COLUM BIA A N D M O NTOUR COUNTIES The pastors o f this church serve the con gregations at D errs, Cam bra, R o h rsb u ig and btillwatcr also. Since R e v . Jo h n Sutton they have been R e v s. Theobald M iller, Jac o b Kodenbaugh, J . J . H arve y, J . G . N oble, Zcphaniah Ellis, E . E . O rvis, C. M . Cooper, D . M . K in ter, J . W . M cN am ara, H . L . Waltman, G . P . Morse, R . A . Saw telle, Vernon H arrington, J . P. T oppin g, W . 1. Biirrcli. The m em bership of the church is 160, and of the Su nd ay school, 180. T h e elders in 19 14 arc: Sam u el Appclm an, W illiam Appelm an, Carl M cH en ry, 'ITiomas M cH en ry, Ira M c Henry, T h o m as Colem an, G eorge M cH enry. The M ethodist Protestant denomination built a church in 1872, through the exertions of R ev. A . E . K lin e, a native o f this section, then in ch arg e of the Pine Creek circuit. T he congregation disbanded in 1886 and the build ing w as sold. The first M ethodist class in Benton town ship w as fo rm ed in 18 35, with C harles Snyder as leader. T h e ir first house o f worship w as the old H am lin c church, built in 1845. T his was rebuilt in 1879. A class o f sixteen per sons fo rm ed the first M ethodist congregation at Benton v illage in 1870, with W illiam Y . Hess a s lead er. T h e first church building w as erected in 18 7 2 . R e v . Gideon H . D ay w as the first p asto r, and R e v . Jo h n F . Brow n had charge w h en the present church w as built. Rev. H . B . F o rtn er w as pastor when the Ham line church w as rebuilt and his successor was Rev. S . P . Boone. T h e present pastor, R e v . Harry W . N ew m an, serves the churches o f Benton, H an ilin e, W aller and Stillw ater. The E v an g elical congregations at Benton and W a lle r are served by R ev. E . E . H aney. MFJ1 C A L 1
The first physician to locate in Benton town ship w as D r. Thom as C . M cH en ry, in 18 7 1. Dr. J . A . O iap in came soon a fte r, and D r. I. E . Patterson arrived in M arch, 1874. D rs. P at terson and Chapin rode the circuit o f this and nearby counties fo r a year, and then D r. I. L . Edwards cam e and united with D r. Patterson, the parlnershii) lasting fo r four years. T h eir riding co vcrea a radius o f forty miles around Renton and entailed much hardship in the long and storm y winters. Both of the latter doctors a r c still in practice, hut do not attend patients beyond the confines of the town. Other physicians resident in Benton arc D rs. H. W. Bid dle, J . B . H ess. J . S . HolTa and W il liam J . Sm ith. Resident dentists are D rs. Freas G old er and J . B. I^uliach.
217
SCHOOLS
D urin g the ye ar 1799 but two fam ilies re sided in the space where Benton now stands. H ow ever, there being enough children to w a r rant it, Isaac Young opened a school in one of the dwellings. A fte rw a rd s he moved it to a house on the site o f EH M endenhall's bara o f later date. Subsequently (he first two schoolhouscs in the township were built, one on W est creek and the other where Stephen L azaru s resided in y e ars follow ing. O ne of the first members of the school board w as Hon. A lexan d er Colley, who w as born in 1786 and died in 18 8 1. H e w as a su rveyor, a school teacher and a member of the l..egislature. T h e school directors o f Benton borough in 19 14 a r e : W illiam C . H osier, T . C . Sm ith, P . G . Shultz, T . J . Colem an, L . F . Hartm an. T h e school directors o f Benton township a r e : Ja s p e r N . Shultz, H osea A sh, S . H . O 'B rien, R o h r M . Shultz, W illiam J . Yocum . A high school w as established in Benton in 1896, o f which L . Hay Applem an is the pres ent principal. T h e successive officials in charge since the opening have b een : E . E . Beam, C a r roll Champlin, B ru cc A lbert, L . R a y A pple man. PO STA L SERVICE
T h e first postal scr>*icc in this section was established in 1836. Benton w as a delivery station on a mail route which ran from F a irmount Sprin gs, Luzerne county, to T an cy ville, Lycom ing county. O ther delivery points w ere Coles Creek. Campbell and D ivision. T he m ail w as delivered and collected by contract and the route covered forty miles. Jam es N. P ark w as the first man to handle the contract and assigned the actual w ork to his son O rrin, who co%’ercd the long circuit each day, winter and summer. It w as not until 1848 that the amount o f m ail w as great cn o u ^ i to w arrant the use o f horses. In 18 52 M r. r a r k assumed the route also which connected Pcalcrtow n (o r F o rk s) with Stillw ater, Benton. Coles C r e e k .' Central and D ivision. T he postm asters o f Benton from the first have been: Daniel H artm an, appointed A p ril 25. 1 8 3 5; John J . Stiles, Tan. 7 . 18 5 7; Sam uel H eacock. Ju lv 3 1 , 1 8 6 1 : Jo h n J . M cH en ry. A u g. 29. 18 6 6 : S am uel H eacock. M arch 23. 18 6 9; John Heacock. Ja n . 27, 1 8 8 1; E lla E . Applem an, Sent. 14, 18 8 5; Jo h n H eacock, A p ril 20. 18 8 9 : Charles B . M cH cn rw Tunc 5, 18 9 3 : Jo h n G . M cH enry, A p ril I t . i w : Sam uel S . H a r v w . M arch 3 1 . 18 9 8 : Jo h n J . M ather, Ja n . 22. 1904.
