USA > Ohio > The Church of the Brethren in northeastern Ohio > Part 9
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The site of the cemetery adjoining the church grounds was the gift of John Beeghly. Many of the pioneer members of the congregation were buried there.
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Elias Dickey was elected the first elder-in-charge. Jacob Garver received the oversight of the church upon the death of Elder Dickey on June 2, 1864. John Brillhart, who had come from Crawford County, succeeded Elder Garver upon the latter's resignation. Three of the resident ministers, William Saddler, Alpheus Dickey, and George Worst, were ordained to the eldership at this time.
William Saddler succeeded Elder Brillhart upon the latter's death. After Elder Saddler died, Tobias Hoover, from the Black River church, served for five years as elder-in-charge. Upon Brother Hoover's request to be relieved of his duties be- cause of increasing responsibilities in other churches, W. L. Desenberg was called to the oversight of the church.
The first children's day program was held in 1882.
In January 1885, W. L. Desenberg and his wife took up the pastoral duties. They shepherded the church for thirty- three years until Brother Desenberg's resignation in 1918.
The ladies' aid society was organized in January 1895 at the home of Kate Shidler. Mrs. Desenberg was selected to be the first president of the society. Mrs. Elizabeth Umbaugh, who died in 1932, was the last charter member of the organi- zation.
By 1914 a parsonage had been built and the congregation was supporting its pastor. A Delco lighting system was in- stalled and the church auditorium was remodeled.
On September 1, 1918, Howard H. Helman took up the pastoral work at Maple Grove. Mrs. Helman died in April 1924. In September of that year Brother Helman closed his work with the congregation. D. M. Brubaker then accepted the call to the pastorate, October 24, 1924. He was followed by Glen Weimer in October 1929. D. E. Sower and Mrs. Sower were with us from January 1936 to February 1944. During their term of service a basement was dug under the church (1941) and a furnace was installed. The upper rooms of the church were remodeled in 1942.
Kenneth Hartman was our pastor from February 1944 to May 1947, before going to Bethany Biblical Seminary for further study. The parsonage was remodeled during the latter part of their time here. Calvin Kurtz and his wife ministered to the church from May 1947 to September 1948. The Kurtzes then moved to South Carolina.
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J. Herman and Mrs. Reinke were called to lead the con- gregation, continuing from September 1948 until August 1955. At this time he began work with the Ashland County Welfare Organization, working into his present position as its executive secretary. In September 1955, Ivan J. Fausnight was called to the full-time pastorate, and, with Mrs. Fausnight, guided the congregation until August 1960. George H. Sheets and his wife were called to a part-time pastorate in September 1960;
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The Maple Grove Church
they have continued to lead the Maple Grove church down to the present time.
Ministers residing within the territory of this congre- gation since its organization have been Isaac Rudy, Eli Horner, William Murray, A. M. Dickey, David Snyder, George Worst, Charles Helm, W. A. Miley, C. C. Louder, John Johnson, Ellis Hays, Calvin Kurtz, Delbert Kettering, and Merlyn Kettering (licensed in September 1960).
Deacons elected after the organization were Jacob Beeghly, Joseph Beeghly, Abram Myers, Daniel Martin, Jerry Bowman, William Switzer, Aaron Umbaugh, Zep Shelly, L. C. Hostler,
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John Beeghly, Samuel Beeghly, John Siebert, Curt Hostler, Henry Martin, Will Gerber, Reuben Peffer, Jacob Atterholt, Ray Shinabarker, Pearly Johnson, John W. Johnson, Warring Kettering, John Swinehart, Irvin Shoup, Ralph Hays (trans- ferred from the Ashland Dickey church), Edgar Swinehart, Clarence Keener, Glenn Watring, Samuel Fausnight, Gaylord Fisher, George Kettering, and John Steward.
In 1958 the Maple Grove church was chosen by Brother and Sister Samuel E. Fausnight to be the church around which an experiment in Christian witness and service would be developed. It was an idea of mutual assistance by the aging to their church and an opportunity for the church to have a ministry to the aging. Out of this desire on their part has emerged an organization known as Agapé Acres, Incorporated, located on one hundred and five acres of rolling hills divided by State Route 511 three miles north of Ashland. Even though it is a separate organization it is closely related to the Maple Grove church and is controlled by a governing board elected from her members. The members of the board are George Kettering, chairman, Ivan Fausnight, vice-chairman, Wayne H. Johnson, treasurer, Clayton Keener, secretary, and John Steward, agent, with Lola and Norma Fausnight and Gaylord Fisher serving on the board also.
