History of Pickaway County, Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 37

Author: Aaron R. Van Cleaf
Publication date: 1906
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 923

USA > Ohio > Pickaway County > History of Pickaway County, Ohio and Representative Citizens > Part 37

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Rev. R. V. Rogers took charge of the parish, September 12, 1832. On December 26th of that year, Guy W. Doane, William B. Thrall and John L. Green were appointed a committee to petition the Legislature for an act to incorporate the wardens and vestry of St. Philip's Church. About this time lot 101, located on Mound street, near Court, was se- cured from R. Douglas in consideration of

On May 26, 1817, Rev. Philander Chase, who had recently been rector of Christ Church, $350, to be paid in seven annual installments

Digitized by Google

280

HISTORY OF PICKAWAY COUNTY

without interest. A committee of six, com- posed of William B. Thrall, R. H. Hopkins, Robert Larimore, Guy W. Doane, J. W. Fin- ley and William McCulloch, was appointed to raise funds for a church building. At the same time J. G. Doddridge, William B. Thrall and Robert Larimore were appointed a com- mittee "to design a plan for a church, of the relative proportions of the Episcopal Church in Columbus, with a seating capacity of 300; to contract for materials, and have in charge the building of said church." . The building, a commodious brick structure, was completed in 1834

Rev. R. V. Rogers resigned the rectorship March 11, 1838, and returned to his home in England. After his departure,' the following ministers were in charge to October 8, 1865 : Revs. W. F. Haisey, W. W. Aruat, Anson Clarke, Alex. McLeod, Charles B. Street, A. D. Benedict, H. N. Bishop, R. L. Nash, D. Risser, C. W. Fearns and T. W. Mitchell. On October 8, 1865, Rev. E. Owen Simpson took charge of the parish in connection with St. John's, Lancaster. During April, 1867, he re- signed St. John's and took full charge of St. Philip's, remaining in charge until Easter, 1870. During his rectorate, the original church was torn down and the present stone edifice erected in its place at a cost of $15,000. The present church is the only stone church in the city. Rev. E. Owen Simpson, William B. Marfield and Alfred Williams were the mem- bers of the building committee. The corner- stone was laid August 16, 1866, by Rt. Rev. Bishop McIlvaine, and the church was conse- crated April 23, 1868, by Rt. Rev. Bishop Bedell.

Since occupying the present stone church, the following pastors have served the parish (the times of their pastorates are not given because of failure to find any church records) : Revs. Henry C. Camp, J. T. Franklin, C. A. Bragdon, William C. Mills, J. H. Logie, S. M. Munson, Stuart Crocket, Henry Mitchell, Cross, George Sutton, Thomas Lloyd, -Bourne, J. R. Jenkins, C. A. Thomas, Snead, and Thomas W. C. Cheeseman, the present min- ister. Dr. Cheeseman is an Englishman, a na-

tive of Bristol, England, coming to this coun- try about 10 years ago. He is a graduate of Cambridge University and took his divinity degrees at the University of London. Before taking charge of St. Philip's parish, Dr. Cheese- man was located at Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.

There are at present about 200 communi- cants in the church. The vestry consists of Dr. Cheeseman, C. E. Moeller, Howard Moore, A. L. Redman, Harry B. Clemons, Charles Gusman, Robert M. Gearhart and J. Grant Swearingen.

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

The First Presbyterian congregation in Circleville was organized in 1822 with 20 mem- bers and two elders, Jacob Hughes and Benja- min Cox, and on September 13th of that year William Burton was enrolled as pastor. Pre- vious to this time pastors of the Pickaway church of Ross County had held services occa- sionally for Circleville Presbyterians in the Court House. In 1828 the congregation was incorporated by act of the General Assembly of Ohio as the "First Presbyterian Church of Circleville."

Lots 109 and 110 were procured of Andrew Huston and deeded by him to Dr. J. B. Finley and Dr. William N. Luckey, trustees, as the site of the Presbyterian Church, in considera- tion of $100. Here was erected a plain one- story brick edifice, seating 250 worshipers. In the winter of 1830-31 a remarkable revival was held, in which 56 members were added to the church, bringing the number of communi- cants to IIO.

