Segment IV of Centennial History Manual
The early fathers of the church thirsted for a deeper knowledge of God's word
and its application to Christian living. The 'first Sunday School in Wauwatosa was
started in 1838, some four years before our church was founded.
Let us turn once more to the 75th anniversary volume to hear Mrs. Vernon
Kinney* in her own charming way, tell, the Sunday School.children of l917of the
founding of the Congregational Sunday School .in the home of her grandfather
Richard Gilbert:
* Mrs. Vernon Kinney, formerly Emma Gilbert, was born in 1864, the daughter of Richard Gilbert, who was one of a family of five sons and four daughters of Deacon Richard Gilbert, in whose home both our church and Sunday School were founded. In 1876, at the age of 12, Mrs. Kinney joined the Wauwatosa Congregational Church, and she has been an active member ever since. She has been President of the Women's league and the Missionary Society, and taught in the Sunday School for many years. She said recently, "The joy of my heart was a class of boys whom I took right out of the primary class and kept until they left for college." Two worthy representations of her efforts are William Nethercut and Ralph Hammond. Truly the fruits of the spirit are hers --- love --- joy --- peace --- goodness --- kindness --- gentleness.
"Boys and girls, this is your share in the severity-fifth anniversary of the founding of this church.
''Seventy-five years seems like a long, long time, doesn't it?
"You all know how Wauwatosa looks now, and the country about it, also. Now forget it a minute, and think of a great big woods, oh, so big. No house, no roads, no fences, no bridges, just a big lot of trees and a pretty little river winding in and out from somewhere, on and on till it reached Lake Michigan. That is the way Wauwatosa looked seventy-five years ago. I mustn't say there were no houses at all, for if there had been no houses there could have been no people. There were a few scattered 166 cabins before 1842.
Now, think of families coming here from New York and Massachusetts, with slow ox teams hitched to big covered wagons, and leading a cow or two and always a dog, up through Indiana and Illinois, till they got right here. Then they stopped, because it looked like a good place to make a home and while they were chopping trees to make a house, they lived in the wagons.
"Now, when there were several families located here, and as these, people were all Christians, the first thing they thought of was their Heavenly Father's goodness to them, and the keeping of the Sabbath Day. So they agreed to meet for service in some of the homes. How many of you children ever saw a log house? Those of you who have, will know in what. kind of a building the first Sunday Schools were held, for those were the only kind made in Wauwatosa seventy-five years ago. There, are very few people living who were here at that time, but all had a part in the first Sunday School, or at least with the Sunday School organized at the founding of the church.
"There was a Sunday School, very first, in 1838, but it was short lived. Then in 1841, one was organized on West Main Street, near where the new pickle factory now is. ** A man by the name, of Hart lived there, and the Sunday School was held in his home for awhile, afterward, using a room in the then new town hall, which faced our city park.
** The cottage to which Mrs. Kinney refers, at that time the home of Benjamin Hart, is still standing. It is on the south side of Harwood Ave., two doors east of Glenview Ave., just next to the filling station.
"There were three teachers, one for adults, one for boys and one for girls. Mr. Luther Warren, grandfather of Glen and Robert Nethercut and Gerald and Irving Wade, was one of the little boys.
"Of these Sunday School meetings, I know but little, only that they were union, the Baptists and Methodists, as well as Congregationalists, sustaining them.
"They were held regularly every other Sunday and were sandwiched in between a long sermon in the morning, arid another in the afternoon.
"When the church was organized in 1842, in my grandfather's home, a Sunday School was also started, and held in the little log school house close by. This building, which was used every day in the week, was sixteen by twenty feet and in the woods, just as everything was, even to the roads in those days. They had great times in getting to Sunday School. They couldn't trip along on sidewalks as you do now; neither could they drive up with their carriages or autos. If the distance was too long to walk, two faithful oxen were yoked to a wagon, the family got in and were carried over stones and stumps, over ditches and across streams, in and out among trees, to Sunday School. And let me tell you, everybody who went to meeting stayed to Sunday School, and those who wished to go to Sunday School had to go to the preaching service.
