History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 155

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1216

USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 155

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Banks .- Application was made to the Legislature of the State July 21, 1853, for the incorporation of the Canonsburg Savings-Fund Society, with a capital of $50,000. No action was taken until 1855, when it was incorporated by act approved April 20, 1855. It soon after went into operation, and was in existence for about fifteen years, closing in April, 1869. Its first cashier was Samuel R. Williams, who had pre- viously been Professor of Natural Sciences in Jeffer- son College. This position was occupied for several years previous to the close of the institution by John E. Black, Esq.

The Farmers' Bank of Deposit was organized March, 1865. Its board of directors was constituted as fol- lows: James Craighead, president; B. South, secre- tary and treasurer ; R. C. Hamilton, John Chambers, and Adam Edgar. This institution opened an office on Pike Street, Canonsburg, and continued business till January, 1880, when it closed and was succeeded by the Canonsburg Savings-Bank, which opened for

Jas. C. Dickson

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CANONSBURG BOROUGH.

business Jan. 14, 1880, in the same office, where it continued till January, 1881, when it was removed to the new banking-office now occupied by the Canons- burg Bank (limited). The business was closed up by the stockholders, Feb. 9, 1882, and the property trans- ferred to the Canonsburg Bank (limited). The last mentioned institution was organized with a capital of $60,000, and opened for business on the 9th of Feb- ruary, 1882, in the office previously occupied by the Canonsburg Savings-Bank. The present officers are: Directors, William Martin (president), J. C. McNary (secretary and treasurer), Adam Edgar, S. B. McPeak, W. R. McConnell. Assistant cashier, Henry Bennett.

The Canonsburg Library .- To give a complete history of the Canonsburg Library it is necessary to go back of the present organization a number of years. In the early summer of 1848 two literary societies were formed by the students of Olome Institute, a school for girls, under the charge of Mrs. O. J. French. The Philalethian Society was organized June 22d, and the Philadelphian at or about the same time. The early minutes of the latter society are not to be found. Measures were at once taken to found a library for each society. At a meeting of the Phil- alethian Society, held on June 26th, a plan for secur- ing subscriptions was adopted. In due time these libraries were built up and served the purpose in- tended. The institute closed in 1864, and the libraries remained in the old seminary building on Main Street until November, 1866, when the resident members of the two societies held a joint meeting and agreed to present the books to the Students' Christian Associa- tion of Washington and Jefferson College of Canons- burg. When it had been decided to remove the college to Washington, the members of the Students' Christian Association, at a regular meeting in May, 1869, formally weturned these books to the donors. The books were removed from the college building to the residence of Mrs. Jane Martin, on Pike Street, where they remained until 1879.

On the evening of Feb. 7, 1879, a meeting of citi- zens which was largely attended was held in the pub- lic school-house, to consider the expediency of estab- lishing a public library. It was resolved to go forward in the matter, and the following committee was ap- pointed to prepare a constitution : Rev. J. M. Smith, T. M. Potts, Miss Mary Martin, and Miss Rachel J. Douds, At a meeting held on February 21st a con- stitution was reported and adopted, and the Canons- burg Library Association organized, with the follow- ing-named officers : President, Rev. John Speer ; Vice-President, Miss Mary Martin ; Secretary, Ed. W. Mouck; Treasurer, William H. Heagare; Audi- tors, Samuel Munnel, Miss Mary Watson, and Miss Alice Y. McGinnis. The offer of the northeast room in the second story of W. H. S. Ritchie's business block was accepted as a library room.

At a meeting of the resident members of the Phila- lethian and Philadelphian Societies, the books of their

respective libraries were loaned to the Canonsburg Library Association, and these formed the nucleus of the present library. The first funds of the association were raised by voluntary subscription, and means for the purchase of new books from time to time have been mainly raised from the proceeds of public en- tertainments. The fee for regular membership is two dollars, and one dollar yearly dues, but any one can have the use of the library by the payment of one dollar a year.

