Newbern Assembly, KS

Newbern Township development

At a meeting of the county commissioners in April of 1862, they changed the voting precinct on the south side of the river from A.J. Markley's house to Stephen Rohrer's house, making it the center of the voting district. On Tuesday, Aug. 18, 1862, the commissioners canvassed the vote polled for county seat, and found 101 votes had been cast. Abilene received 66 votes, Union City, or Union Town, at Markley's place, 28 votes, and Smoky Hill, or Lamb's Point, 7 votes.

The division of Dickinson County, Kansas into five civil townships took place on April 3, 1867, of which Newbern comprised the western part of the county that was south of the river. "The first settlers in the township paid $120 per thousand for pine lumber at Junction City. The first schoolhouse in the township was built of logs in the spring of 1867, on the northeast quarter of section 3", where what in 1901 was known as Farmington schoolhouse stood. "The first teacher in the log house was E.W. Blair of Solomon, later an attorney at Salina. The elder children of Markley, Humbargar, Mast, DeHaven and Shepherd attended school.

"The first frame school house built in Newbern township was what was, and still is, called the Purdy school house, built in the summer of 1868, on a corner of James Purdy's homestead, the southwest quarter of section 14, in school district No. 10, which took in a territory bounded on the east and west by Holland and Carey creeks, and about four miles wide north and south. By taking in a large territory and levying as much tax as the law allowed, enough money was raised to complete the furnish a building 18x24 feet and have $150 left for an instructor.

The first teacher was Miss Hannah DeHaven, and there were nearly twenty pupils the first year, including children of the Purdys, Reves, Upshaws, Wises and others. Much of the lumber used in building this school house was sawed out of native timber at the Schlegel mill, nearby. The building was moved to Brown's mill a few years ago where it is now used as a store house, and a new and larger building has taken its place. The Purdy school house has long been used as a voting place and to hold other township meetings."

The first preaching in the township was held at Mr. Markley's house in 1860 by a minister who was on his way to Colorado. Word was sent to the hunters along the creek and an audience of about 20 was gathered together. In the early 70's Elder Clark of Abilene and Willowdale frequently preached at the Purdy schoolhouse."

Turkey Creek which in 1901 ran thru the township, nearly north and south, was called Wyansquat or Sweet watar (sic) by the Indians, and "named Camp creek by the whites, who crossed it in the early days on their way to the mountains. Owing to numerous droves of wild turkeys that kept in the timber along the stream it was finally called Turkey Creek."

On May 10, 1867, the charter township officers were elected:

• Michael Hoffman - trustee
• Leonard Schlegel - J.P.
• John Tischhauser - constable
• John Luetzenger - road commissioner

At the second township election:

• F.M. Upshaw - trustee
• A.S. Davidson - J.P.
• Paul Tischhauser & P.I. Peterson - constables
• Michael Hoffman - road commissioner

A township known as Lamb took a portion of Newbern's on Nov. 6, 1869, and two years later on Mar. 15, 1873 the area was further re-organized reducing Newbern to what it had in 1901, as six miles square, plus Logan township which developed in 1877.

Pioneer Settlers

This is a transcription (and some paraphrase) of some of the early settlers of Newbern Twp and their origins. Much more is to be found at the 1901 article via its host.

A.J. Markley

A.J. Markley, who lived on the banks of Turkey Creek, on section three, settled in Newbern Township in 1854 and was the oldest settler in the township in 1901. "Mr. Markley first saw Kansas in 1850 when he crossed the Missouri river at St. Joseph and went overland to the gold fields of California. After spending five years on the Pacific coast he returned to Illinois.

Stopping in the Sucker state for a few months the California fever got the best of him and he started once more for the gold fields. While passing through Iowa he had two good horses stolen and he was forced to give up his western trip and he located at Eddyville, Iowa, for a year where he run (sic) a store. Tiring of the mercantile business he sold out and went to Missouri.

