The first Seventh-day Baptist Church was incorporated in September, 1883, on petition of Edward Warner, J. J. Kenyon and B. O. Burdick. The church building was completed the same year. 

A quarterly conference of the Seventh-day Baptists was held in their church on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, January 12, 13 and 14, 1894, conducted by Rev. George P. Kenyon. He was assisted by Rev. Powell of Genesee and Rev. M. G. Stillman of Richburg, N. Y. 

Regular services were held every Sabbath Day at 11:30 a. m., and Sabbath School at one o'clock in the afternoon. Rev. George P. Kenyon was the elder. 

Before 1890, the Seventh-day Adventists had organized in Shingle House and had built their church. 

A Methodist Episcopal Church Society of Shingle House was incorporated in November, 1885. The first trustees were: L. C. Perry, Zalmon Barnes, W. T. Lane, Mrs. Laura Newton and Dr. A. J. Remington. 

During 1886 and 1887, Rev. E. S. Wilcox was pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Shingle House. He was replaced by Rev. J. M. Leach at the conference in October, 1887. 

The regular services in the early years, which were held in the Seventh-day Baptist Church, were Sabbath School at 10:00 a. m. and Preaching at 11:00 a. m., with Class Meeting at 12:00 noon. 

The last of October, 1893, the foundation for the new church was completed. A Christmas tree and dinner were the first festivities to be held in the new church. Frank Voorhees impersonated Santa Claus very well. 
 

The Mission was organized on October 10, 1894, with seven members. The first baptism occurred on October 11, 1894, when Mrs. Frank Bailey was immersed. The wooden tank was built by A. F. Nichols in the old Opera House on Honeoye street. 

The first church was organized on June 4, 1895, with 21 members. 

Rev. F. W. Reynolds of Wellsboro was sent to the field by the Pennsylvania Mission Society on November 23, 1905, and under his leadership a decision was reached to build a house of worship. 

Rev. W. H. Dallman became the first pastor of the church on February 1, 1906. The charter was procured on December 2, 1905, and ground was broken for the new church on July 11, 1906. 

The church was completed on Saturday, January 18, 1908. 

In building the church, the pastor, Rev. Dallman, worked longer, harder, and worried more than any other man in the church or on the building committee, during its construction. 

The first set of officers of the new church was: W. H. Dallman, pastor; W. G. Sutherland, F. P. Ackerman and Ira Kinney, deacons; C. A. Wolcott, Ira Kinney, and George B. Scott, trustees. 

Mrs. Thomas L. Knapp, treasurer; Mrs. Ira Kinney, financial scretary; Mrs. Ira Kinney, financial secretary; Mrs. George B. Scott, church clerk; Mrs. James Staysa, president of the Ladies Aid; John Corwin, president of the B.Y.P.U. and Ira Kinney, superintendent of the Bible School. 

The stone Baptist Church at the corner of Academy and Pleasant streets was opend on January 19, 1908, with union services. A large congregation gathered for the morning service at 10:30 a. m. The afternoon service began at 3:00 o'clock. 

The native bluestone church was erected at a cost of $14000 and the problem of raising the money was long and tedious, eventually being completed in October, 1919. The program and the burning of the mortgage of both the church and parsonage was held on December 28, 1919. 

The church was the first public building to have electric lights and the parsonage was the second dwelling to have them. 

The Baptist Church is very proud to have a missionary on the field in India. Forty years ago, in 1912, Naomi Knapp left for India. 

The Rt. Rev. David F. Hickey, V.F., L.L.D., who is in charge of St. Bernard's Church at Bradford, officiated at the solemn ceremonies. He was delegated to preside by the Rt. Rev. John Mark Gannon, D.D., D.C.L., L.L.D., Bishop of Eire. Monsignor Hickey was assisted by the Very Rev. Edward J. Rengel, V.F., L.L.D., of Olean and the Rev. Father Flanagan of Windsor Locks, Conn. Rev. Geo. Skelley, O.F.M., of St. Bonaventure College at Allegany was the master of ceremonies. 

The servers were Rev. M. E. Dailey, pastor of St. Raphael's Church in Eldred, and Rev. Charles Ward of Bradford. The chanters of the psalms and litanies were Rev. Capistran Petrie, O.F.M., of Allegany and Rev. Francis Sullivan, O.F.M., of Washington, D.C. A large number of clergymen attended the services. 

The sermon was preached by Rt. Rev. Monsignor Hickey who explained the meaning of dedication services. He congratulated the people who made many sacrifices to complete the work on the church and also their pastor, Rev. William Coyle who resides at the Church of the Scared Heart in Genesee and also cares for the parish of St. Mary's in Kinney, Pa., and that of St. Theresa in Shinglehouse. 