The centennial anniversary of the Maple Grove church was observed in 1960 with three definite emphases: (1) an old-fashioned worship service held on an April Sunday morning, with several ministers speaking in turn and with the lining of the unaccompanied hymns; (2) an all-day an- niversary Sunday in June, at which time many former mem- bers and friends were present, with Russell V. Bollinger of Manchester College as the guest speaker; (3) the communion service on the first Saturday night in October, recalling the great spiritual uplift that has been experienced through past generations and continued to the present congregation.
Since 1960 a vestibule has been added to the church, in- cluding a stairway to the basement.
At this writing, excavation is in progress for erecting a new sanctuary. This Spirit-guided project is being sponsored by a relative of a charter member of the Maple Grove church, with the tentative completion date as April 1963.
We now have two hundred and eighty members. With
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God's help and guidance, the Maple Grove church will go forward to serve Jesus Christ and our fellowmen with re- newed vigor and zeal, to help gain souls for Christ and His Kingdom.
THE MOHICAN CHURCH
The Mohican church, which takes its name from a beauti- ful stream which flows through the community, was organized about 1830. Twelve Brethren met in the home of John Shoemaker for prayers and hymns. Tradition says that among them were John Shumaker, Doctor Echer, David Garner, and their wives.
Meetings were held in the homes of members every two weeks. The preaching, done by Elders John Shoemaker and John Martin, who moved into the territory from Bedford County, Pennsylvania, was in German. As the demand for preaching in English grew, Elders Jacob Garver and Henry Worst assumed that responsibility.
In 1843 the farm of John Shoemaker was the scene of the Annual Conference. A great number of Brethren gathered upon the farm, coming by horseback, wagon, and coach. They were mostly from the East.
Jacob Garver donated the land on which the Mohican church and burial ground are now located. Sister Mary Garver and her son, Samuel, cleared the land of trees and underbrush to make room for the building. The first Mohican church house was built in 1855.
In 1855, John Shoemaker, while hauling lumber for the new church house, stopped in Lattasburg a few minutes to transact some business. While getting back into his wagon, he became entangled in the lines and singletrees. The horses, startled, ran away, fatally injuring him.
Elder P. J. Brown moved into the congregation in 1862. He practiced dentistry in Congress, Ohio, when not preaching.
The Sunday school was organized, against considerable opposition, in 1869.
Henry Jacobs and Christian Halterman were elected to
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the ministry in 1873 and William Keiffer in 1874. On November 16, 1878, Brethren Keiffer and Halterman were advanced to the second degree. In 1879 Jacob Garver lost his life in an accident, the details of which are not known.
D. J. Miller and Jonas Berkey were elected to the deacon- ship on November 16, 1878.
Early in February 1881, just prior to the division in the
David and Emma Worst
denomination, the membership of the Mohican congregation was one hundred and sixty-two. In 1882 the church suffered heavily when all her ministers as well as some of the deacons withdrew to the Progressive Brethren. In August 1882 the membership stood at seventy-eight. The congregation might easily have broken up completely had D. N. Workman not come to the rescue. Through energetic and persistent efforts on the part of Elder Workman, the church slowly recovered
The Mohican Church
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from the shock and looked again to the future. In 1884 the second Mohican church house was erected to replace the old one, which was being used by the Progressive Brethren.
In 1883, Joseph Kessler and David Worst were elected to the ministry. The latter was ordained to the eldership on October 29, 1910.
The staff of deacons has been augmented as needed during the decades since the division by these additions: William Keiffer, November 16, 1878; Jacob Wohlgamuth and Jerry Bowman, January 21, 1883; J. A. Souder and A. C. Bowman, February 15, 1902; George Wohlgamuth and John Frank, May 24, 1910; John Hochstetler (by transfer of membership), November 24, 1928; George Gartner and Harry Imhoff, October 25, 1930; Ray Beegle and Paul Derr, December 7, 1947; John and Naomi Eberly, Kenneth and Lou Ella Imhoff, and Paul and Faye Beegle, January 5, 1961 (permanently installed on August 6, 1962).
The following organizations were effected as their possible usefulness was recognized: Christian workers society, 1909; home department, 1909; women's work, August 18, 1928; B.Y.P.D., 1935; men's work, 1945.
