USA > Pennsylvania > Two centuries of the Church of the Brethren in western Pennsylvania, 1751-1950 > Part 32
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The 1914 election of deacons has already been mentioned. Deacons elected since then were: on December 31, 1925, Ortha L. Weaver, Ralph Berkey, Stephen Hostetler; on October 7, 1935, James Cutler, C. C. Shumaker, Ralph Eppley, I. B. Wirick; on December 20, 1942, Louis Fyock, S. L. Lehman, Herbert A. Hoffman, Warren Weaver; on July 16, 1947, Blaine Faint; and on April 21, 1948, Harry C. Crist and Galen Hoffman.
Because the youth have been encouraged to express them- selves in the life of the congregation, many have gained spiritual insight whereby they have caught a vision of service to the Kingdom of God, which has in turn strengthened the congre- gation. In young people's work and especially in the work-camp movement, special mention should be made of the interest and work of Florence Seese, Wilbur Mullen, and Galen Hoffman. Under the stress of war conditions a number of the youth held to the peace position of the church and sacrificially served the church and the nation in both civilian public service and Brethren volunteer service.
The women have made a large contribution to the work of the congregation in their quiet, unassuming way. That women could carry responsibility was gradually recognized, and by 1919 two of the four delegates to District Meeting were women-Sister Ellen (Hoffman) Spenser and Mary Blough. This trend has continued until the women
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occupy perhaps half of the official positions in the congregation. The organized women's work in the congregation is divided into the aid society and the homebuilders.
The aid society was organized in 1907. In 1926, they published The Modern Cook Book, selling one thousand copies. An annual project of the aid is to make and sell mincemeat in November and December. Eighteen to twenty quilts as well as some comforters are made each year. The annual income during the past ten years has been three hundred fifty to four hundred dollars. Contributions have been made to many worthy causes.
The homebuilders' organization meets once a month. Their annual bazaar yields them approximately four hundred dollars each year. When asked, they are always ready to give help in the church kitchen.
Many consecrated men provide leadership for the congregation through the years. The men's work organization is now actively sup- porting many areas of the church program, being especially interested in furthering the new church project.
The names of O. L. Weaver, J. H. Lehman, and Blanche Wingard appear in connection with church music through the years. Others serving in the music of the church are Mrs. Galen Hoffman, Mrs. Louis Fyock, Audrey Lehman, and Blaine Faint, Jr.
The membership roll recalls the names of numerous faithful persons who were ever ready to advise and undergird the total program of the congregation through regular attendance and substantial support. A few of these are Nathaniel Blough, John L. Hoffman, and Hobart Lehman, who have been faithful janitors, and Aaron Hoffman and wife and C. C. Shumaker and wife, who have led in preparations for the love feast.
The church was the recipient of several legacies and memorials. Hiram Musselman willed two hundred dollars to the church, the interest of which was to be used to buy Testaments for all those baptized in the Scalp Level church. Joseph B. Miller later willed five hundred dollars to the church; one hundred dollars of this sum was added to the Mussel- man Fund, making it the Musselman-Miller Fund. The remainder of the Miller legacy was used to purchase a pulpit Bible and a duplicator and to paint a picture in the front of the church. Uriah Weaver willed one hundred dollars to the church, and Mrs. S. A. Weaver willed four hundred dollars, which was set apart for the organ fund.
The church gratefully accepted the gift of $1,200 from Daniel L. Statler for the purchase of a Minchell-Estey electric organ in memory of his parents, Sally and Peter B. Statler. Peter Statler, who died in 1881, was one of the early ministers of the congre- gation, preaching principally in the German language. The organ was dedicated on April 27, 1947. The organ fund of some years' standing has been continued for future use.
The Hoffman Family Reunion
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The October 18, 1950, the council meeting accepted the offer by Brother and Sister Cloyd Hostetler of five building lots on the Hostetler farm as a future church location in the rapidly developing Richland area, given in memory of his parents, Stephen and Emma Hostetler.
The Sunday school has continued to play an important part in the Christian education program of the congregation. An average attendance of two hundred seventy-three has been maintained over a period of thirty years (1920-1950). A large number have had perfect attendance records, the lowest in any one year being thirty-eight and the highest one hundred sixty-four. The length of perfect attendance records is illus- trated by that found in the Ream family, Brothers Walter and Russel currently having a record of thirty-eight years, and their father, Elmer, a record of thirty-five years. During these three decades vacation Bible schools have been conducted as part of the Christian education program of the congregation. A high level of efficiency has been maintained in Christian education, in large part because of the presence in the con- gregation of many consecrated public-school teachers. The board of Christian education in its monthly meetings through the years has kept aware of the needs of pupils and teachers and has planned workers' meetings, leadership training classes, and a curriculum to fit current needs.
