PAGE TEN—A ‘
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thews Phoenix.
CHURCH HISTORY
Before there was any organized
religious group local preachers sup-
plied the ‘wants of the people.
The first meetings and Sunday
School were held in the log school
house.
The Methodist Episcopal group
organized first with Rev. Silsberry
Wild as minister. The Baptists
were next with Rev. William Frear
as their, preacher. Following these
were the Protestant Methodists
with Rev. J. K. Helmore, Rev. Mr.
Brown, and Rev. Peter Montross
among the first preachers. Rev.
Thomas Rhoads was the Presbyter-
ian pastor.
In 1865 the four societies agreed
to build a Union Church. There
were five trustees appointed, one
Methodist Episcopal, one Baptist,
one Presbyterian, one Protestant
Methodist, and one by the people.
They were Sidney C. Clarke, George
D. Clarke, Samuel B. Cook, Peter
Montross and Daniel Morgan. The
building was dedicated in 1866. The
ministers of the different denomi-
nations preached in turn except the
Presbyterian pastor whose people
had a church of their own.
William Richards, father of Mrs.
J. H. Hadsall, was first superintend-
ent of the Sabbath School which
always had a good attendance.
In 1874 the Presbyterians peti-
tioned the Presbytery of Lackawan-
na to organize a Presbyterian
Church at Monroe with Rev. C. K.
Canfield as pastor and to use the
Monroe Academy Auditorium as
their meeting place.
The following members were en-
rolled as the Bowman's Creek Pres-
byterian Church: Amanda M. Can-
field, Samuel B. and"Phoebe Cook,
James L. Cranford, A. J. Coursen,
Byron and Morrell Dimmick, Edwin
D. Frear, Henry J. and Martha E.
Frear, Henry W. Gross, William J.
and Ermilla Hemmelright, Mary E.
Jackson, James E. Miners, Charles
Victor Parrish, and Annette Wilson.
These were admitted to the Pres-
byterian newly organized group on
profession of faith: Adelpha W.
Cooke, Mary D. and John F. Hilbert,
Almira J. and John F. Parrish, Oli-
ver Wilson, Chandler Newberry and
William Patton.
S. B. Cooke, Byron Dimmick, and
William Patton were elected ruling
elders. Rev. C. K. Canfield was
the pastor then Rev. Darroch and
Rev. S. McElroy. Dr. D. H. Silk-
worth served many years as Sab-
bath School superintendent guiding
one hundred ten scholars.
(Today the stairs and bannister
of the Monroe Academy can be
seen in use at Clarence Hilbert's
home which was previouslyl owned
by A. W. Cook who purchased the
site from the Presbyterians and
useed the timbers of the Academy
to build the present Hilbert home.)
The present churches serving the
people of Monroe Township are the
newly-built Bowman's Creek Free
Methodist Church at junction of
Route 309 and Noxen Road with
Rev. Russell Vanderhof as pastor;
the Evans Falls Methodist Church
with Rev. Paul Huslander as pas-
tor; the Seven Day Adventist
Church with Rev. Horace Reading
serving, and the Beaumont Union
Church with Rev. Truman Reeves
as pastor.
MONROE TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS
The first school in Monroe Town-
ship was a log cabin built at the
present junction of Route 309 and
the Harveys Lake Road. This log
cabin housed the children of the
early ‘Connecticut settlers who
brought with them the first teacher,
Ashel Barnes.
In time a frame schoolhouse re-
placed the log cabin. (Mrs. Calla
Parrish attended the frame school-
house and now lives in it.
When population demands deemed
it, another frame school house was
built on Cemetery Hill. It was this
school house ( which partially stands
today) that Mr. William Newberry
attended. He remembers -eighty-
six pupils in. his group and one
teacher, Miss Mary Campbell.’
At one time Monroe Township's
population needed seven schools,
the two mentioned in Beaumont,
one in Plattsburg now used as a
dwelling and owned by William
Arch Austin, one in Marsh Creek,
one at Evans Falls, one at Buck-
wheat Hollow (on the site now
occupied by the Lowell Boones) and
one at Bowman's Creek near Lutes’
Corners (now the Free Methodist
Church Youth Center).
Prior to high schools in Septem-
ber 16, 1872, the largest rooms of
the Presbyterian parsonage, now
the home of L. B. Hilbert) were
opened for higher learning under
the name of Monroe Academy which
was designed to teach the ‘higher
branches and the classics and also
to serve as a normal school.” Not
less than fifty successful teachers
had their start here. In 1873 the
THE
Odd Fellows’ Hall was occupied
building known as the Monroe
Academy, but chartered as the
Bowman's Creek Presbyterian
Church, was erected. The total cost
of the building consisting of two
classrooms and a chapel auditorium
was $4,625 chiefly contributed by
the citizens of “Monroe. The first
principal was Rev. C. K. Canfield. *1
The large maple trees in front of
the Beaumont Schools and Clarence
Hilbert’s house are now the living
memorials to the Monroe Academy
which was attended by students
from Easton, Tunkhannock, Kings-
ton, and this vicinity.
