USA > Ohio > A history of the Disciples of Christ in Ohio > Part 15
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Knox County .- Bell, Bladensburg, Center- burg, Danville, Dennis, Howard, Grove, Martins- burg, Messiah, Millwood, Milwood (First), Mt. Vernon, Palmyra, Waterford, Brink Haven.
Lake County .- Mentor, Mentor Plains, Paines- ville, Perry, Willoughby.
Lawrence County .- Athalia, Bend Fork, Iron- ton, Jep, Chesapeake.
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Licking County .- Croton, Eden, Fallsburg, Hebron; Newark, North Side, West Side; Perry- ton, Rocky Fork, Utica, York Street.
Logan County .- Belle Center, Bellefontaine, Big Springs, East Liberty, Middleburg, Rush- sylvania, Rush Creek, West Mansfield.
Lorain County .- Elyria, Fields, Kipton, La Porte, Lorain, North Eaton, Wellington.
Lucas County .- Toledo: Central, Norwood, East, South; White House.
Mahoning County .- Austintown, Canfield, Greenford, North Jackson, Lowellville, Sebring; Youngstown : Central, First, Hillman Street.
Marion County .- Kirkpatrick, Martel, Marion (First), Marion, Caledonia.
Medina County .- Brunswick, East Granger, Hinckley, Medina, Wadsworth, Remsen Corners.
Meigs County .- Adams Mills, Bear Wallow, Bedford (First), Bedford (Second), Bradford, Danville, Dexter, Midway, Long Bottom, Middle- port, Orange, Reedsville, Rockville, Tuppers Plains, Zion, Rutland.
Miami County .- Fidelity, Piqua.
Mercer County .- Ft. Recovery, Montezuma.
Morgan County .- Antioch, Bishopville, Dea- vertown, East Branch, Fairview, Malta, McCon- nelsville, Meigs, Mountville, Pennsville, Stock- port, Triadelphia, Tabor, Wolf Creek.
Monroe County .- Antioch, Beallsville, Calais, Cameron, Clarington, Fair Pleasant, Garysville, Goudy, Jackson Ridge, Malaga, Rich Fork, Salem, Stafford, Woodsfield.
Montgomery County .- Dayton : Central, West Side, Santa Clara, East.
Morrow County .- Pleasant Grove, Perry.
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Muskingum County .- Frazeysburg, Roseville, Zanesville.
Noble County .- Caldwell, High Hill, Mt. Ephraim, Olive Green, Palestine, Point Pleasant, Salt Run, Summerfield.
Ottawa County .- Elmore, Genoa, Oak Har- bor.
Paulding County .- Broughton, Grover Hill, Melrose, Payne, Paulding.
Perry County .- Corning, Crooksville, Hem- lock, Mt. Perry, New Lexington, New Straits- ville, Shawnee.
Pickaway County .- Derby, New Holland.
Pike County .- Victor.
Portage County .- Aurora, Deerfield, Diamond, Edinburg, Garrettsville, Hiram, Kent, Mantua Station, Mantua Center, Randolph, Ravenna, Shalersville, Souls Corners.
Preble County .- Campbellstown, Eaton, New Paris.
Putnam County .- Forest Grove, Leipsic, Pan- dora, Pleasant Grove, West Belmore.
Richland County .- Adario, Bellville, Bethany Chapel, Cæsarea, Lexington, Lucas, Mansfield, Shenandoah, Shelby.
Ross County .- Chillicothe, Sugar Run.
Sandusky County .- Clyde, Gibsonburg, San- dusky.
Scioto County .- New Boston, Portsmouth (First), Portsmouth (Grandview), Sciotoville.
Seneca County .- Fostoria, Tiffin.
Shelby County .- Jackson Center, Port Jeffer- son, Sidney.
Stark County .- Alliance, Canton, Indian Run, Marlboro, Massillon, Minerva, New Baltimore, New Berlin, Sparta, Union Hill.
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Summit County .- Akron: High, East Market, North Hill, South, Wabash Avenue; Barberton, Clinton, Cuyahoga Falls, Everett, Inland, Man- chester, Mogadore, Steeles Corners, Ghent, Stow, West Richfield.
Trumbull County .- Braceville, Brookfield, Champion, Cortland, East Farmington, Fowler, Girard, Greensburg, Hartford, Howland, Hub- bard, Hubbard (North), Lordstown, Mecca, Min- eral Ridge, Newton Falls, Niles, North Bloom- field, North Bristol, Southington, West Bazetta, Warren (Central), Warren (Second).
