Happy Halloween! Well, almost.
This time tomorrow I'll be heading north with the BFF Andrea, to collect as many of the remaining markers as I can in Columbia and Montour Counties. We'll be stopping in Bloomsburg at the Columbia-Montour Visitors Center, to say hello to my contact Shane (the one who very carefully reproduces my posts about their counties in their quarterly newsletter).
Meanwhile, my most recent contribution to the Mainly Museums collective went live early this morning. Kevin and I visited the famous Horseshoe Curve when we were in Altoona last year, and I enjoyed having the chance to tell readers all about it. You can find my piece here.
We're closing out October here on the blog with another county debut. On our way to Latrobe last week, my sister Liza very patiently pulled over whenever possible to allow me to collect other markers, and I came home with a total of nine, including this - my first for Bedford County. We couldn't stop to view this wonderful old church building up close, but I admired it from a distance and I've been looking forward to telling you all about it.
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| The marker stands on Route 30/the Lincoln Highway directly in front of the church grounds. |
The story begins not long after the end of the American Revolution, just before the dawn of the 19th century. John Schell, a pioneer, bought a big tract of land and relocated to the area from Montgomery County. He's remembered even today as having been a generous man, who gave away parts of his land for this church and later to provide schools for what he named the community of Schellsburg.
The church building predates the community by roughly two years; construction began in 1806, and the deed is dated March 17, 1807. (Schellsburg was laid out in November 1808. Some of its original homes can still be seen along Route 30.) Originally built to be shared by two congregations, one Lutheran and one German Reformed, it was made of logs donated by early pioneers of the region. One exterior wall each was contributed by John Schell, John Mowry, Jacob Hillegass, and George Rock. Funding for the building was acquired through subscriptions and pledges from the parishioners, ranging from fifty cents to ten dollars, raising almost $200 in total. That would be close to $250,000 in today's money.
Like most any church in that time period, the Old Log Church needed a cemetery for the interment of the faithful. It's said that this cemetery has existed longer than the church itself. Oral tradition states that while the church was being constructed, a little girl in the congregation died, and the workers who were installing the roof on the new church building came down to help clear underbrush in order to provide space for her burial. The grave is unmarked and the child's first name is unknown, but it's believed she was a member of the Whetstone family; other members of the same family are buried a little way south of the church door. Perhaps she lies among them.
The shape of the structure forms an almost perfect square, measuring 25 x 30 feet and standing two stories high. Galleries line three sides of the interior. For the first few years, worshipers sat on logs, and local apocrypha claims that they would bring their dogs to church with them in the winter to keep their feet warm. This practice, if it actually happened, stopped in 1809 when the joint congregations purchased and installed a stove and pipe to provide heat.
In 1812, the log seats were replaced with wooden pews. Also in that year they constructed what's known as a wine glass pulpit; it stands at the top of a flight of stairs, allowing the shepherd to look out over the flock. Additionally, the dirt floor was replaced with a wooden one, and by 1820 the walls were covered in white plaster. Signage by the church building states that all of this remodeling cost "two hundred and twenty-five dollars and ninety-one and a half cents." The interior today remains very similar to how it looked then.
The two congregations continued to harmoniously share the church building until 1843, when the Lutherans moved to their own new church in Schellsburg. The Reformed congregants continued to worship there until 1852, when they too gained occupancy of a new church for their exclusive use. The church has not been used for regular worship since, although the cemetery was and still is used for burials. The cemetery was given a charter of incorporation on March 17, 1860, formally naming it the Chestnut Ridge and Schellsburg Union Cemetery. The corporators were members of the Lutheran, Reformed, Methodist, and Presbyterian congregations of Schellsburg, and the land was deeded in 1897. The Schellsburg Historical Society notes that roughly 25 new graves are added each year, and the cemetery currently has more than 4,500 graves. Among those buried within the grounds are veterans of every war since the founding of the United States, including eight soldiers who served in the Revolution. It's even home to the grave of a Confederate soldier, William Hinson.
A centennial celebration was held on June 23, 1906, with records showing that some 3,500 people either actively participated or watched the events unfold. Among the speakers was the Hon. William P. Schell, a descendant of the Schellsburg founder. A bicentennial was likewise held in 2006, arranged by the Old Log Church and Cemetery Preservation Society. This group first began meeting in 2002, using the church building as their meeting place. They worked out a plan for restoration of the building, so that it would be ready to celebrate its 200th birthday. They also submitted the application to place the church and cemetery on the National Register of Historic Places, to which it was added in 2005. In 2003 they began working on the cemetery project, making records of all the information engraved on the headstones. Society members also began waterproofing the oldest gravestones, to protect them from the weather, and the local enterprise of Everett Marble and Granite Works took up the cause of repairing and resetting the most fragile stones.
The Old Log Church is unlocked during the daylight hours each day between Memorial Day and Labor Day. It's then closed until October, during which it's open on Saturdays and Sundays only, and it's closed entirely between November 1st and May 30th. Please bear in mind that it has no electricity, running water, or restrooms. It also has no tour guides; you're on your own, though there is some informational signage to help you. A table near the pulpit holds a donation box (if you'd like to contribute to the church's upkeep) and a guest book for you to sign. It's one more historical treasure to enjoy while exploring the length of the Lincoln Highway.
Sources and Further Reading:
Official Facebook page of the Old Log Church
The Schellsburg and Old Log Church Historical Society
Old Log Church at PABucketList.com
Old Log Church's application for the National Register of Historic Places
Old Log Church Cemetery at FindAGrave.com
Except where indicated, all writing and photography on this blog is the intellectual property of Laura Klotz. This blog is written with permission of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. I am not employed by the PHMC. All rights reserved.
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