USA > New York > Allegany County > A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York > Part 128
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* Masonic history furnished by E. W. Cowles, Esq.
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and the hall was dedicated Oct. 22, 1891. The lodge and chapter occupy the upper rooms and the lower part is occupied by stores. The building is brick veneered, and cost $3,400. The fraternity made a bonded indebted- ness of $2,300, and there is now an indebtedness of $1,050 on the building. The regular Lodge meetings are held monthly on the 1st and 3d Wednes- days. The membership Jan. 1, 1896, was 115. S. G S. Rowley, the founder and father of Macedonia Lodge, was born in Otsego county May 31, 1799. He was made a Mason June, 1820, and a Royal Arch Mason before he was 22 years old. He lived in Bolivar the most of his life and took great interest in masonry. He was at the home of one of his sons, F. E. Rowley, in Port Allegany, Pa., when he died Oct. 15, 1894, aged 95 years, 5 months. The re- mains were brought to Bolivar for burial. He had been a Mason 74 years.
BOLIVAR CHAPTER NO. 280, R. A. M., was organized May 8, 1890, with 26 members. The charter bears date Feb. 4. 1891. The first officers were: William F. Thomas, H. P .; Fred L. Newton, K .; C. L. Jukes, S. The High Priests from organization have been: Wm. F. Thomas, C. M. Williams and George A. Beers. Wm. F. Thomas, A. G. Williams and J. M. Curtis are the only ones now living in Bolivar of the charter members. The regular con- vocations of the chapter occur on the 2d and 4th Wednesdays of each month. The membership of the chapter was 65 on Jan. 1, 1896.
BUTTRICK CHAPTER NO. 109, O. E. S. The first charter for this chap- ter was granted to Allentown Chapter No. 62, which was largely promoted by the efforts of Mr. and Mrs. Fred A. Hulbert. Mrs. Melvina Allen, W. M. has kindly furnished us its history as follows: "Allentown Chapter No. 62, was organized at Allentown March 31, 1887, with 65 members, Mrs. Lina' Raydure, W. M. and Robert Mccutcheon as W. P., by Mrs. Sadie McKelvey of Rochester, Grand Matron. This chapter prospered well until 1894 when
the charter was surrendered. Some of the members united with ladies of Bolivar, and applied for a charter for the present chapter, the chapter was organized U. D. July 11, 1894, and the chapter, 109, was granted in June, 1895. It had 25 charter members: Mrs. Melvina Allen, W. M .; Mrs. Harriet Beatty, A. M .; Mrs. F. A. Hulbert, Treas .; Mrs. Frank Beers, Sec'y; Mrs. Clara Andrus, Con .; Mrs. Lillian Tuttle, A. Con .; Mrs. Elizabeth Garthwait, Warden; Legrand A. Tuttle, Sentinel; Mrs. Ada Barber, Ada; Estella Smith, Ruth; Mrs. Bertha Weiler, Esther; Mrs. Hunt, Martha; Mrs. Ella Dunning, Electa; Thomas P. Hardin, W. P. The membership is 43 and meetings are regularly held in Masonic Temple on the 2d and 4th Tuesdays of each month." Mrs. Melvina Allen has been W. M. 5 years in the two chapters and District Deputy Grand Matron of the 13th District since 1890.
Bolivar has her quota of other societies, social and literary. The Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows has a growing well-ordered lodge. Its number is 615, and it was instituted March 3, 1884. The society has several rooms on south Main street and hold their meetings weekly. The membership is 43 and it is constantly increasing. This order is one of the oldest in town, a lodge having been organized in 1856. The first officers were J. Bernhoff,
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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.
N. G. ; J. H. Hendrickson, V. G .; C. M. Stoppard, secretary; C. Reed, treas- urer. The present order got its charter Aug. 21, 1884. The present officers are E. R. Williams, N. G .; W. C. Phillips, V. N. G .; J. T. Cowles, secretary; I. G. Cooper, treasurer.