Mr. Burton's pastorate continued until the spring of 1835, when he resigned to accept a charge at Piketon. In May of the following year Rev. Franklin Putnam was called and he remained until March, 1842.

During the pastorate of Mr. Putnam oc- curred the division of the American Presby- terian Church into the Old School and the New School branches. In the vote taken by the Circleville church, 48 favored the New School, while 9 favored the Old School. The latter withdrew and organized the Central

Digitized by Google

281

AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS

Presbyterian Church, which maintained a sepa- rate existence until 1883, when the churches were reunited.

For a time the meetings of the new Central Church were held in the old brick Academy building. Rev. George Wells was called as pastor and during this period the services for several years were held on alternate Sundays in the Lutheran Church. Later a small frame church was erected on the ground now occu- pied by the Odd Fellows' Block on Main street. This, however, did not long serve the purposes of the congregation. James McCoy donated a lot on Main street and on this a large brick edifice, costing $6,000, was erected. The dedi- cation took place in June, 1854. In 1869 the building was enlarged and in 1873 was again extensively improved.

After the death of Rev. George Wells, Mr McKennon became pastor of the Central Church and served a short time. Rev. Milton A. Sackett was next called; he removed shortly afterward and was succeeded by Rev. George L. Kalb, who held the pastorate for 10 years. In the fall of 1864 Rev. William Mac Millan began a pastorate of 13 years. After Mr. Mac- Millan's resignation, Rev. William Carson pre- sided until the union of the two Presbyterian churches was consummated, in 1883. Then the Central Church building was purchased by the Baptist congregation, in whose possession is still remains.

In 1842 Mr. Putnam, the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, resigned his charge because of ill health. On March 11, 1844, a call was extended to Dr. James Rowland, who held his charge until his death, in 1854. Dur- ing the last year of his ministry a large and handsome brick church was begun on the site of the former edifice. Before its completion the death of Mr. Rowland occurred and the first service, held in the basement of the build- ing, was the funeral service of the pastor. His remains were buried under the belfry and a memorial tablet erected in the entrance to the church. During the erection of the building, services were held in the old Seminary, at the corner of Court and Mound streets, now the property of Mrs. William Renick.

Rev. P. M. Bartlett, later president of the University of Tennessee, was pastor from January 29, 1853, until April, 1857. He was followed by Rev. Henry Calhoun, formerly of Coshocton, Ohio. The first year of his pastor- ate was noteworthy in that 30 persons were added to the church at the spring communion. He resigned December 20, 1865.

From June 2, 1867, until April, 1872, Rev. H. R. Hoisington was pastor. In 1870 the Old School and the New School branches of the church were reunited, but the union failed in Circleville owing to the refusal of the Cen- tral Church to accept the resignation of their pastor. In June, 1873, Rev. S. H. McMullen, formerly professor of Greek in Miami Uni- versity and professor of church history in the theological seminary at Danville, Kentucky, was installed as pastor. He held the position until 1883, when the pastors of the two churches resigned in order to open the way to the amalgamation of the two churches.

In congregational meetings, officers for the united church were chosen. On March 21, 1883, these met for the purpose of organization, with Rev. James P. Stratton, D. D., of Crawfords- ville, Indiana, the pastor elect, acting as mod- erator. The members of the session of the united church were Otis Ballard, Adam Mc- Crea, Joseph Wallace, Henry A. Jackson and M. H. Lewis. The first sermon by the new pastor was on Sunday, April 22, 1883. The pastorate continued until January 3, 1897, when Dr. Stratton, his resignation having been as -. cepted, left to accept the charge of a church at Tiffin, Ohio. His retirement from the ministry took place last year.

