JUL 8 199/ ) 
 
 A 
 
 '^fOlOGICAL st>^ 
 
 *^ 
 
 3x 
 
|}^$BaUtiatti$m m ^t\mi{l\lti f alUg. 
 
 HISTORICAL DISCOURSE 
 
 DELIVERED BY 
 
 J-J^J^IES ^TjXiXSO]^. 
 
 JUL 16, I " 7 6 . 
 
 Published by request of the Se; 
 
 Presbyterian Ciwrch 
 
 Intern 
 
 PITTSBURGH: 
 
 Nevin, Gribbin a- Co., Publishers, No. 14 Sixth Street. 
 
 1876. 
 
Historical Discourse. 
 
 I WILL MENTION THE LOVING KINDNESS OF THE LoRD, AND THE 
 PKAISES OF THE LORD, ACCORDING TO ALL THAT THE LoRD 
 HATH BESTOWED ON US, AND THE GREAT GOODNESS TOWARD 
 THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL, WHICH HE HATH BESTOWED ON THEM, 
 ACCORDING TO HIS MERCIES, AND ACCORDING TO THE MULTI- 
 TUDE OF HIS LOVING KINDNESSES. — Isaiah Ixiii : 7. 
 
 The Church on earth has always been precious in 
 the eyes of God. Of it he has said : " Behold I have 
 graven thee on the palms of my hands." And Christ 
 "loved the Church and gave himself for it: that he 
 might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water 
 by the Word, that he might present it to himself a 
 glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any 
 such thing." The Lord looks "to him that is poor 
 and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at his word." 
 Wherever two or three are gathered together in his 
 name, there he is in the midst. He deli<rhts in the 
 dwellings of Jacob, but he loves the gates of Zion 
 more. " Glorious things are spoken of thee, O City of 
 God." He hath said : " This is my rest forever ; here 
 will I dwell, for I have desired it." God is in the 
 Church to make his power and glory known through 
 his word, through his son Jesus Christ, and by his 
 Holy Spirit. And he is there to receive the praise, ado- 
 ration, thanksgiving and love of those who dwell in the 
 sanctuary. He says: "Sing and rejoice, O daughter 
 of Zion ; for lo, I come ; and I dwell in the midst of 
 thee, saith the Lord." Johx said : " I heard a great 
 voice out of heaven saying. Behold the tabernacle of 
 
Presbyterianism in 
 
 God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and 
 they shall be his people, and God himself shall be 
 with them and be their God." 
 
 That we may be able to " mention the loving kind- 
 ness of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord," and 
 have some proper idea of the great goodness, mercy and 
 love of God to us as Presbyterians, it will be profitable 
 for us to consider for our instruction and edification — 
 How God founded the Presbyterian Church here; how 
 he ho^ 'preserved it; and how he has blessed it. The 
 history of the smallest and most insignificant church 
 is full of interest to every lover of Zion, whether that 
 church may be in the vaulted cathedral, "in the house" 
 — as many of the churches were in the apostolic days — 
 or in the glens and caves as in Switzerland and Scot- 
 land in the times of persecution, or amid the stillness 
 and grandeur of the forest as in the days of our 
 fathers. There the messages of heaven have been pro- 
 claimed; there Christ, the crucified One, has been 
 preached to the people; there the Holy Spirit has been 
 poured out ; there the Gospel has been a savour of life 
 unto life, and also of death unto death; there many 
 have believed to the saving of their souls ; there many 
 have rejected Christ and have been lost. There have 
 been many fierce contests ; " not against flesh and blood, 
 but against principalities, against powers, against the 
 rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual 
 wickedness in high places." There have been many 
 glorious triumphs, and there have been many most dis- 
 astrous defeats. Every church on earth will be re- 
 membered by many redeemed in heaven; and, alas! 
 also by many lost in hell. 
 
 In gathering up and setting before you the history 
 of Presbyterianism in Sewickley Valley, it will be prop- 
 
Sewickley Valley. 
 
 er at the outset to ascertain the meaning of the name 
 given to this place — Sewickley. It is one of the few 
 Indian names permitted to remain, which have not been 
 supplanted by Grecian, Roman, Egyptian or European 
 names. It is generally admitted that in the language 
 of the Delaware Indians, who at one time occupied a 
 large territory in Western Pennsylvania, the word Se- 
 wickley means sweet water, and it was applied to this 
 place because of the large number of sugar trees found 
 here. The same name is given to several places in 
 Westmoreland and Beaver counties, and in all of them 
 sugar trees abounded, while it was not given to any lo- 
 cality in which there were no sugar trees. As the 
 Delaware Indians are known to have had large sugar 
 camps in all the districts to which they applied the 
 name Sewickley, it is quite probable that the significa- 
 tion we have given is the true meaning of the word. 
 
 The Delaware Indians held this valley long after the 
 south side of the river, opposite to us, had been occu- 
 pied by the whites. 
 
 Communication between Fort Pitt, where Pittsburgh 
 now stands, and Fort Mackintosh, the site now occupied 
 by the town of Beaver, was by means of a military 
 road on the opposite side of the river, opened by Gen- 
 eral Broadhead, which can yet be distinctly traced. It 
 passed near the spot where Sharon church now stands. 
 That side of the river, along with nearly all southwest- 
 ern Pennsylvania, was claimed by Virginia, which or- 
 ganized three counties, Monongalia, Ohio and Yohogania, 
 and actually exercised jurisdiction for several years. 
 Monongalia included a small part of what is now known 
 as Washington county, upon Ten Mile creek, about one- 
 third of what is now Fayette county, and all of what 
 is now Greene county. Ohio county embraced about 
 
Presbyterianism in 
 
 one-third of Washington county, on the west, below 
 Cross creek; and Yohogania covered all the other parts 
 of the territory north and east of the other two, in what 
 are now Washington, Beaver, Allegheny and Fayette. 
 Yohogania lay immediately opposite to this valley, on 
 the south side of the Ohio river. The records of Yoh- 
 ogania county are still in existence, beginning with Dec. 
 23, 1776, and .-ending in 1781. For the first eight 
 months the court sat in Pittsburgh, then for two 
 months at the house of Andrew Heath, but during 
 the remainder of the time at the new court house on 
 his " plantation." This was on the western bank of the 
 Monongahela, about where the line between Washing- 
 ton and Allegheny counties strikes that river. Not a 
 few of the farms immediately across the Ohio river are 
 still held by titles from the State of Virginia. 
 
 The first time that Sewickley appears in history is in 
 connection with Col. George Morgan, who was born 
 in Philadelphia, in 1741, and commanded the first mil- 
 itary company raised in that city, in the Revolutionary 
 war. Previous to this he had traveled over a large 
 part of the South, and what was then known as the 
 western country — had become familiar with the habits 
 of the Indians — had traded with them, and had won 
 their confidence. After the outbreak of the war he was 
 sent to Fort Pitt, as an Indian agent, in order that by 
 means of his knowledge of Indian character, and the 
 confidence reposed in him by different tribes, he might 
 be successful in resisting the efforts of the British emis- 
 saries to arouse the Indians against the white settlers. 
 This agency was a complete success, and for nearly 
 three years his headquarters were at Fort Pitt, where 
 he bestowed many kindnesses upon the Indians, and se- 
 cured their warmest attachment. On the 12th of May, 
 
Sevoickley Valley. 
 
 1779, prior to his resignation of this appointment, 
 while on a visit to Princeton, whither his family had 
 been removed from Philadelphia, that his children 
 might have better educational advantages, he was wait- 
 ed upon by the chiefs and counselors of the Delaware 
 Indian nation, comprising several tribes, then occupying 
 the whole of Pennsylvania west and north of the Alle- 
 gheny and Ohio rivers, eastern Ohio and the adjacent 
 parts of West Virginia. These representatives of the 
 Delaware tribes, in attestation of their appreciation of 
 his efforts in their behalf, offered as a free gift, all of 
 what was afterwards known as "Sewickley bottom." 
 They described it in these words: "It begins at the 
 mouth of the run, opposite the foot of Montour's 
 Island, we mean the lower end of the island, (where 
 Haysville now stands,) and extending down the river 
 Ohio to the run next to Logstown — bounded by the 
 said two runs and the river Ohio, and extending back 
 from the river Ohio to the tops of the highest hills — 
 being, we suppose, about three miles in general in a di- 
 rect line from the river to the tops of the said hills, and 
 about six miles from run to run. This tract contains 
 the whole of the Sewickley bottom, which is very good 
 land, and we desire that you and your children may ac- 
 cept and possess it for ever." While deeply affected by 
 this unexpected proposition. Col. Morgan kindly but 
 firmly declined it, for two reasons: (1) Because he was 
 an officer of the government, and was paid for his ser- 
 vices by the government, and consequently had no right 
 to accept remuneration from another party. (2) Because 
 by accepting such a gift, he would set an example of 
 which bad men, agents of the government, might take 
 advantage to the injury of the Indians. The reply was 
 alike creditable to the head and the heart of Col. MoR- 
 
Presbyterianism in 
 
 GAN. Tliree several times was the offer pressed, and as 
 often was it declined. Not many Indian agents, then 
 or since, would have been able to withstand such a 
 temptation. And yet, at that very time, Col. Morgan 
 was educating the sons of several chiefs at his own ex- 
 pense in Princeton. He was the trusted friend and 
 valued correspondent of Washington, Lafayette 
 and Jefferson, and was well acquainted with Aaron 
 Burr, and a witness against him when brought to trial 
 in Richmond, Va. He removed to Morganza, near Can- 
 onsburg, in 1793, where he died in 1825. His descend- 
 ants reside in Washington, Pa., Pittsburgh, and the State 
 of Ohio. 
 