The first pastor, Chalmer Brendlinger, was in office from April 1 to September 1, 1919. D. E. Sower, who was called to the pastorate on January 1, 1930, remained with the congre- gation until 1944. J. Herman Reinke became our pastor on June 1, 1945, was ordained to the ministry one month later, and was made an elder on January 11, 1948; he terminated his services here on October 1, 1950. Henry A. Krommes has been our pastor since June 1, 1952. Roger Eberly was licensed to the ministry on October 5, 1960.
A parsonage was purchased in Lattasburg for thirty-five hundred dollars in January 1946. In May 1956 the men's fel- lowship bought additional land east of the church for parking facilities. In 1956 a basement was constructed under the church as the first phase of a long-range building program.
The present membership (in 1962) is one hundred fifty- three.
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THE MOUNT PLEASANT CHURCH
Bishop John Gans moved into Nimishillen Township, Stark County, in 1804, settling on a farm about a mile south of the village of Harrisburg, where the Nimishillen church was organized soon afterward.
In 1868 the Nimishillen territory was divided into the West Nimishillen, East Nimishillen, and Springfield congregations.
The first minister and elder of the West Nimishillen church was Henry Browand. Deacons were Thomas Hill, Isaac Mohler, Manasseh Holl, and Cyrus Witmer. Soon after the organization, William Murray moved into the church territory and helped in the ministry for several years.
Michael Schrantz was elected to the ministry and Samuel Sprankel, Humphrey Mohler, and David Shoemaker were elected to the office of deacon. In 1873 Brother Sprankel was called to the ministry. He preached in English; Henry Browand preached in German.
Meetings were held during the early years of the congregation in the homes of Brethren Michael Schrantz, Isaac Mohler, Jacob Witmer, Simon Young, Manasseh Holl, Charles Surbey, E. T. Wise, Cyrus Witmer, Jacob Humbert, Samuel Sprankel, Benjamin Bollinger, Samuel Young, and Amos Reiter. In 1877, Simon Young bought a piece of land three miles northwest of New Berlin (North Canton) for a church and a cemetery and deeded it to the deacons of the church. A building committee, composed of Manasseh Holl, E. T. Wise, Henry Sprankel, Michael Schrantz (clerk), and Jacob Humbert (treasurer), was appointed. Construction was begun in April; in the fall of the same year a house of worship forty feet by eighty feet had been erected.
In 1880, when the Orrville church was disorganized, some of its territory and a half-interest in the Sippo church house were given to the West Nimishillen church. Two deacons, Abraham Kittinger and Samuel Martin, lived in the new territory. The interest in the Sippo church was sold to the Wooster church in 1938.
For a number of years, meetings were held every two weeks at the West Nimishillen house, at Sippo every four weeks, at the Sandeville schoolhouse and at the Bollinger house every eight weeks, and every two weeks in the evening
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at the Comet schoolhouse. The Comet church was disbanded and the building was sold in 1927.
The organization of a Sunday school was attended by considerable difficulty. For several years, Sunday-school proposals came up in council meetings and each time received a majority of the votes present. But each time it was thought best to postpone the organization in the hope that the minority might become reconciled to what they considered an unseemly innovation. The advocates for the school were triumphant when Brother Sprankel announced its first meeting for 2:30 P.M., June 28, 1885. About seventy-five interested members met before the church, but found the church doors locked. Benches were taken from nearby storage sheds and set up in front of the church. The work was organized and the first lesson was studied. Two weeks later, at the time of the next meeting, the church doors were found open.
Sunday-school superintendents since 1885 have been E. S. Young, H. S. Young, S. J. Holl, Aaron Beltz, Theodore Myers, Frank Surbey, Walter Reichenbaugh, John Hines, Beulah Holl, Grover Caston, Miriam Workman, Ian Lorah, Eugene Akins, Harvey Rueschman, Ned Rininger, and Marjorie Petry.
In 1886 Isaac Holl and John Eby were elected deacons and soon afterward Alonzo Holl and Abraham Horst were installed into the same office.
The West Nimishillen church elected Isaac Holl as its first clerk and Daniel Reiter as the first treasurer. The first trustees were Simon Young, Manasseh Holl, and Henry S. Young.
In 1901 S. J. Holl and Cyrus Young were chosen as deacons. Soon afterward, Joseph Snyder, Edward Hane, Aaron Beltz, Theodore Myers, Charles Surbey, Frank Surbey, Samuel Yarger, and John Hines were called to the deaconship. Other deacons elected have been Grover Caston and Walter Reichenbaugh, 1927; Howard Hartong, 1936; Israel Royer, 1944; George Snyder and Chester Petry, Jr., 1946; Richard Myers, Elmer Mullett, and Eldon Penrod, 1952.
