Cameron County Genealogy Project
Shippen Township
First United Methodist Episcopal Church
Historical Record
The first official church organization of the Methodist Episcopal Church that included the present site of Emporium was in March 1857 when the Portage Circuit was created. It included appointments at Shippen, now Emporium, Rich Valley, Sizers, West Creek, and Pleasant Valley. The Presiding Elder of the district was Rev. C. B. Tibbet and the first minister sent to the circuit was Rev. A. R. Reilley.
The first quarterly conference was held at Shippen on the 20th of June, 1857 and was presided over by Rev. B. P. King. The official members were A. A. Eddy, Local preacher, James S. Peirsall, exhorter, Jer. Morrison, Henry Lewis, William Lewis and Gilbert Williams, Stewards and Morris Morgan, A. A. Eddy and Joseph Housler class leaders.
The conference accepted an invitation from the Sinnamahoning circuit to unite with them in holding a camp meeting in the following August.
The estimating committee reported the financial assessment for the year as follows: Elder's claim $25.00, Rev. A. R. Reilley salary, $216.00. Horse keeping $30.00, viable expenses $200.00 and moving expense $54.00. Total $525.00. The financial report for the year shows that $320.77½ was paid, leaving a deficit of $204.22½ or 38.9%.
The quarterly conference held on Jan. 23, 1858, A.A. Eddy. L. Lucore and Jer. Morrison were constituted a committee to make arrangements relative to the house occupied by the preacher and to secure a house for the coming year.
The name of the circuit was changed from Portage to Shippen. Jas. Piersall, Gilbert WIlliams, H.L. Gifford, L. Lucore, Jer. Morrison, William Lewis and A.A. Eddy were elected trustees for the purpose of applying for a charter.
The allowance for preacher's salary and presiding elder was fixed at $490.00 and the financial report shows that $233.07 was paid leaving an deficit of $25.93, or 52½%.
The first Sunday School report was from Rich Valley and was made to the quarterly conference on Jan. 22, 1859 as follows:- Officers and teachers 10, scholars 37, Bible class 12, volumes in library 79, Sunday School Advocates 20. Expenses $10.00.
On February 4, 1869 three Sunday Schools were reported with 29 officers and teachers, 71 scholars, 2 Bible classes, 55 copies of the Sunday School Advocate. Expenses $41.50. Conversions 1.
The records shows no election of trustees from 1858 to 1865. At the quarterly conference held on Jan. 29, 1865 L.T. Moore, H.F. Sizer, H.L.Gifford, William Ensign, D.J. Morrison, G. Metzger, W.N. Smith, W.S. Hamline, and D. Burlingame were elected trustees, W.N. Smith, S. Gibson, and L.T. Moore were appointed a building committee to erect a church edifice, A.A. Eddy, and W.N. Mitchell a committee to estimate the amount necessary to build. S. Gibson, W.N. Smith, Mrs. Hitchcock, Mrs. Hamline, A.A. Eddy, D.J. Morrison, H.L. Gifford and D. Burlingame a committee for raising funds for building. The pastor, W.C. Hesser was to see Mr. Dodge for the same purpose.
In 1867, Joseph Housler, G. Metzger, Dr. S. Gibson, Lemuel Lucore, Delos Burlingame, Richard Chadwick, and John C. Chandler were elected trustees but there is no mention of the committees for the erection of a church.
On January 12, 1866 an application was made to the Court of Common Pleas for the incorporation of the Emporium Church under the name of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Emporium, East Baltimore Conference by George Metzger, W.S. Hamline, A.A. Eddy, D. Burlingame, J. Housler, Wm. Lewis, H.J. Lewis, C.C. Craven, R. Chadwick, and Lemuel Lucore. The number of trustees was fixed at five, Lemuel Lucore, George Metzger, W.S. Hamline, Richard Chadwick and Joseph Housler were named as the first board. Trustees were to be elected annually by the fourth quarterly conference. The charter was granted May 18, 1868.
The trustees named in the charter for 1869 when the conference in the exercise of its power to change the number of trustees elected seven and at the first quarterly conference in 1870, they increased the number to nine, which is now the legal number of trustees for the corporation.
In 1870 the project of building a church was resurrected and George Metzger, William Byham and A.W. Georgia were appointed a committee to establish the cost of a church edifice. The pastor secured a donation of $474. from the Church Extension Society and considerable money was collected by contributions from other churches in the conference, so that the pastor was able to report the sum of $1,214.00 in cash and subscriptions independently of the money raised at home.
The building committee made a report to the Fourth Quarterly Conference held February 11, 1871 of which the following is a extract:-
"Up to the time the Quarterly Conference assigned to us the task of looking up a more feasible location for the church and parsonage we had done comparatively nothing. Since then we have selected and the trustees have confirmed the purchase of a lot known as the Reuben French property situated on the east side of Spruce Street between Third and Fourth Streets.