 As the Delaware Indians held undisputed possession 
 here in 1779, it is but reasonable to conclude that they 
 did not remove until a considerable number of years 
 had elapsed. Indeed, the late James Steele, who was 
 born in Carlisle, Pa., in 1783, was brought to Washing- 
 ton, Pa., in 1793, and to Sewickley bottom, where 
 Shousetown lane now is, in 1796, said in 1872, when in 
 the eighty-ninth year of his age, that when he came 
 here there was a small village of fourteen Indian huts, 
 up Little Sewickley, on what was afterwards known as 
 the "Buckley farm," now owned by Mr. B. D. Moore, 
 and that some of those Indians remained in this vicin- 
 ity until sometime between 1808 and 1812; and, also, 
 that they were very improvident and poor. The latter 
 part of the testimony of Mr. Steele is confirmed by 
 the evidence of a venerable Christian gentleman, Mr. 
 McCreery, still living in Beaver. 
 
 Many, if not most of the early white inhabitants of 
 this valley, belonged to that race of hardy and adven- 
 turous keel-boatmen, once so numerous along the Ohio 
 river, and so notorious for swearing, drinking and fight- 
 
Sewickley Valley. 
 
 ing, though not undistinguished for a high degree of 
 uncultured generosity and rude kindness of heart. The 
 Summer was spent in conveying to Louisiana lumber, 
 potatoes, corn, oats, flour and whisky, and bringing 
 back sugar and molasses, by the slow process of boats 
 propelled by poles, oars and ropes. At that time, pro- 
 duce of all kinds was remarkably cheap here, and 
 throughout this entire region. The late James Steele, 
 whose name has already been mentioned, in speaking 
 of the low price of what he considered the necessaries 
 of life at the beginning of the present century, gave as 
 an illustration, that whisky only cost sixteen cents a 
 gallon by retail ! For years a large number of the 
 families of the river men must have dwelt in the low- 
 lands between this and Economy. Twenty-eight years 
 ago the late Paul Anderson Way pointed out to me 
 evidences of many dwellings which seem to have stood 
 alongside of the old military road, opened by Wayne's 
 army, to Legionville on the Economy lands, in 1798, 
 through Sewickley bottom, remains of which are still 
 visible in a few places. In the lower Economy bottoms 
 there are to this day groups of old apple trees, indicat- 
 ing early settlements along the line of this road. 
 
 But the race of keel-boatmen is nearly extinct ; so 
 far as now known, only two of this class, once so large 
 here, remain. One of them, the venerable Capt. Robt. 
 Beer, now in his eighty-fourth year, an elder in the 
 First Presbyterian church of Pittsburgh, who was com- 
 mander of a keel-boat, resided very near the present 
 home of Mr. Robert Watson. The other, a man 
 who was employed by Capt. Beer, and made several 
 of these long and slow trips with him, is the aged Mr. 
 Elias Grimes, still residing in this place, and known 
 to most of you. 
 
10 Presbyterianism in 
 
 Yet even then, here and there were families which 
 had brought with them from their former homes the 
 Bible, the habits of Christian life, a regard for the Sab- 
 bath, and a desire for the privileges of the sanctuary. 
 And the devoted ministers of the Gospel, who came to 
 Western Pennsylvania at the close of the last century 
 or the beginning of this, were most untiring in their 
 efforts to discover the scattered sheep of the house of 
 Israel, and to bring others into the fold of Christ. 
 Occasionally some one of these excellent and self-deny- 
 ing men would find his way to this spot — the natural, 
 beauties of which were even then noticed and reported 
 abroad — where they would be warmly welcomed by the 
 few pious, and where others would turn aside for a little 
 from the hunt, the carousal and the family gathering to 
 listen to the strange preacher. 
 
 The first mmister of any denomination who held re- 
 ligious services by regular appointments in this valley, 
 was the Rev. Francis Reno, of the Protestant Epis- 
 copal church. Several Episcopal ministers labored for 
 a number of years at a very early date in southwestern 
 Pennsylvania, and in that part of Virginia immedi- 
 ately adjacent. Rev. Joseph Doddridge, M. D., 
 whose " Notes " are so often referred to as illustrative 
 of the manners, customs, and mode of life of the early 
 inhabitants, was brought to Wellsburg, Va., in 1773, 
 and was of Episcopal parentage. During the period 
 between 1776 and 1781, when Yohogania county, 
 under the authority of Virginia, exercised jurisdiction 
 over the district lying immediately across the river 
 from us, the following preachers — William Taylor, 
 William Reno, John Whittaker, and Edward 
 HuGHEY, took the oath of allegiance. Two of these 
 were undoubtedly Episcopal ministers, and this Wil- 
 
S&wickley Valley. 11 
 
 LiAM Reno was the father of Rev. Francis Reno, 
 the pioneer minister in Sewickley. This arrival of 
 Episcopal ministers at so early a date is easily ex- 
 plained. That part of Pennsylvania was claimed by 
 Virginia; and in order to make good its claims, coun- 
 ties, as we have seen, were formed and courts of law 
 were organized; and as Episcopacy was established by 
 law in Virginia, the institutions and ministers of that 
 Church accompanied the civil power, so that it might 
 be seen that Virginia government was fully established 
 in the disputed territory. 
 
 It is probable that the Rev. Francis Reno began 
 to preach here in 1797, or at least very near the begin- 
 ning of 1798. For there is a subscription paper still 
 in existence, prepared in legal form, for one-third of 
 the time of Mr. Reno, from May 1, 1798, to May 1, 
 1799. The subscriptions were partly in cash and 
 partly in produce, to be paid " at the expiration of the 
 year," the produce to be delivered at Daniel Leet's 
 mill on Little Sewickley. The following are the names 
 of the subscribers and the amount to be paid by each : 
 John Bean, $2.00; John Way, $1.50; John Grif- 
 fith, 50 cents; William Left, $1.50; James 
 Fletcher, $1.00; AVilliam McGlahlen, $1.50; 
 Arthur Frampton, $1.00; John Stairs, $1.00; 
 William Laudimore, 50 cents ; Joseph Olliver, 
 75 cents ; John Vail, $1.33 ; Sam Thomas Olliver, 
 75 cents ; Hannah Heigus, $2.00 ; Wm. Ghent, 
 $4.00; Patrick Bolden, 75 cents; Jeremiah 
 Wright, $2.00; James Hutchinson, $2.00; Solo- 
 mon Vail, $1.00; David Vail, $1.00; George 
 Harris, $1.00; Benjamin Gunsalus, $1.00; Sam- 
 uel English, $1.00; Joseph Fisher, 3 bushels of 
 corn; John Olliver, 3 bushels of corn; Hugh 
 
12 Preshyterianism in 
 
 Laudimore, 3 bushels of corn ; John Bales, Sr., 2 
 bushels of corn; Christian Martin, 3 bushels of 
 corn; Jesse Fisher, 1| bushels of corn; Samuel 
 Merriman, 3 bushels of corn ; Hugh Laudimore, 1 
 bushel of corn ; Frederick Merriman, 2 bushels of 
 corn ; Samuel Smith, 3 bushels of corn ; H. Lee, 2 
 bushels of corn and 1 bushel of wheat; Henry 
 Ulery, 4 bushels of corn and 1 bushel of rye ; Adam 
 Patterson, 3 bushels of corn ; Wm. Sutton, 3 bush- 
 els of corn. The number and variety of these names 
 indicate that there was at that time (1798) a very con- 
 siderable population in this vicinity; and it will be 
 noticed that some of these names are still found here. 
 The majority of these subscriptions are marked paid in 
 full, some paid in part, and a few altogether unpaid. 
 It will be noticed that the most liberal subscriber was 
 Wm. Cheny; but unfortunately William is only 
 credited with paying 25 cents, while he promised $4.00. 
 Yet, this is not the worst part of the history of 
 this Wm. Cheny ; for, on the docket of John Way, 
 Esq., under date of May 5, 1800, Wm. Cheny 
 and Jeremiah Bannon were "bound in $200 for ap- 
 pearance at the next General Court of Quarter Ses- 
 sions," for "passing counterfeit dollars or quarters on 
 the sixth day of January, 1800." It is to be hoped 
 that Mr. Cheny did not inflict a counterfeit quarter 
 on Rev. Francis Reno. Two similar subscription 
 papers for Mr. Reno, one dated 1799 and the other 
 1807, are also in existence. Mr. Reno was not to be 
 trifled with in the matter of salary ; he believed that 
 a contract was something to be fulfilled by both par- 
 ties. He did his part, and he expected the subscribers 
 to do what they had promised. Accordingly, we find 
 entries on the docket of John Way, Esq., dated 
 
