The first efforts of Roman Catholics to have places of public worship in this county were made in Adjala and Penetanguishene. On September 4, 1834, Bishop Macdonnell received a deed from the Crown of lots 10, 11 and 13, concession 8 of Adjala, (along the Tecumseth townline), where the church of St. James was established. The Rev. Father Edward Gordon had charge of the extensive parish of Niagara to which the station of Adjala and Tecumseth belonged at the earliest time. But a pioneer log church had been already built before the time the Crown Patent was obtained, for we read in the Retrospect (p. 168) of a traveller (John Carruthers) under date of Sept. 29, 1833, that the Roman Catholics of Adjala had by that time built a church, and were to be visited by a priest once a month.

The Rev. Dean Harris, (who himself was pastor of Adjala and Tecumseth in 1870) relates some of Father Gordon's experiences in those townships in the early days, in his volume on the "Catholic Church in the Niagara Peninsula." For a time, also, the Adjala station was connected with Toronto Township and Albion, for which the name of the Rev. Murt Lalor appears as the regular clergyman in 1836. Sometime in the forties, the Bishop erected Adjala and Tecumseth into a separate parish, of which the Rev. P. Rattigan was pastor for some years, and in North Adjala a mission was established at Arlington at an early date.

The priests in charge of Adjala in succeeding years were:- Rev. F. X. Pourret, Rev. Michael O'Shea (1858-60), Rev. J. J. Synott (1860-6).

Bishop Power made a pastoral tour in the county during his term in the diocese; and his successor, Bishop Charbonnel, visited the northern stations in Medonte and Penetanguishene as much as three times. The Rev. Father James Quinlan was in Medonte about the year 1840, either in temporary charge or on a pastoral visit. At a later time he was in charge of the Newmarket Parish. About the year 1855, a separate parish was formed with its centre at Barrie, of which the Rev. George R. Northgraves became Dean about 1865.

Some interesting particulars of the beginning of Roman Catholic services at Penetanguishene appeared in a paper read by the Rev. Father TH. F. Laboreau at a summer convention of the Canadian Institute held at that town, September 25, 1891. In February, 1832, Bishop Macdonnell of Kingston, made his first pastoral visit to Penetanguishene, accompanied by Father Crevier, the resident missionary at the Detroit River. Soon afterward, a log church was built on the site of the present town hall in Penetanguishene. There was no stationed priest at first, although the people received occasional visits from travelling priests until one came to reside. In the absence of a priest, a zealous Frenchman named Dedin Revolte (Revol) held services whenever there was no regular instructor in the faith, and he also spent much time and money for the religious instruction of the Indians.

The first regular missionary was Father Lawrence Dempsey, but he died suddenly while travelling on the Penetanguishene Road. The Rev. Lawrence Dempsey was a missionary priest or catechist, whose labors have passed into the same obscurity that envelops so many other worthy pioneers. He built the original Ste. Anne's Church at Penetanguishene. The date given by the Rev. Father Laboreau was 1835, although John Carruthers asserts in his Retrospect (p. 107) that the Catholic Church was there on March 9, 1833. The next who took charge of the mission was the Rev. Jean Baptiste Proulx in 1836. Father Proulx, wishing to devote himself exclusively to the Indians, and having obtained another priest in 1837, the Rev. Amable Charest of Three Rivers, to reside in Penetanguishene, he went with the Indians in that year when their headquarters were moved to Wikemikong in Manitoulin Island. Father Charest remained in charge of Penetanguishene and adjoining stations for nearly twenty years.

In 1861, the original log church at Penetanguishene having become to small and inconvenient, it gave place to another which was dedicated in that year by Archdecan (afterward Archbishop) Walsh; and this one in turn was replaced by the handsome structure erected to the memory of the Jesuit priests martyred in the seventeenth century.

The Rev. Adam Elliott was the travelling missionary of the Episcopal Church in 1833-6; he baptized, married and read burial services for the settlers, the records of which are preserved in the Register of St. Jame's Cathedral, Toronto. Mr. Elliott went to Manitoulin Island in 1836 with Capt. T. G. Anderson as a missionary to the Indians. The missionary, Rev. C. C. Brough, Dr. Darling and Mr. Bailey, the schoolmaster, also went to Manitoulin Island in 1837 when the Indian Agency was moved there from Coldwater.

