History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc, Part 124

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Publication date:
Publisher: W. Taylor
Number of Pages: 1280

USA > Pennsylvania > Adams County > History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc > Part 124
USA > Pennsylvania > Cumberland County > History of Cumberland and Adams counties, Pennsylvania. Containing history of the counties, their townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc.; portraits of early settlers and prominent men; biographies; history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc > Part 124

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Plainview .- 1877, R. W. MeIlhenny.

Red Land .- September 1, 1867, William A. McSherry; 1881, J. A. Grimes: 1883. J. J. Parr.

Round Hill .-- 1855, Adam S. Meyers: 1859, Ira R. Shipley; 1865, Sarah E. Taylor; 1867, Adam S. Meyers.

Seren Stars .- 1860, Alexander Miller; 1861, A. Heintzelman; 1867, Israel Little; 1883, E. J. Little.

Tabte Rock .- 1855, Samuel Faber, Jr .; he got a salary of $7.94; total in- come of the office was $5.41. Catherine Thomas succeeded; 1861, C. A. Lower; 1875, H. L. Harris; 1883, Y. Z. Lower.

Two Tarerns .- 1857, Jacob Little; 1867, Baltzer Snyder; 1879, A. J. Col- lins; 1883, J. Sherman.

Geo. Hinnes

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

Trust. - George Cole appointed to first postoffice in Buchanan Valley, estab- lished June 19, 1886.

Unity .- ISS3, M. Robert.

Wenks .- 1873, Miss Sue Cart; 1877, R. S. Little; 1879, W. S. Cart.

York Sulphur Springs .- 1825, Herman Weirman; 1845, Anna Godfrey; 1849, Isaac D. Worley; 1851, Isaac W. Pearson; 1853, William Reed; 1855, Jonas Johns; 1563, B. Borius, succeeded by W. Zeigler; 1885, A. C. Gardear.

CHAPTER XX.

BY AARON SHEELY, A. M.

EDUCATION-PIONEER SCHOOLS-PIONEER TEACHERS-PIONEER SCHOOLIIOUSES- CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOL-EAST BERLIN SCHOOL-GETTYSBURG CLASSICAL SCHOOL-GETTYSBURG INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL-ENGLISHI SCHOOL IN GETTYS- BURG -- GETTYSBURG ACADEMY-GETTYSBURG FEMALE INSTITUTE-GETTYS- BURG FEMALE ACADEMY-THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY-GETTYSBURG GYMNASI- UM-PENNSYLVANIA COLLEGE-NEW OXFORD COLLEGE AND MEDICAL INSTITUTE-HUNTERSTOWN ENGLISH AND CLASSICAL ACADEMY-CATIIOLIC SCHOOLS-THE FREE SCHOOL SYSTEM-THE COUNTY SUPERINTENDENCY- EDUCATIONAL MEETINGS-CONCLUSION-TABULAR STATEMENTS.

PIONEER SCHOOLS.

"THE American people were the first in history to found a nation on popular education. The sturdy German and Scotch-Irish pioneers carried with them to their new homes among these hills and valleys a firm conviction that a peo- ple to be truly prosperous and happy must be educated. It was their care, therefore, from the first, to provide in the best manner possible for the educa- tion of their children.

But the physical wants of the early settlers, of course, claimed their first attention. Before they could patronize schools they were obliged to seek means to satisfy their bodily needs. Not until means of temporary shelter and subsistence had been secured could the claims of education receive much con- sideration. The condition of the country and the occupation of the people in rural districts were also unfavorable to the maintenance of schools except those of a rudimentary character and for short terms. A sparse population scattered over a wide extent of country mainly covered with dense forests and undergrowth, and destitute of roads and bridges, opposed serious obstacles to the establishment of schools. The preparation of the ground for tillage nec- essarily consumed much time and labor. Farm machinery, except the rudest, being then unknown, agricultural operations were slow and tedious, leaving but little time for literary pursuits. The threshing and marketing of a crop which can now be easily performed within a week was then a task requiring the united labor of the farmer and his sons during the winter for its accom- plishment. The sons of a farmer in moderate circumstances therefore consid- ered themselves fortunate if they obtained one or two months of schooling dur- ing the year.

