History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 61

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424

USA > Pennsylvania > Northumberland County > History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania > Part 61

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

William C. Robbins; 1882-84, Samuel Creighton; 1885-87, John B. Pols- grove; 1888, Richard Hinkle, present pastor.

Presbyterian Church .- There was a considerable Presbyterian element among the early population of Milton and vicinity, connected with the organ- izations of Warrior Run and Chillisquaque, of which the Rev. John Bryson became the first regular pastor in 1789. After the erection of a school house at Milton he began to preach there occasionally, but it was not until the year 1806, ten years after these services were begun, that arrangements were made for their regular continuance. In this movement James P. Sanderson appears to have been the active spirit; he formulated a subscription paper for the support of preaching "every other Sabbath for one year from this date" (April 17, 1806), and in this manner the sum of sixty-two dollars, fifty cents was pledged by the following persons: John Armstrong, John Brady, Cal- hoon & Cowden, John Chestnut, David Derickson, John Gillespie, Elizabeth Gallagher, Robert Gray, Edith Hepburn, John Hetherington, James Humes, James Hutchinson, Polly Housel, Jane Irwin, Samuel Jordan, Henry Kirk, James McCord, Arthur McGowan, James Miller, Isaac Osmond, William and Thomas Pollock, John Quin, Ezekiel and James P. Sanderson, James Ser- inger, Daniel Smith, Robert Taggart, Moses Teas, and Bethuel Vincent. It is probable that this list includes all the Presbyterians of the town, and also others without the pale of that church. In the following year the subscrip- tion paper was again circulated, and the following new names appear: Guyan Arthur, John Davison, John L. Finney, Philip Goodman, James Moodie, George Searles, and Samuel H. Wallis. Mr. Bryson continued to preach at Milton under this arrangement, probably until 1812, and was connected with religious and educational work in this and adjoining counties until his death, August 3, 1855. In 1810 Rev. Thomas Hood succeeded him, and in 1811, with the approbation of Northumberland Presbytery, he organized a church at Milton, of which James P. Sanderson, Lazarus Finney, and Arthur Mc- Gowan, the first elders, were installed, December 3, 1811.

The school houses on Lower Market street and Broadway and the Episcopal church in Marr's lane were the places of worship until 1817, when the Pres- byterians united with the Lutheran and Reformed congregations in the erec- tion of Harmony church. This was abandoned in 1832, and from that time until 1838 the Baptist and Associate Reformed churches were occupied. On the 29th of August, 1836, a congregational meeting was held to devise meas- ures for the erection of a church building, and a committee was appointed to solicit subscriptions, but the movement subsided without definite results. It was renewed at a congregational meeting on the 8th of August, 1837, and pushed to a successful consummation; July 29, 1838, a one-story brick edifice on Front street above Broadway was dedicated, and in this building the con- gregation worshiped until 1856, when it was superseded by a two-story brick edifice on the same site, dedicated August 16, 1857. This was burned

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in the fire of May 14, 1880. Services were then held under a tent on Upper Market street, in the Episcopal church, the building of J. R. Smith & Com- pany, and the armory on Upper Market street, successively, until the 25th of June, 1882, when the first service was held in the lecture room of the pres- ent church edifice, and on the 21st of January, 1883, the audience room was occupied for the first time. This is a stone structure; the main entrance is on Walnut street, and the spire rises to the height of over one hundred fifty feet. The entire cost was forty-two thousand dollars, and the dedication oc- curred, November 20, 1887, Reverends R. F. Sample, D.D., and R. M. Pat- terson, D.D., officiating.

Rev. Thomas Hood was installed as pastor of this church, October 7, 1812, and dismissed, April 21, 1835; James Williamson, installed, November 27, 1838, was dismissed, October 8, 1845; David Longmore, D. D., installed, November 17, 1846, was dismissed, April 16, 1854; James C. Watson, D. D., installed, December 14, 1854, died, August 31, 1880; S. Henry Bell, installed, February 22, 1882, was dismissed, April 17, 1889; W. P. Breed, present pas- tor, was installed, February 10, 1890.

