USA > New York > Oswego County > Landmarks of Oswego County, New York > Part 43
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1 This school house stood on the northeast corner of West Seneca and Third streets, and for many years served for school, court and religious services. It was afterward removed to the southwest corner of West Second and Seneca streets and became one of the oldest landmarks of the city, being finally destroyed by fire while occupied as a wagon shop by Luther Wetherby.
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village offered in vain a reward of $750 for the apprehension and con- viction of the incendiary.1 (Village Records, p. 349.)
Services were then held for some time in the old Tabernacle, the property of Gerrit Smith, afterwards known as Franklin Hall, which stood on the site of the Vulcan Iron Works, on Second street, between West Bridge and Oneida streets. In 1843 the present edifice was com- pleted, and in January, 1844, it was dedicated. It stands on the corner of West Fourth and Bridge streets and cost $10,500. The stone chapel adjoining the main structure was erected in 1858 at an expense of $5,000. It was dedicated May 4, 1859. In 1878 a neat frame parsonage was built on the corner of West Bridge and Fifth streets.
For eight years after the organization in 1816, missionaries and neighboring ministers supplied the preaching. In 1825 Rev. James Abell became the first settled pastor and remained until 1830. In 1831 Rev. Robert W. Condit was installed and continued as pastor for forty years, or till his death February 12, 1871, aged seventy-five, having as his assistant from 1866 to about 1870 the Rev. James A. Worden, who became pastor, but resigned in June, 1872. June 16, 1872, Rev. David Tully assumed pastoral charge and served until 1886. Under his pas- torate the galleries were taken out and the church repaired and remod- eled. On October 1, 1886, Rev. Charles D. Barrows, the present in- cumbent, entered upon his duties, being regularly installed May 19, 1887. The ruling elders having been :
Silvanus Bishop, Abram Clark, Alfred Mix, Stephen Brace, Russel Bunce, Thomas Ambler, Elam Rumrill, Calvin Hamilton, John B. Park, George Seeley, Luther Pardee, Wheeler Barnes, Roswell Hawley, Andrew Van Dyck, W. F. Allen, Gilbert Mollison, James Rogers, Warren D. Smith, John R. Thompson, Jesse A. Hathaway, Lucius Strong, Frank D. Waugh, John B. McLean, Ralph Howe, E. A. Sheldon, Virgil C. Douglas, Stephen G. Howe, George V. N. Relyea, W. H. Chamberlain, J. G. Sharp, O. J. Harmon, Isaac B. Poucher, Levi W Perham, Charles A. Tanner, James K. Coch- rane, W. D. Allen, Harvey J. Norris, E. A. Tiffany, William Adams, and William H. Garland.
The deacons have been Abram Clark, Stephen Brace, Alfred Mix, John R. Thomp- son, Warren D Smith, Lucius Strong, and John B. McLean.
1 An incident connected with this fire is worthy of note, and is best told from an account printed in the Oswego County Whig of October 27, 1841 : " The schooner Essex was out- owing to the darkness and snow of the night she was unable to discover our light house, and must in all probability have been lost but for the light of this fire, which pointed her safely into our harbor and lighted her into port."
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The clerks have been as follows: Stephen Brace, 1816-20 ; Alfred Mix, 1820-53 ; George Seeley, 1853-72; J. B. McLean, 1872-88; Isaac B. Poucher, 1888-94.
The present trustees are James M. Hart, president; C. A. Tanner, W. D. Allen, E. M. Manwaren, George Talcott, Theodore F. Gumaer and Henry Karpinski.
A second tablet was placed in the auditorium to the memory of Rev. Dr. Condit by his eldest daughter, Mrs. W. P. Pierson. The first organist was Peter Rutan. The first superintendent of the Sunday school was Edwin W. Clarke; then came John B. Park, who died in 1849, who was succeeded by R. L. Wyckoff and he by John C. Churchill. The latter served twenty years and was followed by Gilbert Mollison, Warren D. Smith, Ralph Howe, Edward A. Sheldon, Frank D. Waugh, William H. Chamberlain and Isaac B. Poucher.
