USA > Pennsylvania > Huntingdon County > Huntingdon > The Historical memorial of the centennial anniversary of the Presbytery of Huntingdon : held in Huntingdon, Pa., April 9, 1895 : 1795-1895 > Part 26
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* In the year 1856 this church contributed six hundred and twenty-five dollars to church extension in Tyrone City.
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OF THE PRESBYTERY OF HUNTINGDON.
On his resignation, Mr. John Elliott was called to the pastorate, with a view to effecting a union of the two churches. February 22, 1859, the congregation of the First Church passed unanimously a resolution cordially inviting the Second Church to unite with them in all their church privileges, and to unite with them in prayer to God for his spirit, that all might be " revived and united together as one man for the pro- motion of God's glory." It was thought by some that the use of the General Assembly's book containing fifty selections from Rous's version at the back would further union and harmony. Some time afterwards Mr. Elliott, no doubt from a sincere desire to promote a full and cordial union, and from a generous desire to make the friends of Rous's psalmody, many of whom were on that occasion present for the first time in the First Church since the division, feel more comfortable, announced that he would hereafter use one of the selections occasionally and requesting the people to provide themselves with books containing them. This created a tremendous excitement : there were no stools hurled at his head, as in the memorable case of Jennie Geddes in the Grayfriar's church, but hymn-books were shut with a slam and thrown down with a spirit of strong disapproval. The Session sustained the action of the pastor, but afterwards some of them blamed him. He seems to have been moved therein by a very worthy motive, but it would have been safer to have had the action of the Session beforehand. And we fear that the congregation forgot their "cordial and unanimous" resolution of February 22, as well as the becoming propriety of God's house.
The Second Church disbanded and came into the First, forty in number, by certificate, at the next communion, May, 1859. Mr. Elliott resigned in 1861.
Rev. William Alexander, then a licentiate, was stated supply for six months during 1861. He is well known in the church as professor in the Theological Seminary at San Francisco.
From 1862 to 1865 Rev. C. A. Hills was pastor. At that time there were one hundred and sixty communicants, the salary paid was one thousand dollars, and the church gave to the Board of Foreign Missions in the year 1862 twelve hundred and forty-four dollars, largely the con- tribution of David Stewart, Esq., whose family inherited his love for the mission work of the church. Mr. Hills was diligent and faithful, and, although the contention over the psalmody remained as a thorn in his flesh, being the chief cause of his removal, yet the church prospered greatly under his care.
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Before he was called the Session had decided to leave the use of the selections from Rous's version to the discretion of the pastor, and he used them part of the time. A petition numerously signed having been sent up to the Session, requesting a congregational meeting to vote whether the selections from Rous's version should or should not be used in the future, a meeting was held November 20, 1865, at which the selections were discontinued by a vote of seventy-five to twenty-four. This was after Mr. Hills resigned, but before his departure.
A complaint against the above action of the Session and congregation . was taken to Presbytery by three leaders of the Second Church, or psalmody party, who were now members of the reunited church. Pres- bytery refused to sustain the complaint, and sent down to the church the following action :
" Resolved, That, in refusing to sustain the complaint, Presbytery fully sustains the action of Session and congregation . . . complained of, and judge that hereafter it shall be under- stood that the pastor of Spruce Creek Church shall have the same liberty enjoyed by the min- ister of any other church in the matter of psalmody; for the following reasons: I, because there does not appear to have been any ground for complaint; 2, concession has failed to give peace; 3, has fostered strife ; 4, has embarrassed the labors of each successive pastor of the Spruce Creek Church, and hindered the cause of Christ."
Thus the question which had been the bone of contention and had disturbed the peace and hindered the usefulness of this church for over a quarter of a century was finally settled by Presbytery, April, 1866.
From 1866 to 1869 Rev. S. S. Orris was pastor. He was a man of scholarly attainments, deep piety, and fervent zeal, and was untiring in his efforts to further the spiritual welfare of the people. He kept no horse, but made his pastoral visits on foot, a feat little less than marvel- lous when one remembers that this is a congregation of " magnificent distances." One day, during a heavy snow-storm, a family five miles distant from the manse were surprised, on answering their door-bell, to find the pastor, and doubly surprised when they learned that he had come through the deep snow on foot to ask the daughter, who was to be married the next day, whether he might conclude the ceremony by kissing her. Another incident still more characteristic of him : a family were absent from church on Sabbath because of the bad weather; on Monday he walked four miles through the same storm to inquire the reason of their absence, and was chagrined when the head of the house replied that the weather was too bad ! Large accessions were made to the church during his pastorate. There were one hundred and forty-nine members when
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OF THE PRESBYTERY OF HUNTINGDON.
he came, and two hundred and two when he left. Mr. Orris has been the honored professor of Greek for many years in the College of New Jersey.