The following is a list of elders, with dates of ordination or installation, and of death or removal from other cause: James P. Sanderson, December 3, 1811, died, September 2, 1852; Lazarus Finney, December 3, 1811, died, 1833; Arthur McGowan, December 3, 1811, died, December 24, 1838; Rob- ert Gray, August 14, 1819, ceased to act, 1843; William Nesbit, August 14, 1819, died, 1863; Joseph Marr, May 17, 1827, died, August, 1881; William L. Housel, May 17, 1827; Thomas Candor, May 17, 1827; John Vandyke, May 17, 1827, ceased to act, November 27, 1838; Thomas Pollock, July 25, 1839; Joseph Bound, July 25, 1839, died, May 12, 1873; John Sample, No- vember 23, 1839, ceased to act, May 20, 1849; John Murray, November 16, 1849, died, July 8, 1866; Robert Candor, November 16, 1849, died, January 10, 1881; Robert Hayes, November 16, 1849, ceased to act, May 2, 1863; John Finney, April 29, 1859, died, July 3, 1877; William C. Lawson, April 29, 1859; David Krauser, April 29, 1859, died, August 11, 1875; William Stedden, April 29, 1859, died, November 7, 1889; Samuel McMahan, January 14, 1871, ceased to act, September 29, 1876; Samuel Oaks, January 14, 1871, died, January 3, 1887; Spencer L. Finney, January 14, 1871; Isaac D. Kase, March 29, 1885, died, February 12, 1888; Robert M. Longmore, March 29, 1885. William C. Lawson, Spencer L. Finney, and Robert M. Longmore constitute the present session.

St. John's Reformed Church .- It has been stated that the first religious services in the immediate vicinity of Milton of which there is any record were held by a Reformed minister. This denomination was early represented among the German element, and although there is no record of the organiza- tion it was doubtless among the first religious bodies that secured regular pastoral services. The school house on Lower Market street was the first

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

place of worship. In 1807, uniting with the Lutherans, a small one-story log house on the south side of Mahoning street was purchased for school and church purposes, and here the Rev. Justus Henry Fries and other early Re- formed preachers conducted worship and administered the sacraments agree- ably to the usages of their church.

In 1817, neither the Presbyterian, Reformed, or Lutheran congregations being strong enough numerically or financially to undertake the erection of a church edifice individually, they united in the construction of a union church building near the foot of the hill at the eastern end of Mahoning street. In this movement Daniel R. Bright was the leading spirit; associated with him as building trustees were Adam Follmer and Adam Gundekunst, and under their supervision the carpenter work was done by Conrad Henry, and the stone and brick work by James Shearer and John Snyder. The corner-stone was laid, October 5, 1817, by the Reverends Hood, Repass, and Fries, in the presence of Lutheran, Reformed, and Presbyterian people. The work did not progress very rapidly, however, and it was not until the 23d and 24th of May, (Sunday and Monday), 1819, that Harmony church was dedicated. At that time the Reformed congregation was fully organized with Christian Markle as elder and Joseph Rhoads as deacon, and Mr. Fries became its regularly in- stalled pastor.

As thus completed, Harmony church was a large two-story brick edi- fice, fronting toward the west, and surmounted by a cupola and bell. Spacious galleries extended around three sides of the church; the pulpit was at the east side, made of beautiful carved work, and elevated considerably. There were four entrances, two on the west and one each on the north and south. The completion of, so expensive a work of architecture as this was considered at that day left the joint owners a debt of several thousand dollars, for the liquidation of which resort was had to a lottery. The tickets were sold at three dollars; but from various causes the necessary amount was not realized. This was in 1822, and in the month of June of that year, while the lottery scheme was being energetically pushed, a singular natural phenomenon occurred. On the afternoon of a clear day a small cloud was observed to rise in the west; it crossed above the town, and without any of the other accompaniments of a storm a single flash of lightning struck the steeple of Harmony church, tearing a crooked furrow in the plastering of the southeast side from the ceiling to the floor. This was regarded by many as an indication of divine displeasure at the discord then prevailing among the three churches, and disapproval of the methods resorted to in raising money. At all events, the lottery was abandoned; the Lutheran and Reformed churches paid the debt in 1827, and instituted civil proceedings to compel the Presbyterians to contribute their share, obtaining judgment in the sum of one thousand two hundred sixty-two dollars. On the 27th of January, 1831, the interest of the Presbyterians was sold at sheriff's sale and pur-