The Tent of the K. O. T. M. was organized in 1881. The Bees now number 101. Their meetings are weekly and held in the Williams block. The pres- ent officers are Chas. Sheffer, commander; Wm. Harrington, lieut. com- mander; J. Craig, record keeper. The L. O. T. M. was organized Feb. 7, 1894 with a membership of 45. The officers are Mrs. Emma Hulbert, lady commander; Mrs. D. T. Beatty, past lady commander; Mrs. Anna Fritz, record keeper; Miss Kittie McBride, finance keeper.
An organization of the Royal Templars of Temperance was instituted March 24, 1886.
H. C. GARDNER POST NO 247 of the G. A. R. is the society in the eyes of the old soldiers. The Post numbers 40 members and was organized in 1881. The present officers are A. George, commander; M. A. Furnald, adjutant Many of the members were in the 189th N. Y. Regt. and the division in which were Lieut. E. R, Kilbury and M. A. Furnald were in the front ranks and received the flag of truce when Lee surrendered. Some of the battles in which the 189th participated were Petersburg. Five Forks and Appa- natox. E. R. Kilbury a member of the post entered the war in 1863 as first lieutenant. M. A. Furnald entered the same year. The colonel of the 189th was A. L. Burr of Bath. Some of the other members of the post are Lyman Root, John Beers, E. Richardson and C. Allen. The post has a number of soldiers who enlisted from other towns in other regiments. The meetings of the G. A. R. are held semi-monthly in the W. C. T. U. hall. E. R. Kilbury was the ambulance officer for the first division of the first corps, during 1864-65. He was promoted from second lieut. to first lieut. while in the ser- vice. He was in the Weldon raid and in the fight at Petersburg when Fort Stedman was recaptured. Lieut. Kilbury's command was noted for efficient service in caring for and removing the wounded from the field to the hospi- tal. Its work was in the heat of the battle, often between the fire of the two armies.
The prominent literary societies are the Sorosis and the Epworth League. The former was founded May, 1895. Its membership is limited to twenty-five ladies. They meet once a week, and the society is incorporated under state laws. The work of "Sorosis " is reading and reviewing some of the literary productions of the day, also occasionally sketching the lives of prominent authors or topics of interest. It is a pleasant and instructive feature of the social life of the town especially for the ladies of the organi- zation.
THE EPWORTH LEAGUE was organized first as the Young People's Union Jan. 2, 1890. The date of their charter is March 1, 1890, which is also No. 20. The first officers were, J. V. Lovell president, C. F. Albee, L. Furnald, S. Potter and L. Barmore vice presidents, Maria Fisher secretary, L. Le
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Beouf treasurer. The present officers are, S. E. White president, B. Main, L. Furnald, F. Davie, Mrs. H. L. Zimmerman vice presidents, A. Durnell secretary, R. Stone treasurer. The present membership is 60. Associated with the Epworth League is the Junior League, No. 226, orga- mized Nov. 29, 1890. The membership is 75. Pres. Mrs. J. W. Barnett. Both associations meet weekly.
W. C. T. U .- The W. C. T. U. was organized Dec. 6, 1883. First officers were Mrs. J. B. Bradley president, Mrs. J. N. Dalby vice president, Mrs. M. A. Wood corresponding secretary, Mrs. A. E. Kenyon recording secre- tary, Mrs. D. C. Hoyt treasurer. The organization rooms on Boss street and meet each Friday P. M. The lady who has perhaps been the chief pillar of the W. C. T. U. is Mrs. J. B. Bradley.
METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH .- The first religious services of the town were held by Austin Cowles, a local Methodist preacher, in 1820. Meth- odist sentiment was strong here and resulted in 1828 in the Bolivar Metho- dist church. The first trustees were Nelson Hoyt, Eli LeSuer, Abel Root, Jr., Clark Millard, Levi LeSuer. There were then 30 members. In 1843 a neat church was built costing $1,900, Nelson Hoyt contributing the building lot. The present building was erected in 1882, costing, with general fur- nishing and pipe organ, about $13,000. The membership is now 125. The trustees are R. L. Andrus, J. L. Cutler, J. W. Hamsher, E. R. Kilbury, A. C. Pire. Dr. Latham, clerk; classleaders, J. W. Hamsher, L. G. Campbell, James Turner. Pastors as recorded: 1855-6, T. W. Eaton; 1856-7. Wm. Leak; 1857-8, W. Herd; 1859-61, O. S. Chamberlayne; 1861-2, T. W. Potter; 1864-5, H. O. Abbott; 1866-7, A. W. Willson; 1867-8, Joseph Latham; 1870-1, T. E. Clayton; 1871-2, G. H. Van Vradenburg; 1872-3, John Agar; 1874-5, J. K. Torrey; 1875-7, A. H. Johnston; 1877-8, Rowley; 1878-9, A. B. Kelley; 1879-81, R. Canfield; 1881-2, T. R. Stratton; 1882-5, I. H. Dalby; 1885-6, G. W. Loomis; 1886-9, F. S. Parkhurst; 1889-90. J. V. Lowell; 1890-4, S. W. Arnold; 1894, J. W. Barnett, present pastor. The Sunday school was early organized. R. L. Andrus was superintendent for 32 years, resigning the office in January, 1896. M. A. Furnald is the present superintendent.
THE FREE METHODIST class of Bolivar, N. Y., was organized on the first Sunday in January, 1884, by Rev. A. C. Leonard, who then resided in Bel- mont. The class consisted of three members, John Crandall, Mrs. John Crandall and Mrs. Mary Wheelock. June 11, 1884, the class met and in- corporated themselves, thereafter to be called the Bolivar Free Methodist church, then having a membership of nine. Rev. J. G. Terrill was the first regular pastor, under whose pastorate the church building was erected. This was dedicated Aug. 3, 1884. Valuation $1,000. The church grew rapidly for sometime, but, owing to the removal of the greater part of its membership to other localities, it only numbers fourteen at present. It has six officers, Rev. J. H. Wheeler is pastor. The Sabbath school was organ- ized soon after the church was erected. John Crandall superintendent. At present the school numbers thirty, with six officers and teachers.
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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.
CATHOLIC CHURCH .- The Catholic society was organized during 1882. The pastor, who was also the prime mover in bringing about the building of the church, was Rev. Father Caraher. He also had charge of a similar or- ganization in Cuba. Most of the money for building the church was fur- nished by the Catholic fair which netted the society $1,500 in one week. Father Caraher raised by other means $500. The land on which the church stands was the gift of D. A. Newton, When Father Caraher left Cuba, the Bolivar parish came into charge of Father Griffin. At present Rev. Father J. J. Rogers has charge of three parishes, Cuba, Friendship and Bolivar. Services here are held every third Sunday. There is a Sunday-school con- nected with the society which contains about 200 members. The present trustees are L. Seibert, A. C. McDonell and J. Devlin. The assessed valu- ation of the church property is $1,000.
SCHOOLS .- The first schoolhouse was built in 1820. Logs served as material in building. The first teacher was Rachel Gilbert who taught dur- ing the summer, while Austin Cowles taught the succeeding winter. The schoolhouse was located on the northeast corner of lot 55. Could one of the boys who attended the log cabin school renew his youth and creep once more " like a snail unwillingly to school," he would find, in place of the log cabin, a large wooden structure with crowds of children, young men and women within, under the guidance of a corps of seven teachers. He would also find the methods used in urging pupils "along the flowery path of knowledge," while not so violent as in the olden days, had produced a pace of which he had never dreamed. Instead of one old spellingbook and a bit of charcoal, he would find innumerable books, tablets, charts and apparatus of all de- scription. In 1885 the district school in "No. 1," by virtue of the greatly increased population, became a Union school. The members of Board of Education were E. R. Kilbury, president; W. R. Stevens, C. H. Brown, Frank Hoover and R. L. Andrus, trustees. The first principal was Prof. McCartney. The district schoolhouse was greatly enlarged. A larger school yard was also procured by purchasing land from the Olean Land Co. The