Mr. Elliott was succeeded as travelling missionary in 1836 by the Rev. H. H. O'Neill, and after the Rev. F. L. Osler settled at Bond Head in 1837, as the first stationed clergyman in the south half of the county, the services of the travelling missionary were, in some degree, dispensed with. The church records at Bond Head begin with the arrival of the Rev. Mr. Osler, and are carefully preserved by the present incumbent, the Rev. A. C. Watt. Bishop Strachan made his first visit to Tecumseth in 1840, and spoke of the settlers as thriving.

The Rev. Featherstone L. Osler, the pioneer clergyman, was a native of Falmouth, Eng., and came to Canada in 1837, proceeding to Newmarket where he stayed for a short time until the completion of the parsonage at Bond Head. He then took charge of the new parish, which included all South Simcoe, and a great part of North Simcoe. An active and vigorous man in the performance of his work, he built many churches and established several congreagations. He labored for twenty years in the large parish, out of which new parishes were formed from time to time, as the county developed, and in 1857 was transferred and became rector of Ancaster and Dundas, where he resided until his resignation in 1882. His death occurred in Toronto, February 16, 1895, at the ripe age of 90 years. While in the Tecumseth charge, he took an active part in educational affairs, some account of which may be found in the chapter on schools. Several sons in his family have been distinguished in Canadian affairs. Justice F. Osler of the Ontario Court of Appeal; B. B. Osler, K.C., one of the most prominent members of the Canadian bar, (d. Feb. 5, 1901, aged 62 years); E. B. Osler, M.P. for West Toronto; Prof. Wm. Osler of Oxford University, England (formerly of Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, U.S.)

At St. Paul's, Innisfil, on the Twelfth Line, a settler, John Pratt, gave an acre of land on the northwest corner of his farm, (lot 16, con. 11), for the purpose of a church and cemetery. A frame church was erected here in 1851, as an adjunct of the Shanty Bay parish, and in 1865 it was made a separate parish with the Rev. E. W. Murphy as the first incumbent. Mr. Murphy continued in this charge for a period of 39 years.

The Rev. George Hallen settled in Medonte in 1835 in charge of St. George's church, but moved in 1840 to Penetanguishene, where he became the first rector of St. Jame's church, as well as Chaplain to the Military Establishment. In Penetanguishene, there was a newly erected Episcopalian Church (doubtless built of logs, as nearly all houses were at that time), "half way between the village and the Establishment," as early as March 9, 1833, as we learn from the Retrospect of John Carruthers (p. 107). Bishop Strachan, leaving Toronto, July 19, 1842, made a confirmation tour in the northern parishes, in the course of which he consecrated the new church of St. James at Penetanguishene. This church is still in use near the site of the original structure.

From the earliest period of the county's settlement Shanty Bay was a center of mission labor in connection with the Episcopal Church. Col. E. G. O'Brien, who was an adherent of that body, having been the first settler and founder of Shanty Bay, the place naturally became associated with the workers of that denomination. The first Episcopal missionary efforts in the district were, like those of other churches, made by travelling clergymen in the dwelling houses of the settlers. Bishop Strachan made occasional journeys to Penetanguishene before 1830, and the Rev. V. P. Mayerhoffer of Markham and Vaughan sometimes visited former parishioners of his in Innisfil, and held services in their houses. Other clergymen at various times passed through the Simcoe settlements, but only once or twice a year.

Among the first stationed clergymen at Shanty Bay was the Rev. T. H. M. Bartlett, afterwards officiating chaplain to the forces at Kingston, who was succeeded in 1842 by the Rev. S. B. Ardagh. By that year the congregation at Barrie had almost dissolved in consequence of the absence of a minister, but through Mr. Ardagh's exertions it revived and made rapid progress. The Barrie church was a frame building, had been erected as early as 1834 by Admiral Robert O'Brien, and through Sir John Colborne it was endowed as a Rectory with Clergy Reserve lands. The site on which the church in the county town was built was granted by patent to "The First Rectory of Vespra" on January 21, 1836.

Shortly before Mr. Ardagh's arrival at Shanty Bay in 1842, a substantial mud-brick church was built there, which excelled every other edifice of the kind in architectural appearance, and still stands as a memento of that period. The career of that man is so intimately associated with the early religious and educational life of the county, that it will be proper, at this point, to sketch briefly his connection with the work.

Rev. S. B. Ardagh was born in Ireland in 1803, and after a careful preparation for the ministry, was appointed in 1828 to a curacy in Waterford, where he labored faithfully for fourteen years. But the religious differences of the time caused him to entertain the idea of removing to Canada. Through the medium of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel he entered into correspondence with Col. O'Brien of Shanty Bay, and eventually decided on entering the extensive missionary field of which that place was the headquarters. In August, 1842, he sailed with his family from Waterford for Quebec, and in due season they reached their destination. The journey from Toronto northward to Kempenfeldt Bay was performed in the simple fashion of the day with the facilities then afforded by the route, and is thus mentioned in Rev. Mr. Ardagh's published memoir:--"There being but one small stage coach, the greater number of the party were conveyed up Yonge Street on baggage waggons, to Holland Landing, and thence across Lake Simcoe in the steamer Simcoe, to Shanty Bay, where they arrived on October 7, 1842."