Tuscarawas County .- Dundee, New Philadel- phia, Uhrichsville, Dennison.
Union County .- Mill Creek, Richwood, Union. Van Wert County .- Van Wert.
Vinton County .- Allenville, Air Line, Bethel, Eagle Chapel, McArthur, Radcliff, Union.
Warren County .- Lebanon, Waynesville.
Washington County .- Beverly, Coal Run, Dal- zell, Fairfield, Lowell, Marietta, Mile Run, Reno, Fullerton (Union Chapel), Warner, West Mari- etta, Winget Run.
Wayne County .- Blachleyville, Fredericks- burg, Orrville, Shreve, Wooster.
Williams County .- Bryan, Edgerton, Edon, Lick Creek, Montpelier, West Unity.
Wood County .- Bowling Green, Cygnet, Cus- tar, Eagleville, Jerry City, Milton Center, Mun- gen, North Baltimore, Prairie Depot, Rudolph, Weston, North Weston, West Belmore.
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Hugh Wayt
E. A. Wray
F. L. Bustor
George F. Crites
T. Alfred Fleming
C. A. Freer
O. G. Hertzog
S. E. Brewster
Homer T. Messick
OHIO RESTORATION WORKERS
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XXXI SUNDAY SCHOOLS IN OHIO
THE Sunday school is only modern in form. The principle is recognized in the Old Testa- ment. The record in Deuteronomy (chap. 6) says : "These words which I command thee this day shall be in thine heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." During the first centuries of the church, catechetical schools were instituted for the young. Luther and Knox and Wesley, and all the reformers, called atten- tion to educating the children.
Ludwig Hecker, in Pennsylvania, fifty years before the time of Robert Raikes, started some Sunday schools. The modern school, however, grew out of the efforts of Raikes to teach the young how to read, that they might become ac- quainted with the Scriptures. At first they had paid teachers for instructing poor children; then volunteer teachers; then other than poor children joined in the work; then older persons became interested, and now the school is the church at work systematically studying and teaching the Scriptures.
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Jesus says, "Teach all nations," and, as chil- dren are a part of the nations, it is the best time to teach them when they are young and in the formative period. "As the twig is bent, the tree is inclined." History shows that the major- ity of people come to Christ in their young years. The disciples of Christ in Ohio name New Lis- bon, Columbiana County, as the second church listed in their world-wide movement for the restoration of the New Testament Christianity. That church was enrolled in 1827 by Walter Scott. Soon the churches began to multiply. At first they did not take kindly to Sunday schools. At that time the schools were used by the sects in teaching their peculiar tenets, and the dis- ciples were prejudiced against them. The new churches had to maintain their own existence, and their Lord's Day meetings partly took on the form of Scripture teaching, and special schools for the young had to come in later in their history. In that early period, old and young disciples each carried a copy of the Scriptures and studied the word of God.
The pioneer Lathrop Cooley is authority for the statement that the school now known as the Bible school of the Franklin Circle Church of Christ of Cleveland was the first school among the disciples in Ohio. It was started soon after 1844. Some of the leaders of the Restoration movement called a convention to meet at Brace- ville, Trumbull County, in 1846, to consider the ad- visability of starting schools in all the churches. The convention was well attended and decided to encourage the churches to start schools. As there was much criticism on the literature circulated in the denominational schools of that day, the
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convention recommended the preparation of suit- able library books for the proposed Sunday schools. D. S. Burnet was selected to write and edit books for an appropriate library. In har- mony with this arrangement, in 1856 a library of fifty volumes was published, and known as the Burnet Library. The preface of the first volume of the library has this statement: "This book is the first of a series we design preparing for a Sunday-school library. We have looked over the various libraries extant with much care and in- terest, and the result of our research is a solemn conviction that out of the multitude of books that have been prepared for Sunday schools, there is perhaps not one that a Christian parent can put into the hands of a child with approbation." The Burnet Library was adopted and used by many of the schools that maintained libraries in that early day. The books are a great im- provement over the goody-goody books on the life and death of some boy or girl of saintly at- tainments, that circulated in sectarian schools. The Burnet books treat of Bible characters and the child-life of Jesus, the boyhood of King David, Americans in Jerusalem (or the Barclay Mission), plants and trees of Scripture, the goodness of God, searching the Scriptures, and subjects that ennoble character, all adapted to interest the young in history, science and Scrip- ture subjects.