With the farmer's daughters the case was even worse. The operations of the spinning-wheel, loom, needle and dairy, besides the manifold other duties of the household, to say nothing of help frequently given in the fields during

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

busy seasons, occupied so much time that their education was seldom pursued beyond the merest rudiments. Distance to school was also a great hindrance to attendance-three, four, and even five miles being nothing uncommon.

PIONEER TEACHERS.

The teachers in the early and sparsely settled districts were for the most part ignorant adventurers, whose success lay in their ability to deceive parents and flog their children. Many of them were intemperate and tyrannical, and unfit, in public estimation, for any business except school teaching. It was nothing uncommon for the pedagogne of those days to be habitually profane. Nor was it an unusual thing for him to draw frequent and copious inspirations from a bottle of whisky secreted somewhere about the schoolhouse. As a rule he was uncouth in appearance, ungainly in manner, and filthy in his habits. Not being expected to know or teach anything beyond the conventional three "R's," the question of competency was seldom raised. His equanimity was never disturbed by perplexing questions to test the profundity of his knowl- edge or his ability to impart instruction. Proficiency in writing copies, skill in making and mending quill pens, and physical vigor to use the rod without stint on the backs of real or supposed delinquents, were the qualifications that commended him to his patrons.

PIONEER SCHOOLHOUSES.

In early times schools were usually kept in a spare room in some dwelling house; but as population increased and the need of better accommodations was felt the citizens of a neighborhood met, and, by their joint labor, put up a schoolhouse. The architecture of the pioneer schoolhouse was extremely rude and simple. It was usually a plain cabin, built of unhewn logs, with a log or stone chimney at one end, well plastered with mud. No attention was given to the proper lighting of the room. Its ventilation was all that the most ardent advocate of pure air could desire. The numerous openings afforded abundant means for the admission of pure air, while the wide chimney and open fire- place permitted the free escape of vitiated air. The articles of furniture were few and simple, consisting of one row of desks ranged around and facing the walls for the use of the larger scholars, and two or three slab benches in the middle of the room for the smaller ones.

CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOL.

The first school of which there is any record was established at Kreutz Kirche, now Christ Church, in what is now Union Township, about the year 1747. Rev. Michael Schlatter, a German Reformed minister, a fine scholar and an accomplished teacher, sent to America as a missionary at the expense of the Synod of Amsterdam, in 1746, organized the school. It was his mission to labor among the people in the German settlements, to form them into religious societies, and to establish schools among them wherever practicable.

Mr. Schlatter was a man of eminent piety and extraordinary zeal and in- dustry in the work to which he had devoted himself. He preached in Phila- delphia and took journeys to the country on horseback at different times, trav- eling hundreds of miles, preaching the gospel, establishing schools, and at- tending to his other missionary work. The parish school which he established here existed in a feeble way prior to his first visit to the place; for he says in his journal that on the day of his arrival, May 4, 1747, he preached in a schoolhouse. Among the baptisms recorded by Mr. Schlatter, May 6, 1747, was a child of the schoolmaster, John Henry Kreutz, who taught the school at that time, and after whom the church and settlement were probably named.

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

During Rev. Jacob Wiestling's pastorate at this place, which commenced in 1813, and for some time thereafter, the school was kept up in a schoolhouse owned by the church and situated on the church property. The school was continued, with more or less regularity, during a period of nearly one hundred years. Between 1513 and 1820 a man by the name of William Slider was in charge of the school.

A Dutch teacher, named David Von Souberin, was engaged by the church in 1820, but it appears he was not successful in his management of the school; for, in a few lines in German on the last page of the baptismal record, he says "he was engaged by Kreutz Kirche as schoolmaster and moved here October 12, 1820; but that, to his great joy, he moved away again April 1, 1824." This school being in a German settlement the instruction was wholly in the German language.

EAST BERLIN SCHOOL.

The first English school at East Berlin was opened in 1769 by Robert John Chester, an Englishman. This experiment of an English school in a German community, at this early day, was not successful, and the enterprising Eng- lishman was soon obliged to give up the undertaking. He afterward turned his attention to tavern keeping in the village, an occupation which, if not more congenial to his taste, is said to have proved much more lucrative.

GETTYSBURG CLASSICAL SCHOOL.