The mission in connection with Shanty Bay, over which he came to preside over, had a wide extent, embracing the townships of Oro, Medonte, Flos, Innisfil, Vespra, Mono, Essa, Euphrasia, Sunnidale, Nottawasaga and St. Vincent; which territory is now divided into twelve or more parishes. In the performance of his missionary duties he had to traverse this area, and search out the widely scattered habitations of his parishioners. It fell to his lot to hold three services every Sunday, in all kinds of weather, and four services during the week at distant stations. At the time of his appointment the roads in his extensive mission field were of the very worst kind, and it was often only possible to travel on horseback, which mode of travel he found it necessary to adopt.

The incidents and hairbreadth escapes in Rev. Mr. Ardagh's missionary life form a thrilling narrative. Now it was a long journey, again he would lose his way in the woods, or again a dangerous fall narrowly escaping death; then it was a ride for life through burning forests, or breaking through the ice on some lake or river. But these dangers never deterred him from the path of duty.

His diary, extracts from which have been published in the memoir referred to, abounds with references to services held at different places. In addition to the regular appointments at Shanty Bay and Barrie, there were a number of others where services were held regularly, though with less frequency. These included:-

Gimby's School House (Churchill).
Henry's School House (Thornton).
Myer's School House (Stroud).
White's School House (Dalston).
Mr. Alley's (Colored Settlement)
Mr. Campbell's (Oro).
Mr. Craig's (Medonte).
Mr. Raymond's School House (Oro).

The rapid settlement of the county, and the extension of the mission field in new parts rendered his work so arduous that in 1845 a travelling missionary was appointed to assist him. This appointment was filled in succession by Rev. Geo. Bourne (1845-47), Rev. John Fletcher (1847-50), Rev. Garrett Nugent (1851-54), and Rev. Edward Morgan (1855---), who became his successor as Rector of Barrie.

By the strain upon his energy in so many missionary labors, his health became shattered so early as 1849, from rheumatic disorders contracted by sleeping in poorly protected houses while on distant journeys in his mission field. With diminishing strength he continued his labors, however, as best he could. Attacks of illness would sometimes compel him to cease from work for a time, and oblige him to visit Europe to recruit his health, until at last, despite every effort for restoration, his illness proved fatal. His death occurred at his home in Shanty Bay, on October 5th, 1869.

Mr. Ardagh belonged to that section of the Episcopalian church known as the Evangelical. During his residence at Shanty Bay he was closely connected with education in Simcoe County. For somtime he was chairman of the Board of Grammar School Trustees. He was also a member and examiner of the Board of Public Instruction for Simcoe. The District Municipal Council appointed him Superintendent of Schools for the County, a position which he held during 1844-6.

In 1873, a Home for the reception of Indigent Women was erected to the memory of himself and wife, at Barrie, by his surviving children, viz.:- Elizabeth, wife of Henry O'Brien, K.C., barrister, Toronto; Anna, wife of Sir James Gowan, Judge of Simcoe, and Senator; Martha Letitia, wife of Judge W. D. Ardagh, Winnipeg; Judge Ardagh, senior Judge of Simcoe; Naomi Emma; and Marian Isabella, wife of H. H. Strathy, K.C.

The Rev. John McIntyre became clergyman of Orillia in 1841. Besides his parish duties, for which the reward that came to him was certainly not of a financial character, he took an active interest in the promotion of commom schools, and other benevolent works. The Rev. Mr. McIntyre went to Australia at a later time, and the Rev. George Bourne succeeded him in 1849, but his death occurred in Aug., 1853. He was unfortunately thrown from his horse while going to hold service in Oro, and died from the effects of the accident. The Rev. T. B. Read, D.D., then became incumbent at Orillia, and was succeeded in 1863 by the Rev. Alex. Stewart. A new church was opened in August, 1857, the original one having been inadequate. The Year Book of St. James' Church, Orillia, for 1905 and contiguous years, contained a historical sketch of the congregation from the beginning.