The Sunday-school superintendents of the Scalp Level church from 1922 to 1950 have been: J. L. Hoffman, Ortha Weaver, W. S. Lehman, J. H. Lehman, Mrs. D. G. Faust, Amy Manges, Harry Crist, Kenneth Koontz, Warren Weaver, and Louis Fyock.
The interest of the congregation has not been held to the local level. Through the years the members have shown great interest in the circuit, district and Brotherhood programs.
Scalp Level's early interest in the missionary cause, as noted heretofore, has continued active through the years. The church participated with the neighboring congregations in the support of Sisters Anna Z. Blough, Ida Shumaker, and Olive Widdowson of the India mission, and of Sister V. Grace Clapper, daughter of Elder D. S. Clapper, of the China mission. On March 31, 1925, the congregation assumed the responsibility for the full support of Dr. Homer L. Burke of the Nigeria mission field. This support was continued although Dr. Burke returned from the field. The congregation will continue its support to the Nigeria mission through giving full support to the work of Sister Mary Beth Bieber, beginning April 1, 1951.
The church membership at the close of 1950 included five hundred ninety-four members, of whom about four hundred fifty were active (1932 Annual Conference minutes). There was at that time an enrollment of three hundred thirty in the Sunday school.
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The official board at this time was composed of the following: elders, Clarence H. Rosenberger and S. B. Hoffman; minister, Edwin C. Crist; deacons, C. C. Shumaker, Ralph Eppley, Warren Weaver, Louis Fyock, S. L. Lehman, Harry C. Crist, O. L. Weaver, James Cutler, Herbert Hoffman, Blaine Faint, and Galen Hoffman. Louis Fyock was the general Sunday-school superintendent.
CHAPTER 51. THE SHADE CREEK CONGREGATION
Mother congregation, Conemaugh, organized, 1810 Shade Creek organized separately, 1846 Present church membership, 602
Shade Creek was originally a part of the "Old Conemaugh" congregation, which, according to Howard Miller,1 was organ- ized in 1810 and at the time of his writing (1882) contained about two hundred forty-five members. For the date of the separate organization, we accept the statement of the Scalp Level min- utes of church council, which reads: "Shade Creek Church was organized in 1846." Further reasons for accepting this date are stated by the writer in the one-hundredth anniversary booklet.2
Blough's history states that the first official act, that of or- daining Christian Lehman as the first elder, "was probably about 1843 or later."3 Another fact which is of still greater significance with respect to the date of organization is that
1 Miller, Howard, Record of the Faithful, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, 1882, J. R. Cornelius. Page 15.
2 Faust, Alvin G., Centennial Anniversary-Shade Creek, 1946.
3 Blough's history. Page 451.
Berkey Church Homecoming, About 1935
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"prior to 1849 all of Somerset county, with the exception of Shade Creek congregation in the northeastern part of the county, was one congregation called the 'Glades.'"4 In that year Annual Meeting sent a committee to divide this area into four congrega- tions, as explained elsewhere, but we note that the Berlin con- gregation was bounded on the north by the Shade church. This definitely puts the Shade church on the map as a separate congre- gation in or before 1849, when Annual Meeting took this action.
In territory, the mother congregation (Conemaugh) covered all of the northern part of Somerset County, all of Cambria County, and the eastern part of Indiana County. The area extended over the entire scope of territory from the old Forbes Road or Lincoln Highway (U. S. Route 30) on the south, to beyond the Old Frankstown Road and even beyond the present William Penn Highway (U. S. Route 22) on the north. It covered the entire Allegheny tableland area, which lay between these early and more recent important routes to the West. It extended from the Laurel Hill Mountains on the west to the Alleghenies on the east, and even for a period it included Dunnings Creek in Bedford County. The line separating it from Quemahoning was established in 1889.