SemcJcley Valley. 13 
 
 March 14, 1801, against Patrick Bolden, Samuel 
 Meeriman and Jeremiah Wright, in which judg- 
 ments are given against them and the moneys collected 
 and paid over to Mr. Reno. Merriman's subscrip- 
 tion was 3 bushels of corn, and the judgment against 
 him was for $1.00 and costs, which gives 33 cents as 
 the value of a bushel of corn at that time. In the 
 subscription paper of 1798 it was stipulated that Mr. 
 Reno should preach on lot No. 2 in Daniel Leet's 
 district, and the place of preaching was 'Squire Way's 
 barn, which stood until a few years ago on the lower 
 side of the road, opposite the house now occupied by 
 Mr. Wm. L. Jones. What success attended Mr. 
 Reno's labors here, or when he ceased from them, 
 we have no means of learning. It is certain, however, 
 that he preached here until after 1809. As only one- 
 third of his time was occupied here, he preached at 
 Woodville on the Washington road, near the old 
 Cowan estate, in this county ; and in Beaver, and prob- 
 ably occasionally elsewhere. Many of his descendants 
 still live in Beaver county. 
 
 Probably as early as 1805 or 1806, there was occa- 
 sional preaching by Methodist preachers in the house of 
 Mr. Fisher, a tenant of Daniel Leet, on what was 
 afterwards known as the Shields' property. Next, a 
 preaching stand was erected in a grove near the old road 
 which crossed Little Sewickley, a short distance below 
 where the Beaver road bridge now is, and then ran 
 along the creek down to the military road opened 
 by General Wayne. Previous to 1823, a Methodist 
 frame meeting house was erected on the high ground 
 to the right of the Beaver road, and a little be- 
 yond the bridge crossing Little Sewickley. This 
 building, although in a state of great dilapidation, was 
 
14 Preshjterianism in 
 
 standing several years after I began my labors here. 
 It is probable that during those years the apostolic 
 Bishop Roberts may have preached the Gospel there, 
 as the late Mrs. Nicholas Way was his cousin. Such 
 was the beginning of the large and vigorous Methodist 
 Episcopal church of Sewickley. 
 
 The first Presbyterian minister now known to have 
 preached in Sewickley valley was the Rev. John Mc- 
 Clain, then pastor of the church of Montours, on Mon- 
 tours creek, on the opposite side of the river. Some of 
 the members of that church resided here, and the pastor 
 occasionally came over to preach to them and to others 
 disposed to hear the Gospel. He continued to do this, 
 preaching in private houses, in barns, and in the woods, 
 from 1802 to 1808. Of Mr. McClain, but little can 
 be learned at this day. He was a member of the Pres- 
 bytery of Ohio, and pastor of Montours, at the time of 
 the first meeting of the Synod of Pittsburgh, Sept. 29, 
 1802; and in the minutes of the Synod of Pittsburgh, 
 which met Oct. 4, 1808, his name still appears as pastor 
 of Montours church. But the Presbytery of Ohio re- 
 ports to the Synod, which met Oct. 3, 1809: "That on 
 the 22d day of December last it dissolved the pastoral 
 relation of the Rev. John McClain and the congrega- 
 tion of Montours Run, and on the 25th of May sus- 
 pended him from the exercise of his functions as a 
 minister of the Gospel." 
 
 The first mention made of any regularly organized 
 Presbyterian diurch in this valley, is found in the re- 
 port of the Presbytery of Erie to the Synod of Pitts- 
 burgh, in 1808. That Presbytery then included the 
 entire district north of the Allegheny and Ohio rivers, 
 from the town of Beaver to Lake Erie at the division 
 line between Pennsylvania and New York, and along 
 
Sevnckley Valley. 15 
 
 that lake to the point where the city of Cleveland now 
 stands. Indeed, the Presbyterian church, or any other 
 Protestant church, was not known much farther west- 
 ward at that time. In the Autumn of 1808, the year 
 in which a church in Sewickley bottom first appears on 
 the records, the Synod met in Pittsburgh, and was opened 
 with a sermon by Rev. John McMillan, D. D., "the 
 apostle of the West," from Psalm Ixxi : 16: "I will go 
 in the strength of the Lord God ; I will make mention 
 of thy righteousness, even of thine only." Who com- 
 posed the church here at that time no one now living 
 can tell ; their names appear now on no church record, 
 but they are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. 
 
 On the 22d of August, 1810, the Rev. Andeew 
 McDonald was ordained and installed pastor of the 
 church of White Oak Flats, now Mt. Carmel, in Beaver 
 county, some three or four miles from Economy, on the 
 southern side of the Ohio river. At that time an ap- 
 plication was made from the church at Sewickley bot- 
 tom for the services of Mr. McDonald one-third of 
 his time, until the next meeting of Presbytery, which 
 was granted. And at a meeting of the Presbytery of 
 Ohio, Oct. 5, 1811, "a call" was presented for the labors 
 of Mr. McDonald one-half of his time. The "call" 
 was accepted, and the Stated Clerk was directed to in- 
 form the Presbytery of Erie of this fact, as this church 
 still belonged to that Presbytery. The Synod, at its 
 meeting in the Fall of 1812, set this church over from 
 the Presbytery of Erie to the Presbytery of Ohio. Mr. 
 McDonald was never formally installed, but appears 
 as pastor of White Oak Flats and Sewickley bottom 
 on the minutes of the Synod of Pittsburgh for 1814, 
 1815, 1816 and 1817. His labors here seemed to have 
 ceased early in 1818 ; for, on the minutes of the Synod, 
 
16 Presbyterianism in 
 
 which met Oct. 6, 1818, he appears as pastor of White 
 Oak Flats and Flaherty's Run ; the latter is the one 
 from which the church of Sharon, so long and so faith- 
 fully served by the Rev. S. C. Jennings, D. D., sprang. 
 And in the minutes of the same year Sewickley is 
 marked " vacant," and is also placed among the churches 
 designated " not able to support a pastor," a statement 
 no one will doubt. 
 
 The Rev. Andrew McDonald was born on Raccoon 
 creek, Washington county, where his father was a large 
 land-holder. He graduated at Jefferson College in the 
 class of 1803 — the second class which left that institu- 
 tion — was received by the Presbytery of Ohio as a can- 
 didate for the Gospel ministry in 1805, and was licensed 
 to preach the Gospel by the same Presbytery in 1806, 
 along with Messrs. Reid Bracken, Cyrus Riggs, 
 Samuel Woods, and Clement Vallandigham — 
 all of whom have long ago entered into rest. Mr. 
 Vallandigham was the father of the late Clement 
 ■ Vallandigham, of Ohio, and Mr. Woods was an 
 uncle of Dr. Woods, of this church. The last time 
 we find Mr. McDonald designated pastor, is in the 
 minutes of 1823. From that time for six years he is 
 marked "without charge." Mental aberrations, indi- 
 cated for many years, increased, until in 1830, his name 
 was "erased" from the roll of Presbytery, "on account 
 of mental derangement." Reason was never regained, 
 although his death did not take place until 1846. 
 
 After the retirement of Mr. McDonald from the 
 charge of the church here, there was occasional preach- 
 ing by the Rev. Thomas E. Hughes, who was then 
 settled at Greersburg, now Darlington, in Beaver county. 
 Mr. Hughes was the father of four ministers of the 
 Presbyterian Church — William, Watson, John D. 
 
Sewickley Valley. 17 
 
 and James E. Hughes. The three first mentioned are 
 dead, but Rev. James R. Hughes is pastor of a church in 
 Dayton, Ohio. During the interval between 1818 and 
 1822, the late Rev. Francis Hereon, D. D., whose 
 wife had relatives living on a part of what is now the 
 Economy projjert}^ preached here several times. And 
 it is said that the late Rev. Elisha P. Swift, D. D., 
 during the latter part of this period, preached here once 
 or twice with great powder. 
 
