Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1893-05-27

LUTHERAN CHURCH HIsToRy.-
Mrs. Sarah Helfesty is the oldest
member of st. Johns Lutheran
Church, aged SO years. She was
Sarah Armstrong, and went to !
catechism in the house in which
she now lives in 1920; Rey. |
Charles P. Krauth, DID,, was the
minister in charge and occupied
the parsonage. This building
now the home of Mrs. Helfestay,
is on John Street, opposite where
the first church stood on the cor
ner of John and Church Streets,
and where the grave is still. 1t
is a weather boarded structure,
containing 4 rooms and a back
building. She remembers of
Rev. Rabenach occupying the
parsonage, whose ministry here
was from 1909 to 1914, making
the building at least "a years old.
Among those confirmed on
Saturday, the Goth of April, 1920,
as the church record shows and
as given by this sister and in this
house, were Betsey Armstrong
not written Sarah) Susan Mong,
Betsey Walters, Liza Eakers,
Peggy Hill, Rickie Hoke, Kate
(Billmyer) Curtis, Maria Wolf,
Adam Bowers, William Glad
den, ct al. Mrs. HANNA, moth
er of Miss Lizzie HANNA, a
m iiden lady in Shepherdstown,
w. Va, and Mrs. Curtis started
the first Sunday in Martinsburg,
with four children, in the old
church. Rev. Reuben Weiser
was pastor at the time. This
was in 1885. They originated
and planned this church work in
the parsonage. Rev. Jacob Med
tard was the last Lutheran min
lister who occupied the parson-
age. He moved to the new
home now occupied by Mr..
Christian Doll on East Burke st.
The old parsonage was built of
logs and weather boarded but
the weather boards were few and
far apart when purchased by
Mrs. Helfestay. They fell or
were torn off and never replaced
giving the building very dilap-
idated appearance. The shut
tiers were very large and made
of heavy oak boards sawed on
the bias" and nailed to larger
pieces with nails the heads of
which were "larger than soldier
buttons. The chimney was on
the outside of the building and
strapped to the house with iron
straps, about inches apart, to
keep it from falling. There were
three rooms in the building
above and two below. The par
titions were of logs also. The
kitchen or back building had
ground floor, or rather no floor.
Expressing our surprise at this
statement, she said: "Oh, but
/ thought / had a nice home
when | got the parsonage" In
this parsonage, Julia and Char
les Krauth were born and Mrs.
G. P. Krauth died. Charles who
was Provost of the University of
Pennsylvania and President of
the Theological Seminary in
Philadelphia often returned to
the old parsonage and standing in
the room where his mother died
wept sorely. After the death of
Mrs. Krauth, DIR. Krauth moved
away but left Charles then a
babe in the care of Miss Nancy
Shaffer-"a staunch member of
the church." This devoted
woman took a deep interest in
Charles and kindly cared for him
until the DR.. returned and took
him to his new home. To the
question Who were some of the
real old people in the church
when you joined it 2" came the
answer, "John, Mike and Jake
Walters, Jacob and John Paint
er, and John Mong "a good spoke
in our church, Mrs. Catherine
and Margaret Walters" AS to
their custom during Communion
occasions, she said "These SER
vices were held Sabbath morn
ing, but all day Saturday we
held services in our homes and
IN the parsonage and tasted un-
til after Sunday noon. We went
from house to house and held
services, as some could not at
tend services at the church. The
preachers preached, some men
would exhort, but the women
prayed and sang with the men
they never talked or preached"
They sang from the old time
Gasang und CADET Buch," a
book containing HYMNS and