Following the deaths of H. S. Young in 1915 and Samuel Sprankel in 1918, the preaching was done by R. R. Schroyer and S. J. Holl until 1926. In that year Brother Schroyer and Deacons Aaron Beltz, Theodore Myers, Charles Surbey, Frank Surbey, and Samuel Yarger, along with some of the lay members, allied themselves with the Dunkard Brethren.
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Brother Holl continued his ministry to the church until 1933, when W. D. Keller was called to serve as part-time pastor of both West and East Nimishillen. For several months services would be held in one church from 9:30 to 10:30 A.M. and in the other from 10:30 to 11:30. In 1935 Brother Keller purchased a home near West Nimishillen and thereafter preached only at that church. He terminated his work at West Nimishillen in October 1940.
Several district meetings were held in the church, the last one in August 1927. A Sunday-school convention was held there from June 30 to July 1, 1930.
Many changes have been made to the church since it was built. In 1902 a new slate roof was put on and a partition was installed to separate the audience room from the communion room. In case of an overflow attendance, the communion room could be opened by raising a sliding door. A double door was cut into the north end of the sanctuary and a small movable platform was placed in the south end. In 1909 the seats in the sanctuary were rebuilt. A basement was dug under the south end of the church in 1922 and 1923 to permit the installation of a furnace. Sunday-school rooms were added to the structure in 1924 by building a second story over the communion room. Two years later the walls and the ceiling of the audience room were redecorated. The old oil lamps were replaced by electric lights in 1927.
The buggy sheds, a common feature of churches of this day, burned in 1932. A piano, the first musical instrument used in the church, was given to the congregation. In 1934 a new service building and outside toilets were erected and new walks were laid connecting these buildings with the church house. The sanctuary was covered with wallboard and new window blinds were donated to the church by the ladies' aid society in 1937.
Because of feelings of ill-will and former division in the church, the spiritual life at West Nimishillen was at low ebb in 1940. Several members withdrew. The church was in debt to the former pastor and was unable to find a successor.
In the fall of 1940 Edwin Petry, a layman, filled the pulpit at the request of the ministerial board. He was licensed to the ministry January 30, 1941, advanced January 31, 1942, and ordained to the eldership September 26, 1945.
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An electric organ was presented to the church by the young people's class in 1941. New life filled the congregation. The old debts were paid off and funds were amassed for the remodeling of the church house. The work was to be done in three stages of five years each. The first step was remodeling and redecorating the sanctuary. A new platform, raised eighteen inches from the floor, was built at one end of the sanctuary. Behind the platform three large arches were
The Mount Pleasant Church
constructed. Red carpeting, purchased by the adult class, covers the floor of the platform. Two chancel chairs were presented by the Homebuilders class. The pulpit and the lectern were made and donated by Lewis Myers. The construction of the pulpit was paid for by Nettie Mohler. On Easter Sunday, April 21, 1946, the dedication was held.
At the same time the sanctuary was repainted, indirect lights were installed, an exterior lighted church bulletin was erected, and a new heating system was installed.
The baptistry was completed in 1946 and 1947. S. J. Holl died on February 12, 1947, leaving five hundred dollars to the building fund. Wallboard was installed in all the church-school rooms in 1950 and 1951.
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The second stage of remodeling was to have been the raising of the church and the construction of a full basement under it. The third stage was to be the construction of an entrance tower and the laying of new floors. It was voted in the spring of 1952 to combine the two projects and complete the work by the fall of 1953. The services of Church Building Counselor C. H. Deardorff were sought and plans were drawn up. Construction began on May 1, 1953. A completely new tile-walled basement containing a kitchen and lavatories was put under the entire building; an entrance tower, eighteen by eighteen feet, was built on the northeast corner of the church.
Edwin Petry was our full-time pastor from February 1950 until January 1960. Under his able leadership the church experienced an unequalled period of growth. Terminating his approximately twenty years with our congregation, he went to school to take psychiatric training for the mental hospital chaplaincy. Recently he accepted the position of assistant chaplain at the Massillon State Hospital.
In 1959 the entire sanctuary was carpeted. An electric organ, the gift of Mr. and Mrs. William Shaub, was dedicated in December of that year.