On April 27, 1897, Rev. F. L. Bullard, then pastor of a Dayton church, received a call from the congregation. He entered upon the duties of his office in the following May and continued as pastor until his resignation was accepted in 1902. During his pastorate, the old church was torn down and a handsome pressed-brick structure erected in its place. The auditorium of the new building seats 600 wor- shipers and contains several fine memorial win- dows. The cost of the church was about $30,- 000. The body of Dr. Rowland was disinterred

Digitized by

Google

282

HISTORY OF PICKAWAY COUNTY

and then buried under the tower of the new church.

In November, 1902, Rev. David S. Tap- pan, D. D., formerly president of Miami Uni- versity, received a call from the congregation. He is the present pastor.

The present officers of the church are: Trustees-Charles E. Groce, Dr. Hartley R. Clarke, Elgar Barrere, J. G. Hayes and Dr. Dudley V. Courtright; session-G. G. Stouch, George F. Grand-Girard, Willis Ludwig, Dr. G. H. Colvill, William T. Bell and Wayne Caldwell; superintendent of Sunday-school, Dr. G. H. Colvill; congregational clerk, Harp Van Riper.

UNITED BRETHREN CHURCH.

Previous to the organization of a regular congregation in Circleville, the United Breth- ren Church for several years maintained a printing establishment from which was issued a church paper called the Religious Telescope. This plant was located on East Main street on property purchased by a board of trustees con- sisting of Rev. John Russell and George and Jonathan Dreisbach, who had been appointed to the office at a general conference held in May, 1833. Rev. W. R. Rhinehart was editor of the publication.

The first regular preaching services began in the spring of 1837, when services were held at the Court House once in two weeks by Rev. William Hanley. The following year services were transferred to the old Academy building and a United Brethren society of roo members was organized.

In 1839 a brick church was erected on the property on East Main street. During the first few years the church had a hard struggle for existence; the salaries of the ministers were only raised with the greatest difficulty and the indebtedness on construction of the church was not raised until 1854, when, 14 years after its construction, it was finally dedicated. In 1852, the congregation being unable to support a pastor, it was attached to the Pickaway Cir- cuit. At an annual conference in 1866 it was resolved that the Circleville church be called a

mission church and that it receive an appro- priation from the conference funds to sustain it. Rev. D. Bonebrake was appointed to take charge of the congregation.

In recent years the church has prospered under the long and successful pastorate of Rev. A. E. Wirght. The old church becoming in- adequate, it was decided to tear it down and rear a modern edifice in its place. The new church, a handsome brick structure, was com- pleted in 1898 at a cost of $12,000. It contains sittings for 800 worshipers. The building committee consisted of Rev. A. E. Wright, Emanuel S. Neuding and George Smith.

Rev. J. Coons was the first pastor in the old church. Since his time the records are not all complete, but as near as they can be fol- lowed, the church since then has served by the following ministers : 1840, W. W. Davis; 1841- 42, P. Brock; 1842-43, L. Davis; 1843-44, E. Vandemark; 1844-45, D. Edwards; 1845, - Kretzenger (serving only until fall) ; 1845-56, R. Hastings; 1846-47, J. M. Spangler; 1847- 48, H. Jones; 1848-49, J. M. Spangler ; 1849- 51, William Fisher; 1851-52, J. Swarence; 1852-53, T. Sloan; 1853-54, W. W. Davis; 1854-55, William Fisher; 1855-56, J. S. Da- vis; 1856-57, E. Vandemark; 1857-62, no record; 1862, William Fisher; 1862-66, no record; 1866-67, church a mission under D. Bonebrake; 1867-71, William Brown; 1871-72, D. Bonebrake; 1872-75, D. A. Johnstone; 1875-76, Peter Wagner; 1876-78, J. Ever- hart; 1878-80, J. M. Mills; 1880-83, A. E. Davis; 1883-86, P. L. Hinton; 1886-89, H. A. Bovey; 1889-90, W. E. Amsbaugh; 1890-93, W. W. Reimer; 1893-1905, A. E. Wright; 1905, A. Orr, the present incumbent.

