The Lake's Churches: Beginnings

Introduction

There is scant information about the early church history of Lake Township. The first recorded Lake preacher was Elder M. Clark from Plymouth, who held services at settlers' homes. As school houses were built in the 1840s religious services were held there, too. The three earliest township churches are noted below:

1. A formal Methodist-Episcopal church was established in 1845 with meetings at Lake homes until 1872, when meetings were held at an unknown school. Then a church building was erected and services there began in January 1873. This is likely the origin of the Maple Grove United Methodist Church at Pikes Creek.
2. In March 1856 a First Baptist Church society was organized and meetings at a school house were held. Rev. G. W. Schofield was the earliest minister in 1856-1858. A formal church was dedicated on June 27, 1878. Its location could not be determined but perhaps it is the forerunner of the former and now razed Outlet Baptist Church once opposite the old Outlet School.
3. A Union Church was erected at Outlet Mills in 1860 by the Hollenback and Urquhart lumber company, as a Presbyterian church. But it was never formally organized and other denominations began to use it.
   
   On June 4, 1916, a bolt of lightning struck the Union Church and it was destroyed by fire. The church site was near the Outlet lumber and grist mill, and the original road to it relocated in the early 1900s. The site is now privately-owned woodland. There once was talk of a few graves at the site, but no marked graves exist, nor unmarked rough stone markers which can be identified as grave sites.

This article will discuss the three churches which were created along Lakeside Drive and front the Lake. The focus is on their early developmental years and not a full history. The Lake's earliest settlement, the Outlet, also has a rich church history which deserves attention but it is beyond the scope of this article.

 

A. Lutheran Church of the Reformation

The earliest church erected along the lakeshore was the 1889 West Corner Methodist-Protestant Church where Maple Street meets Lakeside Drive. The next church fronting the Lake would be the Alderson United Methodist Church in 1897.

The West Corner M.P. Church was built in the summer of 1889 by a board of trustees led by the Rev. Joseph Anderson. He was a well-known farmer, bear-trapper and fisherman at the Lake. He was ordained a minister in 1887. He was also known throughout the region as the Tree Planter, for his skill at transplanting trees. The city of Wilkes-Barre retained Anderson to transplant trees from the Lake region to the city cemetery, which is now the site of City Hall. The original cemetery with its graves was relocated in 1870 to a new Wilkes-Barre City Cemetery in the north end of the city adjacent to the Hollenback Cemetery.

The church was dedicated on November 10, 1888, with Rev. B.B. Luce , Shickshinny, preaching the dedicatory sermon. The church was generally known as the West Corner Church and, at times, the Harvey's Lake Methodist-Protestant or M.P. Church. To add to the confusion in the Spring of 1891 the U.S. Post Office established the name Laketon for the West Corner area and West Corner name declined in usage.

On November 2, 1889, Anderson and his fellow trustees transferred ownership of the 32 x 40 foot church to the Pennsylvania Conference of the Methodist Church. An interesting reservation in the deed states that the church was to be open to all orthodox denominations for worship when not in use by the West Corner M.P. Church.

Then, too, a tablet on the church exterior read "Harvey's Lake M.P. Church," and in September 1893, the church sexton told a news reporter that the "P" stood for "Piscopal." - perhaps a private joke to an unsuspecting news hound.

In addition to Rev. Anderson, the church also hosted visiting preachers. A popular guest was Rev. J.K. Botts, from New Albany, in 1895, the same year when the church established a local Epworth League Society, a Methodist youth association. This year Rev. Anderson was again appointed pastor - his sixth term there in the past eight years.

But in late February 1896, Rev. Joseph Anderson died from pneumonia. He was buried in the Orcutt Grove Cemetery in Noxen. It was at times called the "Hunters' and Fishers' Paradise."

The Sunday News, Wilkes-Barre, on March 1, 1896, wrote the following editorial on the life of Rev. Joseph Anderson:

Rev. Joseph Anderson, of Dallas, whose death was chronicled by the local papers last week was a man of varied accomplishments. He was the most successful fisherman in the whole country around. He could catch fish when nobody else could get a bite, and as a hunter he could lay everybody else in the shade. It made no difference who scoured the woods. The Rev. Joe could go right out with his gun and in a few hours bring back a bag full of game. It seemed he had a presentment just where game was to be found and with unerring footsteps he went to the spot where they were. The other old hunters said the Rev. Joe had one advantage over them - he had the Lord on his side. This, they claimed had a great deal to do with his success.