By the year 1850, the clergymen in the Simcoe District were the following:-

Shanty Bay and Barrie, Rev. S. B. Ardagh, Rector. Rev. Garrett Nugent, Assistant.
Tecumseth, Rev. Featherstone L. Osler.
West Gwillimbury, Rev. Arthur Hill.
Orillia, Rev. George Bourne.
Penetanguishene, Rev. George Hallen.
Mono Mills, Rev. John Fletcher.

The Rev. Arthur Hill, who had settled in the West Gwillimbury charge at an early date, removed from the county in 1856.

The first place of worship opened by this denomination was in the Township of West Gwillimbury. About the year 1823, the "Scotch Settlers" united their efforts and built a log cabin on lot 8, con. 6, which was intended for a school and also for a place of worship. They obtained the services of John Carruthers as teacher in 1826, as already stated in the chapter on schools.

Mr. Carruthers in 1832 was appointed, as he relates, a "Catechist and Exhorter, by the Presbytery of York (now Toronto), in connection with the Church of Scotland, to visit the destitute settlers in the Western section of Upper Canada." In this capacity as travelling catechist he made several journeys to various parts of the Province. He published in Hamilton in 1861 a narrative of these journeys in a small volume, which bears the title: "Retrospect of Thirty-Six Years' Residence in Canada West". This work, which has now become rare, contains many interesting notices of the early settlers, especially those of Simcoe County, into which he made five journeys. Some time after its publication, he died, leaving a wife and one daughter.

The first minister to hold religious services at this log cabin church of the Scotch Settlement, or indeed at any place in West Gwillimbury, was the Rev. Wm. Jenkins, of Richmond Hill. He conducted services in the settlement about four times a year in connection with the "kirk" of Scotland, to which denomination all the inhabitants belonged. Among the other ministers who occasionally came from the frontier townships to preach or administer the Sacrament in the little log cabin church, was the Rev. James Harris, of York, (now Toronto). In or about 1827 a small frame church took the place of the pioneer cabin. This graveyard is now filled mostly with the Highland pioneers of the neighborhood.

The first stationed minister of this place of worship was the Rev. Peter Ferguson, who afterwards settled in the township of Esquesing. He was succeeded in the Scotch Settlement by Rev. Wm. McKillican. When he subsequently left the charge it had been extended so as to include appointments at Bradford and Cherry Creek in Innisfil. Next came the Rev. Mr. Lambie, a missionary from the East of Whitby, who supplied for a few months these three places; but separate ministers soon became attached to each of the three places, and it has remained so ever since.

The Session Book of the West Gwillimbury Presbyterian Church contains some facts of public interest concerning the pioneer church in the first years of its existence. And as the beginning of a movement is always the most interesting part, it will be worth while to give a few details of its early history. The summary given below under various dates is mostly taken from a preliminary statement prepared by the Rev. Wm. Fraser in 1864, and prefaced to his copy of the Session Book, for the purpose of presenting the principal facts relating to the early church in a concise form, and bringing together matters of interest which would otherwise have required laborious search:

West Gwillimbury, January 6, 1822.- A Presbyterian Church was constituted in the "Scotch Settlement" by the Rev. William Jenkins, and fourteen persons were received as members.

Feb. 6, 1823.- A site for a church and burying ground was purchased from John Faris, on the S 1/2 lot number 8, concession 6.

Jan. 29, 1824.- The folowing persons were set apart and ordained as elders by Rev. Wm. Jenkins:- Adam Goodfellow, William Sutherland, Alexander Bannerman, and John Mathieson, Junr. On the same day a Church Session was constituted.

April 21, 1827.- Measures were adopted for building a church. An account appears in the old Session Book for labor performed upon the said church by Ashur Foster, a millwright, having no date attached. It is presumed, however, that the house was erected in 1827.

September 26, 1830.- The name of Rev. Peter Ferguson, from the Secession Church in Scotland, appears for the first time as Moderator of Session. Mr. Ferguson afterwards took charge of the congregation as a settled pastor, and was their first minister. The date of his induction is nowhere on record, but from a minute of a congregational meeting held on the first day of August, 1831, at which a petition was adopted praying for the settlement of Mr. Ferguson, and at which Messrs. Adam Goodfellow and John Mathieson were appointed delegates to lay the petition before the Presbytery, it may be presumed that the pastoral relation was formed some time in the autumn of the same year.

April 10, 1832.- The Rev. Peter Ferguson left the congregation, having accepted a call from a congregation in Esquesing.

April 19, 1832.- At a congregational meeting a majority of those present resolved to send for a minister of the Established Church of Scotland, and also resolved that communication should be opened with the Rev. William Rintoul, of York, (now Toronto), requesting a visit and advice as to the steps necessary to the gaining of their object.
This step was the beginning of a disruption in the church, which ended with the establishment of two independent churches--one at Bond Head, the other remaining in the Scotch Settlement.

