THE PIONEER CHURCH AT ORRSTOWN

BY JOHN G. ORR

Society entertained at residence of Frank S. Magill, January 31, 1918.

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For more than a century after the settlement of this valley there was no public place for Christian worship where the village of Orrstown stands. About 1735 a congregation was organized and a church erected at Middlespring, some three miles east, and one at Rocky Spring. four miles to the southwest, both of Presbyterian faith. The people of the valley between the mountains east Orrstown as far as Oakville worshipped at Middlespring. In the opposite direction, west to the North Mountain far as St. Thomas and east and south to the line of the Falling Spring congregation attended church at Rocky Spring, for these communities for over thirty years were composed of persons of Presbyterian faith. In In 1779 a congregation of Lutherans and German Reformed was organized and a church erected near what is now Pleasant Hall for the uses of the German element which was moving into the valley and gradually supplanting the Scotch Irish Presbyterian. Before 1820 these Presbyterian churches began to feel the results of this new emigration and the removal as well of members of their congregations to the towns and cities and to the new west. They began to make efforts to retain and strengthen their hold on their communities and to make their own churches more aggres

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The Rev. Henry R. Wilson, pastor of the Shippensburg Presbyterian Church, held occasional religious vices in the log school house then known as Hopewell, and James Means, an elder from this church, held prayer meetings in the same building and he was assisted by Mr. Davidson and his son, who lived on the John Herron farm near

the mill. William Rodgers,

an elder in Middlespring church, who resided on the Roxbury road, a mile from the Conodogwinet creek, organized a Sabbath school in the same building. The Allbright Methodists, now known as the Evangelical Church, held prayer meetings at the home of John Vandersaul, who lived beyond Herron's Branch on the top of the hill on the road to Middlespring, also at Mrs. Lee's along the Shippensburg road, Peter Minick's in the Snake Hills, and other homes who adhered to this denomination. The "No Creed" people, later called the Winbrenerians, now the Church of God, held prayer meetings at the homes of persons of their belief. The Rev. Nicklas Stroh, of Shippensburg, occasionally conducted Lutheran services in the same school house. In 1840, the Rev. Amos H. Kremer, who had been lately called to the German Reformed Church at Shippensburg, began holding services in the log school house, and the same year organized a German Reformed congregation. In 1841 the Presbyterian and German Reformed people decided to erect a church where their denominations could hold services. The residents of the community contributed towards the erection of this church building and in the fall of the year it was dedicated by the Rev. Dr. A. H. Cremer, assisted by Rev. John Moody, of Middlespring, Mr. Moody making the dedicatory prayer. Before the roof was put on a portion of the south wall gave way and had to be rebuilt by Charles Wheelan, the contractor.

The ground on which this church stands was deeded on May 8th, 1845, for the sum of twenty-five cents, to James B. Orr, Frederick Stumbaugh and Hugh Smith, in trust by John Orr and Mollie, his wife, and William Orr and Mary, his wife, "for the uses of the Presbyterian and German Reformed people, now worshipping at Orrstown and those of the same denominations that may worship there hereafter." Of these trustees, James B. Orr, a Presbyterian by birth and belief, was born in Culbertson's Row, but lived at Orrstown almost fifty years, and during that period of his life was active in church affairs, business and politics. In 1877 he removed to Kansas where he died in 1887, in the 82nd year of his age. Frederick Stumbaugh

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was a farmer by occupation and a descendant of Lawrence Stumbaugh, who in 1798 built the stone grist mill yet in operation and long known as the Row mill. He resided near the head of the dam on the farm lately owned by William H. Killinger. One of his sons was the late Col. Fred S. Stumbaugh, who was once active in the politics of this county. Another son, George, married a daughter of John Breckenridge and removed to Iowa. Frederick Stumbaugh had a brother John, who for many years conducted a large hardware business at Shippensburg and was known as "whistling John".

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Hugh Smith moved from the vicinity of Newburg,
Cumberland county, to Orrstown in 1839 and
life there, dying in 1889, in his seventy-eighth year.
He
was a wagon maker by trade and for many years conducted
his business in a one-story frame building on the corner op-
posite the Orrstown tavern. He was among the most active
men in that community. As a citizen he faithfully served
his township in an official capacity and as a Christian he
was wherever duty called him, at the church service,
prayer meeting, Sabbath school and at the bedside of the
sick and interested as a good Samaritan everywhere. These
were the original trustees and the only ones for more than
three score years, serving in life and death, until May,
1911, when James Campbell, Arthur W. Fogelsanger, Jay
Blair and S. M. Lauthers were elected to succeed them.