Father Coyle has endeared himself to his flock by his untiring efforts in their behalf. The respect he enjoys among those of other Christian beliefs was evident last Sunday for not only were lay people present but also ministers of religion. 

A sumptuous dinner was served by Mrs. Anna Kaufman, who has done so much for the parish at Shinglehouse, and by her sisters, Mrs. Kinsella and Mrs. Arnold. They were assisted by their nieces, Miss Margaret Gonter and Miss Rena Gonter. 

Most of Western New York was then called Genesee Country, largely forest, although clearings
and settlements were growing in numbers. Through such territory, Bishop Asbury was journeying
on horseback with a traveling companion, Henry Boehm. They recognized the need for organizing a Genesee Conference and this was accomplished under Bishops Asbury and William McKendree
(Methodism's first American-born Bishop) in 1810 in Lyons, N.Y. From this early history we can
trace the beginnings of the Shinglehouse United Methodist Church.

Ceres was the oldest settlement in this vicinity. In the year 1833, revivals were held from
Friendship, N.Y. to Hinsdale, N.Y. Mrs. Full, a Methodist, proposed having a Methodist class at
Ceres. On January 4, 1832, she was successful in getting the Methodist minister from Friendship
to organize a class. This meeting was held at Daniel Cari's new barn in 1834.

In the year 1837, another meeting was held in Clark Stillman's barn and more converts were
added to the class. These meetings were held by a Methodist minister named Loomis Benjamin. He was appointed minister for a Bolivar, Friendship, Belvidere, and Portville.

John Smith gave land on which to build a church and Rev. Benjamin drew plans for the church
which was built in 1839 at Ceres. In 1866 a parsonage was built by Rev. William Webber and the
circuit was separated from Bolivar at the 1866 Conference and extended to Oswayo.

The minister at Ceres preached at Honeoye and Shinglehouse from 1866 to 1879. (In 1879, William T. Lane was instrumental in forming the Alma, Honeoye, and Shinglehouse Circuit.) These towns were busy lumbering towns at that time.

The early days of Methodist work in Honeoye was done by Rev. P. W. Minard. Beginning in October 1879, Rev. Minard held services in the schoolhouse in the morning, at Shinglehouse in the afternoon, and at Alma in the evening. Rev. Minard left the circuit in October, 1882.

Rev. S. C. Rhineault was appointed by the conference on October 10, 1882; A. W. Merville was appointed October 1883; D. C. Nye was appointed October B, 1884-86; Rev. E. S. Wilcox was appointed October 6, 1886; and Rev. J. M. Leach was appointed October 10, 1887.

During the ministry of Rev. J. M. Leach, plans were made for the building of a church. (The
Honeoye Church was completed in 1889 and dedicated on March 2, 1890.)

Mr. W.T. Lane, a far-seeing businessman, put forth the idea or a parsonage being built in Shinglehouse as he felt this would be the center of church activities. In 1884, the first parsonage was a rented house on the Horse Run Road. The Shinglehouse parsonage was started on Lincoln Street on a lot donated by Mrs. Laura Newton in 1885. Mr. Lane furnished most of the lumber, sawing it at his Honeoye Mill. Before the parsonage was fully completed, a flood caused the Horse Run residents to find safer residence. The minister and his family moved into the Lincoln Street parsonage which was without windows and doors and unfinished inside.

The Methodist church society or Shinglehouse was incorporated in 1885. They worshipped in the
Seventh Day Baptist Church.

The Ladies Aid Society was organized in that same year, 1885 by seven women; Emma Dodge, Laura Newton, Emma Woodard, Martha MacGregor, Emily Corevin, Ruth James, and Mary Nichols. This group was very much the guiding power in the building and growth of the church. They also helped pay on the use of the Seventh Day Baptist Church where the Methodists held their classes.

On October 11, 1893, a deed was executed conveying to the Methodist Episcopal Society of
Shinglehouse, the beautiful corner lot adjoining the parsonage property on Lincoln Street. Upon
the following day, work was commenced which resulted in the erection of a church edifice which
was brought to a successful completion on March 10, 1893. The church was dedicated free from
debt through subscriptions ranging from $1. to $125. and $200. was put in the treasury.

The Ladies Aid Society bought the corner lot for $300., paying the last installment just before
the church was dedicated. They furnished many articles for the church.

The church building was 36'X 55' with a full basement. It was furnished in natural grain cherry
with a metal ceiling, trimmed in molding and ornamental rosettes. The windows were of cathedral
glass, blue and red in color and Gothic in style. Each window bore an inscription ground into the glass. Seating capacity was 300. There was a 12'X 12' tower in which hung an 800 pound bell. The cost of the structure including the lot was $3,600.