let Dickerman

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chased by Adam Follmer for eight hundred dollars. The Reformed and Lutheran congregations thus secured exclusive possession, and for nearly a score of years were the joint occupants of the church, during which period the name was somewhat more appropriate than during its previous history. In 1850 the Lutherans withdrew, and from that date the Reformed congre- gation owned and occupied the church individually until 1866.

At a congregational meeting in January, 1866, the desire for the erection of a new church edifice was formally expressed by the appointment of a building committee composed of Levi Truckenmiller, William H. Frymire, J. M. Follmer, Charles Newhard, Aaron Reber, John Houtz, and Jacob Houtz. The consistory at that time consisted of William H. Frymire, Charles New- hard, Jacob M. Follmer, and Levi Balliet, elders; deacons: John J. Faus- naught, William D. Snyder, Simon Gheris, and Aaron Reber. The corner- stone was laid, May 17, 1866, and the dedication occurred on the 18th of November following. The materials of the old church were largely utilized, and the new building, two stories high and constructed of brick, occupied the same site as the present place of worship on the west side of Arch street above Broadway. It was destroyed in the fire of May 14, 1880. July 24, 1881, the corner-stone of a new church was laid; Charles Newhard, Israel Scott, Levi Balliet, John Houtz, Peter Rangler, and Rev. S. B. Schafer, the pastor, constituted the building committee. This edifice was completed in due time, but owing to defective construction it was removed in 1887. The corner-stone of the present church was laid on the 4th of September, 1887, and the basement was used for the first time on the first Sunday in May, 1888. This is a handsome brick structure with a seating capacity of eight. hundred, and cost seventeen thousand dollars. The Rev. Justus Henry Fries continued to serve this church as pastor until 1823. He was followed by Samuel Gutelius, 1824-27; Henry Wagner, 1827-35; Daniel Gring, 1835- 46; Ephraim Kieffer, English colleague to Mr. Gring, 1840-44, followed by Henry Harbaugh, 1844-46, when he succeeded to the pastorate entirely and remained until 1849; Edwin M. Long, 1849-52; Albert G. Dole, 1853-65; Samuel H. Reid, 1866-73; F. F. Bahner, 1873-77; S. B. Schafer, 1878-82; F. C. Yost, 1883-89; D. W. Ebbert, 1890, present pastor.

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church .- Among the first Lutherans at Milton were the families of Augstadt, Bastian, Beckley, Beidleman, Bright, Burrman, Kreitzer, Dressler, Egner, Eckbert, Fidler, Follmer, Freed, Gehrig, Goodman, Haller, Hartman, Hill, Kohr, Leib, Markle, Morrison, Noriconk, Overpeck, Peeler, Peterman, Robins, Schreyer, Stine, Strine, Swenk, Trout, Wilhelm, Wolfinger, etc. The first clergy of this denomination who held services at Milton were traveling preachers who visited this part of the State at irregular and infrequent intervals, and their first place of worship was the school house erected on Lower Market street in 1796. After the Broadway school house was built it became the meeting place. In 1807, uniting with