There are at present over 800 communi- cants. The trustees of the church are: J. J. Brehmer, Emanuel S. Neuding, George Den- man, George Smith, A. English, Frank Gor- don and S. Holdren. Emanuel S. Neuding is the superintendent of the Sabbath-school.

ST. JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC CHURCH.

The first religious services held in Circle- ville according to the forms of the Roman

Digitized by y Google

283

AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS

Catholic communion were in the spring of 1841, at the house of Mrs. Turner. The next were in the fall of the same year, at the house of Andrew Lynch.

The old church was situated on Franklin street directly north of the spot where the Pres- byterian Church now stands. The ground was purchased of Thomas Huston and was partly covered by the ditch and embankment of the old circle. Work on the church began in 1843 but it was not completed until 1846. The parochial residence connected with the old church was built in 1854 at a cost of about $2,000. The whole was sold in 1868 for about $2,500 and the price put into the new church.

The ground for this structure, which is situated on Mound street, was bought of Henry F. Page for about $1,400 and presented to the church by one of its most liberal benefactors, Edward Smith. The building was commenced in the summer of 1866 but it was not entirely completed until 1874, although services were held in it previous to that time. The cost of the building was about $15,000. In 1872 a new parochial residence was built just east of the church.

In or about the year 1886, land was pur- chased adjacent the parochial residence on the east and here was erected a large school and convent building, an account of which will be found elsewhere in this book.

In March, 1850, Rev. H. Tschieder was appointed resident pastor of St. Joseph's. Pre- vious to his pastorate, mass had been celebrated here either by visiting priests or by the in- cumbents of St. Mary's, Chillicothe, among whom were Revs. D. Young, Henry Juncker and Dehope. Father Tschieder remained here until the summer of 1851, when Rev. Michael Ford was appointed. He was succeeded by Rev. J. M. Thisse, who remained until 1856, when J. D. Duffy was appointed pastor. Father Duffy died June 4, 1865. Then followed Revs. Edward Fitzgerald and C. L. Pinder. The next priest, Rev. Sergius I. Stchou- lepnikoff, was a Russian nobleman pre- vious to his conversion and later ordi- nation to the priesthood. He remained in Circleville until June, 1872, when, while on a

visit to Columbus, he mysteriously disappeared and was never heard of again. Rev. A. M. Mazeaud was the next pastor for a short period, being succeeded by Rev. D. B. Cull, who came here in 1872. In 1874 Rev. A. O. Walker succeeded him and was pastor here for eight years. The next pastor, Rev. M. M. Meara, was appointed on April 20, 1882. His pastor- ate, extending over a period of 23 years, has been the longest so far in the history of the congregation. In 1905 Father Meara became pastor of St. Joseph's Cathedral in Columbus. He was succeeded here by Rev. J. S. Hannan, the present incumbent.

The present congregation is made up of 162 families comprising 650 persons. The board of wardens consists of Father Hannan, John Dodds (vice-president), John Kirwin (secretary), Charles E. Stocklen (treasurer), Matt C. Smith and John Cummins.

CALVARY CHURCH OF THE EVANGELICAL ASSOCIATION

Was organized by the Ohio Conference in 1869, under the pastoral charge of Rev. William Whittington, missionary. The church pros- pered and so it was decided to secure a site and build a church. A lot was purchased at the corner of Washington and Mill streets and here, in 1872, the present brick edifice was built. The late D. B. Wagner took a very prominent part in the building of the church, and during his life-time was an earnest worker in the church and a large contributor to the support of the same.

In 1871 Rev. Jesse Lerch succeeded Mr. Whitington as pastor. Since his pastorate the following ministers have served the Circleville charge : A. Vandersall, 1874-77 ; S. S. Condo, 1877-80; D. C. Echerman, 1880-82; G. P. Spreng, 1882-84; W. H. Bucks, 1884-86; J. H. Gamertsfelder, 1886-87; A. N. McCauley, 1887-89; A. C. Stull, 1889-90; J. H. Lamb, 1890-92; Behner, 1892-93; J. W. Miesse, 1893-97; A. Vandersall, 1897-1901; J. S. Mills, 1901-03; Weaver, 1903-04; H. L. Zach- man, the present incumbent, 1904 -.

