The Lord Will Provide
based on the book by Philip James Varker

"The Lord Will Provide," wrote Philip J. Varker. Rev. Varker was so committed to that premise that his son titled a book by that name, and with it recorded events occurring in the churches under his father's charge in Elk Grove, Central, Coles Creek, Red Rock and Oakland. The book provided great insight into the life and times of the northern part of Columbia County. We'll attempt to provide some insight into the North Mountain region as viewed both through the eyes of father Philip and his son Philip James. The younger Philip was only about ten years old when he lived in Central.

We came upon this book thanks to the sharing nature of Shirley Lockard, Sugarloaf Township tax collector.

Rev. Varker and his family lived in the house now owned by Ramona Diltz, along Camp Lavigne Road, when the house was a parsonage for the local church. A twin boy and girl were "still born" to Rev. and Mrs. Varker while the family lived south of Central. The twin children are buried in the side yard of the family residence.

Hurley Shultz lived adjacent to the house. You'll recall that Hurley was a past "Personality" on the Benton News web site. You can read his story on the side panel of the Benton News. In Rev. Varker's book, for those readers who have the book, the man identified only as "Fritz" was in fact Peter Shultz, the father of Hurley Shultz.

At the time of the writing of Rev. Varker, "there was a church, Methodist Episcopal, in the area, somewhere near Grassmere Park." The family would walk there sometimes for Sunday services. Philip James Varker in a letter to a Mrs. Thompson dated July 20, 1956, said that the church in Central was in the vicinity of where the road "makes a turn to Jamison City. There is a store on the left corner and a firehouse nearby, on the road to Elk Grove, where father also preached."

Rev. Varker was of the "denomination called Methodist Protestant." In the story, the family is identified only as "Methodists." The Methodist Protestants and the Methodist Episcopal people jointly used the Central Church at that time.

Rev. Varker's children included sisters Ethel Kester and Matilda (Tillie) (Frank) Sands, both of Shickshinny. Another sister, Clarissa, was portrayed in the book as the character "Jussenthia." Clarissa was Mrs. Willard Buckley, also of Shickshinny, married September 10, 1913. The Buckleys ran a general store in Benton "until health stopped them." The store was later taken over by their daughter Alice Davenport, now 85 and a resident of Houston, Texas. (Alice Davenport lived in the Main Street building now known as the "Old Filling Station.") There were two boys: Philip James and Samuel Lee.

In the book The Lord Will Provide, Philip Varker told about coming to what he called "Our Promised Land," an area known as Central, Pennsylvania, a few miles north of Benton.

He told of the children "blocking the wheels" of their surrey as their faithful horse, John, tugged the heavy vehicle in the "second day of unending hills." Wheels needed to be blocked following the wagon rolling backwards down a hill, horse attached, into a ditch. Katie, the mother of the children and the wife of Rev. Varker, announced that the "good Lord was more generous with stones out here" than with the Reverend's flock.

Reverend Varker's previous assignment was in "Teasdale," described as a mining town, and he served the mining community on Sundays. During the week, he worked in the mines, making "as much in two months at the mines" as he was promised for the year as a minister at Central. When word came that he would enter the ministry on a full-time basis, little did he realize that it would be at Central, where there was "no break in the unending hills and wild growth." But the destiny of the family followed a "Divine call," and retreat was not possible, there could only be "complete and unfaltering trust." The minister reminded his family that Benton was only down the road ten miles and they had a newspaper that came out once a week. Civilization was close.

The family made their entrance into Central, apparently over the Nordmont Mountain, passing the "outskirts and practically the center of the metropolis" at the same time. An "ugly thing" rose directly in front of them. It looked like a wood tunnel, but was a bridge, possibly "covered to keep the floors from rotting," although the family noted that the "planking was never known to have been swept. Houses past the bridge were painted. Katie noted, "They would be. They are Methodists," she said.

They arrived at the house referred to the book as the "Fritz place," in actuality the home of Peter Shultz, adjacent to the parsonage where they would live. Peter was described as "the blacksmith and justice of the peace. In actuality, Peter Shultz was a blacksmith and a farmer at that location during the 1890s. The Shultz house is today owned by David and Jane Dinsmore. They then arrived at their new home, now the residence of Ramona Diltz, one of our favorite waitresses at the Brass Pelican where her daughter, Monica, is manager.

The house was described as "practically windowless," but the Reverend promised to "cut some in." Apparently it had never been painted. The good points about the house were that it was within two miles of the church where they would walk when the Reverend was "on the circuit" on Sundays and close to Grassmere Park where camp meetings and picnics and things like that took place. The house was described as a "two-story affair with an attic, long and narrow and L shaped." The potatoes were ready for frying and the coffee beans were ground. The family had their first meal in their new home which included "soup made of crackers soaked in coffee with a smidgen of sugar for sweetening." The evening prayer began, "Our Father, Thou hast promised us bread and water, but hast given us more, much more."

The Lord Will Provide was a book about Reverend Varker, but more specifically it was about his practical wife and the mother of the couple's children. She was proud, she was deeply religious, and she ran the house. She was more than a minister's wife. She subsidized the meager income of the family by selling toilet water and soap, but elevated the stature of a salesman by telling others that she "was taking orders."