Rev. Amos H. Kremer, the pastor of this charge for
over six years, was born in Little Washington, Lancaster
county, ninety-eight years ago on the 3rd of November
last. His parents removed to York County where Amos
was a student in the "High School" established by the Ger-
man Reformed Church as the first educational institution
of that church in this country. His parents removed to
Franklin County on a small farm near Strasburg on the
Lawyer's Road not far from Summit Level school house.
He introduced in that section a new product from the farm
in the growth of tobacco. This product he manufactured
into "segars" which he disposed of to the country stores.
They were put up in packages of one hundred and were
known as "Common cigars", with which the developing

youth, eager to be a man, took his first lessons in smoking followed by the customary sickness. These "tobies" were not boxed but wrapped in the common paper then used for bundles. They retailed at four for a cent or fifteen and twenty cents per hundred and from the number smoked must have given great satisfaction to the consumer. There were for the more cultured smoker, what was known as "half Spanish," retailed two for a cent and the "Spanish," which were one cent each, the man of the community never tasted these, only the occasional traveler. Mr. Kremer also raised three boys for the ministry, Revs. Amos H. Kremer, who served in the ministry for almost fifty-five years and Frederick W. Kremer, who was once pastor of the Grindstone Hill congregation and Abner W. Kremer, who is still living in retirement in Churchtown, Cumberland county, and has passed four score years.

At a meeting of the Mercersburg Classis held at Funkstown, Maryland, May, 1841, "Orrstown congregation asks that it have the official recognition of the Classis", which was granted. During Rev. Kremer's pastorate, his preaching points were Shippensburg, Orrstown, Strasburg and Keefers, and by request supplied St. Thomas. During his pastorate he trained Rev. Matthew Irvin for the ministry. In 1845, Rev. Kremer resigned as pastor of the Shippensburg charge and these congregations called Rev. J. S. Foulk, of the Philadelphia Classis, who was received as a member of the Mercersburg Classis at a special meeting held in Chambersburg, December 3, 1846. In view of the peculiar circumstances of the case, the Classis made provision for his installation and it was ordered that it take place in the Orrstown congregation on the following Christmas morning at eleven o'clock and that Rev. F. W. Kremer, Dr. S. R. Fisher, and Rev. Alfred Nevin, be the committee of installation. Rev. Foulk continued as pastor of this charge until October 25, 1850, when by order of Classis the pastoral relation between Rev. Foulk and the congregation was dissolved to permit him to accept a call to the Greencastle charge. At a special meeting of Classis at Mercersburg, March 27th following, the pastoral rela

tion between Rev. G. W. Glessner and the Waynesboro congregation was dissolved to enable him to accept a call to the Shippensburg charge. In 1857 the pastoral relation between Rev. Foulk and the Greencastle charge was dissolved and he was dismissed to the Maryland Classis and became pastor of a congregation in Baltimore and later became a minister in the Presbyterian church. In 1851 Keefers was dropped from the Shippensburg charge and in 1853 Strasburg charge was formed out of Keefers, Strasburg and Fannettsburg, leaving Shippensburg and Orrstown as the preaching places of the charge, and Rev. W. C. Rodrock was called as its pastor. At a meeting of Classis held at Alexandria May 13th, 1853, Shippensburg asked that it be made a separate charge and a committee composed of Dr. S. R. Fisher, Rev. J. W. Rebaugh, Dr. B. F. Schenck, Elders George Umbrell and S. Mengel were appointed to take up this matter and report to the Classis. This committee held a meeting in Shippensburg where Henry Ruby represented the Orrstown congregation and his statement with the communication from the Consistory was "that this petition meets with the approval of the Orrstown congregation and they ask that it be granted." This committee reported that the interest at Orrstown cannot be kept up at present, that the members there are only willing, but desirous that the request of the Shippensburg congregation be granted and that James B. Orr, Henry Ruby and Hugh Smith be appointed a committee to attend unto and secure the interest of the German Reformed in the property at Orrstown. From this time Orrstown without stated preaching by the German Reformed denomination. On December 31, 1856, the pastoral relation between Rev. G. W. Glessner and Shippensburg congregation was dissolved and he was dismissed to the Maryland Classis and Rev. F. A. Rupley succeeded him.

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At the time of the organization of this congregation there were a number of German Reformed families in this county. Among these were the families of Michael Kyner, Jacob Fetter, William Fetter, Peter Snyder, James B. Orr, Hugh Smith and later Solomon Farner and Jonas Morrison.