annual registration is usually about 300 with an average daily attendance of from 220 to 240. The school by the last inspection of Inspector Clement is ranked as a High School, having sufficient library and apparatus, and courses extensive enough to entitle it to that rank. The number of academic pupils is usually about 40 with a tendency to increase as the population of the village becomes more stable. Many who have been in attendance but who have not completed a formal course leading to graduation, have entered business and professional life. Since 1891 the standard for graduation has been that of the Regents. In the four years succeeding 1891 nine male and 12 female students have been graduated on Regents diplomas. Of the male graduates 3 are at Cornell University, each on a state scholarship obtained by a com- petitive examination. One is in Milton College, Wis., and one at Alfred Uui- versity. Of the female graduates six are teachers, three have taken Normal training in addition to their academic course. The full list of High School
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courses is maintained with the aim of meeting any requirement whether of business or preparation for college. All students for college are in courses leading to the degree of A. B. To the Bolivar High School belongs the credit of having the highest honor certificate issued in the state, a 100 credit class- ical scientific diploma secured in 1893 by Miss Josephine E. Keeney, who afterward graduated from the Albany Normal College. To prevent the necessity for pupils going to other schools for higher academic work, ad- vanced and post-graduate work have received attention, and since 1891, 30 diplomas have been received for post-graduate work. The school year is divided into two terms, the first of 19 weeks and the second of 20 weeks. At the middle and expiration of those terms grade examinations are given throughout the school. Faculty meetings are held each Monday evening, and at these meetings principles and methods are discussed. This weekly meeting has proved of great help in promoting and maintaining unity and integrity of work and to establish a faculty to keep abreast of main lines of educational progress. In the workings of the Board of Education a remark- able unanimity and harmony has prevailed, while the trustees have always had the support of the people in their decisions. To Mr. E. R. Kilbury, pres- ident of the board for the entire time since the organization (with the excep- tion of two years, when he declined the position and the office was efficiently filled by Mr. J. W. O'Day) is due much of the credit for an intelligent and harmonious administration of affairs. The teachers are now seven in number, though there have been eight and six, according to the varying number of pupils. The principal, Alexander J. Glennie, was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and came to America in 1871, when 5 years old, with his parents, his father George Glennie settling at Geneseo, N. Y., his present home. In 1872 became a pupil of the Normal school and was graduated from the Nor- mal department in 1889 as president of his class. While attending the school he taught several terms of district school, and, on graduating, at once be- came principal of the graded school at Arkport for one year. The next year he was principal of the union school at Alexander. In 1891 he commenced his very successful principalship of Bolivar's school system in which he is now engaged. "He is extensively known as a thoroughly energetic and progressive teacher, who can show tangible results of his work with young men and women." Mr. Glennie is senior warden of Macedonia Lodge of Freemasons, and a member of Bolivar Chapter R. A. M. He married Mary K. Cowles of Bolivar. Miss Ella Crandall, graduate of the Geneseo Normal, class '95, began her work as preceptress in September, 1895. Miss Crandall was a former student of the school and a successful teacher before her nor- mal course. Miss Alice L. Sibley, appointed in 1894 to the 7th and 8th grade is a graduate of the Brockport Normal class of '94. Miss Lena B. Munroe, appointed in 1894, was a student of the Oswego Normal school and came to Bolivar as teacher of the 5th and 6th grades. Miss Louise Flint, of the 1st and 2d grades, was appointed in 1895, and has had a number of years' expe- rience as a teacher in Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties and other places.
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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.
She is a graduate of the Fredonia Normal. Miss Adah M. Perry has charge of the 3d and 4th grades. She has been a teacher in this school since the or- ganization as a union school in 1885. Miss Kittie R. McBride, now teaching the primary, has a similar record of continuous teaching. The expenses of the school year in Dist No. 1 are from $4,000 to $4,200. The members of the present Board of Education are E. R. Kilbury, president; R. L. Andrus, C. C. Garthwait, A. Wilson, Geo. Beers, trustees. There are six other schools in the town with an average attendance varying from six to twenty. These are subject to the vicissitudes of the frequent changes in teachers, good, bad, and indifferent. Perhaps the largest of the schools, aside from Dist. No. 1, is the school at "Kossuth," a small settlement a mile south of Bolivar vil- lage. Among those who have held the principalship of the Bolivar High School is school commissioner Stephen Pollard.