The present number of communicants is

Digitized by Google

284

HISTORY OF PICKAWAY COUNTY

247. The church officers are as follows : Trustees-B. Bolender, S. W. Manley, H. S. Miller, F. Krinn and A. Lower; superintend- ent of the Sunday-school, A. Lower.

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCHI.

The first regular Baptist congregation was organized in 1838. The organization was recognized by a council called for that pur- pose and in October the first pastor, Rev. Isaac K. Brownsen, who had just graduated from the theological seminary at Hamilton, New York, and who, after his ordination was sent under the auspices of the Home Mission Society to the then Western State of Ohio, came to Cir- cleville and took the oversight of the church. He remained for 15 months, a portion of which time he was joint pastor of the church at Frankfort. Services were held in the Court House, the Atheneum building and the school building. Rev. John A. Peters succeeded Mr. Brownsen as pastor.

In September, 1840, the church joined the Scioto Association. In 1841 the death of the pastor, Mr. Peters, occurred. For a time services were then held by the two neighbor- ing pastors, Rev. W. D. Woodruff, of Frank- fort, and Rev. T. R. Cressey, of Columbus. Then Rev. Henry Billings was called to the pastorate, preaching on two Sundays in each month. He remained one year. In 1844 Ed- ward Lyons was ordained and he served as pastor for six months. He was followed by Rev. W. D. Woodruff, who remained for two years. During the following three years the pastorate was vacant.

In 1850 Eli Todd, L. L. Woodruff, J. H. Welsheimer and A. King were appointed a committee to purchase a site for a church building. A lot was secured on Court street and here was erected a small and comfortable structure. It was dedicated October 19, 1851. Rev. D. A. Randall was then called but he had only served for six months when he was forced to resign because of ill health. He was suc- ceeded by Benjamin Bedell, a recent graduate of Granville, who after preaching a few months was ordained. He served a pastorate of three years and eight months.

In 1855 Rev. H. A. Brown became pastor and served until the September of the follow- ing year, when he withdrew and went to Wil- mington. Soon after his arrival a parsonage was erected on the church property. About the time of his withdrawal, the congregation was greatly weakened by the removal of some of the families and as a result the church stood idle for a period of 16 years, except as it was rented to other denominations who occupied it while they were building churches of their own.

Early in 1872 A. C. Elster was chosen leader of the meetings of the congregation. In November of that year Rev. J. Chambers preached twice each month. He remained for two years and was followed by J. Adams, a graduate of the Chicago Theological Seminary. He began his work in August, 1875, and was ordained the next month. After his resigna- tion in 1878, he was succeeded by Rev. B. Be- dell, a former pastor.

In 1883 the congregation began to con- sider the matter of building a new church. Plans of construction were being discussed when, the First and Central Presbyterian churches having formed a union, an oppor- tunity was offered to secure the church building theretofore used by the Central Presbyterian congregation. The plan of building was dropped and the latter site was purchased. This property remains in the possession of the Bap- tist Church.

Since securing the new location the follow- ing pastors have served the congregation : D. W. Hulbert, 1883-86; I. N. Carman, 1886-89; C. R. Sargent, 1889-91; no regular pastor, 1891-93; T. D. Morse, 1893-94; W. J. Stith, 1894-95; G. A. Woods, 1897; E. C. McClain, 1897-98; James Mullaney, 1898-99; H. W. Cole, 1900 (for a few months). Since that time' there have been no regular pastors and of late no church organization whatever ex- ists, the church standing vacant.

AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

This church was organized in 1834 by Rev. L. Davis, with a membership of 12 persons. The church grew rapidly and plans were laid for the building of a church. Property was

Digitized by Google

285

AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS

secured on South Washington street and here in the year 1879 the corner-stone of a brick structure, 40 by 60 feet in dimensions, was laid.