"Sunday was a hard day to be sure, and a very solemn occasion for some of those little children. Of course, they would get hungry after such a ride, when it was an all day affair so the mothers put up lunches for them. This pleased the little folks, and didn't the little squirrels enjoy Sunday School too? They would come in and pick up crusts and crumbs dropped on floors and seats. The floors were rough and full of splinters, so it wasn't uncommon to see a child stop to pick a sliver out of his bare foot. I said people rode behind ox teams. Yes, most of them did, but occasionally a man owned one horse. This was the case with one of the good men who was going with his bride to Sunday School for the first time; he let her ride the horse and he walked by her side.
"When the Sunday School was organized they elected a superintendent. There were no other officers for none were needed, but soon they wanted a librarian, for Warren had received some books from the east which he gave to the Sunday School. Ephraim Gilbert, grandfather of Katherine and Julia Weinbrenner, was chosen librarian and carried those books back and forth from his home to the school house in a market basket, for there was no place there to keep them.
"The first lesson was the second chapter of Matthew's Gospel. Everyone had the same lesson. At that time there were no quarterlies or lesson helps, so each child was requested to learn seven verses a week, and was questioned upon it. ''The book of St. John was much studied. The first question books were brought here by Mrs. Luther Clapp, grandmother of Carol Clapp, several years later. They sang the good old hymns, "Jesus, Lover of My Soul"
being a favorite, and also "Guide Me 0 Thou Great Jehovah." The same book was used in all their services, for many years. It contained about one thousand songs and hymns in verse but not one note of music. 'There was always one among them, who, with his tuning fork, struck the key and led and taught the rest; singing but once during a service."This is a brief account of the first Sunday Schools and though the beginnings were primitive, God blessed every one of those faithful men and women who strived under such difficulties to do His Holy Will."
Of the Sunday School in 1917, Rev. Davies writes, "First comes the Sunday School at 9:50 A.M. The Primary Department with an attendance often approaching its enrollment of over 60, meets by itself in its Special room, and in the serving room. Mrs. D. S. MacKinnon is the Superintendent. Adjacent to it, is the Cradle Roll of over 30 in charge of Mrs. Thomas De Swarte. The Junior, Intermediate and Senior Departments meet in the main room down stairs. Mr. C. D. Adams, the Superintendent, conducts the opening exercises, which last about twenty minutes. Mr. L. M. Roehl leads the singing and Robert Nethercut plays the piano. On alternate Sundays, Mr. J. O. Myers, our young man of 78, loved and respected by all speaks five minutes on Missions. On other Sundays, the pastor has been in the habit of giving a brief talk. Then comes dispersion to classes. Five classes meet in the church auditorium. The Assistant Superintendent, Mr. E. W. Lyman, distributes the Sunday School papers, "The Wellspring," "The Boy's World" and "The Girls Companion." Miss Marion Potter has been treasurer for ten years, and Mr. Harvey Myers secretary for nine. The enrollment in 1916 was 210, the average attendance being 142. Receipts were $503.24. The school has for several years paid the tuition of a student at Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn. It is now giving $50.00 to Theo. Moore, a senior from Virginia. Connected with the Sunday School is a Home Dept. of about 50 members under Mrs. E. W. Lyman. A plan that is now working successfully for the third summer is to have the school officered by boys and girls from the school itself during the vacation weeks. Mention should be made of the monthly Sunday School Teachers' Suppers and Conferences, which are so enjoyable and helpful in solving school problems. Other popular features are Children's Day in June, the Annual Picnic in July, Rally and Promotion Day in October and the Christmas program."
In January, 1919, Ernest Walter Lyman was elected Superintendent of the Sunday School and he continued in this position, with consecration, love and increasing devotion until his death on Nov. 19, 1938. In the church and the community, he is remembered as a loved leader in Christian education. He and Mrs. Lyman and their family of four, came to Wauwatosa in 1908, joining the church the following year. At various times he was the leader of the Adult Bible Class of the Sunday Evening Forum and President and Secretary of the Congregational Club. But his deepest interest was with children and young people. One near to him has said, "As a boy he was constantly reading and studying the Bible, being deeply interested in its teachings, and as the years went by, he worked continually to understand the teachings of Jesus, and then apply them to modern life and problems. He loved to study the Bible to find the truth we all need." One lad, now in the service of his, country, said recently, "When I was a little boy I remember how I always looked for Mr. Lyman when I stepped in the door to the Sunday School. He was always there, and always smiling, and always called me by name. I used to wonder how he could remember every child's name as he did."
