History of Tioga County, Pennsylvania, Part 37

Author:
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Harrisburg : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1454

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The amount of tax laid in those days was small. One of the first levies for school purposes was fixed at one-third of one per cent. The highest tax levied was against Samuel Wells Morris, $6.54. He owned more real estate than any other resident of the town. William Bache's tax then was $1.98. His brothers, John N. and Laugher Bache, then single men, paid seventeen cents each. Several others paid the same. Forty years afterward William Bache paid $225, and his brothers were required to pay dollars where cents had once sufficed.

Chauncey Alford, who presided over the convention, was early identified with the cause of education. It is a matter for regret that so little of his personal history has been preserved. It is probable that he was a New Englander by birth and came to Wellsboro early in the century, for it is shown that he was one of the early teachers in the Quaker Meeting House, and in 1822 he was one of the trustees of the Academy. That he was a man of some standing is shown by the fact that he was appointed a justice of the peace in 1827; and during the great slave chase in the winter of 1829 he was deputy sheriff, made the arrest of the slaves and took them before Judge Kilburn, at Lawrenceville. In 1833 he was elected county commissioner and served a term of three years. He lived for a long period in Wellsboro, and later on the Locke farm for some time. Tradition says that he was a "clever, social, upright, honest man."

Miss Lydia Lock was the first teacher employed under the new system in Wellsboro, and Mary E. Nichols was the second. This was before a school house was built. The wages these early teachers received was small compared with the salaries of to-day. As a curiosity the following minute relating to the employment of Miss Nichols is copied from an old school record:

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WELLSBORO (CONTINUED).

Minute of agreement made with Mary E. Nichols, December 5, 1836. Said Mary E. Nichols is to commence school December 5, 1836, and to teach twelve or sixteen weeks, find her own room, firewood and board, for which said Mary E. N., is to receive $3.00 per week. Directors to be at the expense of stove and fitting room with benches, etc.

No elegant brick school houses existed then, fitted up in first-class style, and equipped with all the appliances to facilitate the work of instruction. The female teachers of to-day, surrounded with all the comforts and conveniences, have but to carry their imagination back to that time and contemplate Mary E. Nichols in her humble school room, laboring for $3.00 a week and "find her own room, firewood and board," to convince themselves of the progress that has been made in three-score years, and that they are peculiarly blessed that they did not live in her day and generation.

FIRST PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING.

On March 11, 1835, David Caldwell, Josiah Emery and James Kimball were chosen a building committee, it having been agreed that the directors raise a sum of money by subscription for building a school house. The subscription paper read as follows, and sounds strangely when contrasted with the method of building public school houses to-day:

We, the undersigned, promise to pay to Jonah Brewster, David Caldwell, E. M. Bo- dine, J. F. Donaldson, L. I. Nichols and Josiah Emery, the several sums affixed to our names, for the purpose of erecting a school house in the borough of Wellsboro; said house to belong to the subscribers, in the proportion of the sums subscribed, but to be under the control of the school directors for the year to come, and to be let for the purpose of a school, at a reasonable rate. And we hereby agree to sell to the said borough the house after its completion, at the first cost, should the directors pass a vote at a legal school meeting to purchase the same. The house is to be placed as near the center of the town as circumstances will admit, to be finished as soon as convenient, and the said sums of money payable on demand.

The school house was built of logs and served the purpose for which it was designed, until it was forced to give way by the march of improvement. Erastus P. Deane, who became prominent as a surveyor, was one of the first male teachers employed. On November 20, 1835, he was engaged to teach for five months at a salary of $16 per month. The subsequent year he was again employed. When the new log school house was completed he was engaged, November 7, 1836, to teach for five months at a salary of $28 per month, a great advance over the price previously paid him; but it was stipulated in the contract that he was to board himself and "be to the expense of firewood and chopping the same." "Good exercise," it will be remarked by some; but to-day it would be a strange spectacle to see the male teachers of Wellsboro engaged in chopping wood for the school house. In those days it was the custom for the teacher and larger boys to chop the wood, which was generally delivered in long pieces by order of the directors. As times advanced the teacher usually "shirked" that duty by assigning the "larger boys" to perform the chopping act. This was the practice for many years, but now it has almost entirely disappeared, except in some of the remote rural districts, where coal cannot be obtained, or the board of directors feel too poor to employ some one to "cut up" and store the fuel.