April 23, 1832.- A portion of the congregation was dissatisfied with the resolution to seel a minister from the Church of Scotland, and having consulted with the congregations in Tecumseth and Essa, held another meeting at which it was unanimously resolved to abide in connection with the Missionary Synod of Upper Canada, being the body in connexion with which the congregation had at first been organized.

May 5, 1832.- A meeting of delgates from the several parts of the congregation, namely: West Gwillimbury, Tecumseth, and Essa, was held at the house of Adam Goodfellow, at which Mr. Goodfellow was appointed to make application to the Missionary Synod of Upper Canada in connection with the United Secession Synod in Scotland, for occasional preaching, and a resolution was adopted for building a new church.
From various hindrances this resolution was not carried into immediate effect, although afterward a church was erected at Bond Head in the year 1837.
Although without a meeting-house, the Bond Head branch of the original congregation, however, soon secured the services of a pastor, as the following entry attests:-
October 9, 1833.- The Rev. Jas. Howey was ordained to the office of the ministry and to the pastoral charge of the congregations of West Gwillimbury, Tecumseth, and Essa.

It is known, though not recorded, that Mr. Howey was seized with fatal illnes immediately after his ordination; that in attempting to conduct the worship of the congregation on the succeeding Lord's Day, he was compelled to desist; and that thereupon he retired to reside with relatives in the township of Cavan, but he never so far recovered as to be able to perform any public service, and was removed by death early in the year 1835.

The supply of preaching was for a time irregular, but during the winter and spring of 1835 the Rev. Alexander McKenzie and the Rev. Wm. Fraser were sent by the Presbytery to fill the appointments, and in June, 1835, a call was made out by the united congregations in favor of Mr. Fraser, who proceeded at once to the field of labor to which he had been invited. His first sermon as pastor was delivered Aug. 9, 1835, and his induction into the charge was made on June 17th, 1836.

It has been already mentioned that this Bond Head branch of the congregation was without a definite place of worship for a time. In looking over the Session Minutes we find that the meetings were held in private houses in the different sections of the district:- In Tecumseth, at the houses of John Carswell and James Ellison; in Essa, at the house of George Dinwoody, and also at the school-house near George Dinwoody's. In West Gwillimbury the places of meeting were the houses of Rev. Wm. Fraser and Adam Goodfellow. Services also were conducted in Innisfil at the house of Gavin Allan, Churchill, and a meeting of the Session of the seceding congregation was held at Mr. Allan's house on July 3, 1838. At this meeting the following 8 persons were, upon examination, received into the Church:- Nrs. Cross, Charles Wilson, Mrs. Hugh Todd, Mrs. Alexander Ross, Nrs. C. Wilson, Mr. Wallace, Mrs. Allan, sen., Gavin Allan.

While these events were occurring the part of the original congregation in West Gwillimbury that had resolved to seek connection with the Kirk of Scotland, had secured the services of Rev. Wm. McKillican as pastor, who has already been mentioned.

After Mr. McKillican, the Rev. John McMurchy was stationed in West Gwillimbury, 1842-4. In the Minutes of the General Quarter Sessions of the Home District an entry under March 1, 1842, states that the Rev. John McMurchy, minister of the Church of Scotland for West Gwillimbury, was ordered to receive the usual license to solemnize marriages.

In the wake of the Disruption of the Church of Scotland in 1843, this congregation was again divided in 1844, the larger portion joined the Free Church. The pastor of the original church after 1844 was the Rev. Alex. Ross, during whose incumbency Cherry Creek in Innisfil, and St. John's (Coulson's Corners), became regular portions of the charge. After the death of Mr. Ross the Rev. W. McKee filled the appointment until 1871.

A congregation of the Free Church of Scotland was formed in Bradford in 1847, of which the successive pastors were:- Rev. Thomas Lowry, Chas. M. McKeracher, D. B. Cameron, E. W. Panton, Jas Bryant, Frederick Smith.

In Innisfil, Rev. Wm. Fraser conduted the first Presbyterian services on Aug. 2, 1836, and continued to hold services regularly to the colse of 1849. At first the communicants were nominally members of the congregations at Bond Head and Essa, but in 1844 a congregation in Innisfil was regularly organized, and a church was erected at the Sixth Line, near Central Church of the present time. This congregation pssed at the time mentioned under the pastorate of the Rev. Thomas Lowry as an adjunct to the congregation at Barrie, then recently formed, with Mr. Lowry as the first pastor. Succeeding pastors were:--The Rev. Robert McKenzie and the Rev. Thos. Wightman, who died in 1871, much regretted.

