The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1902-12-06
JohnSton'S History
Of Cecil County.
CHAPTER XIV.

nellla Manor, were members of the Re-
formed Dutch Church George Talbot.
George Oldfeld. and many of the first
settlers along the Elk and SuSquchanna
Rivers were Catholics; and the Labad-
lists, as we have seen. had II faith pecll-
liar to themselves. These various Sects
lived in harmony and peace together
under the mild government of the PROV
incc as administered by the first proplie-
tor and his Successors. Even the then
prosecuted and deSpiSed QuakcrS found
an asylum i'll the province and were per-
mtted to enjoy their peculiar belief i'll
peace and qurtneSs. They are believed
to have been the first denomination that
erected a house Of worship in the county
As early as 1868 George Warner and
seven other Quakcrs prayed the court
that their Westinghouse at the head of II
branch of Still Pond Creek. might be
registered according to the act of Pa la
mcnt, and promised ever to pray for
the eternal happiness of the court" This
rs the first reference to IL meeting house
that has been found in the records of the
county.
The first clergyman of the Church of
England. Of whom there is any account
in the history of the early settlements in
our county, is the Rev. John Yco. He
came from Maryland to New Castle in
1917. and exhibited his credentials as n
licensed minister of the Church of Eng
land, and WAS well received by the court
In 1916 he had written n letter to the
Archbishop of Canterbury. from Paut-
uXent. Maryland. in which he gives ii sad
account of the religious condition of the
province. AT this time there were only
three ministers of the Established Church
of England III the province of Mary
land. Mr.. IcO seems to have exercised
the duties of his calling ut New Castle
for Il year or two, for in 1879 he pre-
scented petition to the count, in which he
prayed to be remuncrated for preaching
the gospel and for baptizing children.
marrying people, and burying the dead.
The court refused his request, and moth
ing more is heard of him till 1851. when
he was tried at New Castle "for muffin
Gus expressions against the Duke of
York, the town. the court" etc, for
which he was tried before Il jury and
acquitted. He had, no doubt, been at
tracted to Bohemia Manor by the pros
porous condition of the people residing
thereon. and by its close proximity to
New Castle near which he afterwards
settled. which was at that early day Il
town of much Importance He was the
first clergyman of the Established Church
that visited Cecil county.
In 1862 the legislature of the PROV
ince, which was thoroughly Protestant
passed IAN act for the Service of Al
mighty God and the establishment of the
Protestant religion in the Province"
This act was passed previous to the 9th
of June. 1862, and on the 22nd of the
November following the commissioners
OF this county, who were Captain Charles
James, Colonel Casparus Hcrmen, Mr.
Humphrey Tilton, Mr.. William Ward
Mr.. Henry Rigg. Mr.. John James and
Mr.. William EmS. with some of the
principal freeholdprs Of the county. in
pursuance and compliance with the act
of Assembly, laid out and divided the
county into two districts or parishes that
IS to say one parish for Worton and
South SaSsafras Hundred and the other
f"r North SaSSafras, Bohemia and Elk
Hundreds These parishes were called
North and South SnSSafraS. The Rev
Lawrence Nanderbush waS then Off
ciating in North SaSSafraS. and had
probably been there for some time, for
1t is II matter of record that he admin
lStered il baptism on the 2nd of July pre-
vlouS. and during the year he baptized
eighteen others. But little more is known
of dis history, only that he died in 1896,
mt which time he was also in charge of
South SaSSafraS parish
About this time Peter Suytcr seemed
10 THINK that the Sccpt"r he welded MS
Grand Mogul' of the LabadstS was
about to depart from his hand. and so he
petitionrd the Governor for license or
authority to perform the rite of mar
rage. No doubt he feared that the or
EaElzation of these parishes and the set
Element of other ministers near him
would lessen his authority. which was
already beginning to wanc. and deprive
him of influence over his followers His
petition was granted with the proviso
that he was only to marry people of his
own denomination.
The first vestrymcn of North SasSafraS
parish were CaSpnlms IIermcn. William
Ward, John Thompson. Edward Jones.
Henry Rigg and Matthias Nanderhuy-
den. The taXables in 1893 were 81
which was the number of persons then
assessed within the present limits of the
county, and are supposed to have been
equal to one-fourth of I'LL the inhabit-
ants i'll the county. which. by this esti-
mate then contained n population of
l2S4. At IL meeting of the vestry, the
next year. it was ordered that the II, 40
pounds of tobacco collected that year
should be disposed Of as follows:-To the
minister, 5000 pounds; to the Sheriff for
receiving it, 620 pounds; to Thomas
Pearce, clerk, 500 pounds: the residue
301S pounds, to be lodged in the hands
of Edward Jones for the defraying of
some necessary charges in fitting and
repairing the present meeting house,
(which we have procured for the pre-
sent till God shall enable us to build n
church"
In 1894 the Bishop of London sent
over some books by Governor Nicholson
for distribution in the colony. and the re-
cords of this parish contained list of
things which Casparus Hermen then had,
:. part or all of which are supposed to
have been the distributive share assigned