Since the pastorate of the founder of the church, Rev. L. Davis, the church has been served by the following ministers : Revs. Burd, Adkesson, T. Lawrence, L. Davis, Tilman, Coleman, Peters, Arnold, Gibbons, J. Tibbs, W. Lewis, W. D. Mitchell, W. Davison, R. H. Morris (who was most active in securing the construction of the present church build- ing), Moses Wilson, Bell, George Maxwell, Hammonds, C. E. Newson, J. N. Steward, John Coleman, J. N. Young, S. W. White, C. W. Dorsey, B. L. Simmons, F. B. Taylor, J. A. Viney, W. H. Thomas and W. P. Meyers, the present minister.

The church has now a membership of 80. The church officers are as follows: Trustees- W. A. Holmes, Henry Johnson, Travis Tur- ney, W. L. Garnes and Richard Redman; stewards-Henry Johnson, Travis Turney, J. A. Viney, Mary Dickerson, Eliza Johnson, Irene Turney, Elisha Hazlewood, Henry Red- man and W. M. Stanup.

SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH, AFRICAN.

The Second Baptist Church, the largest and most prosperous of the colored churches in the city, was organized in 1856 by Rev. William Norman, with three communion members- Lucy Winters, Enoch Weaver and Sarah Hol- linsworth. For some time their meetings

were held in the houses of the members but before the first year had ended they had pur- chased a lot for a church, with a dwelling house on it which was used for their religious services until 1869, when the corner-stone of the present structure was laid. The lot is lo- cated on the corner of Canal and Mill streets. It was bought for $600 and was paid for at the end of the fourth year.

The present brick structure, which was built in 1869, cost $4,500, but this debt was also cleared away at the end of the fourth year. The site of the church probably will be changed in the near future, owing to the plans for double-tracking a railroad in the immediate vicinity.

Since the labors of Rev. William Norman in the organization of the church, the church has been served by the following pastors : Revs. Grayson Jones, Elder Day. (from Springfield), Jesse Meeks, Andrew Hunt. William Norman (second term), Andrew Hunt (second term), Wallace Sheldon, Will- iam Nash, J. L. Murray, R. D. Grant, I. N. Meritt, Thomas, Coleman, Samuel Brown. Gilman, J. A. Brooks, J. T. Stewart and G. Jordan, the present pastor.

The present membership of the church is about 100. The church officers are as fol- lows : Trustees-Ed. Cooper, Thornton Green and Frank Lewis; deacons-Jonas Wyatt, J. Thomas, M. Reed, J. Redman and Frank Stev- ens; superintendent of Sunday-school, Mrs. Henrietta Green.

Digitized by Google

CHAPTER XXVII

THE SCHOOLS OF CIRCLEVILLE

PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

The schools of Circleville have passed through those stages of development so char- acteristic of the Central West. At first there were the primitive schools supported by sub- scriptions, then followed private schools more elaborate in character, and finally the well- organized free public schools of to-day.

Beginning with the settlement of the county and the establishment of the county seat at Circleville in 1810, there were a few primitive schools, supported by popular subscription, in which the three "R's"-reading, writing and arithmetic-were taught. The schoolhouses were log houses of a single room. These were made comfortable by seaming the cracks with tempered clay. Light was secured by pasting oiled paper over the latticing in the window holes cut through the unhewn logs. Slabs on rude legs supplied sittings, and other slabs along the walls, supported on pins fixed at a proper slope in the logs beneath the windows, made writing benches.

Few records of these early schools are to be found at present. An early account states that Dilworth's spellers, readers and arith- metic were the first textbooks used. The first reading classes began with the New Testa- ment. Later Lindley Murray's works were introduced, with Webster's speller and the 'Columbian Orator."

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Pickaway County, Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 37

Author: Aaron R. Van Cleaf Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Number of Pages: 923

Author: Aaron R. Van Cleaf
Publication date: 1906
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 923