The Rev. Wm. Fraser, D.D., remained pastor of the Bond Head congregation until 1879, having served there for a period of 44 years.

The Rev. Wm. Fraser, D.D., was a native of Nova Scotia, and soon after his ordination to the ministry came to Upper Canada and entered upon his life work at Bond Head. While in this charge, in addition to his regular church work, he took an active part in educational affairs, some account of which may be gathered from the chapter on schools. He was the first Township Superintendent for schools in West Gwillimbury in 1844, and indeed the only one to hold that office in the township, having again been appointed on the resumption of Township Superintendents in 1850 and reappointed for twenty-one years in succession, until the office was finally abolished and county superintendents appointed. His death occurred at Barrie, on Dec. 25, 1892, in his 85th year. Several of his sons have been distinguished in church and educational work:--Rev. J. B. Fraser, Annan; Rev. R. D. Fraser, Toronto; Prof. W. H. Fraser of Toronto University; and Prof. G. A. H. Fraser, of Colorado.

The origin of the first Presbyterian Church in Essa has been already noticed under the head of West Gwillimbury, the occasional services held at the school-house near George Dinwoody's having grown into a regular appointment.

About 1844 a congregation of the Free Church of Scotland was formed at Barrie with the Rev. Thomas Lowry as the first pastor. He continued here until 1854 when he went to Bradford. He was succeeded by the Rev. Robert McKenzie, and Mr. McKenzie by the Rev. Thomas Wightman.

The first Presbyterian Church in Oro was Knox Church, begun in 1844 and finished in 1845, of which an illustration, as it appears to-day, may be found in the chapter on Oro in the second volume. The Hon. Isaac Buchanan of Hamilton, Ont., soon after the Disruption of the Church of Scotland in 1843, on being asked to give a thousand pounds to endow the Free Church College in Edinburgh, replied that he would give the amount, but that he thought it would be more natural to apply his subscription to assist the Free Church College and churches in Canada. Accordingly, $200 each was offered to the first ten Presbyterian country churches erected in Ontario at this time, and Knox Church was built mainly with the endowment derived from Mr. Buchanan's offer. The first regularly stationed minister was the Rev. John Gray, who came to Orillia in 1851. At the first, and for sometime afterward, his charge included all those parts of North Simcoe lying east of the Penetanguishene Road, as well as the parts beyond Lake Couchiching and the Severn River. Esson Church was built about the year 1865, by the English-speaking portion of the Knox Congregation, for whom the Rev. Dr. Gray afterward held services. The Rev. James Stewart held services for the Gaelic portion of the congregation about 1860 and for a few years afterward, and was succeeded by the Rev. J. Ferguson.

At Hillsdale and in Flos regular preaching by the Presbyterians began in the fifties. Many of the people of Flos were glad to have the occasional services of a student in the kitchen of John Ritchie near Elmvale. The congregation soon outgrew the accommodation, and the barn of the same settler was thrown open for the use of the worshippers. This building was found to comfortable and commodious during the summer season when students were available. Among the students Mr. Craw soon became the choice of the Hillsdale and Flos congregations, and on the completion of his studies in 1859 he was ordained and inducted as the first pastor in the charge of Flos and Medonte. The Rev. Geo. Craw's work at first covered a wide area, reaching from Craighurst to Penetanguishene, and from the Orange Hall, Medonte, to Elmvale, Flos. As the years passed away the outlying stations were formed into new charges, and his labors became more centralized. After 31 years he resigned this charge in Sept., 1890, and his death occurred on Jan. 17, 1894.

In Nottawasaga, the Presbyterian congregation at Duntroon (old kirk) was established in or about the year 1841, but there was no stationed minister until the Rev. John Campbell came in 1853. He was the first minister of the Presbyterian congregation of Nottawasaga in connection with the Church of Scotland, but while still in this charge he died Sept. 22, 1864, in his 46th year, and the 12th of his ministry. His remains were buried at West Church, Nottawasaga, where a monument was erected over his grave by the congregation. The adherents of the Free Church built a church a little north of Duntroon in 1858, of which the Rev. Jas, Greenfield became the first regular pastor, in the early sixties, with headquarters at Stayner.