Katie began "taking orders" for a man identified in the book as "Mr. Larkin." It is obvious that many names in the book have been changed, and we suspect that Mr. Larkin is one of those people. This was a "kiss and tell" book where one had to read between the lines. No Methodists were harmed in the writing of this book!

Mr. Larkin promised Katie that if she sold $10 of soap and toilet water, she would receive a certificate that would enable her to get silverware, or perhaps a high chair or other merchandise. Her initial goal was to sell $10 worth. But traveling with her minister husband coupled with her ability to get along with people resulted in promises from parishioners to not only buy what amounted to $10 worth, but it appeared as though a higher goal was achievable. And with the two certificates, perhaps Rev. Varker might get a Morris chair for relaxing after his long days on the circuit.

The second certificate proved to be much harder to get. The best prospects had been contacted to get the first certificate. What remained were the out-of-the-way homes, where income was also minimal and any items that were bought were small items. A problem soon surfaced, however. The first load of items that had been ordered for customers arrived, and now it dawned on Katie that they had to be distributed. Many of the customers, when they finally smelled the sweet-smelling toilet water and soap, decided they didn't have the money to pay for the items. Finally, Katie in desperation, sent the kids into the community to peddle the soap, much of which was only a dime--a dime that the customer really didn't have.

Rev. Varker wrote that Christianity "deep in the North Mountains of Pennsylvania, had but two groups in those days--the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Protestants. Rev. Varker's children concluded that members of the Methodist Episcopal Church had arrived in the area first, since, for the most part, they had the better farming land. The members of the Methodist Protestant church were the most aggressive, the children decided, since they put up churches at Red Rock, Coles Creek, Elk Grove and Oakland. In fact, there appears to have been little difference between the two groups.

At Coles Creek, there had been a "log church" dating to 1812 and dedicated in 1828 practicing the ritual of the Protestant Episcopal Church. This was the old St. Gabriel Church used by Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Lutherans until it burned on Palm Sunday, 1876.

The church in Central which Rev. Varker was affiliated is no longer there. It was located on the road to Jamison City from Central, just past the second building on the right. At that time, it was located in an open field.The Elk Grove church was south of the present Elk Grove hotel, on the opposite side of the road, between the house presently owned by Carol Zeistloft and the bridge over the west branch of Fishingcreek. That church burned in 1933 according to Jeannie Walters.

Rev. Varker was paid a salary of $175, mostly in farm produce. Since it is Mother's day, it is appropriate to describe Rev. Varker's wife, Katie, whose father was a prosperous farmer in Cornwall, England. She didn't know much about "doing without" until she married a tin miner who left England to come to America and work in the coal mines. But suddenly she found herself and her family trying to stay warm on a cold night using wood, a real hog compared with her experiences with coal where a bucket for the day keep the house warm and comfortable. She knew it would be a long winter.

The man she loved, the man she married, this man of God, provided a large family and that is about all that he provided on the home front. He always said that the "Lord will provide," and went back to preparing sermons for Sunday. Someone else would have to bring home the bacon, and did--in the form of meat paid in lieu of salary.As clothes boiled in one pot on the stove, cabbage and potatoes boiled in another pot. Katie was in charge of the family, from getting the reverend ready for preaching to keeping the children in line. It was a difficult life.

We'll describe one of the picnics held at Grassmere Park, attended by members of Rev. Varker's many congregations from Elk Grove, Coles Creek, Central and Oakland. (We have tried to figure out where "Oakland" was located, but have so far been unsuccessful. We realize that the book frequently does not use actual family names, and it is possible that Oakland fell into the same category. We thought that a reader would have told us where the church in Oakland was, and we hope that someone can shed some light on the subject. We have also been asked where the book can be purchased. We called several bookstores that deal in rare books and we tried eBay--all without success. We know of several local people who have the book, and were surprised to find out that a number of people who own the book had never read the book.)

Philip Varker described the events of a picnic day at Grassmere, an event several local residents have also described to us. Rev. Varker's wife, Katie, loaded her toilet water and soaps in the back to the borrowed surrey and off they went to the picnic. Upon arrival, the minister positioned himself at the entrance to the park, so as to welcome each wagon as it arrived, extending a personal touch.

Philip remembers that tables were end to end across "a wide clearing." Each family had their food on the tables and everyone ate standing up. Coffee was boiling on a hastily set up fireplace and everyone could start eating as soon as the preacher and his family took their place near the center of the group. Rev. Varker was a short man, but could be seen by everyone as he lifted his hand for silence. He was easier to be seen than heard, but everyone got the general idea when his hand dropped and eating began.

After the meal, women gathered on benches and visited. A baseball game "between the fat men and the thin drew its usual group of spectators." The older men engaged in horseshoe pitching. A photographer arrived, eager to take pictures and transfer them to tintype. Paths into the woods were great fun for the youngsters. Katie got busy immediately, untying the ropes securing her Larkin products of soap and toilet water. She saw no sense in letting the assembly of people go to waste.