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

the Reformed congregation, a small one-story log house on the south side of Mahoning street was purchased for school and church purposes; but the school was not a success, although occasional worship was conducted here by the Reverends Eyer, Stock, and Engle. In 1817 the Lutherans were repre- sented by Adam Follmer in the building committee of Harmony church, and at its dedication, May 23, 1819, they were regularly organized as a church with Philip H. Shreyer as elder, John Hill as deacon, and Rev. Philip Re- pass as pastor. When the interest of the Presbyterians in Harmony church was sold it was purchased by Adam Follmer, a member of this church, for the Lutheran and Reformed congregations, who worshiped there until 1850, when the former disposed of their interest and erected a two-story brick edi- fice on the south side of Mahoning street near the central part of the town. It was dedicated, May 4, 1851. In 1868 this was sold to the Evangelical church. On Sunday, August 25, 1867, the corner-stone of a new church had been laid at the southeast corner of Mahoning and Second streets, and on the 1st of November, 1868, the lecture room of this edifice was dedicated. It was a brick building, erected at a cost of thirty thousand dollars, and was justly regarded as one of the most commodious churches in central Penn- sylvania.

The fire of May 14, 1880, having destroyed this building, the pastor, Rev. W. H. Gotwald, called a meeting of the council three days later, at which it was resolved to undertake at once the work of rebuilding. Assistance from the church at large was generously given in the sum of five thousand five hundred thirty-three dollars, twenty-two cents; the Lower Market Street and Center Street school buildings were occupied until May 13, 1881, when the first service was held in the lecture room of the new church. The architect was C. G. Wetzel, the contractor, Charles Krug, and the cost, ten thousand dollars. The lecture room was dedicated, May 15, 1881; the first service was held in the audience room, March 19, 1882, and on the 26th of that month it also was dedicated.

The first regular pastor was Rev. Philip Repass, who resided in Union county and preached at Milton only at long intervals. His successor, Rev. F. Waage, was the first resident pastor at Milton; his field of labor included also Williamsport, Turbutville, Follmer's, Muncy, Chillisquaque, Strawberry Ridge, and Hall's. He had charge three years, 1826-29, and from that date the pastoral succession has been as follows: William Garman, 1829-30; C. P. Miller, 1831-33; J. G. Anspach, June 19, 1836, to June, 1837; C. F. Stoever, September 2, 1837, to 1842; Eli Swartz, 1842-44; Frederick Ruthrauf, April 1, 1845, to November, 1850; J. J. Reimensnyder, April 17, 1851, to April 1, 1854; C. C. Culler, June 30, 1854, until death, August 19, 1860; T. T. Titus, March, 1861, to April, 1863; S. P. Spreecher, May, 1863, to April, 1865; George Parsons, July 1, 1865, to October 1, 1868; U. Graves, October 2, 1868, to September 24, 1870; A. Buhrman, April, 1871, to 1873;

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MILTON.

W. H. Gotwald, May 1, 1873, to 1887; J. M. Reimensnyder, present pastor, assumed charge in 1887.

Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized, July 5, 1888, at the Milton opera house, with about one hundred members, of whom the fol- lowing were elected as officers: Peter Oliphant, Edward Hoy, elders; Will- iam Wetzel, Charles Gast, John Noriconk, Thomas Brooks, deacons. Rev. J. A. Flickinger, then of West Sandlake, New York, preached his first ser- mon to this congregation, July 8, 1888; he accepted a call to become its pastor in September, removed to Milton November 27th, and assumed the pastoral functions December 1st of the same year. The congregation wor- shiped at the opera house during the erection of the present church edifice on Center street east of Elm, of which the corner-stone was laid, February 27, 1889, and the dedication occurred on the 6th of October following. It is a brick building, with Sunday school rooms in the rear; the audience room has galleries at the front and sides, and a seating capacity of eight hundred.

The Associate Reformed Church was organized in 1818 by Rev. George Junkin, and included among its membership the families of Pollock, Arthur, Davison, Dieffenderfer, Dougal, Fleming, Hepburn, Hutchinson, Kelchner, Landis, Mackey, Marr, Rittenhouse, Rhoads, Seibert, Teas, Tweed, Vanlew, etc., most of whom had previously been connected with the Presbyterian church and separated from it because of a preference for Rouse's version of the Psalms and various other considerations. The school houses of the town and the Episcopal church were the first places of worship. In 1820 a frame church edifice was built in Church lane, now called Filbert street, and the first meeting therein was held, January 19, 1821. This received the name of Shiloh church. In 1854 it was sold to the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad Company, and a brick edifice was erected on Walnut street at a cost of nine thousand dollars. .905.