The churches, however, did not all proceed to start Sunday schools, or, as we now call them, "Bible schools." The young people sometimes started and maintained schools. Often this was done independent of the older members and officers of the church. For years the schools
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went on without any special relation to the churches. The churches made no provision for them in officers or teachers, or special places for meetings, or equipments. Gradually the schools worked their way into the graces of the churches, and they not only tolerated them, but gave them encouragement. They allowed the houses to be divided by curtains to aid in school management. Then they began to build, taking the interests of the school into consideration, till finally some of the meeting-houses have four, ten, or even twenty, rooms for classes and departments of the school.
In 1852 the Ohio Christian Missionary Soci- ety was formed. It was made up of volunteer disciples of Christ. Their purpose was to co- operate with one another to enlarge the kingdom of heaven. They did not propose to lord it over the churches, but to lead them into larger co- operative missionary work in the State.
In 1862, the churches having been somewhat united in mission work, in planting new churches and strengthening the weak ones, in the annual convention at Wooster attention was called to Sunday schools as a means of propagating the gospel. The Committee on Order of Business reported the following resolution:
"Resolved, That the church having a well- regulated and efficient Sunday school is furnished with the means of perpetuating the gospel."
The record of the convention says: "Perti- nent and impressive remarks were made by Hurl- but, Burnet, Begg, Errett, Henry, Wm. Hayden, Brown, Way, France and others." The record then declares that "the discussion of this highly important subject can not be recorded, as would
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be well, for a wider benefit. Nothing could be more instructive and edifying or more in season, in prompting and guiding the energies of all the members of the church of Christ in their mis- sionary character. In the midst of this profitable investigation Bro. Burnet moved that the subject of this resolution be referred to a select com- mittee of three brethren, with instruction to re- port as early as possible in this meeting. The Chair appointed D. S. Burnet, J. M. Henry and A. S. Hayden."
The next day D. S. Burnet presented the fol- lowing report, which was adopted :
"Your committee to whom you have been pleased to commit the resolution of the Commit- tee on Order of Business on the subject of Sunday schools beg to report as a substitute the following resolution :
"Resolved, That the marked success awarded to our Sunday schools encourages us to foster this agency for recruiting the churches of Christ with intelligent and disciplined young Christians, and that we earnestly commend the establishment of such schools in every available neighborhood as a valuable means of benefiting both the church and the world."
In 1863 there were about twenty-five thousand members in the church of Christ in Ohio. No statistics are given as to Sunday schools. At that time the Bedford Church was one of the largest and strongest churches in the State. The Sunday school of that church was the first to make systematic offerings for missionary work. R. R. Sloan, secretary of the Ohio Chris- tion Missionary Society, in reporting the Bed- ford school, says: "Blank notes are furnished,
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which the pupils fill in and sign at option, oblig- ing them to pay small sums monthly for mis- sionary uses. This is well. It inculcates a mis- sionary spirit. It inures to system, and trains the child to give ere habits of penury have steeled his soul."
The Bedford school offering that year was $7.50. The school at Collamer gave $3.00, and the school at Eighth and Walnut, Cincinnati, gave $10.00 to make Elder R. Graham a life member of the O. C. M. S. The Cincinnati school at that time was the largest in the State. The next year fourteen schools made offerings for Ohio missions.
In 1865 the Ohio Christian Missionary Soci- ety authorized the employing of a Sunday-school evangelist. The Board of Managers made per- sistent effort to employ one, without success. The managers in the convention of 1866 mention the difficulties in the appointment of such an agent. "His labors would be first and chiefly devoted to the organization of new schools. They could not compensate his labors. The very work, if successful, would, in an outlay for library and necessary expenses, impose upon them all the burden they could bear. This would be true of schools already organized." R. M. Bishop, the president of the society offered to make up every deficiency in the evangelist's salary. It was evi- dent that the entire burden would fall upon him, and the managers were not willing thus to tax his generosity. The society authorized President Bishop to furnish or procure a tract upon the proper organization and management of the Sun- day school, for general distribution among the churches of Ohio. The corresponding secretary
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of the O. C. M. S. was authorized to collect the statistics of the schools and also to raise means to employ a Sunday-school evangelist. That year only sixty schools reported, and they had only 3,150 pupils in regular attendance. These schools were usually suspended during the winter. After that period the schools gradually became "ever- green" or all-the-year schools.
