The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1903-09-24

his service IN the feld OF MethOdlSm.
The Princeton church society felt the
needs OF larger meeting house and
preparations were made to build new
church. Robert NJ. Nicely, A. W.
Woodcock and Benjamin Soule were
the building committee and were ably
assisted by Rev. Bouck in the work.
Mr.. Soule promised the pastor all the
lumber from his mill that he could
carry away, and it is said that the pas
tor took Mr.. Soule at his word in way
that made the doner admit that Rev.
Bouck was no green horn when it came
to carrying lumber.
The old church was sold to N. E.
Jesmer and the new church was erected
in its stead. It was 28x48 with a seat
ing capacity of about $50 and cost about
1900. The old parsonage that was
moved over with the old church was
afterwards converted into a barn and
is still used for that purpose by Will
liam Geckler.
The growth of the Princeton church
has not been without it's many Incl
dents, but which are common to all
new churches in their early struggles.
There are very few of the old charter
members and organizers of the church
now living. Of the little band of a
dozen or more who founded = the first
M. B. society of Princeton but one is
now living in Princeton, and this is
Mrs. Margaret Henry who resides with
her daughter, Mrs. Elmer Bigelow
north of town. About all of that little
band is now dead and gone. Mrs.
Phoebe Soule who came to Princeton
with her husband in 1860 says that she
well remembers the first Sunday that
she and Mr.. Soule went to the Prince
ton meeting house. There were rough
pews, row on each side of the church,
and the males sat on one side of the
church while the women-folks sat on
the other. Mr.. and Mrs. Soule and
children took a pew together, but they
soon discovered that they we're violat-
ing custom and precedent, though the
minister remarked after the sermon
that it was about time to make a change
and change was made. Mr.. and Mrs.
Soule came from St. Anthony to Prince
ton, and when they presented their
letters to the church it made the third
time that they had joined new Meth
odist church. At Brownsville, Maine,
they joined the first NJ. E.. church right
after it was built, at St. Anthony they
put their letters into the NJ. E. church
right after it was finished and at Prince
ton they were among the first to join
the new church.
Many of those who worshipped at the
first meeting house in Princeton in 1860
have passed away. They were in the
prime of life then, with faith and hope
in the future, and they lived their
lives each in their turn realizing some
of Joy and happiness and sorrow and
affection, and one by one entering the
gateway to the Great Hereafter.
Among those who in the early days
worshipped at ''Dunham's church, as
it was called we're Mr.. and Mrs. Thos.
Goulding, Mr.. and Mrs. Seavey, Mr..
and Mrs. VIM. Durham, Mr.. and Mrs.
John Allen, and "Grandpa" Allen.
Alexander Martin, Mr.. and Mrs. Ben
jamin Soule, Mrs. Margaret Henry,
Mr.. and Mrs. Leonard Pratt, Mr. and
Mrs. Nose Tibbetts, Mr.. and Mrs. Will
liam Townsend, Joseph Townsend, AL
bert Townsend, Mr.. and Mrs. Hugh
Brown, Mr.. and Mrs. Robert Neely,
Horace Curtiss, Mary Curtiss, L. P.
Schultz, Aileen Veal, Esther Walker,
Sarah M. Young, Mary Young, A.
Trask, Mrs. Ruth A. Briggs, and many
others.
The Princeton church has been ably
assisted during most of the time it has
been in existence by a ''village choir"
that dwelt for seventeen long years in
harmony and peace and kept together.
This choir consisted of E. A. Ross. who
was leader, N. n. Ross, who was organ
ist, Mrs. Robert Nicely, Miss Mary 8.
Huse and Mrs. Alice Miller. This old
musical bulwark is now scattered and
gone. Mr.. and Mrs. I. E. Burgan dur
ing their residence here for sixteen
years were members of the choir most
OF that time and assisted much in the
musical program. The wife of Pastor
Sergeant aided the choir during her
husbands passionate. She possessed an
unusually sweet soprano voice and sang
in England at the Moody and Sankey
revivals. During the past year the
choir has been composed principally of
young people of the church and Prof.
Selleck is now drilling the choir, and
the young people are making good pro-
gress.
Ciroo tho -