OF BOLIVAR'S PEOPLE .- Richard L. Andrus, son of Elisha N., born in Tioga, Pa., Sept. II, 1835, came with his father to Ceres in 1844, attended common schools and Richburg Acad- emy, became a popular teacher, and, after teaching district schools for several years, was as- sistant teacher of Richburg Academy for seven terms. He was school commissioner six con- secutive years, has been supervisor, town clerk and highway commissioner, has been a mer- chant for 25 years and is an oil producer, owning 18 wells, and with his sons conducts a clothing store. He has been a member of the M. E. church for many years, and superintend- ent of the M. E. Sunday-school of Bolivar 32 years. He married, first, in 1858, Amelia, daughter of S. W. Thomas, who died in 1881. Children : Ralph and Claire. His second wife was Kate Thornton of Ashland, Ore. Children : Don and Lowell.
Wakeman Beers was born in Walton in 1818. He came to Bolivar about 1850. He mar- ried Clarinda, daughter of Alva Withey. They settled on a farm half a mile east of the vil- lage where Mr. Beers, a carpenter by trade, engaged in farming. He held the office of assess- or 3 terms. During the oil excitement he sold his farm to an oil company, and removed to Hinsdale, purchased a farm and resided there until 1887, when he returned to Bolivar, where he died Sept. 4, 1888. His 2 sons were John H., a farmer at Hinsdale, and George A. George A. Beers married Frances, daughter of Edwin and Miranda Smith. He is engaged in farming, has held the office of assessor 9 years, and is a member of Macedonia Lodge of Free- masons at Bolivar, and is also High Priest of Bolivar Chapter, No. 280, R. A. M. Alva Withey, son of Stephen Withey, who, it is said, was an early settler of Friendship, married Clarissa Hitchcock. They had 9 children. Alva was a shoemaker and carpenter. He lived in Wirt several years, and in 1834 settled in Bolivar. His wife died about 1850. He died in 1869. They were members of the Methodist church. Their children were Clarinda, widow of Wake- man Beers, Narissa (Mrs. Martin Shaw), Charles, of Tiona, Pa., William H., of South Dakota (he was major in 89th Regt., N. Y. S. V., was taken prisoner and passed several months in a rebel prison), Eliza J. (Mrs. Jonas White of Wisconsin), Amelia (Mrs. Wm. Hulbert, dec.), Fanny (Mrs. James Durfee, dec.), Fayette (dec.), was captain in 189th Regt., and Mary S. (Mrs. Calvin Clark, dec.)
Valentine K. Boyer, son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Reed) Boyer, was born Sept. 9, 1834, in Schuylkill, Pa. From his eleventh year till his seventeenth he worked in coal mines, then for three and a half years as a moulder, then was engaged for five years in coal and mercantile business. In October, 1861, he enlisted in Co. F, 7th Pa. Vol. Cavalry, was in the Army of the Cumberland, and took part in every general engagement in which his regiment served. He was promoted from private to first lieutenant, and was in service till March, 1865. From June, 1879, he has been in the employ of the Tide Water Pipe Line Co. In 1891 he became a resi- dent of Bolivar. In 1860 he married Elizabeth Partridge (daughter of Henry). She died in 1866. They had one child, Dora L. By his second wife, Emma L. Murkle (daughter of Mi- chael), who died in 1881, he had one child, Claude. His third wife was Sarah L. Martin. Chil- dren : John, Elsie, Albert, Elizabeth and Gertrude.
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J. B. Bradley, son of Hiram, a native of Connecticut, was born in 1826 in Cussawago township, Crawford Co., Pa. He is one of the pioneer oil operators. In 1860 he drilled, in Mecca, Ohio, one of the very first wells sunk in that state, then went to Oil Springs, Canada, where he built a large oil refinery, one of the first ever built. In 1864 he went to Rouseville, Pa., and has since operated there. He came to Bolivar in 1881 and established the Empire Gas and Fuel Co. in company with Wm. and F. P. Kneeland. He and his brother, E. C. Brad- ley, soon bought out the Kneelands and are the sole proprietors. They were also half owners and the founders of the Keystone Gas Co. Mr. Bradley married Naomi Cook, of Crawford Co., Pa., a lady extensively known from her prominence in W. C. T. U. work. They have 3 sons, George H., general superintendent of the Empire Gas and Fuel Co. and of Cuba Gas Co., Justin B. and John C.