On September 1, 1960, Elmer I. Brumbaugh was called to be our pastor on a part-time basis. His capable leadership is enabling the congregation to move forward. There have been new families coming into the church to replace some who have moved from our territory.
The congregation, in regular council meeting on September 7, 1962, voted to change its name to the Mount Pleasant Church of the Brethren.
THE NEW PHILADELPHIA CHURCH
For many years New Philadelphia was under the care of the Mount Zion congregation. Founded about 1874, the Mount Zion congregation was made up of fifty members who met for services every two weeks. Ministers preaching to this congregation were Conrad Kahler, J. K. Swinehart, George V. Kollar, Peter Kollar, and Edward Loomis.
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During these years a small number of Brethren lived in the town of New Philadelphia, an occasional worship service being led for them by Edward Loomis or George Kollar. In 1913, Adam H. Miller was asked to hold a two-week series of evangelistic meetings. One young man was baptized into the church this year. Meetings were held by Brother Miller for four consecutive years; through them more than thirty mem- bers were added to the original group of seven.
In 1917 an appeal was made to the home mission board for recognition as a mission point. In due course recognition was given. In the interim until recognition became operative, Brethren M. M. Taylor and A. H. Miller, joint pastors of the Center church at Louisville, made alternate weekend visits to the little group. H. M. Brubaker became the first full-time pastor.
Elders living in the congregation at the time of organi- zation were Edward Loomis and George Kollar. David Sechrist was the only deacon.
Brother Brubaker, after a pastorate of approximately two years, was followed by Aaron F. Shriver. Upon Brother Shriver's decease, Oliver Royer was called; he shepherded the flock for about six years. William Buckley came to this charge
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The New Philadelphia Church
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on September 1, 1927. Four years later, in 1931, Walter E. Young became our pastor.
The church fell upon difficult times during the pastorates of Brethren Buckley and Young. Following Brother Young's leaving, Edward Shepfer served the church on a freewill basis. Then Adam H. Miller came to us on January 1, 1938; he con- tinued his services here until 1951. Willis B. Stehman had the pastoral care of the congregation from January 1, 1952, until September 1, 1959, when Alvin L. Kintner, our present pastor, came.
The New Philadelphia church house was built in 1919- 1920. In 1953, three rooms were added to the parsonage and some remodeling was done. It was rededicated on October 11, with Elmer Brumbaugh preaching the dedicatory sermon. A two-car garage was built in 1959.
The deacons have played a significant part in the work of our congregation. These men have held that office: O. D. Ritt; James Piersol; B. F. Wise, and E. E. Stuckey, 1931; Edward Snyder, 1939; A. T. Kinsley, coming here by member- ship transfer in 1939; Enos D. Nolt, 1939; Jesse Gibbs and Otis Henderson, 1941; T. E. Bailey, 1946; John Stevenson, 1948; James Haney, 1954; Kenneth Harrison; Raymond Snyder; Charles Kratz.
THE OLIVET CHURCH
The early history of the Olivet church is the history of the Jonathan Creek church. Kenneth Hollinger, a recent Olivet pastor, relates this story so thoroughly in The History of the Olivet Church of the Brethren, published in 1953, that we shall tell it in part from his account.
The Brethren came into this southern part of the state as early as 1800. They settled along the river valleys near the Old National Trail, which is today known as U. S. Route 40. We wish they had left more records.
The records which are available show that the Mericle church, near Bremen, was organized in 1809 with about twenty-five charter members. Elijah Schofield and Jacob Staley
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were credited with preaching there when the church was organized. Brother Schofield is also credited with being one of the elders present when the Jonathan Creek congregation was organized in 1817. In all probability there were nearly twenty-five members in this congregation at the time of organization. Another elder who undoubtedly helped with the organization was Dan Snider, who had been conducting serv- ices for the community since about 1806.
It seems very likely that soon after the organization of the Jonathan Creek church in 1817 a house of worship was built at the north edge of the village of Mount Perry. Perhaps it was used for ten years or more. It may have been because of local problems with the surrounding denominations, or the dis- couragements rendered by Annual Meeting on using houses of worship, that the congregation sold the property to the Methodists in 1833.
During the period of worship in the homes, following 1833, more members began to settle in Thorn and Hopewell townships, and others south of Zanesville. During these years of the thirties and the forties, they seemed to gather more of a mission spirit. Something seemed to challenge our people, for all over the Brotherhood meetinghouses were being built soon after the fifties. The first meetinghouse in this com- munity was built on the John Mericle farm near Bremen. In
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