The church in the area just described has had a remarkable growth and is today one of the strongholds of the Church of the Brethren. When Elder Blough wrote his history, there were approximately two thousand five hundred fifty members of the Church of the Brethren and one thousand seven hundred fifty members of the Brethren (Progressive) Church in the (old Conemaugh) area.5 Today there are over five thousand three hundred members of the Church of the Brethren, alone, in this area. Shade Creek, according to Howard Miller, in 1882 had one hundred fifty members and three houses. It was exceeded in numbers at least by the Georges Creek, Indian Creek, and Johnstown congrega- tions. The bishop was Joseph Berkey.
Let us trace some of the factors which brought about this growth of the church in this community. There was first of all an influx of population from surrounding areas into this then-sparsely-settled com- munity. A map of Somerset County (1830) and one of Cambria County (1816) show only twenty families living in the area that is now Shade, Paint, Richland, and Adams townships. At this same time Jenner, Brothersvalley, and other townships were more densely populated. The roots of this congregation extend east to Bedford and even to Blair, which before 1846 belonged to Bedford and Huntingdon counties. But we must not ignore the traces into Franklin and York counties and even movements across the state line from Maryland and Virginia.
In the more densely settled neighboring areas were some churches which exerted influence upon Shade Creek and helped to shape her future history: notably the Walker and Kimmel churches south of the Lincoln Highway and the old Horner church of Conemaugh. Also
Ibid. Page 154; cf. page 61 and Holsinger, H. R., History of the Tunkers and the Brethren Church, page 566.
5 Blough, J. E., op cit. Page 69.
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some congregations to the east, especially Morrison's Cove, had much to do with the development of Shade Creek.
In the second place the missionary zeal of the early Brethren from more firmly established congregations greatly influenced the pattern of events in Shade Creek. These missionary Brethren traveled great distances to minister to the spiritual needs of members who moved into this region. These ministrations re- sulted in adding to the church many families which had not been previously associated with it. According to Holsinger,6
The Tunkers were, from the beginning, great missionary people in their own way .... It was quite common for ministers from Franklin, Cumberland and other counties to visit, once a year, the churches beyond the Alleghenies. Elder George Price, grandfather of Elder Isaac Price, made one of these mission tours.
The influence of such seed sowing cannot be estimated. It is definitely known that Morrison's Cove sent out such missionary tours to the Conemaugh-Shade area. Samuel Ullery, Martin Miller and Jacob Sny- der did missionary work and had a profound influence upon the Conemaugh and Shade Creek congregations, and apparently left marked impressions here.7
This strong teamwork and this program of regular visitation had a good effect on the Conemaugh-Shade Creek congregations.
An interesting account of such a tour is preserved. Preacher Samuel Ullery, father-in-law of Jacob Stutzman of Benshoff Hill in our area, ... made a tour among the scattered families west of the Alleghenies each August (as tradition has it) for many years. He, accompanied by Jacob Snyder, a deacon, would start without extra coat or purse, with staff in hand and walk north to where Altoona is now located and visit and preach to the families scattered in that region. Then they would follow the mountain trail to the Conemaugh Valley. Here Ullery would visit with his daughter, Mrs. Stutzman, and preach. . . . After their visit in the Conemaugh Valley, they would go south and visit the families in the Shade Creek area, likely spending a good deal of time in the home of Philip Hoffman because Mrs. Hoffman was the sister of Elder Martin Miller, Ullery's close friend and fellow preacher from Morrison's Cove. Next they would proceed to the Brothersvalley settlement, then to Meyersdale, Salis- bury, probably Will's Creek, and finally to Bedford and back home. It was ... the influence of such missionary tours and also . .. the splendid preaching of Elder Jacob Stutzman, Levi Roberts, John Mineely and others of this North Somerset section that caused the church to grow rapidly.8
These men, especially those who spoke English, also min- istered to the needs of the settlement at Dunnings Creek, by way of one of the oldest roads across the Allegheny Mountains.
Holsinger, H. R., History of the Tunkers and the Brethren Church. Page 202.
7 Middle District History. Page 137; cf. page 135.
8 Faust, Alvin G., Centennial Anniversary-Shade Creek, 1946. Page 14. Credit is due to M. J. Weaver, whose letter of May 1939 recited valuable information; and ac- knowledgement is made to E. M. Hertzler for his major part in preparation of his so-called Ninetieth Anniversary Booklet, Shade Creek, and to others who so freely offered assistance in the preparation of the manuscript.
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Dunnings Creek leaders also visited Conemaugh-Shade Creek at times and the aid was mutually helpful.