 At first public worship was held in private houses, 
 then in barns, and in the Summer in some favorable 
 spot in the woods. Mr. McDonald preached very of- 
 ten in Jackson's or Hoey's barns, which stood until 
 a few years ago on the spot now occupied by the dwell- 
 ing of Capt. James Woodburn. At length, by com- 
 mon consent, the services in the Summer were held in 
 the grove that then encompassed the spring on the 
 property then owned by Mr. Beer, but now by Mr. 
 Robert Watson. A stand for the preacher, covered 
 and enclosed on three sides with clapboards, called "the 
 tent," and logs for seats for the hearers, were provided. 
 In 1815, the Lord's Supper was administered in Mr. 
 Beer's barn, which stood on the ground now occupied 
 by the residence of Mr. John A. Warden. The "old 
 church," which rested on the bank of Hoey's run, which 
 passes through the borough of Sewickley, a short dis- 
 tance from the spring first mentioned, was erected in 
 1818. The logs were cut, roughly hewn, laid u]) and 
 covered with clapboards, and the house fitted up with a 
 puncheon floor and puncheon seats, by the voluntary 
 labors of the people. This building was taken down 
 some years ago, and its materials used for a carpenter 
 shop, on Fife street ; but the opening of Locust street 
 will soon remove this last vestige of a church of the 
 
 2 
 
18 PresbyterianisiH in 
 
 olden time in this region. The ground on which this 
 building stood was leased to the "congregation" by the 
 Beer family for the term of forty years. A subsequent 
 owner of the Beer farm attempted to take possession of 
 the property before the lease had expired. But James 
 Park, Sr., appeared with the .lease in his hand, and 
 made good the claim of the "congregation." 
 
 The first sermon in that modest and rustic house of 
 worship, was delivered by the Rev. Michael Law, 
 pastor of the church of Montours. He was a native of 
 Ireland, a graduate of the class of 1808 in Washington 
 College — the first class that issued from that institution 
 — and was ordained and installed Jan. 15, 1812. His 
 manner of speaking was earnest, and he glowed with 
 missionary zeal. While returning from a missionary 
 tour among the Indians at Sandusky, he was seized with 
 a fever, and died Oct. 9, 1821, at Ashland, Ohio. So 
 greatly was he admired and beloved, that the people of 
 Montours long years afterwards gathered up his dust 
 and deposited it in their own burying ground. A 
 daughter, widow of the late Judge Parke, an elder 
 in the church of Center, Presbytery of Pittsburgh, 
 still lives; and the Rev. W. I. Parke, pastor of the 
 church of Canton, Ohio, is a grandson. It is believed 
 that the first communion in the "old log church" was 
 administered by the Rev. Dr. Herron. 
 
 At the meeting of the Synod of Pittsburgh, in the Fall 
 of 1821, this record was made: "The Rev. John An- 
 drews, of the Synod of Ohio, being present, was invi- 
 ted and took his seat as a corresponding member." And ' 
 on the 16th day of April, 1822, he was received by the 
 Presbytery of Redstone, which at that time included 
 the city of Pittsburgh within its bounds, from the Pres- 
 bytery of ChilIi(!othe. On the 15th of October, in the 
 
Sewickley Valley. 19 
 
 same year, Mr. Andeews and Revs. Francis Hereon, 
 Robert Patterson, Joseph Stockton and Ellsha 
 P. Swift, detached themselves from the Presbytery of 
 Redstone, and united witli the Presbytery of Ohio, ac- 
 cording to the order of Synod. And on the minutes of 
 the Synod for 1823, Mr. Andrews appears as stated 
 supply of Duif 's (now Fairmount) and Sewickley. An 
 old session book has been preserved, which contains a 
 partial record of the church from 1822 to 1831. From 
 this it appears that Mr. Andrews began his labors here 
 June 1, 1822. The church then consisted of: eiders — 
 James McLaughlin and Thomas Backhouse ; pri- 
 vate members — Nancy McLaughlin, Sarah Back- 
 house, Mrs. Woody (widow) Mann, William Mc- 
 Laughlin, Mary McLaughlin, Thomas Wagoner, 
 Mrs. Wagoner, Jane Lester and Jane Vance, 
 making eleven in all. The subscription paper " for the 
 ministerial labors of the Rev. John Andre\vs, of Pitts- 
 burgh, the one-third part of his time, to be expended in 
 Sewickley congregation, on the Pittsburgh and Beaver 
 road, to continue one year from this date, June 1, 1822," 
 shows the sum of $35.50 subscribed by nineteen persons. 
 If he received in the same proportion for the remaining 
 two-thirds of his time — and it is not likely that he got 
 any more — his entire salary was $106.50 a year. In 
 January, 1823, the church of Sewickley reported 
 twenty-two members; in April, 1824, twenty-four; in 
 1825, thirty-two ; and the same number in 1826. The 
 only member of the church to which Mr. Andrews 
 ministered, now living, is Mrs. Martha Hood, a 
 member of the Leetsdale church, who was received 
 Oct. 9, 1830. Mr. Andrews was never installed pas- 
 tor of Fairmount and Sewickley, but continued stated 
 supply of these churches until some time after the meet- 
 
20 Preshyterianisin in 
 
 ing of the Synod of 1831; for on the minutes of the 
 Synod of that year he is marked " stated supply," while 
 in the minutes of 1822 he is reported "without charge." 
 
 Under the ministry of Mr. Andeews there seems to 
 have been some religious activity ; collections were taken 
 for the American Bible and Tract Societies; and Bibles 
 and tracts were distributed among people where both 
 were greatly needed. The following paper is on record, 
 dated September 24, 1830: "We, the subscribers, 
 promise to pay the sums annexed to our names for the 
 purpose of procuring the Kev. John Andrews a 
 horse to enable him to perform his labors." To this 
 thirty-three names are attached, and the whole amount 
 subscribed was $17.87|^, all of which is marked "paid." 
 If this sum paid for the horse, horses must have been 
 very cheap at that time, or a very poor horse must have 
 been purchased. If this was the horse Mr. Andrews 
 was accustomed to ride several years afterwards, when 
 I frequently saw him, the sum first mentioned was cer- 
 tainly his full value. 
 
 Mr. Andrews was born on Piney creek, Frederick 
 county, Maryland, September 16, 1768. His father, in 
 early life, was a member of the church of Pequea, in 
 Lancaster county, Pa., of which the Eev. Egbert 
 Smith, whose celebrated school gave so many ministers 
 to the Presb}'terian Church, was pastor. In 1772 the 
 family removed to North Carolina, and in 1773 settled 
 on Cane creek, in the western part of Tryon county, 
 which, after the Revolution, became Rutherford county. 
 Here some of the most stirring scenes of the Revolu- 
 tion were enacted. For his primary education, Mr. 
 Andrews was indebted mostly to a sister; and he 
 afterward studied in succession at three classical schools 
 in that part of the State. In 1791 he made a confes- 
 
Sewickley Valley. 21 
 
 siou of faith in the church of Little Britain, most of 
 whose members came originally from Pennsylvania. 
 He studied theology under the direction of the Rev. 
 James Hall and other ministers, and in 1794 was 
 licensed by the Presbytery of Orange. In 1795 he 
 visited Kentucky, recently admitted to be a State, and 
 continued his journey to Cincinnati, where Rev. James 
 Kemper was at that time the only Presbyterian minis- 
 ter. After remaining in that neighborhood for a time, 
 he returned to Kentucky and labored in Lexington 
 and its vicinity for several years. From Kentucky he 
 removed to Chillicothe, Ohio, then the headquarters of 
 the Northwest Territory, M'here many families of high 
 social influence and intelligence had been collected. 
 There, on the 5th day of July, 1814, he issued the first 
 number of the "Weekly Recorder," which was the first 
 religious newspaper issued in the United States, or, in- 
 deed, in the world, combining religious and secular neios. 
 This j)aper contained religious, literary, civil and gen- 
 eral intelligence and discussions, on the same jjlan now 
 adopted by the best religious journals throughout the 
 world. It was removed to Pittsburgh in 1821, where it 
 has been published ever since, though the name has 
 been changed four times. The first change was to the 
 '' Spectator," then the " Herald," then the "Presbyterian 
 Advocate," and now the "Presbyterian Banner." 
 After Mr. Andreavs retired from DulF's and Sewickley, 
 he spent much time in establishing Sabbath Schools in 
 churches and neighborhoods where they did not pre- 
 viously exist. He was of feeble and attenuated frame, 
 and in his advanced years his hair was perfectly white 
 and his face was nearly of the same color. He died in 
 Pittsburgh when nearly, if not quite, ninety years of age. 
 From 1832 until 1837 scarcely any notice seems to 
 
22 ^resbyterianisvi in 
 
 have been taken of the church in this place. The 
 people were indebted to Rev. S. C. Jennings, and 
 probably others, for occasional preaching. But the 
 church organization gradually died out — the people 
 uniting with the Fairraount, Island and Sharon 
 churches. The good seed of the Word is never lost; 
 if it does not take root in one place it will in another. 
 About midsumiiier, 1 837, Rev. Daniel E. Nevin vis- 
 ited Sewickley, and preached in the school-room of 
 Edgeworth Female Seminary, which had been removed 
 a short time before from Braddock's Fields. Mr. 
 Nevin Avas born at Shippensburg, Pa., graduated at 
 Jefferson College in 1833, entered upon the study of 
 law in the office of the late Richard Biddle, but in 
 a short time became a student of the Western Theo- 
 logical Seminary in Allegheny, and graduated in 1836. 
 Mr. Nevin was invited to continue to preach here for 
 a time, and on the 17th of February, 1838, a new 
 church was organized according to the appointment of 
 Presbytery, by the Rev. John W. Nevin, at that time 
 a professor in the Western Theological Seminary, and 
 the Rev. Joseph Reed, then pastor of the church of 
 Hilands. As the steamboats were not running at that 
 season of the year, and as there was so much snow on 
 the ground as to make it unpleasant to ride on horse- 
 back, Mr., now Dr. John W. Nevin, of Lancaster, Pa., 
 took the more comfortable method and walked all the 
 way from Allegheny. The services were held in the 
 school-room of Edgeworth Seminary. The members 
 at this organization were twenty : Alexander Ing- 
 ram, Mrs. Mary Ingram, Ellen Ingram, James 
 S. McCoMBS, Mrs. Anna McCombs, Margaret Mc- 
 CoMBS, John B. Champ, James McLaughlin, Mrs. 
 Nancy McLaughlin, George Flower, Mrs. Jane 
 