The new building provided separate rooms for beginners, primary, junior, intermediate and senior departments, and the Church School was reorganized in 1921 with superintendents and officers for each department. At this time the school had 19 classes with an enrollment of 334. The school maintained a slow but steady growth. Five years later in 1924, there was an enrollment of 355 with receipts of $1,169. The organization continued to have a lively interest in missions and in missionary giving. During these years we find it donating regularly to Northland, Fisk, and Piedmont Colleges, as well as to many foreign missions.
The next few years the school kept pace with the rapid growth of the city. In 1932 the enrollment had risen to 384 and by 1934 it had shot up to 510, with an average attendance of 83%. This steady growth and regular attendance, although a tribute to the leadership and teaching staff of the school, brought with it, its problems. Mr. Lyman in his annual report for 1933 says, "Our greatest need is for larger quarters, particularly more class rooms. We have 44 classes and only 14 separate class rooms. In the emergency, one class holds forth in the kitchen, two in the parsonage across the street, one in the dingy lower floor hallway, two others in makeshift rooms in the third floor hall. By the use of a regiment of folding screens, we sequester our classes into every nook or corner of the building." A committee headed by Ralph Hammond was appointed to study means by which the lower floor could be made to accommodate these needs. This committee did so well that by the next annual meeting it was reported that twelve additional class rooms had been built in the basement at a cost of $850.00.
In November, 1938, the Sunday School and the church, young and old alike, felt a deep sense of loss and bereavement in the death of Mr. Lyman. As a memorial, a fund was raised by the children to be used. for a scholarship fund to send representatives of our young people each year to the Summer Institute at Green Lake. A tablet was placed in the church in his memory, but his true memorial is the host of young lives which were guided and enriched by his precept and example.
Loring T. Hammond was chosen to carry on the leadership of the school. The church was singularly fortunate in having available a young man with his energy, enthusiasm and devotion to the church. Mr. Hammond, who had grown up in the church, joined the teaching staff of the church school, as Superintendent of the Junior Department, directly upon his graduation from the University in 1920. It quickly became an absorbing avocation, upon which he spared neither time nor effort. Through the years, as he founded a home and raised a family, this interest has not wavered. With a most lively appreciation of a "worldly" good time, he has proved his right to a place of leadership of youth by a steadfast adherence to his own rules of Christian conduct, even when at variance with those accepted by many.
Mr. Hammond, shortly after his appointment, organized the Council of Religious Education in the church. This committee, consisting of Mr. Hammond, Mr. Lee and representatives from the Week Day Bible School, the Junior Choir, the Board of Deacons and superintendents of all Sunday School departments, meets at regular intervals, as the over-all governing board of the church school. It considers all new policies and approves all expenditures. In addition, each separate department holds regular monthly meetings. These meetings vary greatly. At some, new innovations in teaching, or troublesome mutual problems are prayerfully considered. In others, last year when the help problem became acute, a program of window curtain washing and woodwork cleaning filled a half day meeting!
The missionary tradition still prevails. Last year one hundred books were sent to a small community in the south to start a library for Negroes who were banned from the local public library. The study of missions is an integral part of the school program.
At present the school has six departments, --- Cradle Roll, Kindergarten, Primary, Junior, Junior High School and Senior High School. In addition there is an adult discussion class for men, with an average attendance of 15. It is planned to separate the pre-school toddlers from the kindergarten department and organize them into a nursery school. In the fall of 1944, the school had an enrollment of 570 with an average attendance of 75%. The school has a corps of 60 teachers, and the spirit of co-operation, mutual helpfulness and devotion with which these teachers work, under the capable leadership of Mr. Hammond, largely accounts for the widely conceded excellence of the school.
We have the largest Congregational Sunday School in the state. The leadership is, perhaps, second to none. However, the physical facilities are not comparable to the high quality of the teaching and pupil personnel. An adequate worship center for our children and young people could, well be the goal of our first forward step into the next century.