The number of books received from the two literary societies was about five or six hundred. The number of books now catalogued is about twelve hundred, embracing a carefully selected list of books of poetry, travel, biography, history, science, fiction, religion, and miscellaneous. The number of books annually taken out by the readers is a little less than twenty- five hundred. Much of the success of the library has been due to the earnest and persevering efforts of a number of ladies of Canonsburg. During the first year Mrs. Nannie Bebout occupied the position of librarian, but since then that office has been filled by Miss Rachel J. Douds. The present . officers are : President, T. M. Potts ; Vice-President, Miss Lizzie Barnett; Secretary, William McEwen; Treasurer, William H. Heagan ; Auditors, Samuel Munnel, Miss Kate Herriott, and William M. Roberts.

Schools .- The history of the Canonsburg Academy, Jefferson College, Theological Seminary, Olome In- stitute, and the present academy will be found in the general history of the county. This sketch refers en- tirely to what were known as the pay schools, and the public schools which succeeded them. The first mention of a teacher in the town not directly con- nected with the college is found in 1811. In Janu- ary of that year the Rev. D. D. Graham advertised to. open "a series of instructions on the study of rhetoric and belles-lettres, comprehending the science of philology." In the year 1816 a brick school-house (which is still standing) was erected on Water Street, and in July of that year application was made to the Council by a number of inhabitants for two or three feet off the side of Water Street for school purposes. It was "Resolved by the authority of the Town Council that forty feet in length and three feet in breadth off the south side of Water Street, anywhere opposite Alexander Murdoch, Esq.'s lotts on said street, be granted in perpetuity to Craig Ritchie, Esq., John Watson, Esq., Dr. Samuel Murdoch, and others, sub- scribers (and their successors) to a paper containing articles of association for building and maintaining a School-House in the borough of Canonsburg, dated the - day of August, 1816." It is evident from this that a board of trustees was at that time organ- ized and in operation, and that this action was taken for the purpose of enlarging the school-house lot. But little is known of the school, except that it was in operation many years.

The history of the schools of Canonsburg after

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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

the passage of the school law in 1834 is identical with that of Chartiers township, of which the town formed a part of one of the districts. Upon a peti- tion to the proper authorities the town of Canons- burg became erected into a separate and distinct school district, and the next fall and winter a portion of Chartiers township was added, and the whole erected into an independent school district, which it still continues. In the year 1844 the Town Council erected a two-story brick edifice on the ground do- nated by Col. John Canon for school purposes, which is the lot upon which the old stone college stood. In this building the two lower rooms and one upper room were devoted to school purposes, and the upper rooms were used for a town hall. The school board of Chartiers and later of Canonsburg had the privi- lege of the building for school purposes free of charge. The act of Assembly authorizing the erection of Canonsburg into a separate and independent school district was approved by the Governor April 1, 1857. A board of directors was elected April 24th, which was organized on the 2d of May the same year. The board consisted of Rev. William Smith, Benja- min South, J. L. Cochran, Dr. John Weaver, James Mccullough, and Dr. J. G. Dixon. Rev. William Smith was chosen president; Benjamin South, treas- urer; and J. L. Cochran, secretary. At this time there were two public schools in the borough. The schools were graded the year before the erection of the new district, and a third department added.

On the 17th of March, 1858, a portion of one of the Chartiers districts adjoining was added to the district. In 1863 a school was established for colored pupils. A house was erected for their use on the lot granted to the African Methodist Episcopal Society by the Legislature, and was used without change until 1870, when it was enlarged and improved and is now in use. In 1877 the board of directors decided to erect a new school-house with modern improvements. Plans and specifications were obtained, and contract made for its erection for the sum of five thousand two hundred dollars. The building was completed for the sum specified, and was furnished for three hundred dollars. It was first occupied Nov. 1, 1877.