December 20, 1869, a call was made out for Rev. J. C. Kelley, who began his long and useful pastorate January I, was installed June 15, 1870, and resigned December, 1890. This was the longest pastorate the church ever had. This church was now harmonious after long and bitter strife, and had become one of the most influential in this part of the State, both as to the intelligence and wealth of its people. The Session was very able. In the year 1873 this church gave to Foreign Missions fourteen hundred and twenty-nine dollars, and liberally to the other boards. Mr. Kelley's ministry was signally blessed, and we are still reaping the fruits of his faithful sowing.
November 21, 1891, a call was issued for Rev. T. S. Armentrout, of New Castle Presbytery, who began preaching January 1, 1892, and was installed the following June.
This church has given three of her noble sons to the ministry of the gospel,-Rev. J. M. Goheen, missionary to India; Rev. J. C. Oliver, of Blairsville Presbytery; and Mr. J. O. C. McCracken, a member of the middle class in Alleghany Seminary. There have been many able and devoted elders in her Session during the century of her history. The Women's Auxiliary Mission Society deserves special commendation. It is now twenty-three years old, and has done much for Christ. In the century past divine grace has here had a fruitful field, in which many saintly characters have ripened for heaven; here many souls have been made white in the blood of the Lamb; many will be able to say in that great day, blessed is this Spruce Creek Church, for here I was born into the kingdom of God. May the breezes of the new century shake out the creases of the old blue banner lifted up here in the name of our God by our ancestors, and long and free may she wave over this valley; in this church may the true doctrine of the gospel ever be expounded to teach our children how to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.
T. S. ARMENTROUT.
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STATE COLLEGE.
DURING the years 1885 and 1886, there being at that time neither church nor Sabbath-school in the village of State College, Centre County, Pennsylvania, earnest efforts were made to secure some room in which to hold a Sabbath-school for children who did not attend such services elsewhere. These efforts having failed, a subscription paper was drawn up and circulated, October 21, 1886, for the erection of a building for Sabbath-school and other religious uses, the title to the property to be vested in three trustees, members of the Presbyterian Church. Among those who contributed liberally and afterwards labored earnestly for the advancement of Christian work were some who were not members of the Presbyterian body. About sixteen hundred dollars having been promised, in addition to building-lots valued at five hundred and fifty dollars, the building committee, consisting of John Hamilton, John W. Stuart, and James Y. McKee, who were also the trustees, adopted building plans for the present house of worship, and announced to a meeting of the stockholders in February, 1888, that the building was completed, at a cost of about four thousand dollars when furnished, and would be ready for use during the following month. On a Sabbath in March of that year the house was dedicated, Rev. Joshua D. Russell, of Altoona, preaching the sermon, and Rev. Robert Hamill, D.D., and Rev. George Elliott taking part in other services.
From that time forward the house thus dedicated was occupied every Sabbath by a Sabbath-school service in the morning, and also, when there was not a preaching service in the evening, by an evening prayer- meeting. In May, 1888, the Spring Creek congregation, within whose bounds this movement was, voted to give to the part of the congregation at State College one-half of the preaching service of the pastor, Rev. Robert Hamill, D.D. The Presbyterians worshipping at State College at this time became in many respects a separate organization, raising through their own officers money for congregational and Sabbath-school use, and having weekly preaching, with occasional ministration of the sacraments in their place of worship. On the first Sabbath of August, 1889, there was established in connection with this organization a Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor,-the first in Centre County,- which held weekly meetings thenceforward, and which, as well as the Sabbath-school, proved a valuable helper.
In February, 1890, the Session of the Spring Creek congregation
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STATE COLLEGE.
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OF THE PRESBYTERY OF HUNTINGDON.
showed its regard for the needs of this section by calling a meeting of the congregation at State College to elect two additional elders resident in that vicinity. James Y. McKee and George C. Butz were chosen at this meet- ing and later were ordained and installed by Rev. Dr. Hamill, the pastor.
