PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 5 December 1928, Page 6

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

NEXT SUNDAY

JUBILEE AT NORMANBY. CELEBRATION The persent year will see the jubilee of Presbyterianism in Normality, for in 1878 was held the first meeting of adherents of that church in the little township, at which it was decided, the minister from Hawera (Rev. James Torry) presiding, to take steps to build a church, and committees were set up to give effect to that resolution. The jubilee celebration will be held on Sunday next in the Presbyterian church at Normanby. Extracts from minute books and recollections of old settlers -will be of interest to people of the district. THE FIRST MEETING. An entry in an old notebook kept at the manse, Normanby, reads as follows : Minutes of committee of the Presbyterian church, Normanby; first meeting ever held. Normanby, 7th Nov., 1878. The committee of the Presbyterian church met this evening. President, Rev. James Torry, in the chair. Present, Messrs John Mackay, Farquhar Finlayson, Felix Hunger, George Gordon, James Robson, Thomas Robson, and Donald Morrison. The meeting was opened: with prayer. 1. It was proposed by J. Robson, seconded by G. Gordon, and agreed to, that immediate steps be taken to erect a church in Normanby.. 2. Proposed by Mr. Mackay, seconded by Mr. Morrison and agreed to, that the present church committee be appointed to collect funds for this object, the committee to liavei power to add to their number. 3. Proposed by J. Robson, seconded by F. Finlayson and agreed to, that Mr. Gordon be appointed treasurer, and that lie be authorised to open a building fund account in connection with the Bank of New Zealand. The meeting closed with prayer. — James Torry, chairman. The above is the first entry in the book; there is no record of the election of the above committee. These gentlemen must have met that evening, formed themselves into a committee, and then proceeded to transact the above business. THE FIRST CHURCH. A few other extracts! from the old book must bo interesting to present residents in Taranaki as well. as . to descendants of Normanby pioneers wherever they may- be. We read, under date' January 9, 1879: “Mr. Torry read a letter from Mr. M. Thompson, making an offer of section 405 (Normanby) for a church site, with a condition attached, ‘that a suitable building be in course of erection within six months.’ The offer was accepted, with thanks.” ■ The next item shows that plans and specifications for a building 3Q feet by 20 feet with a 14 feet stud were prepared and tenders , for the erection of the same were caleld by insertion in the “Patea Mail.” Under date of February 24, 1879, we find that Mr. George Syme, of Hawera, was the successful tenderer at the price of .£175 for the shell- only, without painting. It is interesting to note that Mr. Syme, the builder of the church, still survives the lapse of time, and the church which he built is the one- in which the congregation hope to celebrate the jubilee. TRUSTEES APPOINTED. The following trustees were appointed on April 6, 1879, to hold the property in .trust for the Presbyterian church: George Gordon, James Morrison, Thomas Robson, Gideon Inkster, Farquhar Finlayson, and the district land registrar. The duties of these gentlemen. were taken over automatically by the official trustees of. the Presbyterian Church of . New Zealand as. soon as the Act of Parliament appointing the same came , into force. THE CLERGY. Normanby was under the control of the Rev. James Torry and Ids session up to the time of that gentleman’s death in 1885. With a settled minister at Hawera, Normanby became one of the out-stations of that centre and its history part of the larger charge. The ministers since the death of the Rev. Torry have been: Rev. A. McLean, 8.D., November 1886 to 1891; Rev. R. McGregor, 1891 to 1894; Re-v. T. MacDonald, 1894 to 1900'; Rev. Ivo Bertram, 1900 to 1904; Rev. A. H. Treadwell, 1905 to 1906; Rev. J. R. 'Shore, M.A., 1907 to 1916; Rev. H B. Gray, 1917 to 1923; Rev. R. E. Evans. For a brief period Normanby rose to the position of a fully sanctioned charge, when the Rev. D. N. McKenzie was called and inducted to the pastorate of Normanby and outstations on March 13, 1912. ,Hei was translated to the charge of Paterangi on August 28, 1913. Normanby and the surrounding stations were well served at various times by divinity students and others. Mr. T. G. Brown, a student, did good work in the summer and autumn „of 1910. He is at the time of writing (the Rev. T. G. Brown, M.A., of I Palmerston North. Mr. J. O. .Loan I did similar work in 1911, and up to I the time of the induction of the Rev. Mr. McKenzie. Mr. Loan is now the i Rev. J. C. Loan, of Pitoone. Another 1 student was Mr. G. W. Hunt, who now has charge of Maheno. I With the departure of the Rev. D. N. McKenzie the charge entered on a new phase of existence as a home I mission station. Mr. J. Butler was appointed in 1914. He volunteered for service during the Great War, and Mr. Gordon-Kirgau was appointed in 1915. He was succeeded by Mi - . W. T. Murray early in 3 920. His lament-. ed death in 1923 cast a gloom over the whole presbytery; lie was lost on the mountain and no trace of him lias been found since. He was followed by Mr. C. U. Ralph in 1923. His death in February of 1925 again left a gap. .The Rev 11. J. Fletcher volunteered for service in November of 1925 and commenced bis duties on December 1 of that year. The station was then raised to the status of a church extension charge. After a great deal of thought and discussion it was finally decided in 1910 to purchase a new site for a |church and to remove the church, from [the old site to the new. From the [references in the notebook it would seem as if there, had been many complaints about the road to the old site. It was a grass road, wet and slippery with rain in the winter time and wet with the heavy dews of summer time. The new site is on the main road and is a far better proposition than the old one.

There is no information in the minutes ns to when the church was reopened for service, but from what one can gather it was late in 1910.

EXTENSION OF BUILDINGS, it was in the same year that the present manse was purchased from t Mr. Dow. the church site and the manse forming one property ol threefifths of an acre, not half an acre as mentioned in the record. How larthe

fact of the new site for the church being, part of a compact property of both church and manse., influenced the purchase we have no means of determining. .

In 1920 the congregation made the bold move forward of erecting.a Sunday school hall. It was in the boom time; prices were high and..good times seemed to bo assured. The building cost far more than was expected.

JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS. The jubilee celebrations are to consist of morning and evening services in tlie church at 11 a.m. and 7.30 p.m., on Sunday next. The Rev. R. Miller, of Manaia, will take the morning service, and Rev. J. McGregor, of Stratford, the evening : service. A reunion of past and present members and adherents will take place in the. Town Halil', Normanby, oil Tuesdlay evening next, commencing with a tea at 6 o’clock, Musical items by the Normanby choir, assisted by members of the Hawera Presbyterian church choir, under the leadership of Mr. Lamb, will he given. The members of the Taranaki Presbytery will be present. The session and management invite, all old members and adherents to attend