The first classical school within the present limits of the county, and the first one, it is claimed, west of the Susquehanna, was established in Gettys- burg by Rev. Alexander Dobbin, who came to this country from one of the northern counties of Ireland about the year 1773, and soon after established his school. This worthy parson owned considerable land in and around the south- ern part of the borough, known as the "Dobbin Farm." On this tract he erected the spacious stone building, still standing, within the angle formed by the intersection of Washington Street and the Emmittsburg road. In this building he established a classical and boarding school which gained a wide reputation for thoroughness of instruction and excellence of management. Many distinguished men of the last generation, in this and surrounding coun- ties, received their education in this school. It was still in existence in 1801, but was discontinued soon after that date.

GETTYSBURG INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL.

On the 4th of May, 1501, a lady by the name of Anne Corry opened an in- dustrial school in Gettysburg, in which were taught, according to the prospectus, "sewing, flowering, etc." The prospectus further stated that in the conduct of the school the utmost attention would be given to accuracy and expedition in the progress of pupils. Beyond these meager facts nothing is known concern- ing the school.

ENGLISH SCHOOL IN GETTYSBURG.

In 1903 an English school of considerable importance and usefulness was established in Gettysburg through the united efforts of many of the leading citizens. The number of names on the subscription list was forty-three, and the number of scholars subscribed reached sixty-four, notwithstanding the fact that the school was at first limited to fifty scholars. The first teacher was Rob- ert Horner, elected by a majority of ten votes over William Campbell, who re- ceived four votes. The tuition fee was $6 a year. The building in which the school was kept was of log, small, poorly furnished and uncomfortable.

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

GETTYSBURG ACADEMY.

March 19, 1801, the Legislature of Pennsylvania appropriated the sum of $2,000 to aid in establishing an institution under the name and title of the Gettysburg Academy. The act provided that one-half of this sum should be applied to the erection of a suitable building and to the purchase of books; the other half to be applied, in connection with other resources, to pay for the gratuitous instruction of such number of indigent children, not exceeding four, as should from time to time apply for admission. The act further pro- vided for the care of the school property and for the management of the school.

A spacious two-story brick building, containing two large rooms on each floor, was accordingly erected on the southeast corner of Washington and High Streets and the school established. Mr. Samuel Ramsay, a graduate of Dick- inson College, is supposed to have been the first teacher. Among other teachers in the Academy about this time were Henry Wells, a New Englander, Cornelius Davis, a graduate of a New England College, and Charles Davis, who is represented as a teacher of superior ability. About the year 1820 Rev. David McConaughy, D. D., assumed charge of the school and continued it for some years. June 25, 1827, a classical school was opened in the building by Rev. David Jacobs, A. M., as a preparatory department of the Lutheran Theo- logical Seminary, established the previous year. Two years later a scientific department was added, and Michael Jacobs, A. M., was placed in charge. In 1829 the academy was sold for debt, Prof. S. S. Schmucker becoming the pur- chaser at $1,150. This closed the career of the Gettysburg Academy.

Prior to 1834 a number of other academies were scattered throughout the connty, but as their existence was generally brief, and as no records of them seem to have been preserved, it has been found impossible to trace their his- tory.

GETTYSBURG FEMALE INSTITUTE.

After the removal of Pennsylvania College from the academy building on High Street, in 1837, and for nineteen years thereafter, the property was used for school purposes under various names and titles by Rev. J. H. Marsden, Mrs. Wallace and daughter, and others. In 1856 Rev. David Eyster, A. M., purchased the property, and with the assistance of his wife, a lady of culture and administrative ability, established therein the Gettysburg Female Insti- tute, which was continued by them for a period of fifteen years; and which, at first under the management of Mr. Eyster himself, and, after his death, under the direction of Mrs. Eyster, attained great popularity and usefulness. The building is not at present used for school purposes.

GETTYSBURG FEMALE ACADEMY.

About the year 1830 a one-story brick building was erected on East High Street, Gettysburg, adjoining the lot of ground occupied by the county prison, and a school established known as the Gettysburg Female Academy. The ground for the purpose was donated by two benevolent ladies of Gettysburg, Mary and Catharine Lackey. The money for the erection of the building, as also for the furnishing of the room, was raised by subscription among the friends of the school. The first teacher in the school was Rev. J. H. Marsden, who a year or two later became professor of mineralogy and botany in Penn- sylvania College. The building is at present occupied by Miss Mary D. McClellan with a flourishing select school.

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY.