SevricMey Valley.. 23 
 
 M. Flower, John Waggoner, Mrs. Isabella Wag- 
 goner, Mrs. Eleanor Orr, Mrs. Mary Olver, 
 Mary Smith, Eliza Campbell, Mary P. John- 
 ston, Mrs. Margaret Xevin, Mrs. Jemima Ander- 
 son. Of these twenty only two are now living — Mrs. 
 Margaret Neyin, received from the First Presbyte- 
 rian church of Allegheny, and Miss Mary P. Johns- 
 ton, received from the Congregational church of Shrews- 
 bury, Mass., afterwards Mrs. Mary P. Olver, now 
 Mrs. Mary P. Clifford, of Southboro, Mass. Only 
 three of the twenty were received from the old church of 
 Sewickley. Mrs. Martha Hood had been, as I have 
 already stated, a member of that church, but did not 
 become a member of the new organization until a later 
 day. The elders then elected Avere James McLaugh- 
 lin, who had been a member and an elder of the old 
 Sewickley church, and John B. Champ, who had 
 been received on certificate from the Congregational 
 church of St. Mary's, Ottery, England. On the 11th 
 of April, 1838, Rev. Daniel E. Neyin was ordained 
 and installed pastor of the united churches of Fair- 
 mount and Sewickley. 
 
 The old log building already described was not 
 favorably situated for the new organization, nor 
 was it then fit for occupancy ; consequently public 
 worship was held in the school-room of Edgeworth 
 Seminary for nearly three years. There were seri- 
 ous obstacles in the way of erecting a new house of 
 worship. The pecuniary resources of the church were 
 small, and it was difficult to obtain a building lot in 
 such a location as to receive the approbation of all. 
 At lengtli, after much prayer, hoping and conference, 
 the first formal meeting to take definite action was held 
 Feb. 1, 1839. Then the following trustees were 
 
24 Presbyterianism in 
 
 elected to serve one year: Jno. B, Champ, James 
 McLaughlin, James Olver, Nicholas Way and 
 James Anderson. They were empowered to pur- 
 chase one acre of ground from John Fife ; and this 
 was done through the instrumentality of Dr. John 
 Dickson for the sum of $200, Mr. Fife making a 
 donation of $50. Alexander Ingram, Dr. John 
 Dickson, John Shields, Robert Peebles and Wil- 
 liam M. Nevin were appointed a building committee, 
 and Robert Peebles, Rev. Jno. W. Nevin, Jno. B. 
 Champ and Dr. Jno. Dickson were appointed a com- 
 mittee to solicit subscriptions. The late Mr. David 
 Shields acted as chairman of this meeting, and Jno. 
 B. Champ, secretary. At a meeting held on the 13th 
 of March following, it was resolved : "That Mr. Chis- 
 LETT (then the leading architect in Pittsburgh), agreeably 
 to his proposal, be requested to sketch a plan of church 
 after the Gothic order of architecture, answering to a 
 fund of $1,500, and that the pews and pulpit be not 
 included in the plan." It was likewise resolved: 
 "That the building committee have a discretionary 
 power to enter into a contract for the building." ' The 
 next meeting was not held until July 27, 1 840, when 
 the building across the street had been erected. Then 
 a committee was appointed to secure means for remov- 
 ing the debt. At a meeting held March 18, 1841, 
 "the pewing of the middle part of the church, agree- 
 ably to a plan to be furnished by Mr. Paul Ander- 
 son Way, " was ordered; and at a meeting on the 29th 
 of April, in the same year, the remainder of the pews 
 was ordered to be put in. Thus two full years and 
 more passed away from the beginning of the enterprise 
 until its completion, although the building was occu- 
 pied some time before it was entirely finished. In 
 
Sewickley Valley. 25 
 
 the erection of that neat, but unpretending, building 
 where this church worshiped so long — where tlie 
 word was so often in demonstration of the Spirit and 
 of power^ and which, notwithstanding the dilapidation 
 into which it has fallen, is still so fragrant with tlie 
 memories of the departed — there was much delay, effort 
 and self-denial. Most of the people were poor and 
 had not been accustomed to such undertakings. A 
 great helper was found in Mrs. Mary Olver. She 
 was of commanding person and had a large heart, and 
 that heart was in this work. It was mainly at her sug- 
 gestion that the church here was resuscitated. The 
 re-organization took place in the school-room of the in- 
 stitution over which she presided with so much success, 
 and in that same room the congregation worshiped 
 nearly three years. Her death, on the 18th of July, 
 1842, was a great loss not only to the seminary, but 
 also to this church. Not only did she herself labor 
 earnestly and give freely, but she also induced her 
 teachers and pupils to do likewise. Even Roman Cath- 
 olics in attendance at the school gave generously and 
 obtained contributions from others because of their at- 
 tachment to Mrs. Olver. But if Edgeworth Semi- 
 nary gave with bountiful hand, it also received largely. 
 Here many of its inmates first felt the word of God 
 come Avith power to their hearts ; here many of those 
 now widely dispersed — not a few of whom have already 
 ascended on high — were born into the kingdom of God. 
 Nor should the active and efficient interest taken in this 
 church by some of the young men connected with the 
 school of Messrs. Nevin and Champ, in the house 
 now occupied by Mr. Wm. L. Jones, be unnoticed. 
 
 But scarcely had yonder church edifice been com- 
 pleted, when the pastor who had waited, toiled, prayed 
 
26 Presbyterianism in 
 
 and hoped for this result, began to feel the rapid ap- 
 proach of that disease which at length closed his mouth 
 that he could no longer proclaim the glorious Gospel of 
 the blessed God. The pastorate of Fairmount is first 
 resigned, in the hope that he might still be permitted to 
 feed this little flock ; but this privilege is also soon taken 
 away. On the 11th of September, 1847, he resigned 
 the charge of this church, which he would gladly have 
 retained, had it been the will of God. During his 
 pastorate here, forty-four were admitted to this church 
 by certificate, and seventy-five by confession of faith. 
 Previous to his retirement from the pastorate, he had 
 taken charge of Edgeworth Seminary, which he held 
 for seven and a half years. During this time many of 
 the pupils \vere brought to repentance toward God and 
 faith in the Loed Jesus Christ. 
 
 The next pastor, James Allison, was born in the 
 city of Pittsburgh, Sept. 27, 1823, but was reared near 
 Bakerstown, in the northern part of this county, and 
 within the bounds of the church of Cross Roads, in 
 this Presbytery, under the ministry of Rev. John 
 Moore and Rev. Leland R. McAboy. His classical 
 studies were begun under the late Rev. Thomas C. 
 Guthrie, D. D., then a minister of the New Side Re- 
 formed Presbyterian Church. Afterwards he attended 
 an academy under the care of Rev. John Moore, near 
 Hickory, Washington county. Pa. In 1842, he entered 
 the Sophomore class in Jeiferson College, and graduated 
 Sept., 1845, on the day on which the late Rev. Mat- 
 thew Brown, D. D., laid down the presidency and the 
 late Rev. Robert J. Breckinridge, D. D., took it up. 
 In October of that year, he entered the Western Theolog- 
 ical Seminary in Allegheny, and graduated in May, 1848. 
 On the next Sabbath, the third Sabbath of May, 1848, 
 
Sewickley Valley. 27 
 
 he preached his first sermon in this place. When he 
 came hither on the previous day, he had not the re- 
 motest idea of a settlement in this place. He did not 
 know that this little church, as it was then, was desi- 
 rous to secure a pastor ; least of all did he know that 
 any one had spoken or even thought of himself in that 
 connection. All his arrangements had been made for 
 a field in the State of Iowa ; but he was induced to re- 
 main, and act as stated supply for one year, at a salary 
 of $400. He was ordained and installed pastor, Oct. 
 16, 1849. Small as the church then was, it was much 
 more scattered than at present. Beginning above 
 what is now Dixmont, it extended along the river to 
 Shousetown, and then miles back over the hills. The 
 pastoral relation was dissolved at his recpiest, Feb. 18, 
 1864, that he might become one of the editors and pro- 
 prietors of the " Presbyterian Banner," with which he 
 had been connected as correspondent and partner for 
 several years, but from which he had been disconnected 
 for some time. During his pastorate of nearly sixteen 
 years, there were received into this church two hundred 
 and seventy-seven by confession of faith and two hun- 
 dred and thirty-one by certificate. 
 