Rev. George Junkin, the first pastor, and the first resident clergyman at Milton, resigned in 1830, and was succeeded by the following ministers: William Wilson, 1831-36; John Mckinley, 1837-39; J. A. Crawford, 1840- 45; Matthew Smith, 1847-48; W. H. T. Wylie, 1854-65. From the latter date there was no regular pastor. The church edifice erected in 1854 was burned in 1880 and the site was sold to the Presbyterians. And thus this church, for many years a prominent factor in the religious life of the town, ceased to exist.

The Milton Baptist Church originated in the labors of the Rev. Eugenio Kincaid, a missionary of that church who visited this place in 1826 while on a preaching tour through the West Branch region. There was then but one member of his church here, Miss Susanna Thomas, but Mr. Kincaid at once entered upon the work of preaching, and on the 25th of August, 1826, organ- ized a society with nine members, viz., Eugenio Kincaid and Almy his wife, William Thomas and Catherine his wife, Susanna Thomas, Nathan and

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Martha Delany, Sarah Watts, and Harriet Geddis. The first service of bap- tism by immersion in the Susquehanna at this point occurred on Sunday, September 10, 1826, immediately after the morning sermon, when the mis- sionary pastor baptized his recent converts in the presence of a large con- course of people assembled on the river banks. The first deacons of this church, James Moore, Sr., and William Thomas, were ordained in August, 1832.

The first church building, a plain one-story brick building of medium size, with steeple and bell, was built in 1829 on the west side of Church lane (Filbert street), upon ground donated for the purpose by James Moore, and served as a place of worship until 1868. In that year a two-story brick edifice was erected at the southeast corner of Elm and Center streets. It was burned in 1880, and was succeeded by the present church building, a brick structure with tower in front, one of the most substantial and attractive places of worship in the borough.

The following is a list of pastors since the organization of the church: Eugenio Kincaid, 1826-30; George Higgins, 1830-34; Thomas B. Brown, 1835-37; David C. Wait, 1838-39; Collins Hewitt, 1840-45; Joel E. Brad- ley, 1846-52; Howard Malcolm, D. D., president of Bucknell University, 1853-56; Thomas F. Curtis, D. D., professor in Bucknell University, 1856- 63; James Parker, T. E. Clapp, and William B. Thomas, 1864-68; A. C. Wheat, 1868-70; Joseph Green Miles, 1871-78; E. C. Houck, A. H. Em- mons, and W. C. McNaul, present pastor.

Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church, as an organized body, dates from the year 1849, when the old Broadway school house was purchased and removed to its present location on the hill east of the railroad; there it has since been the place of worship for this congregation. Traveling clergymen had occasionally visited Milton prior to the date given, but the society did not enjoy the advantages of regular pastoral care until the arrival of the Rev. Philip Lum, who has been succeeded by the following ministers: Reverends Jacob Trusty, Shadrach Golding, Samuel Gray, J. P. Laws, John Scott, John Carter, Basle Macall, Joseph Sinclair, John Carter, John Cox, John Ander- son, Isaac Coleman, Charles Wallis, Mr. Spence, H. H. Baskiston, James Barnes, James Henry, John Price, Bluford Powell, Taylor Brown, Mitchell, Tillman, Dangerfield, Ephraim Frisbee, and John H. Williams, present pastor.

