California school

If the stated plans had worked out, California wood have been a railroad town.. January 23 1895 The Wellston and Jackson Belt railroad was incorporated and one of the stated objectives was to construct a branch from Jackson to California. source: The Hocking Valley Railway  By Edward H. Miller

James Erskin Crabtree was born in the Stockdale community on September 3, 1894 the son of  Bertie Alma and Florence Viola Bennett Crabtree.  James was educated in the local graded school prior to joining the United States Navy.  He entered the service on June 14, 1917 in Portsmouth OH.  He received his initial training at the Naval Training Station in Newport RI.   Upon completion of his initial training he was stationed in Boston MA.  In 1918 Fireman Second Class Crabtree was assigned to the USS Mount Vernon.  In September of 1918 James was in the midst of his eighth trip across the Atlantic.  His voyages consisted mostly of transporting troops as the Mount Vernon was a captured German cruise liner, modified to carry American soldiers.  On September 5, 1918 the Mount Vernon was on its way back to the United States after delivering troops to the European war zone.  While underway in a convoy some 200 miles west of France, the crew spotted a periscope and opened fire.  At the same time German submarine U-82 launched a torpedo. Though she attempted to evade, Mount Vernon was hit amidships. The resulting explosion blew a large hole in her side, putting half the boilers out of action. Thirty-six of the crew were killed and another thirteen injured.  As the sea began to rush into its hull, the Mount Vernon’s captain was forced to close the hatches to the damaged compartments.  James Crabtree, was caught behind one of those hatches, and drowned as efforts were made to save the ship.  James Erskin Crabtree was 24 years old when killed on September 5, 1918.  He was the first Pike Countian killed in combat in World War One.  The Secretary of the Navy commended the crew of the Mount Vernon for her sacrifice during the attack.  James’ body was returned to Stockdale where he was buried in Scioto Cemetery in Marion Township.  Copied from Beaver Valley Hall of Fame

Halftone reproduction of a photograph taken at Brest, France, showing an honor guard with the caskets of some of the thirty-six crewmen killed when the ship was torpedoed by German Submarine U-82 on 5 September 1918 This image was published in 1918-1919 as one of ten photographs in a "Souvenir Folder" of views concerning the ship and her 5 September 1918 torpedoing.

USS Mount Vernon, a 29,650-ton (19,503 gross ton) transport, was built at Stettin, Germany, in 1906 as the trans-Atlantic passenger liner Kronprinzessen Cecilie. Laid up in the United States during the first years of World War I, she was seized when the U.S. entered the conflict in 1917. She was turned over to the Navy, renamed Mount Vernon, and converted at Boston, Massachusetts, for troop carrying service. Initially assigned no registry number, she later received the ID number 4508. Repaired at Brest, France, and at Boston, she returned to service in February 1919, this time as part of the great effort to bring war veterans home. This work was largely completed by the summer of 1919 and USS Mount Vernon was placed out of commission in late September. Transferred to the War Department, she operated as the U. S. Army Transport Mount Vernon until the early 1920s. The ship was then laid up and remained inactive until scrapped in 1940.

 Go to: http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/OnlineLibrary/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-m/id4508k.htm for more pictures and information.

     Alhambra Lodge No. 564, K. of P., of Stockdale will hold its Sixth Annual Forth of July celebration southeast of that village.  Grande Chancellor Rev. A. E. Coil, Marietta, and Grand Prelate E. W. Tidd will deliver addresses.  Prof. Will Rogers, "the black king of the air." will make a double drop from his balloon.  Music will be furnished by the Beaver Brass Band.  The committee in charge is composed of W. C. Wells, W. R. Riegel and Oscar Daniels. 28 June 1917 Waverly Watchman

     Agent Patton had his house burned at California this county on last Friday.  Everything was saved but the house, the loss being something like $300.  Insurance $300.

17 Feb 1891 Waverly Courier

from 25 years ago Feb. 22, 1951 The Republican Herald

The Scioto Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1835 with a membership of 18.  They met in private homes or at the school house for services. They constructed there first church of hewn logs about 1847 near the Keller farm on Posey Ridge. Pioneer families mostly Browns, Rickeys, Samsons, Bennetts and Beauchamps made up the membership.  Eventual a disagreement over wearing apparel split the church.  One part of the membership built a church at the corner of Stockdale cemetery.  It was finished in 1853 and was known as Wesley Chapel Methodist Protestant Church.  The other group chose to be Methodist Episcopalians and built there church, Scioto Chapel, along present day California Pike where the cemetery is located.