A petition to the Presbytery of Huntingdon for an organization as a congregation was prepared and signed by sixty-two persons, members or supporters, and received the assent of Spring Creek congregation at a meeting held October 6, 1890. This petition was presented to Presby- tery at its meeting in Tyrone, October 8, 1890, by a commissioner duly appointed, and was referred to a commission, with power to act. Timely notice having been given, the commission, consisting of Rev. Dr. Hamill, Rev. Dr. Laurie, and James Harris, elder, of Bellefonte, convened at the call of the chairman at State College, December 1, 1890, and organized the State College Presbyterian Church, receiving by certificates fifty- eight persons previously members of Spring Creek congregation. These members elected as their ruling elders John Hamilton, James Y. McKee, and George C. Butz, who, having previously been elders in the Spring Creek congregation, were at once installed. The work of the commission being completed, a congregational meeting was held, and John Hamilton, John W. Stuart, and James H. Holmes were chosen trustees to manage the secular concerns of the church.
Dr. Hamill, who was pastor of the Spring Creek congregation for an uninterrupted period of forty-five years, tendered his resignation, owing to his failing health, and declared the pulpits of the now two congrega- tions vacant on November 9, 1890. From this time until February, 1892, preaching was conducted at short intervals by supplies appointed by a committee of Presbytery. On December 24, 1891, the congrega- tion suffered the loss of a wise counsellor and a faithful member in the death of one of its elders, James Y. McKee. He was a devout Christian and an active Presbyterian.
At a congregational meeting held January 19, 1892, for the purpose of choosing a pastor, a unanimous call was extended to Rev. James Heaney, who was simultaneously chosen by the Spring Creek congrega- tion to be their pastor also. The call was accepted, and regular preach- ing services, once each Sabbath, were again established. Rev. James Heaney continued to minister to this people until May 1, 1895. During this time the membership of the church steadily increased, and the last of the indebtedness incurred in building and furnishing the house of worship was removed.
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An active Ladies' Missionary Society is one of the working forces of the church, doing good service at home and abroad. The Christian Endeavor Society has trained many timid members, who have developed into active Christians, doing very efficient service, and has been a home for many students of the State College who were members of Christian Endeavor Societies in various parts of the State of Pennsylvania.
GEORGE C. BUTZ.
TYRONE.
THE first Presbyterian services were held by Rev. Daniel L. Hughes, pastor of Spruce Creek First and Sinking Valley Churches, at long but stated intervals, in the school building on Spring Street, later known as the Caldwell building. Then came the petition asking Presbytery to organize a Presbyterian Church here. The request was granted,-with grave fears, however, of its advisability,-and Revs. John Elliott, O. O. McClean, and A. B. Clarke, with Elders Jonathan Hamilton and David G. Hunter, were appointed a committee to organize a church, if the way be clear. This was at the meeting of Presbytery in Sinking Valley, October 7, 1856.
April 7, 1857, Revs. O. O. McClean and John Elliott, members of that committee, met at Tyrone, Pennsylvania, and held divine service. Rev. O. O. McClean preached from I Cor. ii. 2 : " For I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified." Adam Leffard, Mary Leffard, Joseph Hagerty, John H. Patterson, Selina G. Thomas, Elizabeth Jones, Sarah Gingerich, Keziah Donnelly, Sarah Crowther, Emily Crowther, and Margaret Peightel were among the first members. Adam Leffard and Joseph Hagerty were chosen, ordained, and installed as elders of this church.
This service was held in the United Brethren church in this place, and all other services as well, till the lecture-room of our church, then in course of erection, was ready for use, Rev. John Elliott, Presbyterial missionary, preaching and superintending the new church building, with Samuel McCamant, John H. Patterson, J. D. Bell, and Joseph Hagerty as a building committee. The church was built at a cost of three thousand five hundred dollars. The little band having done their utmost in paying for this building, the Presbytery authorized Mr. Elliott to raise such amounts from the churches as would enable the Presbytery to
1860-June to Dec.
1867-1870
1861-1864
1870-1887
1888-1893
1893-
TYRONE PASTORS.
REV. WILLIAM A. HOOPER.
REV. JOHN R. DAVIES, D.D.
REV. J. H. BARNARD, D.D.
REV. SAMUEL M. MOORE, D.D.
REV. JOHN H. CLARKE.
REV. HARVEY GRÆEME FURBAY, PH.D.
.