The principals from the erection of the independ- ent district have been as follows: William G. Fee ; Campbell ; B. F. Lakin, 1865-66; J. P. Taylor, 1867; William H. Garrett, 1868-69; T. A. Elliot, 1870; Miss Eliza Frazer, 1871; W. T. Slater, 1872; E. W. Mouck, 1873-74; William Braddock, 1875; William Whitely, 1876; E. W. Mouck, 1877-78; William M. Stoody, 1879-80; William M. Roberts, 1881. The present number of scholars is 147 males and 115 females, with four teachers in charge. The receipts for school purposes in 1881 were $2565.71, and expenses $2300.

Sabbath-Schools .- The first Sabbath-school organ- ized in Canonsburg was established Oct. 25, 1817, by the students of Jefferson College. A constitution

was made and adopted and signed by the follow- ing persons: William C. Blair, Joshua Moore, A. McCandless, Alpheus Coles, John Moore, Richard Brown, and Alexander Williamson. The officers were William C. Blair, president; Joshua Moore, secretary; A. McCandless, treasurer. The school opened with sixty scholars, and continued until each of the churches in the town established a Sabbath- school, when it was discontinued. At present each of the local churches has a flourishing Sabbath-school connected with it.

Chartiers United Presbyterian Congregation.1 -The first action by the people in this section of country which resulted in the formation of the church now known as the Chartiers United Presbyterian Con- gregation was taken in the spring of 1774, at which time a petition was sent to Philadelphia asking for an election of elders. At what particular time this request was granted and the congregation of Char- tiers formally organized is not known. The Rev. Matthew Henderson, who was the third missionary of the Associate Church who came to this country, was settled at Oxford, Chester Co., Pa., and it is believed that he soon after (in the next year) visited this place, and again in 1779. It was not, however, until 1781 or 1782 that he received a call from the congregations of Chartiers and Buffalo and was settled as pastor over these churches. In Sprague's Annals occurs the fol- lowing in reference to Mr. Henderson : "It is prob- able that he commenced the removal of his family to the West in the year 1781, or it may be 1782." " After proceeding some distance," continues the biographer, "reports of the disturbances caused by the Indians reached them, and excited such an alarm that he left his family at Conagogeague, and proceeded alone to his new charge. The family remained here about a year, in a very uncomfortable situation, having no better dwelling than a rude cabin. Nor was their condition in this respect greatly improved when they were once more united by their removal to the scene of Mr. Henderson's labors. ... For several years after Mr. Menderson's settlement in Chartiers in 1782 he was the only minister of the Associate Church west of the mountains. In consequence of this he had the care not only of his own widely-extended flock, but of several vacancies in the neighborhood."

It is proper to say that Mr. Henderson, and it may be his congregations, acquiesced in the union of 1782, which resulted in the formation of the Associate Re- formed Church. In the year 1789, however; they re- turned to the Associate Church. He continued to be their pastor until the sixtieth year of his age, and the thirty-seventh of his ministry, when, on the second day of October, 1795, he was killed by the falling of a tree. More extended mention will be made of the

1 This history is prepared from a discourse entitled " Chartiers Congre- gation and its Pastors," by Rev. J. T. Cooper, D.D., of the United Pres- byterian Theological Seminary of Allegheny, Pa., and delivered Nov. 4, 1875.

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Rev. Matthew Henderson in the history of Chartiers township, where he was an early settler.

Mr. Henderson having been removed by Provi- dence, in 1795, from the congregation, Rev. John Smith, as it appears from the minutes of the session, became its pastor about the 15th of November, in the year 1796. Mr. Smith, according to Miller's sketches, was sent to this country by the Associate Synod of Scotland, in the year 1770, in company with a Mr. John Roger. He appears to have taken an active part in the negotiations in relation to the union be- tween the Associate and Reformed Presbyterian Churches, and, according to Miller's sketches, voted for it. At that time he was settled in Middle Octo- rara. How long he remained in this place we are unable to say. He continued the pastor of Chartiers only a few years, for it appears from the minutes of the Presbytery that he was released on the 21st of January, in the year 1802. He was also pastor at the same time of the congregation of Peters Creek, from which he was released. He is said to have been a man of superior intellectual powers and a very pop- ular speaker. It is painful, however, to have to re- cord the fact that Aug. 31, 1803, he was suspended from the ministry by the Presbytery of Chartiers.