While the Academy was in existence more attention was given to it than to the

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village school under the common school system; but when the managers of the insti- tution "on the hill" decided to wind up the school and transfer their money and property to the free schools, a new impetus was given the latter. The action which led to this conclusion is set forth in the closing part of the history of the old Academy.

LATER BUILDINGS AND TEACHERS.

As early as March 7, 1860, the school district had purchased of Laugher Bache a lot on the east corner of Pearl and Norris streets, and soon after erected thereon the primary school building. During the years 1869 and 1870 proceedings were had by which the Academy property was turned over to the school district, and in the fall of 1870 Prof. A. C. Winters was engaged to teach at a salary of $1,600 per year, and three assistants were also employed. This forms a striking contrast with the salary of Mr. Deane only thirty-four years before. The schools steadily increased. In 1871 eight teachers were employed and 477 pupils were on the rolls. In 1873 there were 530 pupils in attendance, but the number of teachers remained the same.

This rapid increase in the number of pupils made it apparent to the people as well as the board of education that the time had come for enlarged facilities by the erection of an additional building. Meetings were held in the court house to discuss the question and speakers were emphatic in their utterances that action should be taken. Public sentiment was speedily aroused and in accordance with popular expression the school board purchased a lot and erected thereon a sub- stantial building which cost, with the furnishing, $33,500. The dedication of this building, which took place August 20, 1875, was an event of no ordinary importance for the town and called forth a large attendance. In honor of the event addresses were made by Rev. N. L. Edwards, James H. Bosard, Esq., Hon. Henry W. Williams, Rev. J. F. Calkins, Hon. Stephen F. Wilson, Hon. Jerome B. Niles, Rev. Dr. Charles Breck, and others. They all congratulated the citizens of Wellsboro on the auspicious event, and the advancement in the cause of education.

In order to complete the historical record it must not be omitted to state that the school board under whose administration the building was erected was con- stituted as follows: President, John W. Bailey; treasurer, William Bache; secre- tary, James H. Bosard; Jerome B. Potter, Hugh Young, Chester Robinson and Jerome B. Niles.

In 1894, in order to meet the demand for additional room, a new primary school building, costing $12,000, was erected on the lot adjoining the High School building on the southeast. This was a large, two-story "brick veneer" edifice, ventilated by the Smead system, and furnished with the latest improved desks and school apparatus. On the night of August 28, 1896, this building was destroyed by fire. The school board immediately resolved to rebuild in accordance with the old plans, and the new building was ready for occupancy January 1, 1897.

The borough schools are in excellent condition. They comprise two school buildings, with twelve school rooms and twelve teachers-two males and ten females-the average pay per month of the former being $96.78, and of the latter $43.30. The graded schools were organized and the first principal appointed in 1870. This position has been filled as follows: A. C. Winters, A. M., 1870-73; P. M. Edick,

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1873-77; E. Francis, 1877-79; Henry E. Raesly, A. M., 1879-90; James B. Hastings, A. M., 1890-92; A. Frank Stauffer, A. M., 1892-96, and Daniel Fleisher, A. M., Ph. D., the present incumbent, who took charge in September, 1896.

The number of pupils registered in June, 1896, were as follows: Males, 352; females, 337. Total, 689.

WILLOW HALL SCHOOL.

In 1891, during the rectorship of Rev. A. W. Snyder, an affort was made by a few of the leading members of St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal church and other citizens to establish a school for girls, with the purpose, if sufficient support were given the enterprise, of making it a permanent boarding school. With this end in view, William Bache and John L. Robinson purchased the building on Central avenue, since known as Willow Hall, and deeded it to St. Paul's church. A school was opened with Miss Mary H. Burrows as preceptress and was continued for two years. The number of those who felt able to send their children, and pay tuition in addition to their public school taxes, was too limited to make the school self-sustaining. The burden of the financial support, therefore, fell on a few, whose liberality had already been heavily taxed, and they declared that they could not become personally respon- sible for a constantly recurring deficit. The school was accordingly closed, and the building, which is still church property, is used for meetings of the guild, the sewing society and for sociables, etc. At the present time a kindergarten school is carried on in it by Miss May Bennett.

