Koogler, Mr. and Mrs. Harper Campbell.
The approximate cost of the church building as dedicated in 1896, was $13,000. In 1915 the church had a membership of 136; the pastor, Rev. A. P. Vannice. Of the history of this church Rev. Mr. Vannice writes :
"The beginning of the work of the United Brethren Church in Kearney dates back to July 12, 1871, at which time Rev. D. K. Flickinger, missionary secretary of the United Brethren Church, preached in the home of Rev. Asbury Collins, who lived then at the four corners just west of the present site of the city. This is supposed to have been the first sermon ever preached in Kearney. No effort was made at that time to continue the work. Sometime in the year 1886, Rev. J. J. Smith came to Kearney with the purpose of organizing a church, but only remained a short time. He was followed in the fall of the same year by Rev. C. M. Brooke, who effected the first organization. He rented what is now a part
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of the present United Brethren Church, of the Swedish-Lutheran brethren and there held services. Articles of incorporation were filed November 5, 1887, with J. M. Eads, a presiding elder, and the following persons as trustees : F. F. Scott, Wm. Bankson, S. S. Hartman, Wm. Moler, J. P. Hartman, Sr."
Rev. H. W. Trueblood took charge of the work under the auspices of the missionary board of the United Brethren Church, October 20, 1890. He pur- chased and dedicated a small chapel located at the corner of Twenty-fifth and D Avenue. In 1896, under the pastorate of Rev. H. H. Spracklen, the present (1915) site was purchased and with the addition to the original building was dedicated October 4, 1896.
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
The First Baptist Church of Kearney was organized in the year 1874, with the following charter members: Mrs. E. Carey, C. B. Carey, Mrs. Anna Carey, Mrs. Ellen Sizer, Mrs. Emily Aitken, Mrs. Mary Keys, Mrs. Opie Poland and Mr. Poland. The first pastor was Rev. O. A. Buzzell. In 1890 a church build- ing was erected at an approximate cost of $25,000. In 1915 the church had a membership of 175. Its pastor, Rev. H. J. Walker. The Sunday School had an enrollment of 150; Carl G. Sward, superintendent; Miss Alice James, secretary.
FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST
A history of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, at Kearney, as related, may be said to date from the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Bunnell in the late 'Sos. They were practitioners who had just completed a course of study with the discoverer and founder of the movement in Boston.
Mrs. Bunnell gave the first treatment and Mrs. W. S. Freeman received the treatment. As related, it was found helpful and profitable for the beneficiaries of this science to meet together for study and mutual interchange of helpful thoughts and accordingly a church was organized in 1890 and incorporated in I891.
Ezra M. Buswell of Beatrice, Nebraska, taught the first class in Kearney in Christian Science healing, and was prominent in the affairs of the church. The following members were among the most active during the early years of the church when founded in Buffalo county: Mr. and Mrs. Fred Bunnell, Mr. and Mrs. S. S. St. John, H. A. Kennedy, Mr. and Mrs. W. A. McDonald, Mrs. Mary W. Haynes, Mrs. Sarah E. Bennie, Miss Della McDonald, John H. Roe, Miss Jennie Pearson, Mr. and Mrs. S. T. Adams, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bene- dict, Miss Lettie Overmise, E. J. Woolworth, Mr. and Mrs. F. Armstrong, Mr. and Mrs. D. N. Wells, Mr. and Mrs. W. S. Freeman, Mrs. Eliza Smith, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Wilson, Mrs. Nenta L. Maddox, Mrs. Harriet Mcclintock, Mrs. Estella I. Ayres, Miss Ella Mae Smith.
In 1915 the church owned a fine building site at the corner of First Avenue and Twenty-third Street worth approximately $6,000 and clear of incumbrance and on which the church planned to erect a church building which would be a credit to the cause and the community.
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HISTORY OF BUFFALO COUNTY
ST. LUKE'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH
The St. Luke's Episcopal Church of Kearney, organized in 1892, Rev. R. D. Oliver, D. D., its first pastor.
At an approximate cost of forty thousand dollars a fine church building has been erected. In the year 1915, the membership of the church was two hundred (200) ; the pastor on that date, Rev. George G. Ware, archdeacon.
ST. GEORGE SYRIAN GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH
The St. George Syrian Greek Church was organized at Kearney, June 3, 1903, Rev. Nicola E. Yanney its first pastor.
The church building erected cost approximately two thousand dollars.
In the year 1915 the church had a membership of 180. Of this church its present pastor, Rev. Nicola E. Yanney, writes: "It is the second oldest church of its kind in the American hemisphere-second to that of New York City. The only church (of its kind) west of the Missouri River. A bishop, located in New York City, superintends the affairs of the church and the forty others of its kind in the United States."
GRACE UNITED EVANGELICAL CHURCH
The Grace United Evangelical Church at Kearney was instituted March 9, 1893, Rev. L. G. Brooker its first pastor.
The church building erected cost approximately five thousand dollars.
In 1915 the church had a membership of 165.
Rev. B. Hillier, its pastor at that date writes, "The church has a splendid opportunity for service, and is filling a real need in the community. We have in the Sunday school an average attendance of 150, and a splendid bunch of young people."
WOMAN'S CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION
An organization of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union was insti- tuted in Kearney in 1878, through the efforts of Mrs. Louisa E. Collins. In the year 1915 the union had twenty members, its officers: Mrs. S. S. O'Brien, president ; Mrs. Irene Merriott, vice president; Mrs. Nellie Treadway, secretary ; Mrs. H. C. Holt, treasurer.
Mrs. S. S. O'Brien writes that the W. C. T. U. Hospital or the Mother Hull Hospital as it was also called, was established about the year 1885 by Mrs. Nancy Hull, who served as president until her death in 1911.
FIRST SCHOOL IN KEARNEY
By Helen H. Hartzell, Student at State Normal School
When Kearney was first settled very few settlers brought their families with them, so few in fact that one woman, living here today, tells that when she walked
('hoto taken in 1910)
FIRST SCHOOL BUILDING ERECTED IN DISTRICT NUMBER 7, KEARNEY, IN 1873 First County Teachers' Institute held here November 25, 1875
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STORE BUILDING OF R. R. GREER ERECTED AT KEARNEY IN 1873
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down the road early in 1870, a gang of men working on the road laid down their tools and watched her out of sight; but by the winter of 1872, there were at least twenty children of various sizes and ages.
The only building to be found suitable for school purposes was one occupied as a printing office-the Kearney Times-used by L. B. Cunningham, editor, now of Glenwood, Iowa. This building was located on Smith Avenue, now called Twenty-fourth Street and about Sixth Avenue; this building was the farthest one to the west, the town stretching eastward.
The printing office with all its machinery and noise and bustle, was upstairs, the school in the lower room. There was but one desk, loaned to the school by Mr. Cunningham ; the pupils sat on long benches or rather planks laid on boxes ; there were no blackboards, shingles were used instead. As for books, each pupil brought such text-books as their family possessed; Miss Fannie Nevius was teacher.
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