Thirty years ago, Joe was a poor, struggling farmer in the vicinity of Harvey's Lake. He had a strong arm, however, backed by an honest heart. He meant to succeed and he did. After the war a number of Wilkes-Barre capitalists invested in some land over at Harvey's Lake. Mr. Anderson became interested too, and in time he got along nicely. He was well liked by his neighbors and was from time to time elected to various township offices. In his leisure hours he made the bible a study and at the time of his death was considered about as good a biblical student as could be found anywhere in the rural districts. Some years ago, he was made a local preacher and did considerable preaching. He was not a refined talker but he was very forcible and earnest. When he would get warmed up, he would take off his coat and go at his Satanic majesty in his shirt sleeves. Joe hadn't much use for anybody who didn't believe in hell. He was a thorough believer in the old orthodox article and tried to impress his hearers the same way. The only fault that was ever found with the Rev. Joseph was he had a fondness for tobacco. He would chew the weed at all times and upon all occasions. In his ministerial work it gave him inspiration and it is said he could preach a much better sermon after taking a chew of good hard plug than he could if he had abstained. The deceased was beloved because he was ample in manner and tried to do what he thought was right, and had a good word for everybody. What more could any teacher of the gospel do, or be expected to do?

On July 4, 1905, at 9:00 P.M. the M.P. Church at Laketon was totally destroyed by fire. The contents were also lost except for the organ which survived. The fire started on the roof and was caused by fireworks. The nearby post-office and Perrego home were nearly lost, but a crowd of volunteers saved both.

It was not until 1910 that fund-raising began in earnest to rebuild the M.P. Church. There were fund-raising suppers at the West Corner and occasional church services or meetings, apparently at area homes or elsewhere on behalf of the congregation in 1912-1914. Evangelist Clark Wilson, who lived in a house boat at the Lake preached to the members on July 14, 1912.

Then, on July 11, 1915, a "first meeting" was held at a new West Corner M.P. Church. In the winter of 1916-17 the Laketon post-office finally did burn down and was relocated to Rood's Laketon general store.

In April 1923 the Lutheran Ministerium of Pennsylvania approved a plan to purchase the Harvey's Lake Methodist-Protestant Church. The Lutheran plan moved quickly and the West Corner church, now the Lutheran Church of the Reformation, Laketon, Pennsylvania, held its first service on Sunday, July 1, 1923, with Rev. P.N. Wohlsen of Christ Lutheran Church of Wilkes-Barre as speaker. Lutheran pastors from the city and Scranton would rotate at the Lake church. A new Sunday School was also organized for the church.

Three years later, on May 21, 1926, the county court approved a formal corporate charter for "The Lutheran Church of the Reformation of Laketon, Pennsylvania." The first church council members were David Deater, Elmer N. Kerr, A.M. Biery, Raymond Smith, Henry J. Derby and Frank Swanson.

On August 15, 1926, the Lutheran church was dedicated with Rev. I.W. Yiengst, Noxen, as pastor. Until this time, the church property was formally owned by the Mission Board of the United Mission Church. The Laketon congregation demonstrated it could hold a sustained congregation during the winter seasons of 1923-1926. When it met their challenge, the Mission Board transferred title of the church to the congregation at the August 15 dedication.

The Lutheran church extended the front of the church almost immediately to create space for a chancel, pulpit and lectern.

In early June 1957 St. Luke's Reformation Lutheran Church in Noxen was united in one parish with Laketon's Lutheran Church of the Reformation. Rev. Louis Victor Rodgers was installed as pastor of both churches.

In October 1981 the Laketon and Noxen parishes were united with St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Wilkes-Barre. The new pastor of the united churches was Rev. Jacob Samuel Victor, (also known as Athisayam David Victor), a native of South India, who was ordained in 1959 in his native country. He served eight years for the united churches from October 1981 to March 1988. His last ministry was at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Nanticoke before moving to Baltimore. He died on October 19, 2013.

Rev. Clarence R Schaffer followed in 1989, presumably for both Laketon and Noxen, and he in turn was followed in 1990 by Rev. David R. Williams (1923-2010). Williams had ministries in New York and in Pennsylvania and retired in June 1989 from St. Matthew's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Weissport, PA. He then relocated to the Back Mountain and served as needed at the Lake and Noxen.

The Laketon Lutheran Church of the Reformation seemingly closed in late 1992 - early 1993. Rev. David R. Williams continued as the Noxen Lutheran pastor at least through 1994. Laketon's sister church in Noxen had its final service on January 6, 2019, after 125 years of service. The last Lay Minister at Noxen was Marty Everhart.

In March 1997 the vacant Laketon church was sold to Curtis L. Swanson. Other owners followed Swanson for brief periods. In July 2017 it was purchased by Kerry L. Potter, who has transformed the church property into a beautiful personal residence.

WebNote: This web author is the great-great grandson of Girton Anderson, brother of Rev. Joseph Anderson. The Anderson line relocated from Dallas, PA, to Harvey's Lake in 1849 along Anderson Road near Point Breeze.