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OF THE PRESBYTERY OF HUNTINGDON.
recommend the church to the Board of Church Extension for an amount which would pay off the entire debt. This was done. The lot having been donated for the use of the Presbyterian Church, and the building being finished, Presbytery appointed John Scott, Esq., of Huntingdon, to draw up papers which would give the property into the hands of J. M. Harper, Adam Leffard, John Owens, L. G. Grier, and W. H. Robertson, as trustees to hold it for the Presbytery, so that, in the event of failure to build up a congregation, Presbytery might hold the property, for the purposes named, till such time as a Presbyterian congregation could be built up in Tyrone.
In the fall of 1857 Mr. Elliott accepted calls from the churches of Spruce Creek and Sinking Valley, declining the calls to Birmingham and Tyrone, very much to their discouragement.
May 6, 1858, Rev. A. P. Happer, M.D., a missionary from China, took charge of the churches of Tyrone and Birmingham as a stated supply for one year, while he sought recuperation and rest in this country. It was a year of great blessing. An election for one elder and three deacons was held August 14, 1858, resulting in the choice of Dr. William Campbell as elder, and A. A. Campbell, Samuel McCamant, and J. H. Patterson as deacons.
Rev. G. W. Thompson, of Tuscarora Valley, held a series of meetings here in the fall of 1858. He was an able and faithful preacher of the word. Only a small result was apparent at the time, but the savor of it remains, and these meetings are often referred to as seasons of much good to the membership of the church.
February 28, 1859, H. A. Campbell was elected, ordained, and installed an elder in this church. Rev. David Sterrett, of Carlisle, a member of this Presbytery, supplied Birmingham and Tyrone from May, 1859, to May, 1860.
The churches of Birmingham, Tyrone, and Logan's Valley called J. H. Barnard, a licentiate of the Presbytery, which call being accepted, Presbytery ordained and installed him as pastor June 12, 1860. This pastorate lasted till the following December, when Mr. Barnard accepted a call to become co-pastor with the venerable Dr. James Linn, of Belle- fonte, Pennsylvania.
Within a few months Mr. W. A. Hooper, a licentiate of Miami Pres- bytery, was called; the call having been accepted, he was ordained and installed as pastor November 27, 1861. June 21, 1862, Mr. John H. Patterson was elected, ordained, and installed an elder in this church.
18
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THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY
Mrs. Samuel Jones acted for a time as sexton, making fires, ringing the bell, etc. Mr. Nivling and she vied with each other in this good work. Then the members of Session took the work among themselves. From that time various sextons took charge; then the deacons took per- sonal charge; then again we had regular sextons.
Rev. John H. Clarke, of the Presbytery of Carlisle, served the united churches of Birmingham and Tyrone, as stated supply, from October, 1864. His impaired health and his other engagements forbade his accepting calls to these churches at this time.
In September, 1865, Mr. Adam Leffard, an elder in this church, was dismissed to McVeytown. September 23, 1865, W. H. Robertson was elected an elder, and inducted into office in the usual form. S. W. Barr was chosen clerk of the Session.
The church was dedicated to the service of Almighty God, about this time, by Rev. Robert Hamill, D.D.
A call for the pastoral labors of Rev. J. H. Clarke was received from the church of Birmingham (Rev. Orr Lawson, moderator), and by per- mission of the Presbytery (which met at Bell's Mills) he held this call under advisement till the next meeting of Presbytery. In the spring of 1867 Mr. Clarke also received a call from the church of Tyrone, which he accepted. The call was moderated by Rev. William Prideaux. Mr. Clarke was duly installed as pastor, Rev. R. M. Wallace presiding and proposing the constitutional questions, Rev. Orr Lawson preaching the sermon, Rev. S. S. Orris delivering the charge to the pastor, and Rev. D. H. Barron the charge to the people. Then for the first time Tyrone stood alone as a pastoral charge.
When the church was built it was called " John Elliott's folly," and when Brother Clarke was called here he was asked by some if he " ex- pected the ravens to feed him." There still lingered the feeling that the church would fail. If it was not killed, it was not for want of discour- agements : the race of Sanballats and Tobiahs evidently was not extinct.
The congregation did nobly. Mr. Clarke was a man of great culture, and brought to his work a wise head and a consecrated heart. He was a wise leader, had quick perception of what was fitting, and unerringly did it. During his labors here as stated supply and pastor twenty-seven were added on examination and forty-four by certificate. There were five adult baptisms and twenty-eight infant baptisms.