On the 14th of April, 1802, a call was moderated in Chartiers congregation by Mr. Henderson, which resulted in the choice of Mr. Hamilton. He was probably the father of Mr. William Hamilton, whom some of you will remember as a student at college and the theological seminary. This call was de- clined.

The congregation of Chartiers, on the 11th of April, 1805, passed the following resolutions, John Hay, chairman : " Resolved, That whatever candidate will have a majority of votes, the whole congregation will join in calling for him. Resolved, That whatever min- ister the congregation will call at this time they will pay him annually £120, Pennsylvania currency, and the commissioners are authorized to assure the Pres- bytery of this. Resolved, Unanimously, that the con- gregation will give a call to the Rev. Mr. Ramsey."

Accordingly, on the 4th of September, 1805, Mr. James Ramsey was ordained and installed pastor of this congregation. Mr. Allison preached on the'oc- casion from 2 Cor. viii. 23 (part of the last clause). He also addressed a charge to the pastor, elders, and congregation, respectively. In the evening a sermon was preached by Mr. Anderson on Psalms cii. 16. This relationship, thus solemnly formed, was con- tinued until June 12, 1849, when Dr. Ramsey was released at his own request. He departed this life in Frankfort, at the residence of his son-in-law, Dr. McElwee, on the 6th of March, 1855, within a few days of having completed his eighty-fourth year.

After the release of Dr. Ramsey, in June, 1849, the congregation remained vacant until the 12th of May, 1853, when Rev. John Barr Clark, D.D., was ordained and installed as its pastor. Dr. Clark was born near Ca-

diz, Harrison Co., Ohio, Oct. 9, 1827. After a suitable training by godly parents, he entered Franklin Col- lege, at New Athens, Ohio, when he was sixteen years of age, and attended its sessions without interruption until he graduated on the 15th of September, 1848. On the 14th of November, 1848, he entered the Asso- ciate Theological Seminary located in this place, and completed the prescribed course of study in March, 1851. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Muskingum in the same year, and sent as a mis- sionary to the State of Michigan, where he continued preaching during the year, spending a considerable portion of his time in the city of Detroit, where, as the result of his labors, a congregation was organized which numbers at present nearly three hundred mem- bers. Having in the summer of 1852 received a unanimous call to become pastor of this congrega- tion, he was, on the 15th of May, 1853, ordained and installed as its pastor. His able and successful min- istry the people of this congregation continued to enjoy until Aug. 9, 1860, when he was released, at his own request, with the view of becoming the pas- tor of the Second United Presbyterian congregation of Allegheny, where he labored until his death, Jan. 13, 1872.

His services as a pastor in Allegheny were for some time interrupted by the late war, in the interest of which his feelings were ardently enlisted. He was appointed colonel of the One Hundred and Twenty- third and One Hundred and Ninety-third Pennsyl- vania Regiments, in which capacity he served his country in the years 1862-64, commanding the love of his soldiers, the respect and confidence of his fellow- officers, and the gratitude of his country. It should be noted, that after the resignation of the chaplain of the regiment, Dr. Clark performed the duties of chap- lain in addition to those of commanding officer.

