Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1870-04-02
History Of Ashtabula Township.
Written IN 1S50--.from tie Times.
ny the Late Rev. JOHN HALL

place in 1910. In 1913, Mr.. Tho's
Whelpley, with his tamily, came and
settled in south Ashtabula. About 1914
it is believed, Elder Barnes commenced
preaching to the Baptists in Kngsvillc
where the Baptists of Ashta1ula also be.
longcd. and attended as members. Mr.
Barnes subsequently, preached occasion.
ally IN AS htabpla, and was succeeded by
Elder Squier Abbot, who preached sew.
eral years in Kingsvilt, where he rc,id.
ed, and in Ashtabnla. lie was succeed.
cd by Elder Jacop Bailey, who also re-.
sided In Kingsvilc, aud preached there
and in Ashtabula. Elder Bailey was
succeeded in Ashtabula, and perhaps in
kingsviIle, Iii about 1924, by Elder vii.
liam B. Curtis. During his incumbcncy.
The Baptists in Ashtabula were separate.
y organized, and Withdrawn from the
society in Kingsvilp. The following
statistics were furnished me by their
clerk, Mr.. Timothy Smith viz:
"Ihe Baptist Church in Ashtabula was
organized January 5, 1895 incorporated
by law in 1884, The present number of
members is lOl."
The Baptist Westinghouse Was built
by Deacon Amos Fisk, about 1924; and
was given TO the society at his DEATH
This the Il st frame builing erected for
the special and sole purpose of house
of public W 'rship, in Ashtabula. This
society contiucs in 1856.
In lSll-'l3, several families of Protes-
tant EplscopaIians emigrated from Ply.
mouthj Connecticut, and cane and set
tied in south Ashtabula, (now Plymouth.) J
IN 1913 they began to meet for Divine
worship, according to the liturgy of
their church, by lay reading. Their
leader ~ the service was MIR. Zadock
Mannj who called upon other persons to
assist and as choristers to lead the churc;f
music. This course was regularly and
constantly pursued on Sundays, and sew
eral other OF the annual holy DAYS, until
n. d.. 1917 On the lGth OF February,
1917, the Rev. Roger Searle, their
former minister, arrived among them
from Connecticut. On Ash "Wednesday,
the 10th day of the same month, they
assembled ut the house of Mr.. Hall
Smithy in tie West Village, on an ap-
p"inlment of the Rev. Mr.. Starle. for
Divine service and an appropriate SER
mn. lie took the chair after services.
called the meeting to order, and organ
lied them as Il parish of "1he P'o,cs-
tant Episcopal Church in the United
States" III due form. This was the first
parish of said church, thus organized, in
Ohio. The number of commandments in
the parish was eleven. The Rev. Mr..
Scarle being requested to name Ire par
iSh, named it "The Parish OF st. Peters
Church, Ashtabula." The next wear the
Rev. Mr.. Searle removed with his tam-
Iy to Garfield, Trumbull County, Ohio,
and received Calls from this and seven
other parishes, which had been organized
in the Western Reserve, in 1917, 10 the
PASTORAL and parOchial charge of them
as their FIRST minister and rector. With
this call the Rev. Mr.. Srare complied,
and gave to this parish and church one
eighth part OF mis- services. In 1878 he
located himself add family at Medina, in
the wild forest. With herculean labor,
and great sacrifices OF health, wealth and
he traverSed the woods west of
the Cuyahoga, a forest unbroken cXcep,
by new settlements, small, few, and far
etween sometimes on roads almost i'm
passablc, sometimes on no roads at all,
in visiting all parts of Huron, Lorain,
Medina and Cnyahoga counties, at all
seasons of the year. His puucluairy to
his engagements admitted neither cold
or lfeat, snow or rain, mud or floods, nor
anything but insurmountable obstacles,
to prevent him from meeting his appoint
ments, though the forests often inter
vthedy IN which the distances between
settlements and houses were from ten to
twenty, and, i'll some instances, 40 miles.
On the east of the Cuyahoga he ell
similar difficulties, though in
less degree, in travelling all parts of east-
ern Cuyahoga, Geauga, Portage, Trum-
bull and Asntabula counties. The cen
ters of his parish were in South Ash,a-
bula, Windsor and Unionville, Ashtabtlla
court7; in Batavia, Geauga county; in
Cleveland and Columbia, Cuyah ga
county; in Norwalk, Huron county. In
Medina aud in Grafton, (now included in
Loraff county, in Medilm county in
Stow, Portage county, and one parish
met alternately for worship in Garfield
and BOardman, Trumbull county. Like
the parish in ,Ashtabula, each of the 9th
ers included members in several other
townships around them, which made la
borious excursions and numerous extra
services away from his long main routes
and centers of his parishes. These la
borous hardships be sustained alone
from 1917 to 1922. On the 9th of June,
1922, Mr.. John Hall was admitted to
the. heiy order Of Deacons, and on the
3lSt of August, 1923, to that of Priests.
From the time of his first ordination, by
Bishop Chase, June 1922 to March ls2i,
the Rev. Mr.. Hall officiated one.halt his
time in the parish at AshtabuIa, and the
other halt in other parishes ard places,
as assistant minister to the Rev. Mr..
Searle. In March, 1924, Mr. Searle re-
signed the charge of this parish and
church. With assistance from Mr.. Hall,
to some extent, Mr., Searle retained the
charge Of his other parishes, excepting
Unionville parish, until his DEATH lie
died at the house OF his friend and broth
cr, Mr.. Hall, in Ashtabula, September, 8,
1920. His labors in the Lord in the
State of Ohio were commenced in Ash
tabula, and in Ashtabula they were thus
nine and one-haif yeayS frein
their commencement, and when he had
arrived NJ hn aOa of fIt,y,,,,o ,,aarS nr