"In the fall of 1804, a Baptist preacher, by the name of Patterson, from South Carolina, a traveling minister, preached, at the house of L. R. Cooch, the first sermon ever delivered in the Darrtown part of the township.
During the Summer of 1806, a traveling Baptist preacher visited and preached in the western half of the township five or six times.
The New School Presbyterians organized a Church in Darrtown about 1848. The first preachers came from Oxford. In its most prosperous days, this organization numbered thirty-five members, of whom Stephen KENDALL, Hiram DARR and wife, Susanna and Sarah COOK were the most prominent.
The Rev. B. W. Chidlaw organized the first Sabbath-school in Darrtown, about 1840. Joseph Curtis, of Hamilton, was the first superintendent, followed by Gardner Darr, who was also the chief officer of a similar organization, at the same time, at McGonigle's.
The Lutheran Church in Darrtown was organized at Jericho, four miles north on the Hamilton and Richmond pike. The original place of worship has since been destroyed by fire. This resulted in the erection of the church in Darrtown. George Kramer and wife Barbara, old Mr. Knapp and wife, Daniel Schollenberger and wife were among the first and leading persons who gave the Church its present healthy constitution. There are now over sixty members in good standing. A Union Sunday-school is carried on, with alternate meetings at the Methodist and the Lutheran Church."
Rootsweb provides record of early church activity in Darrtown
The following citation was excerpted from http://rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ohbutler/cyc/562.htm
1901 church pamphlet exhibits community spirit and cooperation
The image at the right shows the cover of the 1901 church pamphlet, which carries the names of both the Lutheran and the Methodist churches of Darrtown, Ohio. The pamphlet measures two and a half inches wide by four and a half inches tall.
The pamphlet cover includes the following:
A logo that appears to be the letters "C" and "E."
The phrase "For Christ and the Church"
The following text…
LUTHERAN and M.E. CHURCHES
DARRTOWN, OHIO
REVS. R.A. HALVERSTADT and O.P. HOFFMAN, Pastors
Meetings, Sunday 7:30 PM
Consecretion meeting, last Sunday of month
The text of the three outside panels is reproduced below.
The image below shows the outside of the church pamphlet, which consists of three panels.
The text of the three inside panels is reproduced below.
The image below shows the inside of the church pamphlet, which consists of three panels.
OBSERVATIONS / QUESTIONS REGARDING THE 1901 CHURCH PAMPHLET
This document offers the opportunity for more genealogy work. Were any of these individuals "Darrtown pioneers," as defined by the organizers of the Ancestry exhibit at the Darrtown Bicentennial?
Just as in the case of census records, questions arise with the spelling of names in church documents. For example, the Petri family name is common to the Darrtown/Oxford (Ohio) area in the 20th/21st centuries. So, is the current-day Petri family related to - or the same as - the "Petree" family that is listed in this pamphlet?
The spirit of community cooperation was demonstrated by the pastors of the two churches. Note that both pastors (Halverstadt and Hoffman), from two different churches and church doctrines, participated in this group/association, as each was scheduled as a "leader."
The temperance movement was an issue in Darrtown in 1901, as it was listed as a prayer-meeting topic for September and November and one of the standing committees was devoted to the subject of temperance.
As further evidence of the WCTU movement in the local community, during the first part of the 20th century, consider the following news article from The Citizen (a Berea, KY newspaper - dated August 26, 1909:
"The annual conference of the W. C. T. U. of Butler County was held in Darrtown last Thursday. New officers were elected."
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