Prior to its interment, his lifeless body was taken into the church in which he had so often proclaimed the gospel of the grace of God. Thousands crowded there to look for the last time upon his manly form now prostrate in death. From that place his body was conveyed by a large number of the members of his flock and personal friends to the cemetery near Cadiz. An imposing and handsome monument of granite, about twenty-six feet in height, the gift of a number of his personal friends and admirers, now marks the spot where repose the mouldering remains of one who so often thrilled by his eloquence and drew to himself, as the magnate draws the steel, the hearts of thousands. The monument was placed there, with appropriate ceremonies, on the 30th of June, 1875. On this occasion impressive addresses were delivered by Revs. Mr. Norcross and Mr. T. H. Hanna, and an extended and graphic sketch of the deceased, particularly while connected with the army, was read by Mr. John S. Nichol.

Dr. Clark was in many respects a remarkable man. Possessing a commanding appearance, and a strong,

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clear, and resonant voice, and devoted to his work, he was very popular as a preacher. As a pastor he was greatly beloved by the members of his flock, both here and in the city of Allegheny. He possessed one power to a marvelous degree,-that of remembering the names of the members of his congregation. It has been said that there was scarcely a man, woman, or child in his congregation or Sabbath-school in Allegheny (both these were very large) whose sur- name and even Christian name he could not recall without any difficulty. Indeed, it was customary with him to familiarly address the members of his charge and his more intimate acquaintances by their Christian names. This, together with the fact that he was remarkably facetious, will account for the very strong hold which he had upon the hearts of his members, and of the deep regret that was felt by this congregation when, after a pastorate of seven years, he concluded to accept the call made to him by the Second United Presbyterian congregation of Alle- gheny.

Rev. D. H. French became pastor of the congrega- tion May 2, 1861, and was released, at his own request, in June, 1866. During the vacancy of the congrega- tion, in the year 1869, the present house of worship was erected.

On the 1st of December, 1870, the Rev. D. M. B.' McLean formally took charge of the congregation, and in the spring of the same year this house was finished and occupied. Mr. McLean served the church acceptably, and died March 21, 1880, while still in charge. Since that time the pulpit has been filled by supplies only.

The following persons were elders at the time the call was extended to the Rev. Matthew Henderson, namely : James Scott, John White, Nicholas Little, and David Reed. In addition to the above the fol- lowing is a list of those who have been, or still are, elders in this congregation :

Elders in 1799 .- Joshua Anderson, John Hay, Nicholas Little, John McCall, Thomas McNary, Andrew Munroe, Jeremiah Simpson, John White, Samuel Murdoch, Samuel Agnew, David Reed.

Ordained April 17, 1811 .- James McNary, John Roberts, Samuel Fergus, James Martin.

Ordained June 18, 1816 .- Abraham Anderson, James Lee, John McNary, George Murray, Robert Henderson.

Ordained May 21, 1825 .- Alexander Reed, Matthew McNary.

Ordained May 10, 1832 .- James Moore, Joseph McNary, James Wilson, Andrew Russel.

Ordained Feb. 25, 1841 .- W. H. McNary, David S. Stevenson.

Ordained Feb. 15, 1854 .- Joseph Reid, Thomas Miller, Samuel Ralston, William Martin, Samuel Pollock, James Ralston.

Ordained May 12, 1864 .- R. H. Russel, John Camp- bell, Samuel McNary, Robert E. Wilson.

Ordained 1878 .- John B. May, James R. McNary, J. W. Martin.

The present board of elders consists of John B. May, James R. McNary, J. W. Martin, Samuel Pol- lock, Thomas Miller, William Martin, R. H. Russell. The congregation has at present two hundred and seventy-four members.

The following named went out from Chartiers con- gregation and became ministers of the gospel : Revs. Ebenezer Henderson, Abram Anderson, D.D., Alex. T. McGill, D.D., James Adams, Thomas Wilson, James W. Logue, J. T. Cooper, D.D., James P. Ram- sey, Abram Anderson, Hugh Sturgeon, James Bal- lentine, T. H. Beveridge, D. W. Carson, J. G. Carson, D.D., J. I. Frazer, A. R. Anderson, W. L. Wilson, William Ballentine, T. J. Wilson, J. W. McNary, W. P. McNary, S. B. McBride, George R. Murray, J. B. Whitten.

