Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1900-01-29

Abigail Hustis. OF these names only
those of Mitchell, Redfield, Boynton and
Knight awaken any interest in our minds
J today, and am not sure that any one OF
! these names now appears upon the roll OF
members. No church edifce was here
! then, and the meetings were held at pri-
vate houses and schoolhouses, at what was
! afterwards known as the Center and the
Falls, for some twenty years. These
Christians evidently realized at that early
| day that money was necessary 20 carry on
church work, for we find that at a church
meeting held on June g, 1911, the church
voted "that each member pay annually
twenty-five cents, TO be laid out i'm re-
ligious trusts and TO defray church ex-
penses," and Samuel Warren was made
treasurer of the fund. We smile as we
think of the condition OF their treasury,
but we should remember that twenty-five
cents i'm money was not found I'm every
POCKET; ordinary debts were paid i'm grain,
cord-wood or some other home product,
and very little money was in circulation.
The records are carelessly entered and are
without order for several years. Imagine
they were written on separate sheets and
copied into the book without being ar
|
following order: 1912, 1911, 1916, 1872, 1916,
1914, 1919, 1917, 1920. In 1923 the church
voted unanimously to invite the Rev.
! Lyman p. Case TO become the pastor, and
the record OF this meeting is the FIRST
record signed by the clerk, Peleg Redfeld.
On March 10, 1923, council met at the
South SCHOOL, ouse (Which / suspect was
at the Center. but am not sure), the can
didate was examined and approved, the
ordination exercises were arranged and
assigned, and the council adjourned to
| the next day TO meet az the house OF DIR.
| Redfield. The record OF the ord nation
exercises is as follows: "March 10, We'd
nesday. The several parts performed
On February %, 1926, the infant, Benjamin
| Wooster Case, was baptized, and he still
lives to show that ministers sons are not
the worst boys in the world. In 1923, Rev.
Mr.. Case having offered his resignation,
another council was held at the Center
schoolhouse but the resignation was not
accepted. Then began a series of charges
| made by the pastor against some mem bers,
and by members against other members,
and the society records, from its organiza-
ton in 1922 until 1929 are largely filled
with notices of withdrawal of support.
In October 1928, Rev Mr.. Case ceased 10 be
the pastor. On Jan. u, 1929, the society
voted to abolish its constitution, and the
condition of things seems TO have about
touched bottom. Church trials, con-
fessions, reservations and Withdrawals
probably cleared the condition somewhat
and from that time peace seems TO have
prevailed. In February, 1929, Seth II.
of ffKr-f osB
halter in Peacham, was returning from
trip on which he had been selling hats,
and coming from Troy he arrived late on
Saturday night at the little settlement at
Coventry Falls. On the Sabbath he at
tended the meeting at the schoolhouse
and attracted attention by his singing.
John w. Mussey, Calvin Harmon and
others persuaded him to stay few days
and urged him to locate and build a hat
ter's shop near the river; he then purchas-
ed a lot SAT the n. Il. corner Of John w.
Mussey's cabinet shop" from Calvin Har-
mon for $500, and paid for il In hats.
Seventy years have passed and that place
has become sacred to the memory OF many
dear ones long gone to their reward from
that home. find no record of my fathers
admission to the church; the first mention
OF his name is the record of the election OF
T.. NJ. Gray and s. Il. Cowles as deacons on
November 10, 1884. My father held that
office for forty-eight years and until his
death January s, 1882. He was also clerk
of the church in 1869. When the
society abolished its constitution In 1929,
Elijah Cleveland, Samuel Boynton and
Perez Gardner were appointed a commit
tee to prepare another. The erection OF
meeting house at the Falls wasundertalSen
and Mr.. Cleveland did more than any one
else toward the erection OF the building.
Without his efforts and his money, IL
would not have been built. ! have no
particulars OF the dedication of the build
ing except that 1.-THE society on Sept. 10,
1880, instructed the prudential committee
to procure a clergyman TO preach the
dedicatory sermon. On Sept. 2S, 1880,
there was an auction sale OF the pews OF
the new meeting house. Sixty-six pews
were sold for a total of s2741.OO probably
more money than there was i'm town. The
highest price was $1,000, paid by Il. Cleve-
land g. Co. for Pew No. D. That was
known as Mr.. Cleveland's pew as long as
L remember. 1t was next the window i'm
the southeast corner; il is now covered by
the platform for the singers. The next
highest was 5000, for Pew No. IA, sold TO
Calvin Harmon and long owned by my
father and now occupied by us when at
church there. The lowest price was $500,
for Pew No. /. On October II, 1881, the
meeting at the schoolhouse discussed
measures for building chimney and set
ting up a stove in the Westinghouse.
June 8, 1892 the society voted TO purchase
Pew No. II for the ministers family. It