CHAPTER XIX.

WELLSBORO (CONTINUED).

THE OLD QUAKER MEETING HOUSE-ST. PAUL'S PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH- REV. CHARLES BRECK, THE PIONEER PASTOR-THE WORK HE ACCOMPLISHED- THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH-REV. J. F. CALKINS' LONG PASTORATE-HIS SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS-FIRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH - REV. CALEB BOYER-THE FIRST CLASS - CHURCH ORGANIZED - FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH-ITS ORGANIZATION AND LATER HISTORY-ST. PETER'S ROMAN CATH- OLIC CHURCH - THE FREE WILL BAPTIST CHURCH - CEMETERIES-SOCIE- TIES-WELLSBOROUGH'S MILITARY BAND.

W HEN Benjamin Wistar Morris laid out Wellsboro, in the very beginning of this century, there was no church or organized religious denomination in this part of the country. Mr. Morris and his wife-Mary Wells, after whom he named the town-were members of the Society of Friends, generally known as Quakers, as were, also, all the leading members of the land company. Realizing the importance of having a religious organization in his new settlement, Mr. Morris determined to build a church. There were few people to attend it, and his wife was the first and only female resident of the new town at that time; but if they had a church, he

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argued, it would bring the surrounding settlers together occasionally, and be instru- mental in promoting their welfare.

The church was constructed of logs, which were hewed on one side and dove- tailed together at the corners, and stood facing the square on the rear of the lot now occupied by the law offices of Sherwood & Owlett. The first buildings erected by the early settlers were generally made of round logs, and were known as cabins. The hewed log building belonged to what might be denominated the secondary or advanced stage of architecture, and was regarded as a great improvement over the cabin style, just as the modern cottage house of to-day is considered an improve- ment over the square frame, or box house, of forty years ago, without porches or projecting windows, halls, or any internal conveniences whatever.

The Quaker Meeting House, therefore, was the finest building in the settlement and attracted attention from far and near. Its exact size is not given in any of the early records, but tradition says it was sixteen by twelve feet.

When completed there were no ministers to hold stated meetings, but Mr. Morris, according to the custom of the Society of Friends, officiated himself occa- sionally, or when the spirit prompted him to act. His wife was very active as a member and did much towards keeping the church together. There was a large settlement of Quakers at what is now known as Pennsdale, in Lycoming county. There a log Quaker church had been built as early as 1791 or 1792, and was the first of the kind in this part of the State. As the Morris and Ellis families had become related by marriage, there was frequent communication between them, and the Quakers of Muncy valley aided the church at Wellsboro. And through the sympathy and moral support of the latter, ministers of high standing occasionally made the toilsome journey over the State road from Newberry to hold meetings at the little log church in the wilderness.

'Twas only just a little church 'way out there in the pines, Where you hear the thrushes singin' an' the blooms are on the vines; Where the wildwood roses clustered with daisies white as snow, An' the brown bees bent the blossoms in the days of long ago.

'Twas only just a little church, without these steeples high, That seemed to touch the windows of the blue and bendin' sky; No style at all about it, an' all the week so still- With only just the bird songs an' the rattle o' the rill.

The Quaker Meeting House was often used for other than religious purposes, for we are informed that the first meeting of the commissioners was held there October 8, 1808, for the purpose of organizing.

After the death of the founder and his wife the Quaker church went into decline, and as the membership decreased it soon ceased to exist. The descendants of Mr. Morris drifted into the Episcopal church, and other denominations soon sprung up. The old building stood as a landmark for many years and was pointed to with pride by the early settlers. It was still standing after 1830, but in such a crumbling condition that it was soon afterwards torn down to make room for more modern improvements.

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ST. PAUL'S PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

This is the oldest existing religious organization in Wellsboro, According to the records, the first Episcopal service was held in the court house, Wednesday, August 22, 1838, by Rev. Charles Breck, then in deacon's orders, who had arrived in Wellsboro the day before. At that time there was no church building in the borough, the old Quaker Meeting House having either been dismantled or so far fallen into decay that it could not be used.