A theological seminary for the special training and preparation of the Lu-

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

theran ministry was established in Gettysburg in 1826. In 1831 the corner- stono of the present seminary building was laid, and the next year it was opened for the reception of students. It has in a large measure realized the ex- pectations of its founders, having sent forth over 600 ministers, besides furnish- ing presidents and professors for nearly all the colleges and theological schools within the bounds of the General Synod, as also for many outside of it. It has furnished a large proportion of the missionaries representing the Lutheran Church of this country in the foreign field, and is at present specially imbued with the missionary spirit. The real estate of the institution, consisting of a four-story brick seminary building, 100 feet long by 40 feet wide, and three professors' houses, also of brick, with some twenty acres of ground, is valued at about $75,000, besides vested funds amounting to about $91,000. The li- brary is valuable, mostly theological, and numbers over 11,000 volumes. The seminary is in a flourishing condition, forty-three students being in attendance.

The present faculty consists of Rev. M. Valentine, D.D., professor of di- dactic theology and homiletics, and chairman of the faculty; Rev. C. A. Hay, D. D., professor of Hebrew and Old Testament exegesis, German language and literature, and pastoral theology; Rev. E. J. Wolf, D. D., professor of Bib- lical and ecclesiastical history and New Testament exegesis; and Rev. J. G. Morris, D.D., LL. D., lecturer on pulpit elocution and the relations of science and revelation.

GETTYSBURG GYMNASIUM.

At the time the Lutheran Theological Seminary was opened, in 1826, there was no classical or scientific school at Gettysburg that could furnish suitable preparatory training to its students. The directors, therefore, made provision, May 16. 1827, for a school to supply this want. Rev. S. S. Schmucker and Rev. J. Herbst were appointed a committee to select a teacher and open the school. Rev. David Jacobs, A. M., was the first teacher, and in June of the same year the school was opened in the academy building on High Street as a preparatory department of the seminary. In September, 1829, the building in which the school was kept was sold by the sheriff, and was pur- chased by Rev. S. S. Schmucker for $1, 150, who divided the price of the pur- chase into shares of $50 each, which were disposed of to prominent members of the church. Certain articles of agreement gave to the stockholders the man- agement of the fiscal affairs of the school, and to the directors and faculty of the seminary the selection of teachers and the regulation of the course of study and discipline, and giving to the school the title of "Gettysburg Gymnasium." The number of students increased very rapidly under the new management. Rev. David Jacobs died in 1830, and was succeeded the following year by Rev. H. L. Bangher, A. M., who took charge of the classical department. The school continuing to grow, measures were adopted a few years later by which a charter was obtained from the Legislature April 7, 1832, incorporat- ing the institution under the name of

PENNSYLVANIA COLLEGE.

Pennsylvania College was founded in 1832. It had its origin in the wants of the community and the church, and has developed from small beginnings to its present position of commanding influence and importance among higher insti- tutions of learning. The buildings and grounds are located a few hundred yards north of the central part of the town, and are among the most beautiful and attractive of the many objects of interest in and around Gettysburg.

The organization of the college under the charter was effected July 4,

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

1832, the board of trustees the same day appointing professors in the different departments, and making other necessary arrangements for opening the college. The preliminary arrangements completed, the formal opening took place November 7 of the same year.

But it soon became evident that additional funds must be secured to enable the college to perform the work and achieve the success expected of it. At this juncture Hon. Thaddeus Stevens, who, at this time (1833), was one of the members of the Legislature from this county, managed to secure an appropri- ation of $18,000 by the State on certain conditions. This appropriation was most opportune, and helped to place the youthful, struggling institution on a respectable foundation. Thus encouraged the trustees soon after enlarged the faculty and gave form and strength to the college by the election of Rev. C. P. Krauth, D. D., president, April 15, 1834.

Pennsylvania College now entered upon a career of great prosperity and usefulness. Its growth henceforward was rapid, everything considered.

The first great need of the college after its reorganization was a larger and more suitable building, the old academy soon proving entirely inadequate. Vigorous efforts were therefore made to collect the necessary funds with which to erect a suitable building, and by April 23, 1835, the required amount was secured. A plan for the proposed building was soon after adopted, and the contract for its erection awarded. The building was commenced in 1836 and completed in 1838.

The college proper consists of a center building and two wings, with end projections, the whole length being 150 feet. The building is four stories high, surmounted by an octagonal cupola 17 feet in diameter and 24 feet in height, with observatory. The entire front of the center building is oc- cupied by a portico consisting of four finted columns, 22} feet high, rest- ing on abutments raised to the height of the second story. It is of brick, and the whole exterior is painted white. It contains recitation rooms, chapel, halls of literary societies, libraries, reading rooms, as also a large number of rooms for the occupancy of students, the whole costing originally about $24,000.