William Cochran, son of Allen, was born in Geneva, N. Y., in 1861. His father com- menced operating in oil on Oil Creek in 1863. When only 15 years old he began pumping for his father, and when 17 took an interest in the business. He came to Bolivar in 1882. In 1883 went to Bradford, where he was in business until 1890, when he returned to Bolivar. In 1883 he married Hattie E. Northrup, a Vermont lady, who died Jan. 13, 1892. Children : William Harold and Allen Leroy. Mr. Cochran has assisted in drilling 85 productive wells in the Alle- gany field, and is now a partner with Allen Cochran and John and Allen, Jr.
The Cowles family descends from John Cowles, an Englishman, who came to Massachu- setts in 1635, and settled at Hartford, Conn., from 1636 to 1639. Timothy Cowles, one of his descendants in the sixth generation, settled in 1819 in the southwest part of Bolivar, coming from Otsego Co. in the spring to Friendship, and in the summer to Bolivar where he bought land and built a log house into which he moved in December. He was a noted hunter and trapper, a shoemaker, a carpenter and a farmer. He married Anna Wilbur, had 10 children, and died Nov. 11, 1855. Mrs. Cowles died May 26, 1853. Their son, Merrill Cowles, was born in Otsego Co. in 1806, came to Bolivar in 1819, was a farmer and lumberman, captain in the militia, supervisor of Bolivar, justice and postmaster two terms. He married Susan, daugh- ter of Alvan Richardson. Children : Abigail (Mrs. D. A. Newton), Walter, Edgar W. and Harriet (Mrs. Dr. Dorr Cutler). Merrill Cowles died April 17, 1864, his wife in May, 1890. Edgar W. Cowles, son of Merrill, was born Jan. 23, 1837, and, after attending Richburg Acad- emy, when 17, entered the store of D. A. Newton as clerk, and continued there until 1859, when he became a farmer with his father. In August, 1861, he enlisted, but failing to get transportation from Harrisburg returned home, and in October again enlisted, joining the band of the 85th N. Y. Regimental bands were abolished and discharged in 1862, and Mr. Cowles returned to farm life until Feb. 1, 1865, then for 3 months was a member of a brigade band. In 1866 he was a member of the firm of Kenyon & Cowles, tanners and manufacturers of harnesses, etc. From 1880 to 1887 he was a harness maker. From 1888 to 1893 he was en- gaged in leasing oil lands and getting rights of way for pipe-line companies in New York, Penn- sylvania and West Virginia, and is now the junior member of the firm of E. W. Cowles & Co., undertakers. He has been justice of the peace 8 years, justice of sessions 2 terms, and super- visor of Bolivar 2 terms. He belongs to Macedonia Lodge, F. & A. M. (was its master two years), and to Bolivar Chapter. He is also a member of H. C. Gardner Post, G. A. R. He married, Feb. 22, 1863, Angelia, daughter of George Kenyon. Children: Marcia (Mrs. F. M. Lowry) and Susie (Mrs. T. J. Connors), both of Pittsburgh.
Asa Cowles, a brother of Timothy, was an active and important early settler, built the town's first gristmill, held important offices and died in 1829. He married Juda Wilbur. Chil- dren : Lovisa, Curtis, Almond W. (first white child born in Bolivar), Edna and Warren. Eras- tus Cowles, son of Timothy, born June 19, 1819, married, first, Betsey Wilbur (died May, 1855), second, Nancy M. White (died in 1865). Their daughter Ada (Mrs. L. M. Curtis) lives in Oil City, Pa. Benjamin F. Cowles, son of Daniel, was born in Andover, Conn, Aug. 12, 1803. He settled in Bolivar in 1824, and in 1828 married Elvira P. Phillips. Of their 5 children, are living Minnie (Mrs. S. Hovey) and Porter. Warren Cowles died in August, 1894.
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