The Evangelical Association established a mission at Milton in 1866 under the Rev. Samuel Davis, who labored here for two years with marked success in the old Lutheran church on Mahoning street. A society was reg- ularly organized in the spring of 1869 under Rev. J. M. Pines. In 1870 a lot of ground on Lower Market street was purchased for a church site, and a log house thereon fitted up for temporary occupation as a place of worship. This was removed in 1872, and the erection of a frame church building, forty by seventy-four feet in dimensions, was begun; it was dedicated, January 31, 1875,

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MILTON.

by Bishop Rudolph Dubs, and at that time the society numbered eighty-four members. This church was burned, May 14, 1880; the erection of the present edifice was at once begun, and it was dedicated, December 18, 1881. The fol- lowing is a list of pastors: Reverends Samuel Davis, J. M. Pines, A. H. Irvin, Henry B. Hertzler, Adam W. Schenberger, S. P. Remer, Henry A. Stoke, J. A. Irvin, C. W. Finkbinder, A. H. Irvin, and G. W. Curran, the present pastor.

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church was organized in 1878 by Rev. William Williamson, and worshiped until the fire of 1880 in a warehouse on Broadway at the canal. Then for two years their services were held at the house of Edward Carter, and after several years' effort the present frame church edifice was erected on Willow street. The trustees in 1881 were Edward Carter, James Bond, Cyrus Woodson, and George Hector. Reverends Williamson, Henderson, Palmer, Riley, Skinner, Steward, Wood- son, and Thomas have successively served as pastors, Mr. Thomas being the present incumbent.

SUNDAY SCHOOLS.

The first Sunday school in Milton was commenced in the spring of 1815 in the Broadway Street school house, subsequently the African Methodist church. The names of the teachers and officers were as follows: superin- tendent, Benjamin Vincent; teachers: B. Vincent, Thomas Chestnut, Joseph B. Anthony, James Armstrong, Thomas Armstrong, Fleming W. Pollock, James P. Sanderson, Henry P. Sanderson, Sally Vincent, Eleanor Sander- son, Katy Chestnut, Ann Chestnut, Hannah Reese, Polly Armstrong, and Nancy Reese. Each scholar furnished his own books, which included the Bible, hymn book, and catechism. Regular attendance was encouraged by the distribution each Sunday of blue pasteboard cards, upon each of which a verse of Scripture was printed, and a certain number of these entitled the holder, by a species of arithmetical progression, to a Testament or Bible.

The second Sunday school was organized in the spring of 1816 at the frame dwelling house of David Derickson on Front street. It was conducted entirely by ladies, and the executive authority was vested in two directresses, elected monthly. The teachers were Mary Vincent, Eleanor Sanderson, Hannah Reese, Mrs. David Rittenhouse, Mrs. Samuel Hepburn, Mrs. Jeannie Brady, Mrs. Mary Jones, Mrs. Joseph Campbell, and Martha Johnson. Misses Vincent and Sanderson were the first two directresses. The Derick- son room having been found too small, more commodious quarters were found at the house of David Rittenhouse, then in course of erection. The school was composed principally of very young children, and with the approach of winter its sessions were suspended, never to be again resumed.

Sunday school work was not again undertaken until 1825, when a third organization came into existence at the suggestion of Rev. Thomas Hood,

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pastor of the Presbyterian church. This school met at the Lower Market Street school house, and Arthur McGowan was its first superintendent. Among the first teachers were Joseph Marr, Phineas B. Marr, Daniel Gaston, Samuel F. Headley, David Hull, Hannah Reese, Mary McGowan, Martha Jones, and others. In 1826 Mr. McGowan was succeeded by William Housel; at that date John M. Patton was secretary of the school, and its teachers were Daniel Gaston, Samuel F. Headley, David Hull, John F. Wolfinger, Hannah Reese, Mary McGowan, Martha Jones, Hannah Maria Hepburn, Maria Buchanan, and Elizabeth Moore. Subsequently the school met at Harmony church, then again at the school house; in 1833 it was moved into John Chestnut's frame building on Front street, then to the Lancasterian school house on Elm street, and in 1838 to the Presbyterian church. At the latter date it became a Presbyterian school, with Joseph Bound as super- intendent, and has since continued its career of prosperous usefulness.

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History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 61

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829- Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk Number of Pages: 1424

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424