A third factor in the development of the church was the role played by some outstanding families whose leadership helped to establish the beginnings of the church and whose descendants became active and influential church workers. The Philip Hoffman family was probably the first Brethren family in Paint Township, having come "from Maryland, prior to 1795 [by way of Morrison's Cove] and settled in [what later became] Paint township."9 Sister Hoffman, as was previously stated, was a sister of Elder Martin Miller, who was an outstanding leader of the church in Morrison's Cove. The writer has made several attempts to get a complete list of the members of this family, especially those who became church officials, but without success. It is known that there were some twenty ministers, perhaps many more. There were at least a dozen in the Holsopple line alone, and about that many in the Weaver-Hoffman family that are known to the writer, which if added to the list of ministers' wives, deacons, and deacons' wives would add up to a formidable strength for the church.
This history really deserves a place among the pioneer Dun- kers of the district. The Weavers are descended from Jacob Weaver, who came as an indentured servant and sold his services for passageway from Bavaria, but who soon made for himself standing room and proved himself a capable manager and finan- cier and a good citizen of his adopted country. Though an adherent of the Mennonite faith, he was also a soldier in the Revolution. Some have tried to read certain names out of the early Dunker settler list because their names appear on military rolls, but this is an unwarranted conclusion. The stress of the times and certain freedom of conscience wrought peculiar de- cisions at times. Philip Hoffman was a soldier in the War of 1812. Others who served in the armed forces early included (Elder) Peter Maugen of Conemaugh, the Cables and Rhodes of Brothersvalley, and also the Studebakers.
9 Waterman, Watkins, op. cit. Page 528. Hoffman does not appear on the assess- ment list of the county in 1796. He does appear in Shade, then including Paint, in 1816. He may have been here much earlier.
Philip Hoffman died in Paint Township in 1854. He had two sons, Jacob and John. Jacob married Hannah Maugen (Morgan) and had a son John, and daughters Eliza- beth, wife of Philip Shaffer, and Mary, wife of Jacob Wertz, of Walnut Grove. John, son of Philip Hoffman, married Susan Wertz, had sons Samuel, Jacob and Aaron. The latter was a minister in the state of Indiana. Families of Samuel and Jacob are well represented in Shade Creek.
Philip Hoffman's daughters were Catherine Stutzman, Christina Holsopple, Sally Messabaugh, Mary Fyock, Elizabeth Helsel, Barbara Seese, Mattie Fyock, Franie Berkey, and Susan Thomas, with whom Mrs. Philip Hoffman died.
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Another leading family was that of the Berkeys, for whom the first church in the congregation was named. Blough speaks of this family "as one whose descendants also had much to do with shaping the early destinies of this large congregation." The Berkeys owned at least thirty farms within a radius of three or four miles of the Berkey church during the early years of its growth. "English Dan" and "Big Preacher Peter" Berkey were first cousins who bought the land around the present location of the Berkey church. They were also first cousins of Elder Joseph Berkey. Their grandparents, Jacob and Elizabeth Blough Berkey, were Swiss Mennonites. Tradition has it that the Bloughs came to this country about 1750.
The Bloughs were in Lancaster County and the Berkeys in Berks County, from which counties they came to Somerset (or Bedford, as it was then named). Jacob Berkey first settled in Brothersvalley, where his youngest son, Peter, was born in 1782, according to the record in the family Bible. Later he owned a farm near the present site of the Quemahoning dam, and later a mill at Kring's where his son Peter, father of Elder Joseph, lived before coming to the Ott's Mill location. "English Dan," as he was called because he used the English language and to distinguish him from "Dutch Dan," gave the land for the Berkey church. He was the first to be buried in the ceme- tery adjoining the church. Blough writes:
This . Daniel Berkey and his wife Elizabeth (Poorman) Berkey ... moved from a farm in Jenner township, several miles south of the present town of Jerome, to a farm of 188 acres, three miles south of the present town of Windber. This was probably early in the thirties [1829]. ... When Mr. Berkey took possession of this farm there were about thirty acres of land cleared and a small log house stood upon it. In about 1840 he built a large brick house, the brick being made upon the farm. This house stood until about 1893, and was known as "The Old Brick Farmhouse." Mr. Berkey added to his property until he owned over 400 acres in one tract, as well as other farms elsewhere.10
It is noted that his house was similar in architecture to the large house built in 1811 by Jacob Snyder, who has already been mentioned as a pioneer missionary to this district from Snake Spring Valley. The Berkey house may have been designed after it11 and used as a sanctuary, as we know some other houses were, including the Abraham Weaver
10 Blough, J. E., op. cit. Pages 181 and 182.
11 Middle District History. Page 138. The Snyder residence was like the Berkey house, except that Berkey had a large chimney at each end and a fireplace in each room.
