Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1907-09-05


four daughters. thirteen children in all.
He lived to see 81 grandchildren and
8 great grandchildren. At the time Of
his death the members of his family
yet living, numbered rs. When in 1743
the Morayian Brethren came into these
parts he not only attended the services
regularly but also did all in his pow
er to further the cause of the Lord He
entertained in his own house the tim
Ierants that visited this place One of
the charter members of the congrega-
ton, his seems to have been a life, rich
in grace and the fruits of the Spirit.
He died in his ninety-sixth year.
In passing, it may be noted that the
length of days youchsafed to George
Airs goes to show that malarial few
er endemic to this locality did not al
together drive longevity from the land.
In that respect the life Of another Of
the charter members of the congrega-
ton is of interest. The diary of 1889
notices the death of Sarah North, born
in Philadelphia in 1855, her age being
103 years, Ii months and days. She
too, was one of the prominent and
most faithful members of the congre-
cation.
At the time of the dedication of the
church in 1749 there were only twenty
nine members in Oldman's Creek
There was nothing like settled pastor
ate until in 1855 when Hector Gam
bold is associated with this charge
His stay must have been brief The
church appears to have been closed for
the entire year 1853. In the early six
ties Nicholas Eberhardt, a Dane, is
known to have lived here His minis
try and that of the itinerants in neigh
boring places was blessed with extern
sive awakening, the more noteworthy
because succeeding a period of wide
spread Indifference. AS a consequence
of the spiritual quickening, the Old
mans Creek congregation was formal
ly organized as a Moravian Church in
1858. In 1863 Eberhardt was succeed
ed by Frederick Schmidt, who lived in
this place during the trying years of
the Revolution. Various entries in his
diary reflect the anxieties and difficult
ties of the time. OF these entries the
following may be noted:
Thursday, Sept. II, 1777. All day
long there was a strong cannonading
and afterwards we heard that a battle
had taken place between the two arm
les at the Brandywine River.
Sept. 27. Bro. Nicholas Garrison and
wife came from Philadelphia as fugi-
tiyes. There is great disquiet
and talk of flight in the neighborhood.
Oct. All are in alarm. An Eng
lish troop has landed three miles from
here.
Oct. 22.-Fearful cannonading shook
the house like an earthquake CT was
the time of the action at Red Bank.
Many Hessians We're killed
On Friday, Dec. 5. twenty American
militia men were quartered in the par
|sonage.
Feb. %, 177S-Over two thousand
English troops pass on their way to
Salem. The house was full of sol
diers-polite but carrying rifles.
Feb. &c. There is talk Of flight among
the neighbors. Myself and wife are
determined to remain.
May 1O.-Many militiamen were at
the services.
June ia skirmish took place
nearby between the English and the
militiamen; one of the latter was kill
ed. A report was spread that the
English were about to march through
Jersey, to kill and set fire to every
thing.
Despite all this uncertainty and dan
ger of the times, stated services are
well attended, people coming even from
Salem and other places, fourteen or fif-
teen miles away. At the close of the
war the membership of the congrega-
ton numbers 1874.
In 1888 Francis Boiler succeeded
Schmidt and served here dur
ing ten year period. Like
his predecessor, he did not
confine his work to Oldman's Creek,
but visited and preached in neighbor-
ing towns frequently. During his in
cumbency this brick sanctuary, which
is the centre of interest on this occa-
sion, was erected. On JAM Is, 1875,
the matter of building a new church
was discussed at church counsel.
Two hundred pounds (e2O0) had al
ready been subscribed for the proposed
building. 1t was determined to build
the church on the eastern side of the
cemetery and the whole matter en-
trusted to committee of five breth-
rem. In October of the same year the
nrst stones were hauled, and on June
LIST Of the next year, 1886, a beginning
was made with laying the foundations
in the presence of many members and
friends For time building opera
tons proceeded very rapidly The walls
were raised and the roof finished in
the space of several months. After
that operations cannot be pushed
steadily. For one thing the year 1887
was a very hard one, many of the peo-
pie experiencing difficulty in securing
the necessaries of life. In conse-
quenee, many could not pay their sub
kscriptions. Those who were able to
make them good, paid in the paper
money of the time, which when pre-
sented in Philadelphia was accepted
at only about one half its face value
Nevertheless, assistance sent from
Bethlehem in the form Of contributions
encouraged the little company and on
June %, of the year 1889 the diarist
lis able to record that the last service