 Owing to the increase of the congregation, the brick 
 building became crowded. We first placed new pews in 
 the vacant space around the pulpit. Then we took up 
 all the pews and placed them more closely together, thus 
 increasing the number ; and then we erected the gal- 
 lery, which Avas taken possession of by Edgeworth 
 Seminary. But at length we became so crowded that 
 a larger house of worship was absolutely necessary. 
 The first formal meeting to take the matter into con- 
 sideration, was held in the beginning of August, 1858. 
 After this, some time was spent in securing pledges of 
 
28 Presbyterianism in 
 
 money and examining different plans of church edi- 
 fices. At a meeting held on the 7th of February, 
 1859, the plan of this house, furnished by Mr. J. W. 
 Kerr, was adopted, and the trustees were directed to 
 proceed with its erection. This site was secured after 
 some delay ; the contract was given out, and the Avork 
 was begun early in June, 1859. But the building was 
 not completed iintil December, 1861. 
 
 The cost of the lot was $1,242; of the building, 
 $15,000; and of the organ, $1,800, although this was 
 not put in until August, 1863. This house was dedi- 
 cated to the worship of the Most High God, Father 
 Son and Holy Ghost, on Sabbath, Dec. 15, 1861. 
 The dedicatory prayer was offered by Rev. M. W. 
 Jacobus, D. D., who also jDreached the dedication ser- 
 mon from Psalm xxvii : 4. In the afternoon the sermon 
 was preached by Rev. Samuel J. Wilson, D. D., 
 from Psalm xlviii : 12, 13. In the evening Rev. W. M. 
 Paxton, D. D., then pastor of the First Presbyterian 
 church of Pittsburgh, but now of the First Presbyterian 
 church of New York, preached from Matt, xxvii : 22. 
 Large, attentive, and deeply interested congregations 
 were in attendance at all these services. Thus did we 
 enter our holy and beautiful house with praise and 
 thanksgiving unto God. 
 
 The present pastor. Rev. J. B. Bittinger, D. D., is 
 a native of this State, graduated at Pennsylvania Col- 
 lege at Gettysburg in 1844, and at Andover Theolog- 
 ical Seminary in 1849. He was licensed to preach the 
 Gospel in 1849 by the Andover Congregational Asso- 
 ciation ; was princij)al of the Abbott Female Seminary 
 at Andover, Mass., one year, 1849-50 ; was professor 
 of Rhetoric and Intellectual Philosoply in Middlebury 
 College, Vt., from 1851 to 1853; was ordained an 
 
Sewickley Valley. 29 
 
 Evangelist, at Cornwall, Vt., in 1852; was pastor of 
 Euclid Avenue Presbyterian church in Cleveland, 
 Ohio, from 1853 to 1862; was called to the pastorate 
 of this church, May 9, 1864; and was installed July 
 6, 1864. 
 
 Since the beginning of the pastorate of Dr. Bittin- 
 GER, ninety-one have been received on confession of 
 faith, and two hundred and four by certificate ; and this 
 church has done liberal things. The first was the pay- 
 ment of a debt of $5,000 resting upon the church ; then 
 the manse was erected at a cost of $8,500 ; then the 
 building of the mission school house was accomplished 
 at a cost of $2,000; then the lecture room and Sabbath 
 School rooms were erected — called " Reunion Chapel " 
 in memory of the re-union of the Old and New School 
 Presbyterian Churches— at a cost of $15,603.35, of which 
 $2,500 were realized from the sale of the old church. 
 The corner stone of this beautiful chapel was laid Sept. 
 23, 1871, and it was dedicated Jan. 21, 1872. The 
 bell was the gift of Mr. Cochran Fleming, and cost 
 $1,500, while the frame upon which it rests, and putting 
 it in place, cost $1,000 more. In these twelve years 
 the people of this congregation have expended $31,- 
 103.55 upon this house of worship, the manse, the 
 buildino' for the mission school and the memorial 
 chapel, in addition to all the expenses for repairs, the 
 salary of the pastor, sexton's hire, and contributions to 
 benevolent objects. The entire sum of money paid out 
 by this church for all purposes, including salary, in these 
 twelve years, amounts to $101,229.00. 
 
 But this is not all. This church has been the mother 
 of two other churches now strong and vigorous, and of 
 one lately organized under most favorable auspices. 
 The United Presbyterian church of this place, origi- 
 
30 Presbyterianism in 
 
 nally composed almost entirely of those dismissed by 
 certificate from this church, was organized May 3, 1864, 
 with a membership of eighteen. The Rev. Wm. A. 
 McKenzie was ordained and installed pastor April 5, 
 1865, and resigned his charge June 6, 1871. The 
 ])resent pastor, Rev. D. S, Kennedy, 'was installed 
 Oct. 15, 1872. Since the organization, two hundred 
 and forty-five have been received; but only six of the 
 original members remain. 
 
 The pastor informs me that in these twelve years 
 " The church has raised and expended for the cause of 
 Christ $36,289.00." This is certainly an honorable 
 record. 
 
 The Leetsdale church was organized August 1, 1864, 
 in Edge worth Seminary, as was this church, by a com- 
 mittee of the Presbytery of Allegheny City, consisting of 
 Rev. Messrs. L. L. Conrad, D. P. Lowary, and Messrs. 
 Alexander Cameron and S. B. Mercer, with forty- 
 three members, all of whom had been dismissed by cer- 
 tificate from this church. Messrs. John K. Wilson and 
 Jacob W. Guy were elected and installed elders. 
 Mr. Wilson had been an elder in this church ; Mr. 
 Guy in the Valley church, Presbytery of Ohio — now 
 Pittsburgh. Edgeworth Seminary opened its hospi- 
 table doors to the Leetsdale church, as it had done to 
 the Sewickley church, and public worship was held there 
 until the building was consumed by fire in Feb., 1865 ; 
 after that services were held for a time in the "Shields 
 school house," a small brick building still standing on 
 the high ground above the Beaver road, on this side of 
 Little Sewickley, where a weekly prayer-meeting had 
 been maintained for many years. Sewickley church, 
 at the beginning of the present organization, was large- 
 ly indebted to a woman; but Leetsdale is under still 
 
Sewickley Valley. 31 
 
 greater obligations to a woman. Mrs. Eliza Shields 
 was the daughter of a Revolutionary soldier, who 
 had served on the staff of General Washington. 
 From her fatlier she had inherited large possessions 
 here, and for years it had been in her heart to erect to 
 the memory of her father, Major Daniel Leet, and her 
 mother, Wilelmina, something that would be a bles- 
 sing to her children and her children's children and her 
 neighbors, and also to the glory of God. Now her 
 time had come; and although far advanced in life, 
 she acted with great vigor and intense earnestness. 
 First she donated a lot estimated to be worth $1,200; 
 during the Summer she put up a chapel at a cost of 
 $2,300 ; then she erected the beautiful house of wor- 
 ship now occupied by the Leetsdale church, at a cost of 
 $18,000. 
 
 The chapel was dedicated to the worship of God in 
 the Summer of 1865. The corner stone of the church 
 was laid, June 23, 1868, and it was dedicated to the 
 worship of the Triune God, on Sabbath, Nov. 14, 1869. 
 The dedication sermon was preached by Rev. James 
 Allison. The sermon in the afternoon was by the 
 Rev. David R. Kere, D. D., of the United Presby- 
 terian Church, and in the evening by Rev. S. J. Wil- 
 son, D. D. In the meantime the people of this 
 church had erected a manse, which, with the lot, cost 
 $4,000, and furnished the church at the expense of 
 $1,500; and afterwards a son of Mrs. Shields, name- 
 sake of her father, Daniel Leet Shields, made a be- 
 quest of $5,000, the income of which is forever to be 
 expended in keeping the church buildings and grounds 
 in good repair. Van Cleve chapel, a mission station 
 under the auspices of the pastor of Leetsdale church, 
 was erected last year at a cost of $1,000. Thus Mrs. 
 
32 Presbyteriaiiism in 
 
 Eliza Shields, Mr. D. Leet Shields, and the Leets- 
 dale church, since its organization, have donated for 
 church grounds and buildings, in twelve years, $33,000, 
 in addition to the salary and contributions to benevolent 
 objects. Mrs. Shields died March 21, 1872, and her 
 works will follow her throughout all generations. 
 Though dead she will, through the church which she 
 builded, preach the Gospel during all the succeeding 
 ages. 
 