In the Birmingham field he had much more abundant results to his ministry. In the midst of much discomfort and discouragement he
BRAGDON-PIT.
TYRONE.
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OF THE PRESBYTERY OF HUNTINGDON.
labored ; the church grew much and was strengthened. A fine preacher, with a character not gilded but golden, the Lord blessed him in his work. His health failed him, and he went to the Northwest to visit his brother, hoping to be benefited by the climate. During his absence Presbytery supplied the pulpit three Sabbaths out of four, Rev. Samuel Lawrence supplying it the remainder of the time. Mr. Clarke handed in his resig- nation to Session, asking the congregation to join with him in seeking a dissolution of the pastoral relation. With extreme reluctance this was done, and the relation was dissolved in the spring of 1870.
The above is very largely a transcription of the historical sermon that was preached by Dr. Moore November 6, 1881.
Rev. S. M. Moore, D.D., received a call from this church in October, 1870, accepted it, and was installed on the 6th of December. He came to Tyrone from Alexandria. The Alexandria Church consisted of two hundred and fifty members, the Tyrone Church of seventy-eight, and there was a corresponding sacrifice in a financial point of view. Dr. Moore occupied this pulpit and continued to minister unto this church until the first day of May, 1887, when, owing to ill health, he was obliged to leave the pulpit, and on that day preached his final sermon. From the time of his resignation until the day of his death, October 14, 1895, he was an invalid.
Dr. Moore was the son of the Rev. Joshua Moore, who died while he was pastor of the East Kishacoquillas Presbyterian Church, in April, 1854, at the age of fifty-five years. Dr. Moore was born the 15th of September, 1837. He was prepared for college at the Tuscarora Acad- emy, and was graduated by Lafayette College. His theological studies were pursued at Princeton Seminary. He was married to Miss Sarah P. Johnson, of Lewistown, November 27, 1859. He was buried October 17, 1895, at Tyrone. During his pastorate of sixteen years there were received into this church on profession of faith three hundred and thirty- seven, on certificate two hundred and twenty, making a total of five hundred and fifty-seven, increasing the membership from seventy-eight to three hundred and twenty-three. Under his ministry the church had a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and large accessions were had in the years of 1871, 1872, 1874, and 1881.
Rev. John R. Davies, D.D., was installed pastor of this church in November, 1887, and continued to be its pastor until February, 1893. Dr. Davies is a graduate of Lafayette College and of Princeton Seminary. During his pastorate one hundred and ninety-two persons were added
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THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY
to the church on examination, and one hundred and forty-six on certifi- cate, making a total of three hundred and thirty-eight. This increased the membership of the church from three hundred and twenty-three to five hundred and three.
Rev. Harvey Graeme Furbay, Ph.D., was installed pastor here April 27, 1893. During his administration there have been received to date into the fellowship of this church by examination ninety-three, by certifi- cate eighty-six, making a total of one hundred and seventy-nine, increas- ing the membership from five hundred and three to six hundred and forty-five. Mr. Furbay was born at Harrisville, Ohio, April 27, 1866. He graduated from Franklin College in 1888, from the Western Theo- logical Seminary in 1891 ; was licensed by the Presbytery of St. Clairs- ville, and ordained by the Presbytery of Clarion, April 28, 1891 .*
This congregation continued to worship in the building already referred to until the new one was erected and dedicated in 1882. The building committee consisted of S. S. Blair, chairman; C. J. Kegel, secre- tary ; Colonel S. McCamant, Theodore Shirk, John F. Wilson, General R. A. McCoy, R. G. McLanathan, James A. Crawford, A. J. Whitney, and J. F. Rung.
The church building was of machine-made brick, and was sixty by eighty-five feet. The main audience-room was fifty-four by fifty-four, the lecture-room twenty-four by thirty-two, the study eighteen by twenty- four, and the parlor eighteen by twenty-four. It would seat comfortably eight hundred and twenty-five people. It cost eighteen thousand dollars. It was dedicated Sunday, March 18, 1882. The dedication sermon was preached by the Rev. W. C. Cattall, D.D., LL.D., president of Lafayette College. His text was, " And it came to pass, from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house and in the field" (Genesis xxxix. 5). The dedication prayer was made by Dr. Moore. In order to dedicate the house free of debt, nine thousand three hundred and thirty- three dollars were raised on the day of dedication.
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