Amogst those who first preached the Gospel to the Lake Simcoe Indians were Revs. Peter Jones, John Sunday, Elder Case, and others whose names are given in the published accounts, which it would be impossibe to summarize in detail. Many references to the early mission work on Lake Simcoe will be found in the Journal of the Rev. Peter Jones. Amongst the laborers in this mission field were also Revs. Gilbert Miller, Jonathan Scott, John and Thomas Williams, and the Rev. Dr. Rose; while of those who would pay occasional visits to different parts of the county, to perform the rites of baptism or marriage, and preach to the scattered settlers in their dwellings, there was Revs. Robert Corson, Ezra Adams, J. Richardson, Wm. and John Ryerson, and Henry Reid.

There was a controversy of some length in 1831-2 in the columns of the Christian Guardian (then, as now, the cheif organ of the Methodist Church), regarding the Lake Simcoe and Matchedash mission to the Indians, in which the participants were Mr. Currie the school teacher, and the Rev. Mr. Miller, the missionary. The Rev. Gilbert Miller was the Methodist missionary at Orillia in 1832.

In 1824-5, (according to Carroll's "Case and his Cotemporaries," vol. 3, p. 18), Rowley Heyland and Daniel and Daniel McMullen, two Methodist Episcopal missionaries in the new settlements of Peel and Halton counties, had an appointment at Andrew Cunningham's in West Gwillimbury. And in 1828, the Rev. John Black, a travelling Methodist missionary, held services at Monkman's in Tecumseth, as stated in the chapter on that township (Vol II, p. 40).

Simon Armstrong, in a letter to John Robinson of Bond Head, gave his recollections of the origin of the old log-meeting house at the Sutherland appointment, lot 6, concession 8, West Gwillimbury, and of early Methodism in that locality. His remarks are worthy of a premanent place in connection with the history of this subject:--

"In the year 1835 a few of the settlers met in the house of Matthew Ney to discuss ways and means to build a meeting-house somewhere in the neighborhood. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Sutherland told of a promise they had made to their friends when leaving Ireland a few years before, that if ever they became owners of a farm in America, they would give a site and help to build a Methodist meeting-house. Their offer was accepted, being a sort of compromise site between the Parkers on the east and the Atkins and Longs on the west. Sutherland's old log meeting-house may be called a pioneer of Methodism in the County of Simcoe. After all preliminaries were settled a subscription list was opened and each head of family was to subscribe at least two pounds, (to buy lumber, shingles, etc.,) and so many days' work each. A poor man,--Matthew Woodrow--had no money to give, but he would hew the logs inside and out after the building was raised, which he did. It faced the east, its side to the road, with two square windows on each side, 7 by 9 inches glass."

The Barrie Examiner of March 18, 1909, contained a list of the Methodist ministers in South Simcoe (with special reference to Thornton Church) from the earliest period to the present time. It is stated that the list, or at least the first part of it, was derived from documents preserved in the Library of the British Museum. The ministers in the earlier years, as given in the list, are the following:--

Cookstown Circuit was formed in 1851 with the Rev. Luther O. Rice as the senior pastor.

A list of the ministers of the Methodist church who ministered in the north part of this county, from 1836 onward, may be interesting at the present day. White's log church (Dalston) was the local headquarters during the first years of the labors of this denomination.

1836- Rev. David Hardy was the first stationed minister in this part, making his home with William Larkins, sen., (lot 3, con. 1, Vespra), during his period of ministration. At this time Rev. Gilbert Miller was the resident missionary to the Indians, at Coldwater.

1837-8- Rev. Thos. McMullen--The first resident minister in Barrie. Rev. Jonathan Scott, missionary at Coldwater.

1839- Rev. Wm. Price. Rev. Sylvester Hurlburt, missionary at Coldwater. In this year a largely attended Centenary meeting of the founding of Methodism was held at Kempenfeldt.

1840- Rev. Michael Fawcett, who resided at Painswick. About this time Rev. Dr. Green preached at Quarterly meeting in the old log school-house in Barrie, which was then used as a meeting house.

1841-3- Rev. John Lever, in whose time the first Methodist church was built in Barrie. Rev. Mr. Coleman was assistant for part of this time, and Rev. Reuben Robinson for another part.

1844-6- Rev. Horace Dean, assisted part of the time by Rev. Francis Coleman. Notable visitors to the mission field about this time were Rev. William Ryerson and Rev. Hy. Wilkinson.

1847-9- Rev. Luther O. Rice.

1850-3- Rev. Lewis Warner, chairman of the Barrie district. Rev. Andrew Edwards, assistant for part of this time.

1854-6- Rev. John Douse, chairman, with Rev. John S. Clark assistant for part of his term.

1856-9- Rev. William McFadden.

1860-3- Rev. J. C. Slater, chairman.