The First Methodist Episcopal Church began with a class of three members, organized in 1816, at which time Oswego was included in the Sandy Creek Circuit, Oneida District, in which Elders George Gary, Luther Bishop, and Enoch Barnes were preachers, with Rev. Charles Giles as presiding elder. Mrs. Catherine Hawley was class leader,1 and in her house many of the earlier meetings were held. Later a room in a building which stood on the corner of West Third and Schuyler streets was furnished and used jointly with other denom- inations. The first preachers were succeeded by Elders James Hazen, Amos Perry, C. Lambert, and Truman Dixon, and in 1819 the Oswego circuit was formed with Nathaniel Reeder as preacher. He was fol- lowed by C. Lambert, J. P. Aylesworth, Orrin Foot, Truman Dixon, Alexander Irvine, George W. Densmore, W. W. Ninde, J. B. Roach. Under the latter's pastorate, in 1827, the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Oswego was regularly incorporated. The first trustees were Webster S. Steele, Asahel Hawley, David C. Knapp, William Matchett, and Robert Dwyer. The next year (1829) Oswego was constituted a separate station with Rev. John Sayer as preacher. The society now began the erection of a chapel on the park on the corner of West Fifth and Cayuga streets. The successive pastors of this church were S. Bibbins, E. Wheeler, N. Salisbury, A. D. Peck, W. W. Ninde, B. Phillips, John Soveys, C. L. Dunning, I. L. Hunt, Charles Giles, J.
1 Mrs. Catharine Hawley may be truthfully regarded as the mother of Methodism in Oswego. She was largely instrumental in effecting the ultimate organization of the society, and during a long and active life was ever zealous in the cause of Christianity. She died in the summer of 1872.
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Alley, and H. E. Chapin. In 1848 the society was divided and the East Methodist Episcopal Church was organized. Rev. G. G. Hapgood was appointed pastor of the First Church, and the chapel remained in joint possession of the two societies. In 1849 this building was burned, and in 1850 the First M. E. Society erected their present edifice on the corner of West Fourth and Oneida streets. The pastors since 1849 have been :
Revs. Almon Chapin, C. L. Dunning, L. D. White, N. Salisbury, O. M. Legate, R. Reynolds, M. D. Gillette, C. L. Dunning, N. G. Axtell, Wesley Mason, J. B. Foote, James Erwin, J. Fletcher Clymer, E. C. Curtis, Frank J. Jewell, E. Horr, jr., W. F. Hemingway, W. F. Markham, F. H. Beck, W. H. Hall, J. C. Darling, J. Fletcher Brown, F. H. Beck, again, R. J. Smith, and Mattison Wilbur Chase, the present in- cumbent.
In 1866, under the pastorate of Rev. James Erwin, Wesley Mission Chapel was built on the corner of West Fifth and Tolman streets. It was finally discontinued and a few years since the property was sold. In 1891 a handsome stone chapel was erected on a lot between the church and parsonage at a cost of $25,000, which was dedicated in June, 1892. The entire church property is valued at $55,000. The society has about 400 members and a Sunday school of over 300 scholars, of which Mannister Worts is superintendent.
Christ Episcopal Church .- This church was organized at a meeting held February 26, 1822, in the west side school house. Rev. Amos Pardee, a missionary, presided at the meeting. James Bill and William Dolloway were chosen wardens, and John Moore, jr., T. S. Morgan, Thaddeus Clark, Thomas Collins, Eleazer Perry, Nathaniel Farnham, Robert Cooley, and M. P. Hatch, vestrymen. About a year later the society was deprived of its minister by the removal of Mr. Pardee, and during the ensuing four years was without a pastor, lay readers supply- ing the place as far as possible. Rev. John McCarty was appointed missionary for this county and part of Onondaga in November, 1826, at which time he found eleven communicants of the church, as follows :
James Cochran and Catherine V. R. his wife, Robert Cooley and Electa his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Bunner, Mrs. McHugh, Mrs. Mary Ingram, Mrs. Charlotte M. Eagle, Robert Dwyer and wife, and Mrs. White.