Before tracing the history of the Ohio schools further it may be well to state something of the character of the early schools. The buildings- consisting of one room-were poorly fitted for grading the schools. The pupils, if classified at all, were arranged by age or mutual friendships rather than by attainments. Some teachers of natural ability kept their classes well filled. Many teachers were irregular in attendance, and this led to irregular attendance of scholars. The singing was by rote, following a leader. Instru- mental music was gradually introduced to aid the singing, and in this way instruments were ultimately used in the church worship. Uniform lessons were not used, but scholars recited or read the Scriptures. Sometimes a bright pupil would take nearly all the time in reciting 150 verses, and the other scholars were neglected. No teachers' meetings were held, and no general reviews, and no maps or blackboard or other helps were used.
Sometimes talking men happened along and would be asked to say something, and a case is mentioned where such a talker came before the school and said: "Children, what shall I say to you?" Of course the children knew that such a man had nothing of importance to offer, and a little girl raised her hand and said. "Thay
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amen and thit down." On another occasion the superintendent asked the school what the talker said last Sunday. A girl rose and, folding her hands right and left, declared: "He talked and he talked, but didn't say much of anything." In another instance a burly, big-voiced man gruffly asked the little ones, "Who made the world?" No response came; again in a louder and harsher manner he emphasized the question, "I say, chil- dren, who made the world?" A little boy, fear- fully frightened, said: "I did, but I will never do it again."
The day of crude methods has passed away. Soon there came a crisis and new era to the Bible school in Ohio. Another chapter will set forth the progressive nature of the new era.
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XXXII
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL CRISIS
A CRISIS in the Sunday school in Ohio came in 1868. Schools had been multiplying. Prejudice against evangelizing the young had subsided. R. M. Bishop, D. S. Burnet, A. S. Hayden and others had championed the plea in behalf of instructing the young. At Mt. Vernon was the first anniversary of the Ohio Christian Sunday School Association. The second article of the constitution read as follows :
"The object of this Association shall be to enlist the entire Christian brotherhood of the State in earnest effort to promote the cause of Sunday schools; and for this purpose, to secure, as far as possible, the formation of auxiliary associations throughout the State, to co-operate with the Association in this great work." Of- ficers and a board of managers were chosen. L. L. Carpenter was elected president, and H. Ger- ould, secretary. R. Moffett, Isaac Errett, F. E. Udall, R. M. Bishop, J. F. Wright and others took part in this Association, as managers. The Association organized auxiliary societies in the auxiliary districts of the Ohio Christian Mission- ary Society. The missionary districts had been organized under the laborious work of Secretary R. R. Sloan; effort had been made to attach the Sunday-school work to the operation of the Mis-
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sionary Society. In 1869 Robert Moffett was elected corresponding secretary of the O. C. M. S. The missionary districts had been formed, and as the Sunday School Association adapted their work to these divisions of the State, in time it was considered wise and practicable to merge the two associations into one large move- ment.
So in 1874, after six years of successful super- vision of the school work, it was merged into the Ohio Christian Missionary Society. During these six years much progress was made in the number and efficiency of the schools. F. M. Green had increased. Conventions were held to magnify prepared a book on school management. Teach- ers' meetings were multiplied. School supplies and improve the schools. After this union of the two societies a missionary convention was held annually, and a semi-annual convention in each district was devoted to the interests of the Sun- day school.
During the six years of the Sunday School Association the schools began to co-operate with the general Sunday School Association in Ohio, which co-operated with a national association. The last report of the Sunday-school Board of Managers says :
"We have learned that we ought to take hold of hands in this great business of God. We have learned that the Sunday school is for all, and not simply for little children. We have learned that the true Sunday-school idea con- flicts with no good thing; that it does not lessen in the slightest degree parental responsibility, and, as far as the church is concerned, it is not, neither can it be, across the path of its true
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progress. If we do find, at times, the school and the church exhibiting the characteristics of rivals, may we not find the explanation in this sentence: 'The church neglected to do its duty and has forced individual men and women to a life of inactivity or else to an independent action'? Where the church does its whole duty in the premises, there never can be a conflict between them, for the whole church will be in the Bible school and therefore will not contest its own work."
It also stated that "the field is the widest, whitest, noblest and most remunerative field ever opened, in the providence of God, for sanctified Christian effort. When this is realized, the slowness of the snail will give way to the swift- ness of the eagle, and the weakness of the worm to the lion's strength."
