Page:Historical and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, Pennsylvania, Containing a Concise History of the Two Counties and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families.pdf/244

 COLUMBIA AND MONTOUR COUNTIES the following year (he church w as officially organized, and in 1869 Thom as R . Stockton, superintendent of the Locust Mountain Colliery in place o f Alexander K ca, whom the Mollie M aguires had murdered, took the superintendenc)' of the Sunday school and entered into the work o f lifting ffie dark cloud o f horror that seemed to overshadow the people. Through him the Colliery Contpany donated four lots, the plans were donated by E d w ard T. Potter, son of the Bishop, and the cornerstone w as laid Ju ly 29, 1869. T he building is a large frame, with belfry, and has an addition upon the north side for Su nd ay school purposes, built some years later, T h e chanccl window is the donation o f Robert Gorell and bears his monogram. T h e church w as consecrated Sept. 4, 1870, by Rt. Rev. W illiam Bacon Stevens, D. D. In 1868 H oly T rinity had heen so far cstablishcd as a mission as to be admitted into union with the Convention of the Diocese o f Pennsylvania. A new chuKh had been erected here, and was served by K ev. Daniel Washbu m, in connection with Ashland. But after a little time Centralia, meeting the larger portion of the support of a non-resident clergyman, became dissatisfied. Hence Rev. Mr. Washbum secured fo r them a deacon, Kev. P. P. Reese. During the year 1873-74 the interior of the church w as improved and beautified, T he lack of w ork, in 1875-76, throughout the great coal fields o f Pennsylvania, p u ycd sad hax-oc with the church in this region. The services in Centralia, however, were continued without any interruption during this time. In ehc spring o f 1878 Rev. M r. Washburn rcsigned, and w'as succeeded by R ev. C. E. D. Griffith. T he burning down of the Centralia coal breaker during the Conventional year, 1879-80, almost broke up the mission here, for the time being, because of the removal o f a large m ajority of the members. O wing to the fact that the lew people who were left were unable lo support the w ork. Rev. Mr. Griffith w as obliged to withdraw in the early part of the year 1880. A t this time H oly Trinity had twelve fam ilies, sixty-eight baptized persons, twenty communicants, thirty-seven members in the Sunday school, and a church valued at $4,000. From the time of the resignation o f Rev. M r. Griffith this mission continued vacant fo r about two years, or until in the spring of 1882, when (he rector of St. Joh n 's Church. Ashland, R e v . Robert H . K line, look charge of the w ork here. In the year 1884 H oly T rinity again suffered very much by removals. R ev. M r. K line withdrew from the field about the

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first of the year i8S6, and after a vacancy o f a little more than two months he was succeeded, on M arch 2 1st, the second Sunday in Lent, by K ev. David H ow ard, who continued to serve this people until M ay 22, 1887, when he resigned, and without any interruption in the services Rev. Benjamin F. Thompson took charge of the work. In the year 1887-88 a new carpet was purchased and placed in the church, On M ay 3 t, 1890, this mission had seventeen families, twenty-four communicants, with forty-six members in the Sunday school, and a church free o f debt. Kev. ^ u. Thompson resigned the latter part of the summer of 18 9 1, and w as shortly afterw ards succeeded by Rev. William W. M ix. T he work here, however, was largely done hy M r. Otho Brant, who had been appointed lay-rcader by the bishop. During the year 1 ^ 2 - 9 3 H oly T rinity was united with Mount Carmel, which gave this niisston twice the number o f services it re* ccivcd prior to this time. On Feb. 9. 1894, Rev. A. T. DeLcarsey, D. D., took charge of the work here. T h is mission having again become vacant. Rev. Frederick Charles Cowpcr became priest in charge on N ov. 15, 1895. In February, 1899, the mission doubled the rector's salary. On M ay 3 1, 1900, H oly T rinity had eighteen fam ilies, seventy baptized persons, forty-one communicants, thirty-three members in the Sunday school, and a church property valued at?io,ooo, free o f debt. About the isl o f March, 19 0 1, Rev. M r. Cowpcr resigned, and was succeeded, the last of the year, by Rev. A lfred Samuel H ill Winsor. T lie church work here was very much crippled, during 1902-03, by removals, as frequently occurs in most mining towns. Although Ccntralia w as for many years a part of the archdcaconry o f Reading, yet upon the division of the diocese it geographically and canonically fell within (he limits of the archdeaconry of Williamsport, and therefore became a part of the diocese o f Harrisburg. T his change caused a vacancy o f considerable length, but the services were continued during (his time by the efficicnt Jay-rcader M r. Jam es Simons, Rev. Ivcroy F. Baker, the general missionary of the diocese o f H arrisburg, began giving regular Sunday afternoon services here the first Sunday o f December, 1905. On Sunday, Jan. 6, 1907, an effort w as made to reorganize the Sunday school, which had been discontinued for several years prior to this. But as there were no children, the few adults present agreed to meet every Sunday afternoon at 3 o'clock ami spend an hour in the study of the Bible and the Book o f Common Prayer, with Mr.