The corner stone of a church edifice was laid by Rev. Mr. McCarty May 9, 1828, on the southeast corner of what is now Franklin Square,
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and the building was consecrated January 25, 1829, by Bishop Hobart ; this was the first Episcopal visitation to the place and thirty-seven per- sons were confirmed on the occasion. The church had a seating capacity of 400. The parish received from New York an annual sum of money until 1835, during which period it had struggled on under a debt of $1,000. At this time a donation of $1,000 by Trinity Church, New York, conditioned upon the raising of a like, sum by the people, was made and the debt was liquidated. At the close of the ninth year of Rev. Mr. McCarty's pastorate the society became self-supporting. In 1845 he closed his long period of service in the church, extending over nineteen years. The records show that during this period there were baptized 517 infants and children and forty-six adults, while 174 persons had been confirmed. There were ninety-three communicants when he gave up the charge. Rev. John S. Davenport became rector of the parish in August, 1845. During his incumbency of seven years he baptized thirty adults, and 261 children ; eighty-one persons were confirmed and fifty- three were added to the communion. When he left the parish there were seventy four communicants. Rev. Anthony Schuyler was called to the rectorship in 1852 and in the following year it was determined to build a new church. In August, 1854, the work was begun and the corner stone was laid October 12, 1854, with ap- propriate services. The new edifice was opened for worship January 4, 1857 ; its cost was $13,000, and there were then 132 communicants. In 1857 the old church building was sold to the Universalists for $2,000, and in 1858 a frame chapel and Sunday school room was erected adjoining the church, the funds for which were raised by sub- scription. The old church was retransferred to the vestry and was burned on January 7, 1862; the insurance of $1,500 and a like sum contributed was applied on the church debt. Rev. Anthony Schuyler resigned in October, 1862, and in March, 1863, was succeeded by Rev. Amos B. Beach, D. D. In 1865 an effort was made to pay off the church mortgage and on April 29 this was accomplished. The conse- cration of the church by Bishop Coxe immediately followed. During the incumbency of Rev. Mr. Beach the present rectory was purchased. Dr. Beach resigned in the autum of 1875 and was succeeded in the next spring by Rev. William L. Parker, In 1883 ground was purchased and 53
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a new chapel and Sunday school room was built, which was opened for use April 4, 1884. Mr. Parker died in November, 1888, after twelve years' service with the church. Rev. Thomas L. Randolph conducted services several months, when Rev. P. N. Meade assumed the pas- torate in May, 1889. The chapel, released from debt at Easter, 1890, was consecrated by Bishop Huntington in October of that year. In the summer of 1892 the church building was renovated and beauti- fied by tinting the interior walls, removing the organ to the west side of the choir, and deepening the sanctuary so that stalls for choristers could be introduced. A large chancel window replaced the former one. The total cost of the improvements exceeded $8,000, the major part of which was donated by a life-long communicant of the parish. During the year 1892 the vestry purchased the property adjoining the church on the west, with a building thereon which is now used as a parish house. The present number of communicants of this church is about 250. The vestry consists of George C. McWhorter and C. H. Butler, wardens ; George B. Sloan, F. O. Clarke, A. S. Page, Leonard Ames, sr., Niel Gray, H. D. McCaffrey, J. D. Henderson, and Hervey Shriver, vestrymen. Mr. McWhorter has been treasurer of the church several years past.
First Baptist Church .- This church was organized with eleven mem- bers, March 13, 1828. Their names were as follows: Amos G. Currey, Elijah S. Stockwell, William Burt and wife, Walter Read and wife, Mrs. William L. Beebe, George Cyrenius and wife, and Samuel B. Morrow and wife. Rev. John C. Harrison soon afterward became the first pastor. Meetings were held for a time in the public school house on the west side, and on June 17, 1828, the following were elected trustees of the society : George W. Burt, William L. Beebe, Nathaniel Vilas, jr., Oziel Davis, Joseph Turner and Horatio N. Goodell. Before the close of 1828 the meetings were transferred to the Court House on the east side of the river, and in May, 1831, the president of the village was authorized to lease to the church trustees for 999 years the west half of block 102 in East Oswego as a church site. The church was promptly commenced and stood on the southwest corner of the block, fronting the square. It was of wood and cost over $5,000. It has been con- siderably improved and is still in use. In 1846 it was repaired at a cost
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ÔSWEGO AS A VILLAGE AND CITY.