On the 26th of December, 1797, Nicholas Little, Samuel Agnew, Thomas McNary, David Reed, John Hays, John White, and Jeremiah Simpson, trustees of the associate congregation of Chartiers township, purchased four acres, two roods, and fifteen perches of land of John Canon, for which they paid £45. It was situated about one mile southwest of Canonsburg. On this land the congregation erected their first meeting-house and buried their dead. The house was built of round logs daubed with clay, some of the logs having been cut to give light. The seats were of round poles laid on blocks. It had no fire- place, stove, nor chimney. There the congregation would sit for two sermons, in cold winter days, with- out fire, and no glass in the windows. This house in time gave place to the second one, which was erected on the same lot. It was built of limestone, and was taken down about the year 1834 to give place for the erection of the brick church, which was soon after built.

While the stone house was standing it was cus- tomary on communion occasions to meet in the tent, as it was called. Here also preaching services were conducted when the day was pleasant. Four posts, about twelve feet high, were set in the ground under a grove of ash-trees. The preacher was elevated about four feet. His back and head were shielded from the rain and sun by boards attached to the posts. These posts were boarded about half-way up on the sides. In front there were no boards. The communion table was made of long, white ash logs, rough hewed on three sides. These logs rested on blocks. The seats were also blocks. The table was usually filled from five to seven times, and the ser- vices were sometimes continued until it was too dark to read the concluding psalm, which was usually the twenty-third. The Twenty-second Psalm, to the tune of Dublin, was invariably sung, line by line, in going to and returning from the table.

The brick church was used by the congregation until. 1869, when it was torn down, the society having

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purchased a lot of land in Canonsburg, and during the fall of 1869 and winter of 1870 erected the pres- ent brick church edifice, fifty-six by eighty feet, at a cost of eighteen thousand dollars. It was dedicated in March, 1870, by the Rev. T. B. Hanna, now of Monmouth, Ill.

The Presbyterian Church of Canonsburg.1-In 1830 a petition was presented to the Presbytery of Ohio (now Pittsburgh) by the people of Canonsburg and vicinity, asking for the organization of a new church to be located in the village of Canonsburg. The subject, however, was deferred until the next meeting, in the hope that some arrangement might be made that would prevent a division of the Char- tiers Church, then under the pastoral charge of Rev. John McMillan, D.D. This it seemed important to avoid, if possible, as neither of the parties could sup- port the stated ministrations of the gospel separately. In the mean time an effort was made to unite the peti- tioners and congregation on some plan that would not imply a division. But as there seemed to be little or no prospect of accomplishing this, the following reso- lution was adopted by the Presbytery : " That the re- quest of the people of Canonsburg be, and hereby is, granted, and that they be, and hereby are, erected into a distinct congregation, to be called the Presby- terian congregation of Canonsburg." Accordingly, on the 25th of October, 1830, a meeting was held in the college chapel in Canonsburg, at which the church was duly organized. An election was entered into, and Henry Bracken (formerly a member of the Char- tiers Session), John Hutchinson, and James Hanson were chosen ruling elders. Messrs. Hutchinson and Hanson were subsequently ordained. In April, 1831, five months after the organization of the church, the number of members, according to the first roll that appears on the record, was seventy-nine. A promi- nent feature in the early government of the church was the faithful and judicious exercise of discipline. Various trials are recorded in the minutes of the ses- sion, arising from different offenses on the part of church members, but more frequently from the use and sale of intoxicating liquors. In either case the offender was promptly suspended from the commun- ion of the church until he gave satisfactory evidence of repentance and reformation.

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History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 155

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co. Number of Pages: 1216

Author: Crumrine, Boyd, 1838-1916; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Hungerford, Austin N
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : H.L. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1216