The original log church was used for 15 years when they built, a quiet large frame church to take its place.  It was 32 X 46 feet in size and cost $1500 to construct.

The trustees if the Methodist Protestant Church purchased lot 8 in the village of California (Stockdale) from Jeremiah Rickey 9 March 1867 at a cost of $250.00.  The church here served the congregation for over thirty years.  Because of the quality of construction was poor the state fire marshal condemned the building in 1904 and order torn down.  The congregation made a decision to move the new church to the center of town on a larger lot.  The new church was dedicated Sunday 20 May 1905 with about 500 people in attendance.  This church cost $3000 to build.  In February of 1891 the parsonage along with two other buildings were lost to a fire.

Over the next two decades both churches did well and the reason for there original split was forgotten and a movement was started to reunite the two congregations.  In 1930s the decision was made to unite.  The Scioto church was dismantled ant the lumber used to add on to the church in Stockdale about 1932.  The new church took on the name Stockdale Methodist Episcopal Church.

Just five months after the remolding of the church a devastating fire destroyed the church on Wednesday 25 November 1936.  A coal furnace had been installed two months earlier and had not been working sufficiently.  The plumbers had worked on the furnace that evening and had left the church just 20 minutes prior to smoke being noticed at 8:45 p.m. by Mrs. Evelyn Burgess.  The furnace is thought to have been the cause of the fire.  The wooden frame made for a fast moving fire. Fire departments from Beaver, Piketon and Waverly were called to send their fire departments. The fire soon leaped to the parsonage on the east side of the church and on over it to a garage owned by Roscoe Brown and along side of a two story house.  Flames also reached Cora Gee's two story house just west of the church. Its damage was confined to the weather boarding and the roof.  Some damage was also caused to store/dwelling of Frank Spriggs located across the street.

The church was insured for $8000  and the parsonage built in 1924 for $2000.  Rev. Williams lost $300 in personal possessions.  Until a new building was built the congregation met at the Stockdale High School.  Construction on this new church was stated in spring of 1937 with laying of the corner stone 6 June 1937. The dedication of the new church took place 8 May 1938.  Current pastor is Rev. Major Montgomery.

     The Hall set on the corner situated across 335 from Conkel's Garage and Dr. Jones office.  When main street became Rt. 335 in 1932 the building was found to be sitting on the highway right-of-way.  As seen in the sketch, the south side shows that the building was sitting high enough that a person could walk under the west end.  Coal was stored there for the Hall..  The door on that side led to the stairway to the meeting hall upstairs.  Upstairs during the 1930's and 40's, an outside company leased the building for a movie theatre which was open once a week.
    On the front of the building was a pull down fire escape. 
    Sometime between 1930 and 1940, a man named Kitchen and his wife built a bedroom under the stairway.  The couple used the stove in the store for heat.
    A gasoline pump, (hand pump) sat out front with gas selling at seven gallons for $1.  Kerosene, coal oil to many, was kept in a small tank alongside the building that was also hand cranked.
    In later years Charley Adams ran a pool hall downstairs after that a used furniture store was ran by a Kitchen. 
    In September 7, 1959 this building and a near by building burned down leaving now only an empty lot.  This from  a Jim Henry article dated 8 June 1978.

     The Knights of Pythias is a fraternal organization and secret society founded at Washington, DC, on 19 February 1864.
     The Knights of Pythias was the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress. It was founded by Justus H. Rathbone, who had been inspired by a play by the Irish poet John Banim about the legend of Damon and Pythias.  This legend illustrates the ideals of loyalty, honor and friendship that are central to the order.  
     The Order is founded upon naught but the purest and sincerest motives. Its aim is to alleviate the suffering of a brother, succor the unfortunate, zealously watch at the bedside of the sick, soothe the pillow of the dying, perform the last sad rights at the grave of a brother; offering consolation to the afflicted, and caring, with all a brother's love, for the widow and orphan. Brotherly love and charity are the Pillars on which it rests; Friendship and Truth the bond and surety of its preservation.
     The order had over two thousand lodges in the United States and around the world, with a total membership of over 50,000 in 2003.  At its peak, the Knights of Pythias had close to one million members.
     A member must be at least 18 years of age. He cannot be a professional gambler, or involved with illegal drugs or alcohol and he must have a belief in a Supreme Being.