of $1, 100, and in 1865-6 was furnished with basement and otherwise remodeled at a cost of $4,000.1 The pastors of the society have been as follows :
John C. Harrison, 1828-30; Jason Lathrop, 1830-33 ; John Waterman, 1834-35 ; E. Savage, 1835-7; William Hutchinson, 1837-42; Isaac Lawton, 1842-4; Isaac But- terfield, 1846-53; W. W. Moore, 1853-55 ; David McFarland, 1855-59; M. R. Forey, 1860-62; L. M. S. Haynes, 1863-68; Lester Williams, jr., 1869-72; Harvey R. Travers, 1873-77; George Grafty, 1877-84; W. W. Palmer, 1884-93; W. B. Wallace, since June, 1893.
The present membership is about 250. The Sunday school was organized in 1828. Deacon John C. Bradt has been superintendent more than thirty years. The present deacons are John C. Bradt, John Rowland, John C. Rowe, and W. H. Kenyon; trustees, M. V. Wadley, W. H. Kenyon, W. V. Burr, John C. Bradt, and E. G. Stacy.
St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church-Was organized about 1830. The late Peter Lappin, and about sixteen others, the only Catholic residents at the time in the place, finding that means enough could be raised among themselves to defray the traveling expenses of a clergyman, wrote to the Rev. Mr. O'Donahoe, who at the time had charge of Auburn, Rome, and other villages of Central New York, and invited him to visit Oswego. In accordance with their request, he began visiting Oswego every three months to hold divine services. The first service was held in a private house on the west side of the river.
Shortly after this, a lot on the corner of East Mohawk and Fifth steeets (the one upon which St. Paul's church now stands), was pur- chased from the late Hon. Gerrit Smith; and upon it was erected a small frame building, twenty by twenty-four feet in size, and one story high, to serve as a church. This for a number of years was sufficiently large to accommodate the Catholics of Oswego. In time, however, more room was required, and an addition was made to the building. Even thus enlarged it soon became too small for the increasing Catholic pop- ulation, and the congregation, though still comparatively few in number and poor in means, resolved to erect a more commodious and befitting
1 Upon the incorporation of the village of Oswego, four religious societies had been legally organized. On March 28, 1828, Edward Bronson, Richard Despard, and Webster S. Steele were appointed commissioners by the Legislature to divide block No. 4, in West Oswego, designated as the "parsonage block," in equal portions among such societies as then had a regular organization.
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edifice. The corner stone of a substantial stone building, fifty-five by one hundred feet, was laid about the year 1840, and during the pastoral charge of the Rev. Mr. Rogers the walls were erected and the roof put on. In 1844, during the pastorate of the Rev. Mr. Kenney, the build- ing was completed. It served the congregation until 1871. Between the years 1850 and 1868, under the supervision of the Rev. Mr. Kelly, the large and commodious three-story brick school-house, adjoining the church, was erected. In 1871 the old church was pulled down, and the present one erected in its stead. This edifice, including the vestry in the rear, is two hundred feet in length and seventy-six in width, and will seat two thousand five hundred people.
Recent improvements and embellishments make St. Paul's one of the most commodious and churchly buildings in the county. Its new electric organ costing $15,000, is one of the largest and best instru- ments in this part of the State. From the congregation of St. Paul's have bracnhed off the four other flourishing Catholic congregations of the city. Yet St. Paul's, numbering some two thousand five hundred communicants, and sustaining a first-class parochial school, attended by between seven and eight hundred children, is in a very prosperous con- dition. The boys and girls are in separate schools and under charge of thirteen teachers.
The first pastor of St. Paul's was the Rev. Mr. O'Donahoe. He was succeeded by the Rev. Mr. Rogers, he by the Rev. Mr. Kenney, and later, in 1850, by the Rev. Michael Kelly. Rev. Mr. Kelly was the pastor, except during an intermission of a few months, until October, 1869, when the present incumbent, Very Rev. Michael Barry, was appointed. Connected with this parish is a cemetery, which was opened in 1853, and which is situated within the city limits on the lake shore, on the east side of the river.