It is said that the lack of religious interest at this time led a number of the leading citizens to call a public meeting to consider what was best to be done. The Quaker church had so few followers that it had no longer an organization, and as the population of the borough and the surrounding country was gradually increasing, it was evident that something must be done to foster a greater religious interest. The question was to whom they should apply for a minister. The choice was between the Presbyterians and the Episcopalians; and as there was a sentiment in favor of the latter on the part of the prominent citizens present, the meeting decided to try and secure a minister of that denomination. A committee consisting of James Lowrey and Joshua Sweet was appointed and instructed to proceed and carry out the wishes of the meeting. Not understanding diocesian boundaries, the committee addressed their first application to the Rev. Richard Smith, rector of the church in Elmira. He informed them that as their territory belonged to the diocese of Pennsylvania, they should apply to Bishop Onderdonk, of Philadelphia, for instruction. A letter was accordingly forwarded to the bishop, who transmitted it to Mr. Breck, then a student in the General Theological Seminary, New York, who was so impressed with the application that he hastened to their assistance.

On visiting the principal families of the village, after his arrival, Mr. Breck failed to find a single communicant and he was almost discouraged. In the whole town there were less than half a dozen professed Christians, notwithstanding one of the best academies in northern Pennsylvania had flourished there for many years. This seems almost incredible, and it can only be accounted for on the ground of the isola- tion of the place and its primitive condition.

Mr. Breck saw an excellent field before him for missionary labor and he addressed himself to the work. The second Sunday after his arrival he was met at the door of the court house by the deputy sheriff, who informed him that the authorities had decided not to permit the building to be further used for religious meetings. This was a surprise, but it did not discourage the young minister. He withdrew to the school house near by and held religious services, and in that building he officiated for some time afterward, until the upper part of the Academy was prepared with a vestry room, desks, seats and a small organ, kindly loaned for the use of the congregation by Levi I. Nichols, who also served as organist for many years. The infant church, of course, labored under great disadvantages from the fact that the people were nearly all ignorant of the Episcopal liturgy and offices; and it is probable, too, that there were some prejudices that had to be overcome.

But the seed had been sown. On October 30, 1838, about two months after Mr. Breck's arrival, a meeting was held at the office of James Lowrey and a parish was organized, by the adoption of the form of charter recommended by the con- vention of the diocese; and at the same time and place wardens and vestrymen

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WELLSBORO (CONTINUED).

were elected as follows: Benjamin B. Smith, Levi I. Nichols, Dr. Otis L. Gibson, Joshua Sweet (afterward a clergyman of the church), James Lowrey, and John L. Robinson. On application to the legislature the parish was duly incorporated under the name of the rector, wardens and vestrymen of St. Paul's Church, Wellsboro.

A thorough organization having been effected, the next step was to erect a church building. The work was undertaken and such good progress was made that on April 15, 1839, the corner stone was laid, and on the first of the following December the building was occupied for the first time as a place of worship. It was consecrated September 12, 1841, Bishop Onderdonk officiating. It was a modest building, cost- ing only $3,000, but it answered the purpose. The organ, blinds and chairs cost about $400. Galleries were afterward erected at an expense of $667. Including the cost of the bell, the sum total for completing the church edifice, furnishing, etc., was about $4,065.

This was a great triumph for the young rector, who had commenced his labors under discouraging conditions. Mr. Breck continued as rector for ten years, resign- ing in 1848. When he terminated his labors with the parish the names of the vestry- men were: James Lowrey, Samuel Dickinson, William Bache, and James P. Magill; and of the wardens: Dr. Otis L. Gibson and John L. Robinson. During the rector- ship of Mr. Breck, Judge Samuel W. Morris generously donated the parish the site of the present rectory. At the time of Mr. Breck's resignation the number of communicants was ninety. Of these twelve were originally Episcopalians, eight came from the Methodists, fifteen from the Quakers, thirty-one from the Presbyte- rians, ten from the Congregationalists, eight from the Baptists, and six from the Unitarians. Mr. Breck took charge of the Sunday-schools himself, and when he retired there were three, numbering 150 scholars.

After the retirement of Mr. Breck in 1848 he was succeeded by the Rev. A. A. Marple, who was called by the vestry and took charge of the parish October 1st, of that year. The rectory was built in 1850 and occupied in July of that year. It cost $1,300 and afforded a comfortable residence for the rector and his family.