 

B. Alderson United Methodist Church

The village of Alderson (originally known as the North Corner), came into prominence when the Lehigh Valley Railroad reached the Lake in June 1887. Albert Lewis, a lumber manufacturing magnate from Bear Creek, built the railroad in league with the LVRR. He constructed a large lumber mill at the North Corner and soon extended lumber operations to Noxen and to Stull along Bowmans Creek above Noxen.

In October 1887, the Alderson post office was created and the unofficial North Corner name became Alderson. William C. Alderson was a Philadelphia-based LVRR official who joined the railroad company in 1869. In 1906 he became the Treasurer of the LVRR. He died in early November 1914.

A 1971 "historical record" written by Alderson Methodist Church for its seventy-fifth anniversary describes the early creation years of the church:

After the Methodist Conference of 1888, Harvey's Lake and Kunkle were put together and constituted a charge with R.P. Christopher as Supply Minister. The first worship service was held at Stull's Picnic Ground at the north end of the Lake on April 22, 1888. Knowing that this outdoor work would be temporary, the pastor secured the use of the Lehigh Valley passenger coaches which lay at the Lake over Sunday. Sunday, May 13, 1888, marked the organization of the church with a class of thirteen members who pledged their service to God in Car No. 94. On the same Sunday, a Sunday School was organized with thirty members. Meetings were held in the cars until December 9, 1888, when permission was granted to use the schoolhouse at the north end of the Lake. The school building was used for worship until the present church was built in 1896. [The school was likely the one-room Lakeside School fronting the Lake-and torn down in 1908.]

The Methodist Episcopal Church of Alderson was chartered by the county court on May 28, 1896, with George E. Morris, A.V. Honeywell, Adam Stull, Arthur L. Stull, and G.D. Canfield as trustees.

The lot of about one-half acre was secured for $300, although it was valued at that time at $1,000.00. On August 23, 1896, the church, which had cost $3,100, was dedicated. Rev. J.G. Eckman, D.D., of New York, conducted the dedicatory service.

The auditorium seats 250, and the Sunday School Room may be opened into the auditorium, thus providing seating room for 100 more.

The present parsonage was built in 1897 at a cost of $1200.

It may be assumed that kerosene lamps were used until a dynamo was built at the mill of the Albert Lewis Lumber Company. Steam from the mill boiler furnished the power to run this dynamo from which electricity was furnished to the church, as well as to the depot and the company homes. The power was turned on at dusk and went off at 10:00 p.m., except at times of the Christmas programs and other special occasions at the Church, when the operator at the mill worked 'over time' and thus provided light for the later evening affairs. The Harvey's Lake Light Company began furnishing power in 1924 or 1925.

When the Church was erected, a shed was also built to shelter the horses that the worshipers drove to church. Some of the people came on foot, but many drove horse and buggy, or traveled by team and carry-all. The coming of the automobile left no use for this shed, and rather than keep it in repair, it was torn down in about 1927.

The dedication of the "Alderson Methodist Episcopal Church of Harvey's Lake, Pennsylvania", as it was now styled, occurred on Sunday, August 23, 1896, as described in The Evening News on August 27:

The beautiful church edifice just completed at the north corner of Harvey's Lake was dedicated last Sunday. Notwithstanding the threating weather the church was crowded when the morning service began. Rev. O.J. Cowles, D.D., pastor of Cornell M.E. Church, New York City, preached morning and evening. The trustees reported through the pastor, Rev. Clinton B. Henry, that the cost of the building was $3,000, and the lot, valued at $1,000, having been given by Albert Lewis. There was needed $650 to pay all indebtedness and in short time nearly $800 was subscribed, over one-third of it being cash.

In an afternoon service five were baptized and sixteen received in full membership to the church. Rev. Dr. Cowles preached a masterful sermon again at the evening service, after which the presiding elder, Rev. Dr. J.G. Eckman, conducted the dedicatory services. The church is a handsome frame structure, seating about 300 persons. The pews are of the best circular make, the Sunday school room being seated with chairs. The walls are tinted with cream and pink. The light used is the best Frink reflector, giving a powerful yet mellow light. The summer visitors will now find a neat and comfortable place in which to worship.

Early churches like Alderson were not simply gatherings for religious and social events, but also venues to host polite discussions of current issues - a form of social media in its time. An example is the following as reported in the Wilkes-Barre Record on August 31, 1914.