Abraham Weaver Home
Used as a church from 1853 to 1858
house, until such time as a place of worship could be provided.12 This, incidentally, was the first and only house of brick built in the township in forty years, according to Waterman Watkins, and some of the bricks are still intact, in a springhouse constructed out of the old dwelling on the farm. The farm and homestead is a landmark of the community, having remained continuously in the possession of Berkey's descendants back to log cabin days. It is now in the possession of a descendant, Alvin G. Faust, and his wife. Other parts of Berkey's lands are in the hands of other members of the Berkey family. The old oaks of the church
Long Shed for Horses During Church Services
grove have stood as sentinels and witnesses to many changing scenes, back to Indian days when the tract was known to the English and is listed in the deed as Deerfield. The deed cites back to the Penns of 1773.
12 The Weaver home, like the Abraham Stutzman (Paliser) Westmont home, was patterned after the sanctuary idea of the original Jacob Stutzman home of 8th ward, Johnstown, built about 1815. The Paliser home was built in 1828 of logs. It is in a good state of preservation, but was not used for worship in 1857 as Abram F. Stutz- man said in 1936, at the age of ninety-two, that in that year they worshiped in the Stutzman school. (It was remembered because it was the year of the Black Frost of June 5, 1857. The people cried because all the fruit and even the leaves and grass eight inches high was frozen to the ground.) However, Stutzman recalled that the Weaver house in Shade was still used for worship as he attended services there when his father went there (to his sister's home) to preach. The Berkey house was built the next year. (Interview by the writer with Stutzman on Memorial Day, 1936.)
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Daniel Berkey and wife had their first children baptized into the Lutheran church, of which the Poormans were strong supporters. This included Hannah as of November 28, 1825, later intermarried with Peter Berkebile, and later owner of this homestead and progenitors of many of the families in the community. "Among their descendants," says Blough, "may be named the Berkeys, Croffords, Berkebiles, Custers, Livingstones, Ripples, Fousts, Fausts, Frys, Shaffers, Seeses and others."13 After the Berkeys moved into the new community soon after the above date, there were seemingly no more infant baptisms in this family for the parents were soon to be active members and staunch supporters of the Church of the Brethren in the office of deacon and wife.
Andrew Berkebile and his wife, Christina, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Studebaker Whetstone, were settlers on the land which was later acquired by "English Dan" Berkey. There were
Ferquang ers i at
Studebaker- Whetstone Bible
also a number of brothers and sisters of Andrew living in the area. Christina is said to have read her Bible through seven times, and many of the sections were literally worn out with perusal.14 There are at least twenty-three ministers or wives
18 Blough, J. E., op. cit. Page 183.
14 This Bible, with a number of others of historic interest, is now in possession of Alvin G. Faust. The Bible of her parents, Jacob and Christina Studebaker Whetstone, from which the genealogical record was photographed by Alvin G. Faust, as appears here (see cut), was located at the home of Maggie Whetstone Himes, Battle Creek, Michigan, in 1934.
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of ministers and forty-seven deacons or deacons' wives from this family line living today, or very recently, and mostly within the Shade Creek congregation. If we add the descendants of Andrew's brothers and sisters and cousins, the number of min- isters and workers in the church would be greatly increased, perhaps nearly doubled. It includes Missionary Stephen Berke- bile and his brother D. G., and Walter F., and James M., as well as Aaron, David, and Richard K., mentioned by Blough, among the ministers who left us. The Walnut Grove church alone listed forty-three members bearing the Berkebile name in their jubilee anniversary booklet. We should add those who moved to Indi- ana County and many now scattered throughout the West. Practically all had Somerset County ancestry and sprang from Andrew I., who died in the Christian faith and whose will in Baltimore in 1773 expressed that faith and also great concern for the education of his children, especially those under age. This family was closely united with the Shaffers. They, with the Statlers, Holsopples, Hoffmans, and Lehmans, made a strong contribution in numbers, education, and music-especially the latter.
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