At that time (1872) there were in our 215 Ohio Sunday schools reporting 17,680 pupils; in the libraries, 10,601 volumes, and the annual cost of the schools was $7,296. They gave for mis- sionary purposes $243. There were estimated to be 125 schools that made no report. In 1882 the schools gave $600 for Foreign Missions. In- creased attention was given to the Sunday-school work in the District and State Conventions.
In 1879 an interstate Sunday-school conven- tion with Indiana was held at Lima, O. L. L. Carpenter, having moved to Indiana, was presi- dent pro tem. for Indiana. Before this time (in 1877) a similar convention had been held in Union City, Ind.
In 1884, Ohio Sunday schools contributed to the Foreign Society $6,014. At that time there were 28,924 pupils and teachers in the schools.
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During the next ten years, up to 1894, under the direction of Alanson Wilcox, as corresponding secretary of the Ohio Christian Missionary Soci- ety, the schools increased to 49,652 scholars and 6,043 teachers and officers, or a total of 55,695, an increase of ninety-two per cent. in ten years.
In 1872 the International Uniform Sunday- school Lessons were introduced. This was a great advance on the haphazard lesson then used in the schools. They were gradually introduced into our Ohio schools. On the general committee to arrange the International course of study was Isaac Errett, till his death. And then B. B. Tyler served for many years. The course was so ar- ranged that in seven years a mountain-top series of lessons would go through the Bible. The schools have gone through seven of these series of lessons. The Standard Publishing Company prepared lesson helps in leaflets, quarterlies and annuals unexcelled by any publishing-house. This company also published a variety of papers adapted to old and young, and this class of liter- ature has superseded the old system of libraries. This company took advanced positions on teacher-training and graded schools. It prepared and sent out literature and specially qualified lec- turers on Sunday-school work. This company called and helped school Herbert Moninger for the greatest work any one man has done for Teacher Training and Bible Study. He went away at the zenith of his usefulness, in 1911, at the age of thirty-five years.
Under wise management, and the publicity given the schools, they increased in numbers and efficiency. Up to 1911 the schools increased to nearly six hundred and a number of schools have
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over five hundred in attendance each Lord's Day. The Canton school enrolls three thousand, and is unexcelled in this country. In Canton, by the co-operation of The Standard Publishing Com- pany, a School of Methods has been introduced which bids fair to be far-reaching in usefulness. The Nelsonville school has received a compli- mentary letter from the President of the United States and has been visited by the Governor of Ohio. So the Ohio schools are leading in repu- tation and influence.
The schools give annually thousands of dol- lars to the Foreign Christian Missionary Society, to Home Missions and benevolences. Many of the schools are graded and maintain Cradle Roll and Home Class Departments. It is well for the present and future generations to know about the aims of the schools in 1911.
FRONT RANK STANDARD FOR 1911
1. Graded. Six departments, with a superin- tendent of each: Cradle Roll, Primary, Junior, Intermediate, Adult, Home. A superintendent or secretary of classification. An annual promotion day. Supplemental or graded lessons in the Primary, Junior and Intermediate departments.
2. Teacher Training. A class studying either the first or advanced course.
3. Organized Classes. The International Cer- tificate of Recognition for all classes whose mem- bers are over sixteen years of age.
4. Bibles. At least fifty per cent. of the en- rollment owning Bibles or New Testaments. At least fifty per cent. of the average attendance using the Bible or New Testament in the school.
5. Workers' Conference. A regular workers'
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conference of the officers and teachers, meeting either weekly or monthly.
6. Missions. A Missionary Committee, or secretary of missions, promoting missionary edu- cation and the use of missionary prayer topics. Offering from the school to our State Bible-school work, the American Christian Missionary Soci- ety, Foreign Missions and benevolences.
This program is a scientific and marvelous advance on the crude schools of olden times. Many of the schools are not up to these high ideals in their organization and management and attainments. If one shoots at the sun, his arrow will go higher than when he only aims at a sun- flower. The schools are marching on to greater efficiency. Under the management in late years of S. H. Bartlett, H. Newton Miller and I. J. Cahill as secretaries of the O. C. M. S .; the evan- gelist, L. I. Mercer, and L. L. Faris, M. C. Settle and Wilford H. McLain as State superintendents, impetus has been given to the school work, and when the teachers and older students are fully instructed as to the importance of Lord's Day worship and forsake not to assemble with the saints and fail not to remember the Lord's death on the first day of the week, then indeed will the school and church truly rejoice together. Leaders in the church and school can bring round such glorious results.
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