History of United Church of Christ

Submitted by Mary Jane Lamp and Prepared by Marie Brown for the 100^th Anniversary in 1919

 

In the history of the local church a few dates stand out like guide posts; 1620 Plymouth Rock, 1636 Connecticut, when the spirit of adventure led 50 persons from the Massachusetts Bay Colony south westward to the Connecticut River; 1796, the exodus to the Connecticut Western Reserve.

Three years later, the first permanent settlement was made in Salem, now Conneaut, and at Austinburg the same year.  The direct descendents of the Puritans, these pioneers brought with them into the new wilderness the same spirit of adventure, the same faith in divine guidance and the same religious fervor that cleared the forests and founded the churches of New England.  So it was not strange that their first church service was held on the first Sabbath after their arrival in 1779 a sermon read with singing and prayer, the pastor and congregation consisting of Eliphalet Austin and his two hired men.  This was in Austinburg.

They brought the church with them holding regular services each Sabbath following, with intermission until the formal organization of the church was regularly perfected by an accredited pastor sent out by the Missionary Society of Connecticut just 2 years later.  So we date the first Congregational Church of the Western Reserve, October 24^th, 1801 founded in Austinburg by the soldier missionary preacher, the Rev. Joseph Badger.  Called the “Church of Christ at Richfield” (Richfield being all of Ashtabula County but the very southern line of townships), a district church serving all the settlements including, of course, Conneaut.  Those living within 20 or 30 miles attended the Richfield Church while for farther settlements, local stations were established.

The father of Congregationalism in the Western Reserve, the founder of the Austinburg church, from which sprang this Congregational church in Conneaut, the Rev. Joseph Badger, deserves more than a passing notice.  He was an ideal pioneer.  In 1775, at 18 years of age, he fought with the Colonial Army, and afterward was chosen as a missionary to the frontier in New York State and from this field was promoted to the more difficult task of carrying the work into the Connecticut Western Reserve, where he preached his first sermon in 1801 at Austinburg.  In 1802, he went back for his family at only 27 years old – and returned, building bridges, blazing trees, and so guiding his little flock through this unexplored country in the first wagon west of Buffalo.

He went from settlement to settlement holding meetings and organizing churches, receiving from the Missionary Society the princely sum of $6.00 a week.  His diary shows that in 1801 he was holding meetings at stated intervals in our own village and that in January 1804 he preached here on Friday, made family visits on Saturday, and preached twice on the Sabbath.

But while we may date this church back to 1801 through its connection with Austinburg, it was not organized as a separate church until April 14^th, 1810 at the home of Robert Montgomery, with 10 charter members.

Plans soon began forming for a church building, services being held in the meantime in schoolhouses and private dwellings, but it was only by careful saving and many sacrifices for 7 years that the church felt warranted in laying the foundation of a permanent church home.  In the home of Dr. Samuel Fenton on Main Street which stood just west of the old academy building, the final plans were made, and in 1828 the building was finished.  The next year, in 1829, it was solemnly dedicated.  A brick structure built in the fashion of King’s Chapel, Boston, it stood on a rise of ground fronting the common and overlooking Conneaut Creek; an ideal situation for a church.  At this time the church numbered 32 members.  The following year one was added and then year by year a few more.

One of the early ministers was a staunch old Methodist – for the original title deed of the church showed it was started as a union church in which all denominations had an interest, although as other denominations built for themselves, it gradually grew to be considered the church of the Congregationalists and Presbyterians only, and it was not until in the course of events it became necessary to sell the building, that this fact was recalled in the effort to secure a clear title.  In the beginning the church was joined to a Presbytery, and for 30 years this arrangement continued, the church paying taxes to the Presbytery, sending up their records for revision and electing elders as their chief officials.  But as anti-slavery sentiment grew strong in the land, the Presbytery was criticized for not taking such action on the question as it should, and in 1847, by unanimous vote, the church severed its connection with the Presbytery and became purely Congregational.

Some time in the period 1842-1852 the church acquired a bell and a portico serving as vestibule below and bell-tower above.  I don’t know if it still does, but at the time this history was written in 1919, this wooden addition still formed a part of a residence on Liberty Street owned by Mr. Hawke, and the bell still called people to worship in the Methodist Church at West Springfield, Pennsylvania.

Into the parsonage in the early days, went eatables of every kind; pork, dried beef, potatoes and other vegetables, sugar, butter, eggs, and always a purse with money contributions, for the minister’s salary was supplemented by donation parties.  The annual donation was one of the social events of the year.  The custom persisted through the ‘70’s, becoming more and more unsatisfactory for several reasons:  wastefulness, duplication of gifts; and the strange fact that ministers like other people, preferred their salaries in cash rather than in potatoes; and as a salary earned, not a gift to be acknowledged with thanks.  The last one may better be characterized as a house warming for the new pastor, Mr. Loomis and his bride in 1878, when the congregation stored the parsonage from top to bottom with furnishings and good things of all sorts.