1864-7- Rev. J. W. McCallum.

1868-70- Rev. G. H. Davis, with Rev. H. Burwash as assistant for part of the term.

There were several other young assistant ministers during these years, many of whom subsequently became distinguished lights in the church. The first Methodist services in Barrie were held in an old log building near the N. W. corner of Dunlop and Mulcaster Streets, which at different times served as Mr. Sanford's store, as a school-house, and as a meeting-house. This building satisfied the requirements of the day until 1841, when they erected their first church. In 1837, Rev. Wellington Jeffers, of the Wesleyan Methodists, preached regularly at Partridge's, near Crown Hill. He was succeeded in 1838 by Rev. Mr. Steers. John, Richard and Thos. Williams sometimes held services as local preachers, afterwards receiving appointments in other fields of labor. These men were amongst the first advocates of temperance in the district. In the pioneer days, the people went to church at White's Corners (Dalston) all the way from Innisfil township. Especially was this true of the Quarterly Meeting services.

Rev. David Hardy, the first resident Methodist preacher in the county, used to travel every week from Holland Landing to Penetanguishene in the discharge of his clerical duties. The memebers of his church lived from end to end of the county, and he ministered weekly to them at different places along the route. One of his appointments was at Gimby's Corners (now Churchill).

Mr. Hardy performed some of his journeys through the county on horseback, although it is said that he was a rather unskilled horseman. Sometines when the roads were too bad he would leave his old black nag at a friend's and finish his journey on foot. This pioneer preacher and the two or three others who immediately succeeded him were promised the sum of $100 by the parish for clothes and books, in addition to which their horses and themselves were to be fed by the parishioners. But they seldom received the whole of the promised yearly sum of $100 in cash, so poor were the people they served in those days.

The year 1839 was the Centenary of Methodism--the one hundredth year after Wesley established his first societies in England for the promotion of religious work. The memorable event was celebrated in Upper Canada by holding in all the principal congregations, Centenary meetings, each of which was attended and addressed by a deputation of divines appointed for the purpose. This county was included in the district apportioned to the Revs. William Case, Joseph Stinson, M. Richer, M.A., and William Ryerson. An important centenary meeting in the annals of local Methodism was held at Kempenfeldt, and it created a deep interest amongst the adherents of this denomination. This meeting was central both as to its locality and as to the interest manifested in its proceedings.

The dedication of the first Methodist church in Barrie took place in 1841, as already stated, on which occasion the services were conducted by the late Rev. Anson Green, D.D. In his autobiography (p. 247) he has noted the event in the following terms:

"We opened a new church at our quarterly meeting in Barrie, 22nd August, on the ground which I had aided them in getting from the Government. The site, on the top of the hill, is very commanding. From it you see the village lying at your feet, with the lovely bay sparkling beyond it; while in the distance, and in all directions, you see the lofty trees of our primeval forest waving in majesty and beauty before the Lord. The morning was fine, the house well filled, and the people happy."

This church was about a stone's throw to the eastward of the present Central School, and it is still extant, though in a greatly modified form as a dwelling house. Peter White and others had patented the lot for a Wesleyan Chapel, as early as Nov. 18. 1837. In course of time it became inadequate, and a large edifice was erected east of the Market House in 1864, at the opening services of which Dr. Green again officiated. Under date of March 26th in that year, he writes in his life:-

"Attended the dedication of the Barrie church. Dr. Wood preached in the morning, Dr. Jeffers in the afternood, and I in the evening. I had the pleasure of dedicating the first Wesleyan church in this beautiful town, and was happy in being able to assist in this richer feast. * * * The church is a plain gothic building with spire, standing on an eligible site, and is an ornament to the town. It has a front gallery, and will seat about six hundred people."

This building which was erected upon a site that Adam Bryant of Kempenfeldt had patented for the British Wesleyan Methodist Society in 1849 was taken down in 1904.

As early as 1833, members of the Christian denomination were at work in the neighborhood of Bond Head. On lot 4, con. 6, of West Gwillimbury there was a church erected, which stood as a memorial of their work in that part, and bore the inscription--"Christian Church--A.D. 1855." It was taken down about the year 1897. There was a burial ground beside it, in which the remains of many pioneers of the neighborhood are resting.

John Finch, a native of England, settled in the Township of South Orillia some time before the Rebellion of 1837, and was afterward ordained a Baptist Missionary, becoming the pioneer of that denomination in this county. The Rev. Mr. Finch, in later years, lived at Tollendal. In West Gwillimbury, there was a Baptist congregation at an early time, of which the Rev. J. E. Howd was the pastor.