The Congregational Church .- The First Congregational Church of Oswego Village had its beginning in a meeting for organization, held in the old court house April 1, 1833. The society began with twelve members, with Rev. Luther Myrick, pastor. At one time the society had more than 100 members. They erected what was long known as the Tabernacle, between West Bridge and Oneida streets, where the Vulcan Iron Works now stand. The financial panic of 1836-7 crippled
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their finances and the last entry on their records was made June 3, 1838. Members were dismissed, however, as late as September, 1840. In 1836 a Union Sunday school was organized in the old court house and in December following a subscription paper was circulated to raise money to support Presbyterian preaching in East Oswego. In Janu- ary, 1837, the Second Presbyterian Church of Oswego Village was or- ganized. Rev. John Gridley, the first pastor, began his labors Septem- ber I of that year, and was followed by Rev. J. Leonard in 1841, Rev. Charles Jones in 1844, Rev. Charles Ray, supply, in 1847, Rev. A. Judson in 1848 (died in 1852), Rev. R. B. Welch acting in 1853, and Rev. Lewis Kellogg, the last settled pastor, in 1854. The society dis- banded in 1856. Their edifice was erected and dedicated in 1842, and in it the present Congregational Church Society of Oswego was organ- ized February 20, 1857, with the following as the first Board of Trus . tees : D. A. Braman, Charles North, C. P. Kellogg, E. A. Sheldon, Franklin Everts, Solon Allen, John Staats, and E. J. Hamilton. July 20, 1857, a public organization of a Congregational Church in union with this society occurred at Doolittle Hall. Rev. T. A. Weed, of Mexico, called the meeting to order, Rev. M. E. Strieby, of Syracuse, was elected moderator, and Rev. Henry Fowler, of Rochester, was chosen scribe. Twenty-eight persons connected themselves with the church; within a month twenty-eight more were received into member- ship, making a total of fifty- six. The corner stone of a new edifice was laid September 2, 1857, by Rev. H. G. Ludlow, and in the spring of 1858 the structure was so far completed that meetings were held in it. It stands on the corner of East Fourth and Oneida streets. It is of brick, 60 by 96 feet in size, and cost complete, including organ and fur- niture, $35,000 ; it was dedicated April 13, 1859, at which time Rev. Henry G. Ludlow 1 was installed pastor. Dedicatory services were conducted by the pastor in charge, Rev. R. W. Condit, D.D., and Rev. R. S. Storrs, jr., D.D. The successive pastors have been :
Rev. S. S. M. Greeley,? from January, 1866, to 1874; Rev. William Smith,3 from
1 Rev. Mr. Ludlow died August 11, 1867. He was born February 11, 1797, and was a graduate of Princeton College.
2 Rev. S. S. M. Greeley was born February 23, 1813 ; was graduated from Dartmouth College, and died October 28, 1892.
3 Rev. William Smith was born August 11, 1839, was graduated from Rutgers College, became pastor of the Reformed Church in Hudson, N. Y., and died February 23, 1892.
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September, 1874, to February, 1880; Rev. Jacob A. Biddle from October, 1880, to Oc- tober, 1883 ; Rev. William Kincaid, from March, 1884, to March, 1885; Rev. Frank Russell, D.D., from March, 1886, to February, 1888; Rev. Benjamin W. Bacon, from January 1, 1885, to the present time.
During the year 1889, a new brick chapel, planned under the pastor- ate of Dr. Russell, was erected at a cost of $30,000, and the interior of the church was redecorated; a new organ added and other extensive improvements made. The building was rededicated November 10, 1889. It contains eight beautiful memorial windows. Of the twenty-eight constituent members only Alonzo H. Failing, Mrs. Mary Ford, Herbert M. Harman, Mrs. Kate Ames, and Mrs. Chloe Hubbard remain with the church.