 On the 8th of March, 1865, Leetsdale church called 
 Rev. W. W. Eells to become its pastor ; but after hav- 
 ing filled the pulpit until June 23, 1866, he declined 
 the call on account of the uncertain state of his health. 
 Mr. Eells is a native of Connecticut, a graduate of 
 Yale College and of Columbia Theological Seminary, 
 S. C, and has been pastor of the Presbyterian church 
 in Wilmington, JST. C, of the Second church in New- 
 buryport, Mass., and of the First Presbyterian church 
 of Carlisle, Pa., and has been for a number of years the 
 Secretary of the Pennsylvania Bible Society for the 
 western part of the State. The Rev. James M. Platt 
 wa's called to the pastorate of Leetsdale church Jan. 30, 
 1867, was installed April 15, 1867, and resigned Aug. 
 9, 1869. Mr. Platt is a native of Bath, New 
 York, a graduate of Princeton College and- Theolog- 
 ical Seminary, was at the time of his call to Leetsdale, 
 pastor of the First Presbyterian church of Zanesville, 
 Ohio, and is now pastor of the church of Bath, N. Y., 
 to which his father ministered many years. The pres- 
 ent pastor. Rev. R. S. Van Cleve, is a native of 
 Pennsylvania, a graduate of Princeton College in 
 1863, and of Princeton Seminary in 1866. He was 
 called to the pastorate of Leetsdale church, Jan. 17, 
 1870, and was installed. May, 1870. Since the organi- 
 
Sewickley Valley. 83 
 
 zation of Leetsdale church it has received forty-four on 
 confession of faith and forty-eight by certificate.* 
 
 On the 25th day of April, 1876, an active and most 
 promising- cliurch was organized at Glenfield, lately 
 known as Glendale,but formerly called Killbuck, which 
 name it ought to have retained, for it is historical. 
 This church worships in a hall, but at no distant day 
 it will have a becoming house dedicated to the service 
 of Almighty God. An attractive building for church 
 purposes is nearly completed at Haysville, which will 
 probably cost about S2,500. This enterprise is mostly 
 the Avork of Rev. Charles A. Dickey, D. D., pastor 
 of Calvary church, Philadelphia, who some years ago 
 purchased property in the vicinit}', and has secured the 
 assistance of friends to erect this house. It is expected 
 that Haysville will, with Glenfield, constitute a pas- 
 toral charge. At present Mr. Hyde, a licentiate of 
 the Presbytery of Pittsburgh, is preaching at Glenfield. 
 Thus have three fully organized and equipped Presby- 
 terian churches and one chapel sprung up within the 
 bounds of Sewickley church since the 1st of May, 1864. 
 
 The salaries paid at different times in this place may 
 be considered a fair index of the growth of the church. 
 To-day the salaries paid within the bounds of what 
 was formerly the Sewickley church, amount to $11,500. 
 The salary paid Mr. Andeeavs in 1822 Avas S35.50 ; if 
 the Methodist church then paid as much, and prob- 
 ably it did, the entire sum paid here to support insti- 
 tutions of the Gospel that year A\as S71.00. So that one 
 hundred and sixty times as much salary is paid in Se- 
 wickley now as was paid in 1822. When I came here 
 in 1848, my salar}^ AA^as $400, and the Methodist church 
 paid S200, making r$600 in all. So that nineteen times 
 more salary is paid here now than in 1848. 
 
34 Presbyterianism in 
 
 Not only has this church been the mother of other 
 churches, but it has also sent out from it ministers of 
 the Gospel, although not so many as it ought to have 
 •lone. The Rev. Thomas Beer was born here and bap- 
 tized in the " old " Sewickley church. He was licensed 
 by the Presbytery of Ohio, Oct. 9, 1829, and was dis- 
 missed to the Presbytery of Richland, Oct. 21, 1831. 
 He has been a faithful and useful minister of the Gos- 
 pel, and is now enjoying the rest of old age and the 
 love and respect of all who know him, in Ashland, 
 Ohio. The Rev. Isaac Melancthox Cook was born 
 March 2, 1819, in Chillicothe, Ohio. Owing to the 
 death of both his parents when he was only five years 
 old, he was committed to the care of his maternal 
 uncle, Mr. John Nevin, of Shippensburg, Pa. After 
 his conversion to God, he came to Sewickley to attend 
 the academy of Messrs. Nevix and Champ, and be- 
 came a member of this church. He graduated at 
 Jefferson College in the Autumn of 1841, and after- 
 wards studied theology under the direction of Rev. 
 Daniee E. Nevin, then pastor of this church, and at 
 Princeton Theological Seminary. Some time after his 
 licensure by the Presbytery of Carlisle, lie became pastor 
 of the church of Bridgewater, then belonging to the 
 Presbytery of Beaver, but now under the care of the 
 Presbytery of Allegheny. For nine years he exercised 
 a most successful ministry, and the zeal of the Lord's 
 house consumed him. Though of feeble body he 
 labored with untiring earnestness at home and in other 
 places, and through him multitudes were brought to 
 Christ. He died Jan. 10, 1854. 
 
 Rev. John M. Peebles became a member of this 
 church May 11, 1839. He made choice of the profes- 
 sion <4" medicine, but afterwards he devoted himself to 
 
SewicM.ey Valley. 35 
 
 the work of the ministry, and is now a self-denying 
 and useful home missionary in Nebraska. 
 
 Charles B. Maci.ay became a member of this 
 church while a student in the academy of Messrs. 
 Nevix and Champ, graduated at Franklin College, 
 ]Mercersbarg, Pa., studied theology in the Western Theo- 
 logical Seminary, in Allegheny, was a pastor for a num- 
 ber of years, but is now a practicing physician in Illi- 
 nois, and a christian poet of no small reputation. Tiie 
 Rev. A. M. Reid, Ph. D., was born in Beaver county. 
 Pa., within the bounds of the church of Mt. Carmel, was 
 a teacher and a student in the academy of the Rev. 
 Joseph S. Travet.li for several years, graduated at 
 Jeiferson College in 1849, studied theology under the 
 direction of the pastor of this church at that time, and 
 at the Western Theological Seminary in Allegheny. 
 He left us in the Autumn of 1856, to become connected 
 with the Rev. C. C. Beatty, D. D., in the manage- 
 ment of Steubenville Female Seminary. In a few years 
 he took complete charge of that institution, in which 
 he has been eminently successful as an educator, and 
 also in exerting a most happy religious influence up- 
 on his pupils. He is a popular preacher and writer, 
 widely known and greatly beloved. The Rev. W. W. 
 Rai^ton was received on confession of faith while at- 
 tending Mr, Traveij j's academy, graduated at Jefferson 
 College in 1862, and afterwards studied theology, and 
 has been pastor of the Presbyterian church in Uuion- 
 town, Pa., and of Xenia, Ohio, and is now pastor of 
 the church of Bridgewater, in this Presbytery. Rev. 
 John QuiNCY Adams Fullerton did not unite with 
 this church, but in his boyhood he lived here with his 
 mother, and was a member of the Sabbath School of 
 this church. He was a soldier in the war for the sup- 
 
36 Presbyter ianism in 
 
 pression of the rebellion, and afterwards by indomi- 
 table perseverance graduated at Princeton College and 
 Seminary, and is now pastor of the church at Dills- 
 burg, Pa. The Rev. W. W. McKinxey became a 
 member of this church, Dec. 18, 1859, while a student 
 of theology, and has been a successful pastor in the 
 State of Ohio, and of the church of Mingo, in the 
 Presbytery of Pittsburgh ; in the latter church God has 
 given him many souls for his hire. The Rev. Henry 
 Wilson, assistant secretary of the Presbyterian Board 
 of Church Erection, son of Rev. Henry R. Wilson, 
 D. D., attended this church while his father was prin- 
 cipal of Edgeworth Seminary. After all, the contri- 
 butions of this church to the ranks of the ministry 
 have been highly honorable, and constitute one of our 
 many reasons for gratitude and thankfulness to God 
 to-day. 
 
 One of the distinctive characteristics of Presbyterian- 
 ism is the office of ruling elder ; it is vital to the whole 
 system. The ruling elder makes the same solemn vow 
 as to doctrine and government in the house of God as 
 does the preaching elder. The vote of the elder of the 
 smallest Presbyterian church is equal to that of the 
 most eloquent pastor of the largest and richest of the 
 metropolitan churches in our Presbyteries, Synods and 
 General Assemblies. Hence the character and history 
 of the elders constitute an important part of the history 
 of every church. 
 