We have also closed the bargain whereby all the hemlock required for building purposes can be obtained for $9.00 per M upon the ground. We have sent for the plan of the church at Coudersport and hoped to have it here in time to submit to this conference, but we have just heard from there and ascertained that the measurements are not yet completed but would be in a short time when they would be at once forwarded to us. We regret to say that we fail to find a man in our community that can give an assurance of his ability to erect a church building. Those already completed having been done by parties from abroad."
The contract for the erection of the church was let to Mr. Barney Nefcy of Driftwood and was erected in 1872.
The panic of 1873 caught the congregation before the church was paid for and it became necessary to confess a judgment to Mr.Nefcy for the balance due him of $1,525. which was entered November 8, 1873. It was found impossible to pay this judgment and on April 17, 1877 the church was sold by the Sheriff to B,W. Green, Esq., for the sum of $1,420.00. Arrangements however were made by which Mr. Green reconveyed the property to the trustees on July 6, 1877, and on July 20, 1877 the Philadelphia and Erie Land Company conveyed the legal title to the trustees.
It was a constant struggle for years to keep the interest on the debt paid up and keep from again getting into the clutches of the sheriff, but finally during the pastorate of Rev. R.H. Gilbert about 1886 the debt was paid in full.
Prior to the erection of this church the services were held in the Court house and in a little school house near the present church. The first parsonage owned by the society was at the corner of Fifth and Chestnut Streets now known as the Hackenburg property. It was first occupied by Rev. W.H. Stephene. The next parsonage which was used was erected in 1873 while Rev. A.B. Hooven was pastor. The new parsonage was erected when Rev. W.W. Banks was pastor.
During the pastorate of Rev. J.W. Rue the congregation came to the conclusion that it had outgrown the church which had been used for about twenty years and the church building was sold and moved to the lot at the corner of Spruce Street and Allegany Avenue wand was occupied by L.S. Fisk as a residence and planing mill. A new church, being the main portion of the present structure was erected of brick and was dedicated on the 29th of January, 1893.
While the cost of the church at the time of the dedication had been covered by cash and subscription the financial crash of 1893 caught the congregation as they had been caught by the crash of 1873 and the subscriptions that were perfectly good when made became worthless and a heavy debt was left upon the church. Again for year after year the struggle was kept up to pay the interest. No repairs were made and by the year, 1899 the property had become very much run down. The walls and ceiling were dirty and it was proposed that it be papered to cover the unsightliness. Dr. Shriner became pastor that year and under his management the idea of papering the walls was abandoned and instead the were nicely frescoed and other necessary repairs were made. The financial situation of the country had begun to improve and by a mighty effort during the pastorate of Rev. O.S. Metzler who succeeded Dr. Shriner in 1900, the debt was finally paid in full, and a pipe organ costing #1,800. was purchased and paid for, one-half the cost of the organ being paid for by Andrew Carnegie.
In 1916 during the pastorate of Rev. J.H. Morgart the trustees decided that it would be wise to enlarge and modernize the Sunday School rooms of the church and make some other apparently needed improvements. With this in view the services of Rev. John Kranz of New York were secured on June 18, 1918 (?), he took a subscription amounting to nine thousand dollars ($9,000).
Plans for the improvements were made by John Coxhead an architect of Buffalo, N.Y. and the new Sunday School rooms were used for the first time February 2, 1918.
The ministers who have been assigned to and served this congregation since 1857 when the Portage Circuit was organized are: A.R. Reilley 1857 - 1859, J.A. Dixon 1859 - 1860, J.T. Cole 1860, Charles Nash 1860 - 1861, J.F. Craig 1861 - 1862, J.R. King 1862 - 1863, W.C. Hasser 1863 - 1865, G.W. Van Fossen 1865 - 1866, W.H. Stephens 1866 - 1867, James Mullen 1867 - 1869, M.L. Drum 1869 - 1872, A.B. Hooven 1872 - 1874, J.W. Olewine 1874 - 1876, H.F. Cares 1876 - 1878, J.W. Vrooman 1878 - 1881, Benj. H. Creever 1881 - 1883, R.H. Gilbert 1883 - 1886, E.M. Stephens 1886 - 1889, J.W. Rue 1889 - 1893, E.E.A. Deavor 1893 - 1896, J.M. Johnson 1896 - 1899, W.P. Shriner 1899 - 1900, O.S. Metzler 1900 - 1906, N.E.C. Cleaver 1906 - 1908, J.F. Anderson 1908 - 1911, J. Emory Weeks 1911 - 1914, L.M. Brady 1914 - 1915, James H. Morgart 1915 - 1917, W.W. Banks 1917 - 1921, J.M. Brennan 1921 - 1927.
The shortest pastorate was that of J.T. Cole which lasted only two weeks and the longest was that of O.S. Metzler which lasted six years.
This page was last updated on Thursday, August 22, 2002.
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