In 1859 accompanied by his wife and baby boy, Douglass, who by the way was a resident of Oklahoma for several years, he started for Kansas and in July of that year he came to this county and settled" where he lived in 1901. "A buffalo hunter by the name of Walker had taken the claim, and Mr. Markley gave him a small yoke of cattle to relinquish the same. At that time the only settlers of Newbern township were a few hunters, and Mrs. Markley was the first white woman to reside there.

The first child born in the township was Mary Jane Markley, who was born to Mr. and Mrs. Markley Nov. 29, 1860. She afterwards married a man by the name of John Knight and went to Denver to live". Walker, the man Markley bought the claim of, had broken up a few acres of prairie in 1858 and had it planted in corn when he sold out. The corn that year yielded 75 or 80 bushel per acre, and was of great help to Mr. Markley for his family and stock during the winter. A year or two after Walker left Turkey creek he was killed by the Indians while in charge of a stage stable on Cow Creek, in Reno County."

"In 1861 two brothers, William and Isaac Scott and a man by the name of Hammers settled on Turkey creek about 1 1/2 mile south of Mr. Markley's place. Hammers was soon after taken down with typhoid fever and died", the first death in the township. "He was buried on section 2 near where D.A. Hutchinson lived."

Mr. Markley said that "while in Junction City in the fall of 1859 he went before the commissioners of Davis county, and demanded better voting facilities in the county. The commissioners granted his request and named three places, one at John Erwin's place on Chapman creek, Tim Hersey's place, now Abilene, and at Mr. Markley's where he laid out a town site which he called Union City", which was in 1860 was "one of the leading contestants for the county seat."

Michael Hoffman

Michael Hoffman came to this country from Switzerland in 1857, first to Wisconsin, expecting to meet his brother Chris there, but he had gone to Kansas, and early in 1858, Michael followed, stopping at Leavenworth two years, then coming out to Newbern township filing on the southwest corner of section 35, where he built "a good log house" and farmed it. He "did considerable work for the government, putting up hay near Fort Larned and Harker.

He was paid at the rate of $100 per month and board and the soldiers protected them from Indian attacks. He also made several trips to Leavenworth over the Santa Fe trail, and hunted buffalo as "a business proposition, as well as a pleasure". He said that he had killed "upwards of 175 buffalos, using much of the meat and selling the hides."

"Mr. Hoffman had practically nothing when he struck Newbern township. He now owns nearly 400 acres of as fine land as the sun shines on, and has everything fixed as comfortable and convenient as it well could be." The Feb. 1, 1901 article in the Abilene Weekly Chronicle where much of this early history is derived, has a great drawing of Hoffman's farm, shortly before the original log cabin had been removed.

Stephen Rohrer

"Stephen Rohrer and wife came over from Switzerland in 1852, stopping first in Wisconsin. In May, 1860, they came on out to Kansas, and filed homestead papers on the northeast quarter of section 35, Newbern township. They had three children at that time. They and the Hoffmans built a large house, near Turkey creek, and all lived together until the Hoffmans could build houses on their own land. The Rohrers continued to live in the log house for several years, and then built a large frame house, farther back from the creek.

It was while building this second house, in the fall of 1868, that Stephen Rohrer, Jr., the eldest son of the family, then a lad of 19 or 20 years, killed the last buffalo ever seen in Dickinson county. Young Rohrer saw the animal come loping over the hills from the south, directly toward the new house where they were working. After satisfying himself that it was really a buffalo, he slipped down to the old house, and got the rifle and a big revolver. He came back along the fence and met Mr. Buffalo and blazed away at him.

The animal jumped and reared around for a moment and then took to its heels. The young man fired a shot with his revolver, but didn't stop it. Then, quickly bridling a horse and springing on his back, he put out after the wounded buffalo, accompanied by two big dogs. He chased it down the creek to Leonard Schlegel's, where it crossed the creek and made back southeast. He was able to ride right up to the brute, and emptied his revolver into its tough old hide, but without apparent effect. Finally he rode back home and got the rifle, and again getting in range finished the job with another bullet. Several other men had joined in the chase, but young Rohrer succeeded in bagging the prize, near the present (1901) location of the Belle Springs creamery. A man named Pat Dunn was killed by a wounded buffalo on Dry Creek a few years previous to this time, and Mr. Rohrer, Sr., made a coffin for him out of oak shingles, or clapboards, and helped bury him, on section 27.