The trip back to Central took place after dark, part of a caravan of swinging lantern lights and unique creaks and groans produced by the wagons responding to the "pitch and roll of the thoroughfare" as they lurched their way home. Rev. Varker didn't immediately go into the house when the family arrived home, preferring instead to stand in the light of the lantern beside the road. He bid goodnight to each passing wagon. Philip remembers hearing the short, distant conversations as he fell asleep.

The next day the family headed for the post office in Central, where Katie purchased a money order made out to Mr. Larkin in payment of his products. Weeks passed before a post card arrived saying that their "precious possession" was at the freight office in Jamison City. Next door neighbor Peter Shultz, identified in the book as "Pete Fritz," picked up the chair on his next trip to Jamison City.

When the Morris chair finally arrived at the house and was moved into the parlor, Rev. Varker was given the honor of being the first to sit in the chair. He soon arose and gave the children a chance to occupy it, thus ending the only time son Philip remembers his father sitting in the chair. The Reverend always smiled gently at whoever was in the chair, and then retreated to his study and his straight-back chair before the table on which his Bible lay open, "ready for consultation and to give comfort."

In one of the chapters, the story is told about the local copper craze, part of a national copper craze that took place between 1900 and 1912.

In the book, Philip tells about mining for copper on the adjacent property of Pete Fritz (who in actuality was Peter Shultz). In that story, "Pete" told Rev. Varker that a "farmer talks about how there could be a river running under his farm--just the thing for wonderful irrigation--but he doesn't dig to get at it. He knows he can't dig deep enough for that." Pete told the minister, alarmed over the spreading hysteria of finding copper, "The same thing applies with the rocks that people will be digging all over the countryside. No one makes them do it."

The book tells about a crusher built "below Central" at "considerable cost," which brought small return. All that came from the mass of rocks fed into the crusher was "a small vial of copper, possibly an ounce," which Rev. Varker saw and confirmed years later.

In spite of the dismal failure of the company, the Pennsylvania Copper and Mining Company, located in "the Atlantic Copper Belt" at Central, PA, according to the description provided by the company, sold stock and went through the motions of mining copper in the upper Fishingcreek valley until about 1912. We point out that what actually happened was a bit different from what the company literature said, so bear that in mind as you read about the company. The company said they issued $2 million in capital stock with "1,000,000 full-paid nonassessable shares." The company was headed by Dr. Thomas H. Carey, President, Central; B.F. Fritz, Treasurer, Divide; Josiah P. Fritz, Central. A.S. Fritz, Jamison City, was the metallurgist and chemist, and the consulting attorney was A.L. Fritz, Bloomsburg. The Bloomsburg National Bank handled the banking and the references for the company.

We'll quote a bit from the literature promoting the sale of the stock...

"Nearly every formation of the earth's rocks holds locked up in her treasury copper to supply the wants of man. Eminent scientists have divided the copper regions of North America into three divisions.
	I. The Atlantic Beds II. The Lake Superior Region III. The Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada Regions.
"The Atlantic beds reach from Florida to Labrador. These vary in the amount of copper held in deposit from the rich glance downward. But as the "wet smelting" has not supplanted the hot smelting for all weaker ores, an average 3 per cent copper is a magnificent proposition. According to surveys and from the reports of other scientific men it is no uncommon thing to find in the Atlantic deposits millions of tons of similar ore. "From more than one hundred assays, the ores of the Pennsylvania Copper and Mining Company have given a average above 4 per cent copper. Beside this there are workable quantities of magnesia, aluminum and some iron; traces of silver with now and then a start of gold. "The company has opened 16 mines which give ores assaying from 30 per cent down to nine-tenth of one per cent. There is ore enough in sight to keep the plant running from 5 to 10 years. These deposits which are from a few inches to six feet thick have been denuded by glacial action. "There is now erected a plant capable of handling 150 tons of ore a day. Its machinery is complete and paid for. Its product will need no refiner, being metallic copper. And its management will be in careful hands of those acquainted with the methods which made the low grade "Lake" mines famous. By the method used in this plant 1 per cent copper should pay more than expense of smelting and otherwise handling it. About 16 million pounds of fine copper are being extracted yearly from the Atlantic Beds. Some places ore is brought from 700 feet under ground. We find it at the surface. Cost of mining, handling and extracting will be abut $2.75. This would mean a profit of 25 cents on each ton of a 1 per cent ore."

How could investors not be excited when a "start of gold" had been found, as well as "traces of silver!" Profits were promised to the tune of 25¢ per ton. Initially, it all seemed to be too good to be true! By the time it was over, it was too good to be true!

The History and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, published in 1915, noted that the copper deposits of Sugarloaf townships were "of no real value, but were considered valuable by the promoters of the company who built the smelter near Central and sank a large sum of money in the vain endeavor to reduce the ore commercially."

The company was eventually sold under the direction of the sheriff and by 1915 only " dilapidated and rotting buildings and the fallen smokestack" were left to "mark the grave of high hopes and wasted dollars." Today, few even know where the abandoned mines and mine dumps were a hundred years ago.

To be continued...