Today we are finishing up this topic of the first church in Eau Claire, along with the religious leaders that were in the city in the very early days. This information comes from the book "Sawdust City" by Lois Barland, and is used only by permission. Reverend Alberoni Kidder Mr. Kidder built an octagon house on the north west corner of Farwell and Seaver before he and Mr. McNair decided to work in different sections of the city. The next year he built a house in "gothic style" on the west side. He and his two daughters ran a school above a warehouse which was on the present site of the YMCA. He ran a brick yard in the '70s along with Daniel Shaw which was near the south end of 6th Avenue and made 10,000 bricks per day. Mr. Kidder took a church at Durand, after finishing his pastorate in Eau Claire, and remained in Durand ten years. In 1889 he was the pastor at Bloomer for some time. His son Sam married Ida Buffington, daughter of George Buffington, and his daughter Nellie, married Betrand Richardson. Augusta and Martha, other daughters, never married but were active in all community affairs for many years. Reverend W. W. McNair A tragic aftermath of the Indian scare that gripped much of this section of the state in 1862 was the death from exposure of Mrs. Charity McNair whose eight day old baby boy was baptised at the close of his mother's funeral. The couple also had a girl, Lizzie, who was some years older than her baby brother and later married Walter Searing of Tomphin's Cove, New York. Mr. McNair married again, while still in Eau Claire. An interesting event, which must have really electrified the congregation, occurred in August, 1864, when the church was struck by lightning during a service. The bolt went through nine rows of pews and then into the ground. Ladies had the hoops in their skirts burned and Ernie Fish had most of his clothes burned off. Mr. McNair fainted. The congregation began rushing out the door but Mr. Thorp called them back and restored order. Dr. French administered medical aid where needed. Reverend Thomas Barland Mr. Barland was educated in the Universities of St. Andrew and Edinburgh. During the early years in Eau Claire, he held religious services and did missionary work throughout the area. Of their children who lived to adulthood, John was the oldest. He married Dora Schlegelmilch, daughter of Herman Schlegelmilch, and they had six children. T. Gordon became president of the Union Mortgage and Loan company and died unmarried in 1942. Dorothea, Herman and Howard died unmarried. Agnes married Dr. Edwin McDaniel, a medical missionary in Siam and George married Lois Barland, a cousin. The second child of Thomas Barland, Betsey, married Jonathan Merriam and lived in Atlanta, Ill. Agnes married John Keith, a native of Ottawa, Canada, and a bookkeeper for Ingram and Kennedy. Their children were Alexander who married Kate Kennedy and had Alex, Georgena, Donald and Robert; Thomas who married Mary Grassy and had Gordon, Effie, John and Mary; Bessie who married Edward Strong; and Agnes who married Dr. R. F. Werner and had Richard, Keith and Thomas. Another daughter of Thomas Barland, Margaret, married Dr. Hogeboom and after some years in Eau Claire, moved to Alabama. Isabel Barland married Fredrick A Towne and they had Jessie, Isabel, Margaret and Willard. Birney Barland married Alice Wood and had a son Paul. The youngest of Rev. Barland, George, married Ethel Rogers and had two daughters, Genevieve and Lois. He lived in Minneapolis the later years of his life. Reverend Barland told of his work at an anniversary celebration: Excerpts from Anniversary Talk Given by Thomas Barland 1884 "From the time of my arrival in 1852 I had religious services in Gage and Reed's public room -- barroom perhaps it might have been called had liquor been drank there. But I saw none drank. The pure presence of a lovely Norwegian young lady afterwards married to Mr. Reed was enough to banish the practice of dram drinking from the premises. These services I continued afterwards and until the arrival of Brethern McNair and Kidder (fall of 1856) who each of them had selected Eau Claire as their field of labor. Brother McNair I introduced heading a subscription with $20 and afterwards Brother Kidder with $10. We were commanded not to let our right hand know what our left had doeth --. Is not this anniversary a solemn, a sublime, indeed a glorious thing, as being an innumeration of God's goodness in spiritual and providential matters, but necessarily in connection with the works and words and sufferings of his faithful servants. Having thus introduced these brethern, I thought it would be improper to compete with them in ministerial work, and never since have I seen the time when I thought it might be proper to intrude myself again in the field which I had relinquished. And thus it was that I commenced work in Scott's Valley, Thompson's Valley, and Augusta. My schedule was as follows; Saturday a.m. left home on foot for Scott's Valley, Sabbath a.m. held meeting. Rested at Mr. Scott's house an hour or two, walked over to Thompson's Valley, held meeting there in evening. Monday a.m. rested usually with Mr. Streder, walked to Augusta in evening. Held meeting Tuesday evening. Wednesday began to walk home sometimes stopping at Mrs. Bucks in Fall Creek where I was hospitably entertained. Following Sabbath staid at home to encourage my family to attend church at Eau Claire. Sabbath after held meeting at Truax Prairie. Sabbath following went to church with my family as before. Then the Sabbath following recommenced my tour as above described." This he did till he froze his feet and had a discharging ulcer, thus losing a week or more. Then a Methodist preacher determined to take the field for the Methodist cause and he discontinued for some time. Meetings in Scott's Valley and Augusta were "Crowded to the door." Audience enjoyed services, "sang with fevor as frontier people commonly do." "Whenever I knew of others, Presbyterian, Congregational, or Methodist, wanting the field, I relinquished it and in this manner pioneered again throughout Eau Claire County, Dunn County and Chippewa County, so that in 1872 I calculated that my pedistrian tours amounted to 25,000 miles. If I am asked what were my rewards in all this I would answer, "They were great and important tho chiefly of a mental and spiritual kind. 1) An incompressible elasticity of spirit. 2) The conviction that many more are susceptable of gospel impression when kindly presented than is commonly imagined. 3) That there is much more of gratitude and goodness among men than professors commonly believe. 4) A personal acquaintance with some of the salt of the earth, the excellence of whose character it is impossible for me to describe nor to estimate the benefit in confirming me in t he faith of the gospel"-- 1860 - 61 'Walked 60 miles per month occupying once a month each of four different stations having audiences of 50 to 1000 in two of which I was the first who had ever proclaimed the gospel. One was Augusta, a prospectively very important village. My ambition was two fold 1) not to put Eastern Christians to expense, 2) finding Western Christians unaccustomed to Christian liberality so do what I could altogether gratitiously." +++++++++++++++ Next on the agenda -- keeping with our "Beginnings of ECC," we'll be reading about "Life in the Wisconsin Woods". See you then! -- Nance mailto:nsampson@spacestar.net