Contrary to earlier expectations, Conneaut had been growing toward the east, until the Old Brick Church seemed far from the center of population, and an agitation began for a change of location to a site downtown.  Believing that this step would result not only in a larger congregation, but also in a larger service to the community, the church, in 1873, voted for the change, and courageously set about the business of building a new church home.  By this time 637 members had been received into fellowship, and their children baptized.

Into the work of raising funds for the new church, the new young pastor, Mr. Keyes, entered with heart and soul, aided efficiently by the building committee, Messrs. Hiram Judson, M. D. Townsend, S. J. Smith, and G. J. Record.  The lot on the north corner of Main and Buffalo was purchased in 1873 from Mrs. Mary C. Grant for $1600.

The cornerstone was laid on July 24^th, but it was not all fair sailing for the church builders.  The hard times of 1873-75 came on and many were unable to pay their subscriptions.  Various ways and means were devised to raise the needed funds – the most noteworthy of these being the two excursions to Niagara Falls in ‘74 and ‘75, engineered by the building committee.  The latter was patronized to generally from Painesville to Buffalo – 26 cars loaded with over 2000 people – that the committee were able to turn over to the church $2000 in clear profits.

In the meantime, while it was impossible to furnish the auditorium, for three years services were h eld in the basement which was furnished with benches taken from the galleries of the Old Brick Church.

On News Years Day, 1874, the basement was first opened to public use, the ladies serving an oyster supper, the initial social affair of many more to come.  On the first Sunday of the year, January 4^th, was held the first religious service, and at the Sunday School session following, Mr. H. E. Pond, Superintendent, distributed eight Bibles to the eight scholars who had been present every Sunday in the year ’73.

The year began with a series of gospel meetings which brought an additional 40 members, most of them from the Sunday School, and again in 1875 similar meetings were held with great success, 38 uniting with the church.

In order to furnish the auditorium, members were asked to purchase their seats, prices ranging from $25 to $500.  This was done but funds were still lacking, and the problem was finally solved by these same pew owners, who voluntarily relinquished their titles and bought their pews over again.  The fine mahogany pews which finally furnished the room upstairs, stood as a monument to their sacrifice.

To Be Continued in Next Newsletter

 

 

Conneaut News of 1933

Submitted by Bob Naylor

 

May 2
Start building new water plant this month.  State sales tax to net $55 million.

May 3
Site for pickle center here.

May 4
Wallpaper on sale at Horton and Stevens.

May 5
Roosevelt appeals for higher wages.  Smith Cash Grocery has dozen oranges for $.23, round steak 2 lbs. for $.25.  Pennzoils open season Sunday.

May 12
Roosevelt drafts huge federal gas program.  M-K has grand opening for shoes.

May 15
Vote gas tax funds for poor.

May 16
77% of taxes go to support schools.

May 17
Roosevelt sounds peace call, asks arms talk.

May 18
Hitler demands equal arms, hails Roosevelt’s peace proposal as a step ahead.

May 19
New taxes for financing jobs sought.  Fresh Lake Erie blue pike and perch $.15 lb.

May 20
Germany accepts British peace plan.   Board of education slashes 10% of teachers’ salaries.

May 21
28 bidders seek water plant work.

May 23
U.S. calls on world to slash arms.

May 24
168 get diplomas at CHS (and I was one of them.)

May 26
New bargain stocks listed.

May 27
Richard Pratt 1933 high school graduate with honors and scholarship.  Berth Simonds 1933 graduate was valedictorian. 

June 2
Picard Grocery has coffee $.21, butter $.24, soap 3 for $.14.

June 5
George Baldwin gets degree from Wabash College.

June 6
Nation hit by heat wave.  A. W. Pelton has women’s silk dresses for $1.98.  Hughes Provision has pork liver for $.07 lb.

June 7
L. R. Naylor seeks reelection as mayor.

June 8
Republican-Democratic slates filled for primary.

June 9
Senate passes public works.  Looks bright for harbor.

June 12
66 nations open world trade parlay.

June 10
Engineers speed Conneaut harbor expansion.

June 14
Bank releases $43,548 cash to schools.  Showdown due in congress on vets cuts.  Jefferson Bank opens releasing million in deposits.

June 16
Roosevelt signs bank work bill.  Thayer Shoes have Fathers’ Day sale with oxfords $5.00 pair.  Bly’s Cash Market has steaks $.17 lb.  Cook Manniko pitches no hit, no run game in Twilight League.

June 17
Roosevelt wants pay scale raised.

June 18
Speed drive to put millions to work.

June 21
July 15 is goal for bank opening.  Allison Loomis plunges to death from NKP bridge.

June 22
U.S. asks for lower tariffs.  R.F.C. funds for city water plant near.

June 23
Brown Jones selling cigarettes for $.12 a pack, toothpaste $.20.

June 24
Car hits pole, 2 dead, 1 injured.

June 26
Sewage disposal plant proposed.

June 27
Rain brings relief from record heat.

June 30
Begin new water plant July 5.  Merricks’ Cash Grocery has butter $.27, peanut butter $.21 for 1 lb. jar.