The first trustees were; H.L. Pearsall, Justice Hickok, Coleman Smith, Frank Farley, P. B. Woodward, A. A. Mulkin, F. A. Nichols, Jacob Failing, and Mrs. Laura Newton. The building committee was composed or Cal C. Perry, Albert A. Mulkin, and T. H. Carryer.

Dedication services were held on March 11, 1894. In the words of the Pastor, T.H. Carryer,
"Thus ended a glorious day and one long to be remembered on the Honeoye Charge."

The early 1900's brought the glass and bottle plants to Shinglehouse and this brought an influx
of talent to the church. In 1915 the church was remodeled. It was rededicated in a "Reopening
Service" on October 31st 1915. This service was led by Rev. H.A. Crane, District Superintendent
of the Olean District and Rev. Samuel W. Eaton, Pastor.

Regular services were discontinued at the Honeoye Church in the year 1923 though the Sunday School and occasional services continued until 1945. As time elapsed, families moved away and
during the changing time, the congregations grew smaller. Thus a house of worship that had been
a part of the Honeoye community for over 50 years passed into oblivion. The remaining memberships of the Honeoye Church were transferred to Shinglehouse Methodist Church in 1948.

The Women's Missionary Society met at the home of Mrs. A.L. Cole on March 30, 1922, for the
purpose of organizing a Women's Foreign Missionary Society. The following officers were
elected; President: Kate Newton; Vice-President: Mrs. A.L. Cole; Treasurer: Mrs. Joe Rupert; Recording Secretary: Bess Thatcher; and Corresponding Secretary: Lucy McDowell.

The Mary Martha Class was organized on October 31, 1930, at the church. Twelve persons were
present and the following officers were elected: President: Ethel McDowell; Vice-President:
Gertrude Mills; Secretary: Etoile Marshall; Treasurer: Helen Chamberlin; Program          Committee: Etoile Marshall, Helen Babcock, Ina McEllroy; Membership: Lulu Kier, Nina Wandover, Helen Kemp; Visiting Commissioner Ruth Wingard, Bertha Harris, Helen Chamberlin; First Teacher: Maude Rupert (Continued until death 11/27/44) Motto: "Service For Other".

Through the years, the members of the Mary Marthas class have been faithful workers and if any
project needed done, they were dependable and capable. Their motto has been well exemplified.
Since 1963, the Class has conducted weekly rummage sales. The money received benefits the
church and missions.

In 1940 the Ladies Aid Society was incorporated in the unification of Methodist Society under
the new title of the Women's Society of Christian Service (W. S. C. S.)

The church was originally in the Genesee Conference but in 1962 the adjustment of conference
boundaries to state lines changed the church to the Western Pennsylvania Conference. The Kane
District commenced in 1962.

In 1963 the Mary Martha Class raised $12,000. to help build a new education wing for the
church. The new addition created an office for the Pastor, two restrooms, and seven classrooms.
The groundbreaking was held October 1962 and the opening date was September 29, 1963. The
contractor was Edward Klesa of Shinglehouse with the help of members of the congregation
donating their time and labor. This wing was used by the Oswayo Valley public kindergarten for
several years.

The merger of two denominations, the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren
Church, to form the United Methodist Church was accomplished by a uniting General Conference
held at Dallas, Texas, in 1968. Both Conferences (Methodist and Evangelical United Brethen)
were placed in the Pittsburgh Area. The Conference sessions of 1969, meeting separately under
the presidency of Bishop Roy C. Nichols, each adopted a common Plan of Union. This Union was
consummated in a Uniting Session help at Johnstown, Pa. on October 11, 1969 creating the
Western Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church.
 

The original Shinglehouse parsonage on Lincoln Street was torn down in August 1981. A new one story house was built in its place and was completed in June 1982. The total cost was $53,262.05. The parsonage was dedicated on September 11, 1983, free of debt. 
 

             HISTORY OF THE SHINGLEHOUSE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

                                                              MINISTERS

1893-1895  T.H. Carryer (First Minister from Honeoye Church)
1895-1895  John McGovern (Supply Pastor for 3 months)
1895-1896  Robert. S. Bell
1896-1897  Joseph Clark
1897-1899  L.T. Hawkins
1899-1902  A.M. Bancroft
1902-1904  Thomas C. Bell
1904-1905  D . E . Stiles
1905-1909  Isacc H. Crocker
1909-1911  David A.Parcells
1911-1913  J . A . Gardner
1913-1916  Samuel Willis Eaton
1916-1919  George H. Nelson
1919-1923  Walter Dynes
1923-1924  H. W. Walton
1924-1925  Clifford Alfred Scrimshaw
1925-1928  Frank Andrus
1928-1933  Thomas Shaw Alty
1933-1934 Clarence Homer Nash
1934-1943 Arthur James Bailey
1944-1949 Donald Lee Moody
 