The college edifice, a chaste specimen of the Doric order of architecture, stands on gently rising ground at the edge of a magnificent grove of stately trees, the most of which were planted many years ago by willing hands of professors and students. The grounds, known as the "Campus," are well sodded and tastefully laid out in beautiful avenues, walks and flower-beds, the general effect during the spring and summer months being very pleasing.

Embraced within the grounds, and a few rods west of the college building, is Linnæan Hall, a fine two-story brick structure, the first floor being used for laboratory and class recitation purposes, and the second story. containing a large and valuable collection of prepared zoological specimens, minerals, fos- sils, coins, relics and other curiosities. The botanical collection is large and well arranged, and contains a full representation of American flora. Few col- leges possess a more complete cabinet of minerals, the collection having re- cently received valuable additions.

A president's house, professors' houses, a fraternity hall, and a janitor's house, have also been erected on the grounds. A large gymnasium was built about ten years ago and supplied with necessary apparatus, affording stu- dents opportunity for exercise, recreation, and general physical culture.

Through the liberality of some of the friends of the college an observatory was erected some years ago, and furnished with a complete equipment of astronomical and meteorological instruments. A fine telescope has been mounted, a transit instrument, an astronomical clock and a chronograph have been secured, and are freely used for the general purposes of class instruction.

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HISTORY OF ADAMS COUNTY.

In 1850 Dr. Krauth resigned the presidency, having filled it most worthily for a period of sixteen years. He was succeeded in September of the same year by Rev. H. L. Baugher, D. D., who remained at the helm until the time of his death, which occurred in the spring of 1868, during which period the college continued to prosper.

The vacancy caused by the death of Dr. Baugher was filled by the election of Rev. M. Valentine, D. D., who thus became the third president of the col- lege. With marked ability Dr. Valentine watched over the interests of the college until 1884. a period of sixteen years, when, having resigned, he was followed by Rev. H. W. MeKnight, D. D., the present incumbent. Dr. Mc- Knight is a graduate of the college class of 1865, and a native of the county.

The present faculty and instructors are as follows: H. W. Mcknight, D. D., president, and professor of intellectual and moral science; L. H. Croll, A. M., vice president, and professor of mathematics and astronomy; Rev. A. Martin, A. M., professor of the German language and literature, and instructor in French; J. A. Himes, A. M., Graeff professor of the English language and lit- erature; Rev. P. M. Biklè, Ph. D., Pearson professor of the Latin language and literature; E. S. Breidenbaugh, A. M., Ockerhausen professor of chemis- try and the natural sciences, and H. Lonis Baugher, D. D., Franklin profes- sor of the Greek language and literature. The total number of students in the college department according to the latest catalogue was ninety-four.

Preparatory Department .- A preparatory department under the general care and supervision of the faculty has been connected with the college from the beginning. The primary object of the school is the preparation of students of either sex for the freshman class in college. While this is the main purpose of the school, those who wish to prepare for teaching, or for mechanical or business pursuits, are permitted to select such studies as will best fit them for their special pursuits. The present preparatory building. located on a slight eminence a few steps north of town, has been named Stevens' Hall in honor of Hon. Thaddeus Stevens, a life-long friend of the college, who gave $500 to aid in its erection. The first teacher was Mr. F. Frederici, appointed Sep- tember 26, 1832. The present principal is Rev. J. B. Focht, A. M., assisted by two tutors, George W. Baughman, A. B., and Frederick L. Bergstresser, A. B. Number of students in preparatory department, as per latest catalogue, is forty-five.

College Library .- The college library numbers about 9, 000 volumes, exclus- ive of a German library of 400 volumes and a collection of books owned by the Linnaean Association numbering some 300. Open every Saturday at 10 A. M., and free to students under certain regulations.

Literary Societies. There are two literary societies connected with the col- lege; the Phrenakosmian and Philomathean. The object of these is practice in oratory, literary composition, reading and debate, the last named exercise taking a high rank from the first. The history of these societies being almost identical, they may with propriety be sketched conjointly.

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Author: Publication date: Publisher: W. Taylor Number of Pages: 1280

Author:
Publication date:
Publisher: W. Taylor
Number of Pages: 1280