J. P. Breidinger, former principal
at Coughlin High School at Wilkes-
Barre, was the principal at Monroe
Academy when Mrs. Calla Parrish,
Mrs. Addie Ryman Austin, Lewis
Orcutt, and William Newberry at-
tended.
In 1890 a meeting was held at the
Bowman's Creek School where it
was voted to build a grade school
at Beaumont.
During the next few years one
acre of land was purchased at the
site of the present high school.
In 1894 a four room building
with a second story auditorium was
built and nicknamed the ‘White
When the fire escape
was ‘added, it was acclaimed as “the
trunk of the elephant.” The four
rooms housed four departments:
primary, intermediate, grammar,
and three-year high school. Each
department contained three grades.
This was commonly called a New
England type school.
At this time the two schools at
Beaumont and the one at Platts-
burg were closed and the pupils
came to the new school with Mr.
McCreary, the Plattsburg teacher, as
the first principal and high school
teacher.
The next change came in 1922
when the ninth grade was dropped
and two teachers were used in the
three years of high school.
In 1930 the fourth year of high
school was added and a four-room
elementary school was built allow-
ing the remaining one-room schools
to. be abandoned and the pupils
brought into Beaumont via bus. A
temporary program, still in use,
calling for four teachers for the first
six grades and four for the upper
six was installed.
CEMETERIES
ORCUTT’S
The first burying grounds were
those on the land by the home-
steads.
The present Orcutt Cemetery was
the burial plot for the Philemon
Clarke family. It was deeded in
trust to Mr. O. C. Orcutt for the
use of the township .
The first person buried there
other than a member of the Clarke
family was the wife of Jared Slaugh-
ter, but the first marker or tomb-
stone was that of Asheld Barnes,
1823. Mr. Barnes was the first
school teacher. He came with the
Jackson family from Connecticut.
Some of the early settlers buried
at Orcutt’s and their dates of burial
are:
1. Joseph Jackson,
1833; aged 61.
2. Ebenezer Parrish; born 1760;
died 1844; Revolutionary War; en-
listed in Massachusetts July 15,
1776; discharged July 20, 1777;
(monument erected by Frear-Par-
rish Repuion).
March 29,
3. Charles Patton; October 2,
1855. :
4, Philemon Clarke; April 15,
1856.
5. Mary Newman, wife of Daniel;
March 20, 1857.
6, Elizabeth Clarke, wife of Phile-
mon; April 30, 1857.
7. Mary May Phoenix, wife of
Matthew; February 19, 1858; age
76 years, 6 months, 5 days.
8. Warren M. Parrish, son of Eb-
enezer Parrish. A Private of Co.
B, 12th Regt. ‘'P. B. C." Died at
Georgetown, D. C., in Seminary Hos-
pital February 10, 1862; aged 20
years, 9 months, 5 days.
9. Ebenezer Parrish, April. 14,
1868.
10. Mary M., wife of Edward Dim-
mick; June 2, 1868; aged 49 years,
6 months,"
11. Matthew Phoeniy; August 22,
1873; aged 107 years, 7 months, 12
days.
12. Mary Orcutt, wife of O. C.
Orcutt; August 19, 1878.
13. Michael Haffner; March 17,
1880.
14. O. C. Orcutt; June 22, 1884.
15. R. H. Evans, Capt Co. A, 144
Regt., N. Y. V. I. Died September
27, 1902; aged 72 years, 5 months,
2 days.
The present Board of Trustees for
the cemetery are: Superintendent,
Elmer Boice; secretary-treasurer,
Harry Bigelow; James Patton, Paul
Space, Rev. Ira Button, George Or-
cutt, Lewis Orcutt, and Corey
Schooley.
Yearly dues are paid for the up-
keep of the cemetery.’
BEAUMONT
The Orcutt Cemetery is the older
of the two burial grounds, but the
first burial of the early settlers in
Beaumont was that of Lewis War-
wick ‘whose grave was in the woods
above the residence of Josiah New-
berry.