 The following are the elections of elders Avhich 
 have taken place in this church since 1822. In 
 1822, James McLaughlin, Thomas Backhouse; 
 1828, Robert Anderson; 1838, James McLaugh- 
 lin, John B. Champ; 1842, April 30, James 
 Laird; 1848, Xov. 25, Wm. VV^oods, M. D., 
 
Setuickley Valley. 37 
 
 George Henry Starr ; 1850, March 10, Campbell 
 McLaughlin ; 1853, Sept. 15, Theodore H. Nevin, 
 S. R. Williams, John K. Wilson, (Mr. Nevin had 
 been an elder in the First church of Allegheny, and 
 Mr. Williams in the church of Cauonsburg); 1864, 
 Oct. 9, James L. Carnaghan, Robert H. Davis, 
 Wm. p. Jones, John Way (Messrs. Carnaghan 
 and Davis had been elders in the First church of Alle- 
 gheny); 1872, Dec. 22, John Irwin, Jr., John F. 
 Robinson, Melancthon W. McMillan, George H. 
 Christy (Mr. McMillan had been an elder in the 
 North church, Allegheny). It will be noticed that Mr. 
 McLaughlin was elected in 1822, when the "Old" 
 Sewickley church was resuscitated, and again in 1838, 
 wlien the present church was organized, but he was an 
 elder here long before the first mentioned time. We 
 have already said that no record remains of the original 
 church here, whose name appears first in the minutes of 
 Synod of 1808, and that no one can tell who were its 
 members at that time; and both of these assertions are 
 true. But it is certain that Mr. McLaughlin was a 
 member, and also an elder before the Rev. Andreav 
 McDonald ceased to act as pastor, because Mr. Mo 
 Laughlin has told me he was, and related inci- 
 dents that occurred while he was making pastoral 
 visits along with Mr. McDonald. And as Mr. Mc- 
 Donald ceased his labors here early in 1818, Mr. Mc- 
 Laughlin must have been a member and elder before 
 that time, probably two or three years ; and as he died 
 in 1859, aged eighty-one years, he must have been an 
 elder at least forty-three years. He was a man of 
 strong convictions and was mighty in prayer — in this 
 respect I have never heard him surpassed and rarely 
 equaled. Thomas Backhouse has been dead for many 
 
38 Presbyterianism in 
 
 years; he is said to have been an upright man, of 
 retiring disposition and devout Christian spirit. 
 Robert Anderson was born in the bounds of 
 the old Donegal church in Lancaster county, Pa., 
 removed to Washington, Pa., while a young man, 
 and afterwards came to Sewickley with his wife, 
 Jemima Anderson, in 1824, bearing with them 
 a certificate of ..-dismission from the church of Wash- 
 ington, signed by the Rev. Obadiah Jennings, 
 
 D. D., distinguished successively as a lawyer, a 
 ruling elder, and a minister of the Gospel. Mr. An- 
 derson was a man of superior intelligence, pleasant 
 manners and generous disposition. He w^as at one time 
 sheriif of Washington county, and was afterwards u 
 member of the Legislature. He was killed by an acci- 
 dent. John B. Champ was an earnest Christian and 
 a most active worker in behalf of both the financial 
 and spiritual interests of the church. After a time, he 
 removed from this place, and it is said that he died 
 many years ago. James Laird was a man of feeble 
 health and of diffident disposition. He was dismissed 
 April 8, 1849, to the church of Temperance ville. Pres- 
 bytery of Ohio, where he died in a few years, from a 
 lingering illness. Campbell McLaughlin was dis- 
 missed to connect with another denomination, and has 
 been dead for several years. Samuel Ralston' Wil- 
 liams graduated at Jefferson College in 1836, was a 
 teacher in Virginia and in St. Mary's, Gra., and possibly 
 in other places ; became professor of natural sciences in 
 Jefferson College in 1843, succeeded Rev. Daniel 
 
 E. Nevin as principal of Edgeworth Seminary, 
 was dismissed to connect with the Second Presby- 
 terian church of Louisville, where he had accepted 
 the presidency of a female college, Sept. 17, 1854; 
 
SewicMey Valley. 39 
 
 afterwards he became principal of Sayre Female Insti- 
 tute in Lexington, Ky,, where he died after a short ill- 
 ness in 1869. He was a most skillful and succesv«ful 
 educator, and one of the highest types of the Christian 
 gentleman. Free from all affectation of superior sanc- 
 tity, he carried with him the savor of Christ wherever 
 he went. Jxo. K. Wilson was dismissed to connect 
 with the church of Leetsdale, and James L. Carxa- 
 GHAN to connect with one of the churches in German- 
 town, Pa. William P. Jones was born in Norris- 
 town, Pa., in 1814, and while quite young was taken 
 to Kentucky along with his parents ; his father was a 
 Presbyterian clergyman. In the course of time the 
 family removed to Pittsburgh, where Mr. Jones was 
 one of the original members who formed the Third 
 Presbyterian church. After his removal to Sewickley 
 he closely identified himself with this church, and he 
 was most punctual in his attendance upon the services 
 of the Sabbath and at the prayer-meeting. Though 
 not demonstrative, he was warm in his attachments and 
 very hospitable — especially to ministers of the Gospel. 
 The missionary work of the church occupied a large 
 space in his heart. He died August 22, 1871. The 
 remainder still hold their places in this church. 
 
 The Sabbath School of this church has been the nur- 
 sery in which many have been trained who have con- 
 fessed Christ here. My knowledge of it only ex- 
 tends to 1848. For some time after that I was super- 
 intendent. Mr. A. M. Reid, now Dr. Reid of Steu- 
 ben ville, WHS my successor ; he was followed for ten 
 years by Rev. Joseph S. Travelli. Then Mr. Wm. 
 P. Jones was superintendent for five years, and Mr. 
 Theodore H. Nevin has held the office for six years. 
 
 But there is still another work which this church did 
 
40 Preshyterianism, in 
 
 of whicli I dare not fail to make mention ; if I should, 
 the stones around me would rebuke me. The histor- 
 ical researches of the present year have revealed to the 
 world more plainly than ever before the immense obli- 
 gations the people of this country are under to Pres- 
 byterians in securing our national independence. And 
 when the mightiest rebellion recorded in human history 
 attempted to tear down the glorious temple erected by 
 our fathers — to rend the grand inheritance bequeathed 
 by them to us, and to destroy our national unity — none 
 rushed more quickly to the defense of our country and 
 to the preservation of those principles which our 
 fathers announced one hundred years ago, and none en- 
 dured more of hardship and suffering. The first gun 
 fired on Sumter aroused the patriotism of this entire 
 communit}'^, as much as that of any other part of the 
 land. The people of this church had laid their chil- 
 dren on God's altar, and now they willingly, along 
 with other denominations, devoted them to the service 
 of their country. Within these walls, before the pews 
 were put in place, our noble young men met for drill 
 from night to night. And when they left for the field, 
 we followed them with our tears and our prayers; and 
 alas ! many of them never returned to us. Of those 
 who went from this place who died in battle, or from 
 wounds and disease contracted in the service of their 
 country, there is a list of names which properly belong- 
 to this congregation, which must be recorded here. 
 They were: Col. William S. Woods, M. D., Captain 
 Alexaxdee McKixxey, Lieutenant Wm. C. Shields, 
 Alexaxder Black, Harry Black, Wm. I. Nevix, 
 James L. Grady, Theodore Webb, James D. Tra- 
 VELLi, Wm. Whartox, G. W. Forrster, Wm. H. 
 Forester. 
 
iSewickley Valley. 4l 
 
 Yonder marble monument will perpetuate their 
 names and deeds, along with those of their brave com- 
 panions from this valley to distant generations, and as 
 the light of the sun seen sinking in the west a few 
 evenings ago, fell upon that monument, and threw a 
 glorious radiance around each name, these lines in Ad- 
 dison's " Cato " rushed to my lips : 
 
 " How beautiful is death when earned by virtue ! 
 Who would not sleep with thena? What pity is it 
 That we can die but once to save our country." 
 
 Brethren, I have now given you the history of the 
 beginning, progress, and present condition of Presby- 
 terianism in this valley. You have seen the small be- 
 ginnings, the struggles by the way, and the successful 
 achievement in the end. Here God has demonstrated, 
 as elsewhere along the course of ages, that his truth, 
 though long buried, will spring up, and that though its 
 growth may be retarded, it will at last yield a plentiful 
 harvest; and that the prayer of faith is always an- 
 swered. One generation goeth and another cometh, but 
 the church of God abides forever. If we would show 
 our appreciation of the faith, the labors and the self- 
 denial of those who have gone before, who planted the 
 tree of life here under the branches of which we to- 
 day sit down with such great delight — if we would 
 show our high estimate of the goodness, mercy and 
 grace of God to ourselves — let us now before God and 
 in the presence of the great cloud of witnesses who have 
 gone up on high from this valley, "give ourselves liv- 
 ing sacrifices, holy, acceptable unto God, which is our 
 reasonable service." Great as have been the successes 
 of the past, the capabilities of the future are vastly 
 more. "Walk about Zion, and go round about her: 
 
42 Presbyterianism in 
 
 tell the towers thereof; mark ye well her bulwarks, 
 consider her palaces : that ye may tell it to the genera- 
 tion following. For this God is our God for ever and 
 ever ; he will be our guide even unto death." 
 
 10742TBV31B i 
 
 7-03-97 32180 MS 1 
 
^SlS?MlllMl?,?i,^?,' S^'"i"ary Libra 
 
 1 1012 01189 7743 
 
n» 
 
 kV 
 
 n 
 
 ! 
 
 i Uf 
 
 <>M 
 
 )<( !(( 
 
 f 1 
 
 'Ai'h 
 
 \uM^ 
 
 »>. 
 
 ? \'\ J ^^^ 
 
 1M1 
 
 i' ^ t ui|ti 
 
 s U 
 
 VKt, 
 
 n 
 
 Wi 
 
 W0 
 
 1< »«:{f 
 
 
 fi, 
 
 ■MM