Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1873-05-07
RELIGION IN THE HIGHWAYS AMI
BYwAYs,
Inc presbyterian Mission Chapel aud Sab.
bath School In shieIdstown,
NCNfBER XVI.

Vi tne second Presbyterian Church fully
alive to the wants of the residents in the
more thinly populated suburbs, determined
upon systematized plan by which those
people could be brought under religious
influences. Accordingly the city was di-
vided into districts, each district being
placed in charge of one or more efficient
workers, whose zeal in the missionary
cause was well known, and nobly did thew
discharge their trust. The field assigned
those, of whom We will speak more par
ticularly in this article, was the eastern
suburbs of the city, and from the efforts
there instituted sprung the
sHIELDsTowN CHURCH.
The committee consisted of Col. B.P
Stacy, DR.. James Rodgers, w. Z. Gibbins.
and 4. H. Head, whose efforts were ably
seconded by Judge Andrews, II. Page and
w. p. Chamberlain. Their first efforts
were made by going from house to house,
on Sunday afternoons, and collecting
around them the children of the neighbor.
hood, who, many of them, received at the
hands of some one of these gentlemen,
their first religious instruction. Each
taught a class regularly every Sabbath for
some time, when they consolidated their
classes and met in an old shop on the Rut-
ledge pike, owned by Capt. Thos. Stevens.
who rendered them the use of it, and from
this humble beginning has grown the
Shieldstown
SABBATH. SCHOOL,
one of the largest in the city, and under a
9lsclpllne that any superintendent might
be proud of.
Ina few weeks, however, the shop be-
came too small to accommodate the rapid
ly increasing number of pupils and the
matter was brought before the parent
Church, which resolved that the work so
auspiciously progressing should not be al
lowed to fail for want of means and it was
determined to purchase lot and erect a
building suitable to the wants of the COM
munity in which the field of labor was 10
Gated. Messrs. Head, Chamberlain and
stacy, were appointeda committee to raise
FUNDS for the purpose and received liberal
donations from Col. J. r. Henry, and
Messrs. Jas. ID. Cowan and David Richard
son, Esq, now deceased, DIR. Rodgers and
several others. The lot was purchased from
the last named gentleman for $3.50 and the
CHAPEL BUILT,
at an outlay of 5000 more, in the autumn
OF the same year, and at once occupied by
the school,, whose influence made itself
felt for good more strongly with each sue
ceeding week. But the want of church
privileges was felt by many, and accord
ingly on Sunday, February l4th, 1863, sew
en- members were received into the fold of
the church, and on the 10th OF May follow
ing, twenty-one more were added. Since
then there have been about forty accessions
to the church, twenty-three of whom Join
ed in the winter of 1928. Many of the
members have moved away since, but the
membership now residing here numbers
between fifty and sixty.
THE SERVICES
are conducted under the auspices of the
Second Presbyterian Church, Rev. n.
Bachman preaching whenever his engage
ments in the city will allow him to do so,
and taking the liveliest interest in the sue
cess of the mission, but as yet no minister
has been regularly stationed in charge.
Ministers of other churches are frequently
invited to fill the pulpit, but when that is
impracticable, services are held by laymen,
prominent among whom engaged in this
work are Messrs. f. F. Atwell and NJ. G.
Butler, who are held in high esteem by the
church in whose behalf they labor. Prayer
meetings are also held regularly every
Tuesday night.
But the most interesting feature about
this, as in fact most other churches, is the
Sabbath School, which meets every Sunday
afternoon, at two o'clock. The superin-
tendents are elected annually. The first
chosen was Col. B. p. Stacy in the fall of
1000, aU the OrSanlZdJIOnO OF Une school, VINO
also served during the year 1869. Mr.. Il.
II. Head was elected in 1870 and was sue
ceeded by Mr.. o. b. Smith in 1871. Col.
Stacy was again elected in 1872, but served
in that capacity only few months, when
he resigned, having made arrangements to
leave the city and seek home in another
State.
Mr.. w. f. Gibbins, was elected in June
or July Of last year, to fill out the unex-
pired term, and at once went to work with |
the zeal and energy that SO prominently |
characterize him, in recruiting scholars, |
the number having decreased to about for
ty previous to his taking charge of the !
school. Under his management the classes |
were soon filled to their former pro- |
portions and new ones formed. |
He was reelected in the early part of the |
present year, and the school has confined |
steadily to increase, while the same graft |
flying statement can be made of the growth |
Of the church. That this is due in great |
part to the efficacy of the Superintendent |
none can doubt who have witnessed his |
efforts in building up the Sabbath-school |
cause here and elsewhere.
Mr.. Gibbins has been fortunate in hav-
ing the cooperation of such teachers as
Prof. Butler, Mr.. E. Chavannes, Mrs. NJ.
.. Butler, and Messrs. Foust and Charles
Ogden, from the city proper, whose inter-
EST in behalf of local missionary work is
most commendable, together with others
rom the immediate neighborhood. The
musical department of the school is one of
Nl 49,. -. n.