More on the Church and its History

Newspaper article copied from the MARKHAM ECONOMIST AND SUN, Thursday, December 6, 1934.

CHERRYWOOD UNITED CHURCH HISTORY

A church was built in Cherrywood in 1874, but the village sixty years ago was not the same as we know it to-day. It was a village with a thriving brick yard, a corner blacksmith and carriage shop, a rod brick school-house, a photgraphor's studio and several homes.

There was a store and a hall or, as it was known, a Bible Christian Church or, still earlier, the first public school. In the surrounding country much wooded land appeared between the clearings, low lying fields were frequently flooded with water stopped by beaver dams. The remnants of a corduroy road led east from the village.

At this time the Bible Christian Church in the vicinity was attended by Roaches, Judds, Pallisters and the Michael Burkholder family. The Congregation was organized four years before the Wesleyan Methodist Church was built. Services were held weekly. The first ministers were Mr. and Mrs. Williams, (the first storekeepers Mr.Gordon, Mr. Shervester and W. R. Roach.) Public worship was held in,Erskine Presbyterian Church, and some who attended were Browns, Mc-Creights, Gilchrists, Davidson and Ferguson, while some others went to the Mennonite Church on the town-line.

For a time the Wesleyans drove to Highland Creek church. Some of these were Jabez Collins, James Taylor, Thomas Barnard who owned the present Leornard Gates farm, Robert Stockdale who lived on Todd farm,and John Wilkey, the blacksmith.

Later services were in the homes of Barnard and Stockdale, conducted bya Scarboro minister. The largest rooms in the house were used for this purpose. For seats they placed boards from chair to chair. At times accommodation was not ample. Meetings like these made the Wesleyans ambitious for a building in Cherrywood, although they comprised less than half of the familes in the community with their meagre [?] and with a Bible Christian Church in the village already, it was a difficult problem the Methodists had to face, yet their congregation was enthusiastic.

The discussions finally took form when a board of trustees were appointed to be responsible for building and maintaining a Wesleyan Church The personnel of this board consisted of the following, Robert Stockdale, Chairman, Thomas Barnard, Nathaniel Burkholder and James Taylor.

The first meeting of the building committee was held on February 4th, 1874. The minutes reveal that it was decided to build a brick church forty feet long and thirty feet wide. Nathaniel Burkholder's tender of $150 for the carpenter work was accepted. John Pierce agreed to do the mason work and plastering for $290. Speight and Sons offered to supply eight windows and one door for $90. A contract for the seats was accepted at $2.25 each for [90]seats, complete with book board and oak finishings.

In the spring operations commenced and a piece of land purchased from Mr. Wm. Burkholder for $50. Work continued through the summer and in autumn the church was completed costing in all $800 For the erection of the building there were special contriubtions, Mr. Chas. Petty, Sr. donating a generous number of bricks, Mrs. Petty furnished the altar and subscriptions amounting to $900 which was a very considerable sum for the folk of that day. However the whole community helped. On the subscription list are noticed these names, Jas. McCreight, Wm. Spink, Henry Major and Wm Hollinger.

Among the enthusiastic workers was one Thomas Barnard, a typical man of that day, he is described in the following article written by John Carroll a student minister.

"Mr. Barnard a man of fifty but looking much younger, strong, stout, ruddy, quietly dignified and authoritive. His fair collection of books seem to have been well read. If you open a conversation with him you will find how well this plain man is acquainted with the state of the church and the world; and if you stop over the Sabbath you will find how diligently though noislessly these attainments are applied. Besides the punctualwork of his own house, you will find him conducting the class, leading the prayer meeting, singing in the choir and acting as trustee of the church and steward of the church.”