Mr. Rohrer died in 1882, at a ripe old age, and his eldest son, Stephen, Jr., now resides on the old homestead, and is counted one of the solid farmers of the township. The old log house stood until last summer, when it was moved into Jefferson township, and is again doing service as a place of shelter. Ulrich Rohrer, a younger son, has a well improved farm in Jefferson township."

F.M. Upshaw

"F.M. Upshaw came from Peoria, Ill., in June, 1867, and homesteaded the northeast quarter of section 14 of what is now Newbern township. His wife and four children came with him, and George was born on this farm three years later. The family 'held down the claim' while Mr. Upshaw worked at the carpenter trade in Abilene. He and M. Nicolay worked together and built many of the early Abilene residences. Mr. Upshaw also helped to build the original Hoffman mill at Enterprise, the first in the county, in 1868. Many of the laborers employed to help him could not speak a word of English, and Mr. Upshaw was strongly reminded of the old tower of Babel incident in the Bible."

"Mr. Upshaw helped to build the old D.R. Gordon residence, then the finest in the county, and many other buildings. He and James Northcraft roomed together in a little shack in the west part of town, and on Saturday afternoons Mrs. Upshaw would drive in from the farm and meet him at the river, leaving the team on the other side, as it cost a dollar to have a team ferried across, and take him out to spend Sunday with the family. They lived thus for five years, and then 'proved up' on the claim and sold it. He then bought the east half of section 36 in the same township, which was a school section, and built a home there.

While living there he got up a petition for a post office to be located on his place. In seeking for a name for the new post office, Mrs. Upshaw suggested 'Belle Springs' because of the fine large springs of water near the house, and Belle Springs it was called... until it was changed to Donegal. Great herds of antelope and deer could be seen almost daily from their door in the early days, but Mr. Upshaw says he was no hunter, and never shot any of them.

In 1878, after eleven years of farm life, the family moved to Abilene, and Mr. Upshaw established a furniture store, which, with good management, has been increased until it is now the largest in the county, and Mr. Upshaw and his son George are among the most influential business men in this section."

John M. Engle

"John M. Engle came out from Pennsylvania in 1885 and owns the southeast quarter of 19 and the southwest of 20. His son, Alvin, lives on the place, and the old gentleman lives part of the time with him and part of the time with another son over in Garfield township."

J.J. Miller

"J.J. Miller, who was sheriff of this county for four years, came from Pennsylvania to Newbern township, in 1876, and bought the farm on section 33, where Jeremiah Engle now lives. He lived in Newbern township for three years and then moved to Abilene. He has been a resident of Detroit, Mich., for several years, where he has a good position with a Chicago packing house."

George W. Easter

"George W. Easter came to Newbern from Fayette county, Penn., in the spring of '79. His father, Jacob Easter, and sister Mabel, came out the following August. They purchased the northwest quarter of section 29, and have resided there since their arrival."

Cyrus Lenhart

"Cyrus Lenhart came to this township from Penn., in 1882, and purchased quite a large body of land. He erected good buildings on the southeast quarter of section 5..."

Newbern River Brethren

"Bishop Jess Engle and Rev. Benjamin Gish were the first ministers of the River Brethren church to leave Pennsylvania for Dickinson. They both settled in Newbern township. They arrived in Abilene in 1879 with a party of nearly 300 members of that church. About 30 were from Northern Maryland and the balance from southern Pennsylvania. Part of them settled north of the river, but a greater portion located in Newbern, Logan, and Ridge townships. They brought with them a train of freight cars loaded with household goods, etc., and in noting their departure from Pennsylvania, the Marietta Times said they took with them no less than $500,000 in money."

Bishop Engle resided near Belle Springs for several years, and about 1898 he went to Africa as a missionary, where he died in late 1900. "Bishop Engle was a very intelligent man and an earnest worker in his Master's vineyard." Rev. Gish remained on Section 20 where he first settled.