 

 

Baseball in Conneaut: 1908

                                                                                                    Written by Andy Pochatko

 

At the turn of the 20th Century, baseball was the preferred sport of America.  Besides the professional baseball teams that were located in the major cities such as Boston, Brooklyn, New York, and Cleveland, many of the smaller towns enjoyed the excitement of having a barn-storming or semi-pro team local to them.  This area was of no exception.

Besides the teams of the industrial league, Conneaut was able to organize two semi-pro baseball teams; the Lake View Parks and the Conneauts.  The main location for the teams to play was at Lakeview Park, located at the lakefront, on the corners of Lake Erie and Sandusky Sts. Other than away games, both teams also used the playing theater at the Hotel Tarry-a-While.

In preparation of the first baseball game, some improvements had to be made to the playing field and surrounding areas.  First the field was improved by removing two trees, one in left field, and the other in right. The grass also had to be mowed, as well as the infield area cleaned of larger rocks, this was so the ball would not bounce off any object.  Bleachers were also constructed to sit the fans.  Measuring nine tiers high, and one hundred feet long, the bleachers would sit 600 spectators.  An awning had been purchased beforehand to protect the patrons from the sun's rays.

There was much anticipation for the first game to be played.  That event was to be held on Saturday, June 19, with the Lake View Parks hosting the County Engineers of Cleveland.  Before and after the baseball games of the day, there was dancing held at the Dancing Pavilion, with Peck's orchestra providing the music.

Some interesting and exciting games were scheduled for the teams.  One game that had been scheduled to take place was one against the Cherokee Indian baseball team versus the Conneauts.  The "scalp lifters," it seems, were so successful that they were they were able to provide their own electric lighting and their own canvas fence.  There was no record of this game taking place.

The most exciting game of the season for the fans must have taken place on July 4th.  On this date it was set for the Conneaut teams to face each other for the Conneaut Championship.  Both teams felt that they were going to beat the other, and to prove it they put up fifty dollars to the winning team.  A large crowd of people was expected for the holiday celebrations, of which the two baseball games were the highlights. To supply for the many fans that would be attending the ball game two extra bleachers were constructed.

Clyde "Kid" Newell and Joe Wending were to pitch for the Parks and they were opposed by Wilson of the Conneauts.  (In some instances only the last name of the player were provided in the articles.)  In the second game the pitching for the Parks was to be split between "Ham" Sargent, a former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, and Wendling.  By the end of that day it was clear that the Parks were the better of the two teams.  Even though the games had been close with the scores of 2-0 and 6-­5, strong pitching and opposing players’ errors allowed for the Parks to prevail that day.

The teams had great support from the fans.  When the teams would go to different towns, the people would follow.  Some of them would come by trolley car which ran into Erie, via Route 20, or if they could not afford to take the trolley they could hitch up their horse and buggy and go.  (The first car would not be introduced until the next year.)

Both teams produced good players, but the Parks had the upper edge to the when it came to securing talent.

The most dominant pitcher in Conneaut was Clyde Newell.  Newell had originally started with the Conneauts, but later quit and joined the Parks before the game July 4th.  It would be near the end of the season when the Parks could have lost him to another team.  It was the Erie Sailors who were after Newell, but to the luck of the Parks, he wanted to stay so that he could further develop his arm.

Of course no pitcher is any good without the help of the catcher.  The Parks had Sam Cowan. Cowan had been playing ball for years, but the truth was he wasn't very good.  But Sam kept practicing and eventually developed a rocket arm  and became a fairly decent hitter at the plate.

The first season was not without some drama, however.  In the early season, the manager for the Parks, then B.A. Bennett, resigned. He was replaced by Stewart Pierce. Bennett had felt that he was unable to devote as much time to the baseball team as requested by the front office. In addition to their manager resigning, the team also lost their team captain, first baseman Williamson, with a sprained wrist.

The end of July saw, after beating the Ashtabula 'Bulas, a paper from Ashtabula suggesting that the team had been tipped off by someone.  This came from a previous acquisition in which the Parks had signed "Nig" Dye, who had previously pitched for the Ashtabula team.

In August the Conneauts had a major blow when three members of the team, Manager Kenney, Treasurer Bynane, and Ganley left. It was the object of these three to start a new baseball team in Conneaut, one that could win the championship in Ashtabula County.  When this did not arise, Kinney returned to his job as the manager, but not before the Conneauts had reorganized, and became the Red Stars.

 

Note:  Before this research paper most people had forgotten of the baseball teams that had played down along the Lake Shore. It was the hope of the author that people can read, enjoy, and learn something from the time he spent gathering material.  It is recommended that if you want to know more, that the reader takes a look at the microfilms at the Conneaut Public Library. Look especially for the 1909 season and see how the teams fared, or if they even made it to the next season.

 

                               

 

 Miscellaneous

Our thanks to Doug Lewis, City Manager, and to Pat Beckwith, his secretary, for printing our quarterly newsletter.

 

 

 

 

        

  

  

 

 

Schools are open.  Please drive carefully.