After a ministry of more than fourteen years, Mr. Marple resigned and removed from Wellsboro in 1863. Between the years 1863 and 1872 the parish was in charge of Revs. George H. Jenks, Henry J. Van Allen, J. B. Calhoun, John A. Bowman, and S. K. Karcher. Then, at the earnest solicitation of the parish, Rev. Charles Breck, D. D., returned and took charge in December, 1872. He had been gone twenty-four years, almost a quarter of a century! His return to the church he had founded nearly thirty-five years before was the cause of a happy reunion-a reunion in which rector and communicants joined in the most refreshing and loving manner.

During the year 1873 the old rectory, built in 1850, was sold and removed and a new one erected at a cost of $7,000. It was much more comfortable than the old one, as well as a credit to the parish. Sheds were put up at the rear of the church and a new bell purchased. Dr. Breck remained as rector until 1884, when he again resigned and made a trip to Europe, having in the meantime lost his wife by death. After his return from abroad he officiated for a short time at Scranton and then at Wilmington, Delaware, when he retired from active work. His death occurred at Barrytown, on the Hudson, June 12, 1891. His second wife, Mary, daughter of Judge Williston, survived him and resides in Wellsboro.

WELLSBORO (CONTINUED).

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When Dr. Breck resigned in 1848 he took charge of a church at Rockdale, Dela- ware, where he remained several years. He was then called to the rectorship of Trinity Church, Wilmington, which he held for twelve years, and then went to Cleveland, where he remined three years, returning to Wellsboro in 1872.

The ancestors of Dr. Breck belonged in New England and were identified with the Revolution. His parents having settled in or near Philadelphia our subject was born there. He received a good education, entered the ministry, as already stated, and commenced his career at Wellsboro by founding the Episcopal church in 1838. His exact age is unknown, but is supposed to have been between seventy-five and seventy-seven years. He had four children by his first marriage, but they are all de- ceased.

Rev. W. G. Ware succeeded Dr. Breck, taking charge of the parish September 1, 1884. He remained as rector until April 30, 1889, when he resigned to accept a call elsewhere. He was succeeded by the Rev. A. W. Snyder August 1, 1890, who re- mained until February 15, 1894. . The present rector, Rev. William Heakes, came June 15, 1894.

St. Paul's is steadily gaining in strength. The communicants number about 200; the Sunday-school comprises 125 scholars. The rector serves as superintendent. There are about 500 volumes in the library.

As the old church had become too small, the vestry, in December, 1895, purchased part of the Bingham lot, on the corner of Pearl and Charles streets, near the present church edifice. The price paid was $3,000. In January, 1897, from eight bids submitted, for erecting the new church edifice, the vestry accepted that of the Wellsboro Building and Manufacturing Company. The new church will stand on the corner of Pearl and Charles streets, facing the public square, and is to be con- structed of Antrim stone. The main building will consist of a nave and transepts with two vestibules in front and a broad choir and chancel at the rear. The west cor- ner will be marked by a large battlemented tower 69 feet high, and at the south- western side will be clustered the vestry, sacristy, two choir rooms and a chapel or assembly room. The style of the edifice will be what is known as Romanesque, all the arches being semi-circular, and the walls are to be laid in random courses, there being few horizontal lines. It is expected that the building will be completed before the close of 1897. The cost will be about $20,000. The Bingham office, which occupied the lot for many years, has been removed immediately north of its old site. Besides affording the congregation a comfortable and commodious house of worship, the new edifice will be a notable addition to the architecture of the borough.

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF WELLSBORO.

This church was organized February 11, 1843. There was no church edifice at that time and meetings were held in the court house. Rev. Thomas Foster supplied the pulpit a year and gathered a membership in Wellsboro and at Pine Creek, now Ansonia, of about thirty persons. Mr. Foster was a son of General Foster, of Harris- burg, and was received into the church September 4, 1834. He was a graduate of Dickinson College, Carlisle.

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History of Tioga County, Pennsylvania, Part 37

Author: Publication date: 1897 Publisher: Harrisburg : R. C. Brown Number of Pages: 1454

Author:
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Harrisburg : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1454