Rev. John Herr came to Newbern about 1883 and "bought the southeast quarter of section 33. He lately bought an additional farm. He is one of the River Brethren's pastors, and is a conscientious and earnest preacher."

The River Brethren built a church in Newbern Township, in Dickinson County, Kansas, in 1893. There was a report on the dedication in the Nov. 1, 1893 issue of the Evangelical Visitor, a River Brethren magazine published in Abilene: "The new church southwest of Abilene was dedicated with appropriate services on Sunday the 22nd of October. A large congregation was in attendance. The house is 36 by 48 feet, neatly and well finished. It is on a high location, and in a community of church-going people. It is to be hoped it will prove a great blessing to those who attend there. The house is in Newbern township and the name 'Newbern' was given to it. The meeting will be protracted."

From 1910 to 1916, the church is believed to have had the largest attendance of any in the county. They ceased to have regular meetings in 1922, and the building was sold in 1964.

Newbern Plymouth Brethren

In 1934, several families left Grace and Truth Gospel Hall over an issue with reception at the Lord's table, and leased space down the road at the Newbern church. The families included:

• Benjamin F. Jury (1870-1947)
• George & Elizabeth Roggendorff
  • Jonathan Roggendorff
• George Gruen and family
• Carl Botz and his wife May
• Linneas L. Engle (b. 1862 PA)

This assembly is thought to have been aligned with the Grant exclusives. Tom Robson, a grandson of George & Elizabeth Roggendorff, a retired pastor, born in 1930, remembers visiting the Newbern meeting when he was a child, probably when he was six or seven, which would suggest the assembly was still active in 1936 or 1937, but he does not recall when it folded, but T. Lee Gruen thinks it only met a few years. There was also a Tunbridge-Wells exclusive assembly around this time that met in the Abilene area, and it was the 1930's when Elm Springs Bible Hall hived off of Grace and Truth.

1930's

At BrethrenArchive.com can be found a lengthy document between A.E. Booth and Wilfred Ames protesting a situation with an assembly in London, England known as Kingsland which was allegedly going open.

1931

"You may recall, brother, that in 1931, when Dr. Walter L. Wilson, an I.O.B. leader from Kansas City, Mo., was given the platform (by arrangement of certain loose brethren) at a session of our Abilene (Kansas) Conference, it brought on a definite issue. Several of our brethren, including laborers, required that this should not be repeated, as a condition of their remaining for the further sessions of the Conference."

1933

The document includes transcriptions from a couple dozen letters around the U.S. that similarly protested, including one from Abilene, marked Aug. 4, 1933 that stated, "we approve the Minneapolis, Dunkirk and other similar letters" with regard to their circulars. The letter was signed the following from Abilene:

• R.A. Deardorff
• J.H. Miller
• George Roggendorff
• George Gruen
• Tim Gruen
• J.A. Deardorff

It also included signatures from:

• Virgle A. Britt @ Junction City
• F.E. Britt @ Junction City
• P.P. Botz @ Manchester
• A.C. Botz @ Talmage
• E.E. Higginbottom @ Lawrence

First Baptist Church of Abilene

Around 1938, Tim Gruen married Lola Mae Cormack and left the assembly for an American Baptist church in Abilene known as First Baptist Church, where they raised their children. Their son T. Lee and his first wife Libby later returned to the assemblies, to Grace and Truth Gospel Chapel to raise their own children. Benjamin Jury's son Paul Gruen also left the Newbern assembly for First Baptist of Abilene, as did George Francis McBoyle earlier in 1916.

Latter developments

The property was sold in 1964 to Felix and Ronald Bolliger who razed it in the fall of 1965. The well-maintained cemetery still remains, which houses over 140 graves, including this author's great-great grandfather John M. Engle, and a large majority of his descendants, including my great-grandparents, grandparents and parents. The forementioned Linneas L. Engle is also a son of John M. Engle.

Sources

• T. Lee Gruen
• Monte Felbush
• Tom Robson 4-7-2021
• Salina Journal. 1965-9-20 announcement of the building being razed.
• Find A Grave Newbern profile