The first communion and reception of members occurred August 16, 1857. Of the twenty-eight persons uniting with the church on that occasion, the following are all that now remain connected with the so- ciety : Philo Adams, Mrs. Sophia Adams, Mrs. L. Barber, Mrs. Eliza- beth Davis, Mrs. Adelia Hubbell, Mrs. Mary Wilber. The first super- intendent of the Sunday school was H. M. Harman, who was succeeded in 1858 by Emerson J. Hamilton, Ph. B .; the latter held the position continuously until his death in 1893, and to his memory a handsome window was placed in the Sunday school room of the chapel. The present superintendent is Alonzo H. Failing, under whom the school has an average attendance of 200 pupils. The society has 375 members and its officers are as follows :
Trustees, W. H. Steele (chairman) O. F. Gaylord, Theodore Irwin, James F. Herrick, James McCarthy, George De Forest, D. L. Couch, James A. Wheeler, and L. W. Tan- ner; clerk, S. F. Steele ; deacons, A. H. Failing, A. R. Stevens, R. J. St. John, T. J. Currie, Charles Allen, and S. F. Steele.
The society owns two parsonages, both of which were purchased in 1886. The one on Mohawk street, where the pastor resides cost $4, 500 and the one adjoining the church cost $3,200.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized under the jurisdiction of the New York Annual Conference in 1847, with thirty- seven members. Among the pastors have been the following :
Revs. J. Henson, L. S. Lewis, Wm. H. Ross, L. S. Lewis, A. J. Dudley, E. J. T. Sparrow, R. Cliff, E. T. Thompson, Wm. M. Johnson, D. Dorrell, J. S. Leekins, C.
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Boly, J. W. Cooper, W. N. Bowman, E. R. Davis, W. N. Bowman, J. Frisby, A. J. Dud- ley, A. S. Amos.
The society is without a pastor at the present time.
Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church .- This church was organized as the East Methodist Episcopal Church of Oswego on the 25th of May, 1848, and was the result of a mutual division of the First M. E. Society previously mentioned. The original membership embraced 161 persons and the first pastor was Rev. Arza J. Phelps. The first official board was as follows:
Local preachers, Warren Allen, H. Colborn ; class leaders, Russell Watson, Lyman Furguson, J. H. Dow, John B. Edwards, Martin Gilbert, and Chauncey Whitney ; stewards, John B. Edwards, Lyman Furguson, C. B. Thompson, William Curtis, James Lyon, George Hines, and S. C. Abbott. On the 21st day of August, 1848, the follow- ing were elected trustees: John B. Edwards, James Lyon, Thomas McIntosh, C. B. Thompson, Lyman Furguson, William Curtis, sr., M. F. Carpenter, D. Davis, and S. G. Abbott.
The early services were held in the court house. In 1848 a frame church was commenced which was dedicated March 28, 1850, by Rev. Hiram Mattison, D.D. It cost a little more than $5,000, was remodeled in 1870 and stood on the site of the present structure. The pastors of this church were :
Revs. A. J. Phelps, 1848-9; Byron Alden, 1850; Orlando C. Cole, 1851-2; John C. Vandercook, 1853; G. C. Woodruff, 1854; L. D. Ferguson, 1855-6; A. J. Phelps, 1857 ; Otis M. Legate, 1858-9; Hiram Mattison (supply) 1859; J. C. Vandercook, 1860-61; L. D. White, 1862-3; Lewis Meredith, 1864-6; H. M. Danforth, 1867-9; M. S. Wells, 1870-71; Albert L. Smalley, 1872-4; James C. Stewart, 1875-6; M. Gaylord Bullock, 1877-9; M. D. Kinney, 1880-82.
In 1881 during the pastorate of Rev. Mr. Kinney, the brick edifice on East Fourth street near Bridge was erected and dedicated at a cost of about $12,000, which sum was secured by subscription. The first parsonage was purchased during the pastorate of Rev. Mr. Wells, for $3,000 ; this was sold and the present one, which was bought of Rev. Mr. Kinney in 1882, is valued at $5,000. The name of the society was changed on June 10, 1882, to Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church. The trustees at that time were :
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