It might be of interest to view the people in church at their first service. As you approached the church you would see a white brick rectangular building. Behind it stood a small shed in which many horses hitched to springboards were tied. The central door opened directly into the main body of the Church. Inside you would see a sight that was familiar but different in some ways. The walls were unpainted and the ceiling not plastered. The altar, surrounded by a railing, projected right to the north wall. There was no choir loft. The front two of the centre pews were removed to accommodate the organ. On each side and behind it sat the choir. Still more unfamiliar would be the appearance of the congreagation. They were clothed in the style typical of that period, the men with beards, long coats and tight fitting trousers, the womens with little bonnets, fitted waists and full skirts. You would be impressed by their clothes less than by their joyous thankful attitude. They were thankful because one of their hopes had just been realized. They had sacrificed to build this church where they, their families, and the whole community could come to think about spiritual things.

For the first few years services were held weekly in the both building the Wesleyan and the Bible Christian. These sects were similar in their creeds and form of Worship. The members of both churches sent their children to the same Union Sunday School. Neither congregation was strong. It is natural that an agitation arose for union.

In 1884 the Rev. W. R. Roach was successful in over coming all opposition to uniting the two churches. The United Methodist purchased the former Bible Christian building for for $60. Mr. Frederich Roach donated this money to the common treasury.

The original church was different from the present in several ways; the original church had no vestibule. Seating capacity for the choir was inadequate. The ceiling was badly cracked and sometimes pieces fell. To correct this in 1904 the congregation undertook a second building program. A vestibule was added. The north west door was closed. A choir alcove was built behind the pulpit. The Pedlar People covered the old plaster ceiling with a beautiful new metal one at a cost of $30. The total cost of the repairs amounted to as much as the initial cost of building. By 1905 a new shed was needed. A shed was secured from an abandoned church and moved to a sixteenth acre of land purchased from Mr. C. K. Petty.

After the church was first built it was added to Scarboro circuit which consisted of Washington, Highland Creek, Hillside, Malvern and Wexford. To conduct worship in such a large number of churches the Scarboro minister had the help of a student and several local preachers. In 1903 this circuit had seven churches and since the ordained minister had such a large charge he could hold services at any one place only rarely. The attendance declined and Cherrywood members protsted against this system. They were transferred then to Whitevale circuit on which there were only two other appointments.

The changes in the community and the building had there effect on the church, but it is the minister that exerts the greatest influence on its life. Cherrywood Church had had many noble men for ministers. They have differed possibly in emphasis or in personality but they have all been men who worked to inspire high ideals, to befriend the lonely, to help the poor and the tempted, and when death came to break words of sympathy. The ordained men from the early day to the present being Rev. Smith, Late. Metcalf, Annis, Ross, Real, Puffer, Caldwell, Coran, Redditt, Stevenson Vickery, Toye, Reynolds, Haines, Larord, Kemp, Owen, Price, Hickson, Rackham and Bick. Among the young men there were Messrs. Stafford, Davey, Graham, Lovering, Shipman, King, Young, McMillan, McCullough, Carscadden, Couch, Brown, and Neal. Some of the local preachers were Messrs. Everest, Levi Annis Sr. Brereting Bunting, Frederick Roach, W. H. Roach and James Rogers.

It was the early workers who erected a building and organized Church. Even in the midst of difficulties and disappointments they cherished a vision of a worthier community and a better life. An estimate connot be put upon the nature of their efforts which find expression so well in the poem by Grace Nell Farewell , "County Churches."

Symbols of faith they left their reaching spires.
Above green grove sdown many a country way;
And on the wide plains there are altar fires,
That light the forms of those who kneel to pray.

Oh I have seen them stand knee deep in wheat
White country churches rising from the sod,
Where men in gratitude for bread to eat,
Have paused and reared their altars to their God.

Note: This history deals mainly with the building and earlllly life of the church. Little attention is given to events and changes within ghe last thirty years. Our sources of imformation have been old recipts, deeds, subscription lists and conversations with some of our residents. For this help we wish to thank Messrs. Wm. Petty,Sr., Wesley Roach, Wm. Taylor. Mr. and Mrs. Monney and Miss Annie Brander. This brief history ws composed by Mrs. Pilkey on the occasion of the Sixteenth anniverdary of the present Cherrywood United Church, held on November 10th, 1934.