The following was garnered from
mont Cemetery:
1. Maria, wife of John Whitaker;
died March 13, 1818; aged 51 years,
MEN’S & WOMEN’S
BEDROOM
SLIPPERS 9c
REG. 1.98
MEN’S HEAVY RIB
UNION SUITS
Short Sleeves
1.19
REG. 2.99
HEAVY, WHIPCORD
PANTS
2.49 |
REG. 3.45
MEN’S & BOYS’
DRESS SHOES
3.69
REG. 6.98 |
MEN’S DRESS
$3.00 TO $6.00 VALUES
MEN’S or BOYS’
SOCKS
9 for. $1.00
BOYS’
33.95
REG. 12.50
CHILDREN’S
ARCTICS
9
MEN’S GABARDINE
and WOOL
52.99
BOYS’ HEAVY
52.59
HEAVY, WINTER
JACKETS
4.99
REG. 15.00
MEN’S FLANNEL
REG. $4.00 VALUE
—
Men’s Sanforized
WORK
SHIRTS 99¢
REG. 1.69
All Children & Ladies
DRESSES
$1.00
REG. 2.98
COWBOY
BOOTS 3.99
—
MEN’S
OVERALLS
1.99
56 Main St.
Luzerne
8 months, 8 days.
2. Mary, wife of Josiah Newberry;
month, 6 days.
3. William P. Poole; died ry
6, 1852; aged 74 years, 8 months,
1 day.
4. Josiah Newberry; died March
19, 1854; aged 71 years, 11 months,
22 days.
5. Mary E., daughter of Sydney
and Jane Clarke; died December 26,
1854; aged 3 years.
6. Nathan Parrish; died October
1, 1855; aged 59 years, 8 months,
9 days. .
7. Ebenezer Freeman. A soldier
of 1812; died April 26, 1861; aged
69 years, 2 months, 24 days.
8. Memory of Rufus Frear.
F, 53rd Reg. Pa. Vet. Vol;
1864.
9. George, son of Thomas and
Dianne Barringer; died August 26,
1865; aged 8 years, 2 months.
10. James N. Straley; died Decem-
ber 21, 1866; dged 46 years, 1
month, 26 days.
11. Rev. Abraham Frear; died
March 13, 1867; aged 77 years, 11
months, 18 days.
12. William Herdman; G. A. R.;
1828-1873.
13. Maria Austin, his wife, (Herd-
man); 1832-1877.
14. Mary L., wife of Rufus Frear;
died February ‘19, 1876; aged 51
years.
15. Peter Montross; born Febru-
ary 4, 1798; died May 1, 1884.
16. Mark D. Newman; August 26,
1889; aged 58 years, 8 months, 25
days.
17. D. H. Silkworth, M. D.; born
October 3, 1816; died August 6,
1890; Co. F, 53 Regt.
- 18. Thomas P. Barringer; Co. Gj
143 P. V.;/ January 7, 1827; April
r27, 1897.
19. William F. Cairl; born Janu-
ary 19, 1820; died October 22, 1904.
20. Oliver Wilson; 1828-1908.
Co.
1822-
They Are Priced
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445
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895.
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21. Sarah A. Clarke; 1847 (Jack-
son’s wife) -1910.
22. William H. Jackson;
1913; Co. F, 171 Pa. Vol.
23. Nancy Jane Stanton, wife of
D: H. Silkworth, M. D.; born June
16, 1834; died February 6, 1915.
24. Lavina F. Newberry (wife of
Oliver Wilson), 1831-1918.
The ground in the rear of the
Monroe Academy was a burial place
too but those remains were trans-
ferred to the Beaumont Cemetery.
In 1919 the Beaumont Cemetery
Association reorganized with John
1834-
J. H. Hadsall, H. G. Shotwell, and
Thomas Nulton as officers. They
hired work done financed by vol-
untary contributions to pay for the
cemetery up-keep. They also spon-
sored an annual “Bee” at which
the Ladies’ Aid furnished dinner.
These “Bees” were successful until
the wartime labor shortage. Now
little is being done to keep up the
cemetery other than that of inter-
ested survivors who mow and care
for their family plots.
The present officers are: Pres-
ident, Charles W. Smith; secretary,
Wayne Hadsall; treasurer, Charles
Clark.
MILLS, STORES, POSTOFFICES
AND INNS .
The early development of Monroe
Township centered around the lum- -
ber industry which necessitated
many mills.
The first sawmill was built at ;
the foot of Cemetery Hill by Zion |
Newberry, then a run of stones
was added by Oliver Wilson to
grind corn, etc.
There were three sawmills in the
vicinity of the Falls Hill. In 1865
Levi Mosier operated his mill near
present Serfoss farm. On: the
stream which flows now from Lake
Catalpa, Byron Dimmick operated a
mill built by Stephen Parks on the
present Jacob Straley property.
The Will Frear mill was also on the
present Jacob Straley property
Charles May operated a sawmill
at Lutes Corners. This site is the.
property of Elwood May.
Thomas May's sawmill was on the.
(Continued on Page 11—A)
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