STATISTICAL RECORDS OF SHINGLEHOUSE CHURCH

                                   UNITED METHODIST

YEAR          FULL MEMBERSHIP                    TOTAL SUNDAY
                       AT END OF YEAR                SCHOOL MEMBERSHIP

1938                              157                                                  301
1940                              157                                                  265
1941                              173                                                  193
1942                              168                                                  247
1944                              182                                                  246
1945                              181                                                  218
1946                              181                                                  236

MEMORIES 

1916...Gleaners and the E.P.H. Class with their teachers, Mrs. Joe Rubert and Mrs. John Haines
enjoyed an auto trip over the hills to Sweden Valley where they visited the famous ice mine

May 23, 1917.. Public protest by the churches of Shinglehouse against Sunday baseball. The
churches felt baseball was a violation of the Divine Law to keep holy the Sabbath. .

Mary Martha' 5 enjoying refreshments of "warm sugar" and biscuits .

June 2. 1923 & September 2, 1925...Nellie presented her pupils in Recital at the church.

Winter 1924.. Thirty-five members of the Epworth League enjoyed a sleigh ride up the valley to
the home of Nellie Sizer.

March 8, 1926.. Choir presented a program "Receiving the Parson" .

October 4-7, 1927...Mrs. Allen Prince and Miss Kate Newton were delegates at Uniontown for the annual meeting of the Women's Foreign Missionary Society. In 1928 they were delegates at the
Scranton Meeting.

February 22, 1928... Jonathan Chapel, widely known veteran of the Civil War, was honored on his
90th birthday at the church where he was a faithful member.

1930...The Primary Department of the Methodist Sunday School presented a home talent play at
the Star Theatre.

1931...Sunday School Banquet..Mary Martha Class was awarded prize for the best part of the
program. The class presented a radio minstrel show led by Mrs. Howard Signor.

1931.. Epworth League players presented a three act comedy entitled "Safety First" at the Star
Theatre.

March 27, 1932...Community Choir presented "The Conquering King" .

April 20, 1932.. .65 of the 71 Members of the Mary Martha Class met at the home of Mrs. Ulric Dodge of Honeoye Street .
 

1933.. The "Boiler Boys" of the Methodist Sunday School enjoyed a theatre party in Bolivar.
Their teacher was Arthur Greene.

November 1933...Mrs. Allen Prince's Sunday School Class participated in an old-fashioned
sleighride which ended at the Prince home for games and refreshments.

1938.. .Mary Martha Class was entertained at a Strawberry Festival at the home of Mrs. Lawrence
Stearns.

1938.. The Brotherhood Class of Shinglehouse held musical service at Ceres.

1938...Ladies Aid purchased 20 bushel of leeks for a public supper. Also on the menu was baked
ham and lemon pie. (It was noted that the leek suppers were first popularized in this area by
the Rose of Sharon Garden Club. The old tradition was "those who partake of one "mess" of leeks
in the Spring of the year, will be free from fever until the next season".)

1939.. .Men's Brotherhood Class used Mr. Palmer's recreation room in the basement of his home
for their weekly meetings.
 

1939...Members of the Frank Bixby's Sunday School Class enjoyed an outing at Cuba Lake. The
Group enjoyed swimming and wiener roast.

May 7, 1939.. .Men's Brotherhood Class conducted a musical in Trinity Methodist Episcopal
Church in Olean and on May 21st the group went to Butler Pa. to present their program .

1941.. .Rally Day for Sunday School was held with perfect attendance pins awarded to 55 members
with record going to Miss Elizabeth Press, (Mrs. Liz Lawton) who completed 11 years perfect
attendance.

1945.. .Rev. Don Moody took three youth to Silver Lake for the Youth Institute. They were Diane
Kemp, Donna Jones, and Patricia Washburn.

1948.. .The Methodist Brotherhood entertained seventeen men from the First Baptist Church of
Port Allegheny for an evening of fun and refreshments.

April 10, 1949...A Hammond Organ purchased by the church was dedicated.

1949.. Tickets for the Father/Son Banquet were completely sold out to a record crowd. Members
of the 1939 Championship High School Basketball Team were the guests of honor. coach Brace
reviewed the basketball activities during his nine years as coach.

July 20, 1949...Sunday School Classes led by Mrs. C.H. Chamberlain, Mrs. Earl Gibson, and Mrs. Vera Nichols took a bus trip to Cuba Lake enjoying a picnic, boating, swimming, and
rollerskating.