At a meeting of the Woman's Suffrage Party held in the Methodist Church at Alderson on Friday evening, August. 28, the speakers were Judge S. J. Strauss, Rev. Walter DeForest Johnson, Mrs. George Galland and Mrs. C.P. Elliott. The addresses were greatly enjoyed by over a hundred representative people of Laketon, Alderson, Harvey's Lake. Judge Strauss spoke of the importance of woman's help along all lines of reform - advancement in the betterment of mankind. Rev. Mr. Johnson gave an able speech on the undoubted "efficiency" of women when repression is removed by equal suffrage. Those who were fortunate enough to hear Mrs. Galland will not soon forget. Mrs. C.P. Elliott gave an interesting descriptive talk on the ability of women in strenuous times. As one of the conservative "old settlers" remarked, "these women have got things down to a 'fine pint:' I guess I'll let 'em vote."

Women still had to wait until August 26, 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment was adopted to permit women to vote in federal and State elections.

The "historical record "of the Alderson church also notes improvements made to the church up to the early 1970s:

Little change has been made to the edifice of the Church, but notable improvements have been made in the heating facilities - ranging from the stove to a coal furnace, then to oil heat, and in 1960 base radiation was installed in all parts of the Church.

While Rev. York was minister, the men of the community responded to a project to excavate the cellar and provide a dining room and kitchen. Many improvements have been made in this area of the Church since that time - the basement walls have been repainted, tile floor covering laid, kitchen facilities modernized, and a new powder room installed. The Ladies' Aid (presently known as the Women's Society of Christian Service) deserves much credit for these improvements.

During Rev. Morgan's ministry, both the church and the parsonage were re-roofed, the interior of the church was redecorated, and a well was drilled to furnish the church and parsonage with water.

The first piano was secured in 1900 by Mrs. Mary Stull's Sunday School Class. Mrs. Iris Armitage is the only known living member of this class, although we have several others of our fellowship who were members of the Sunday School at that time.

The musical heritage of the Methodist Church was greatly enhanced by the installation, in 1949, of a new Hammond Organ. Its beauty, dignity, and magnificent tonal quality have added considerable to the devout impressiveness of the worship services.

Among the most notable physical improvements that were made recently are the complete installation of storm windows and screens in the parsonage, the new front walk, and the paving of the driveway.

 

The church history also listed the pastor in charge through 1962:

• Rev. R. P. Christopher 1888 - 1889
• Rev. W. E. Vandermark Apr., 1889 - Aug. 1889
• Rev. J. W. Price 1889 - Jan. 1891
• Rev. James Benninger 1891 - 1895
• Rev. Clinton B. Henry 1895 - 1900
• Rev. H. L. Ellsworth 1900 - 1902
• Rev. J. C. Leacock 1902 - 1905
• Rev. William J. Hill 1905 - 1907
• Rev. L. E. VanHosen 1907 - 1910
• Rev. R. W. Lowry 1910 - 1912
• Rev. L. L. Boorn 1912 - 1916
• Rev. George Place 1916 - 1917
• Rev. Edgar B. Singer 1917 - 1921
• Rev. Thomas Harwood 1921 - 1924
• Rev. Lynn Brown 1927 - 1925
• Rev. W. S. York 1925 - 1935
• Rev. Guy A. Leinthall 1935 - 1939
• Rev. David Morgan 1939 - 1946
• Rev. James Hilbert 1946 - 1949
• Rev. Ruth L. Underwood 1949 - 1956
• Rev. John H. Gordon 1956 - 1962
• Rev. John Stahl June 1962 - Sept. 1962
• Rev. Fred M. Eister 1962 -

In April 1934 the Methodist Conference appointed Rev. W. Sylvester York as the pastor of both the Alderson and Noxen Methodist churches. In October 1934, Rev. York organized Boy Scout Troop 331 of the Wyoming Valley Boy Scouts Council; the Scoutmaster was John F. Parsons, 28, of Alderson.

On Sunday, May 16, 1946, the Alderson Church celebrated its 50 years of service at the Lake. Mrs. Valara E. Henry, widow of Rev. Clinton B. Henry, the 1896 founding pastor, was the special guest at the ceremony which was also served as a rededication of the church. Rev. C.B. Henry died on May 16, 1932.

Attendance at church services was declining across all religious sectors, and consolidation of Church responsibilities continued. When Rev. Ruth Underwood was appointed pastor at Alderson in early August 1949, she was not only Alderson's first woman pastor, she was actually appointed to the 4-church Alderson-Noxen-Ruggles-Kunkle charge. She was the first woman in the Wyoming Methodist Conference to be appointed a full pastor. On August 7, 1949, her first Sunday, she presided over separate services at Ruggles, Noxen, and a combined service for Alderson-Kunkle.

Rev. Underwood was the daughter of Rev. George N. Underwood, pastor of First Methodist Church, Forty Fort. She was a graduate of the State Teachers' College at East Stroudsburg, Drew Theological Seminary, New Jersey, with a B.A. and M.A from other institutions. She was previously the director of Religious Education at the First Methodist Church in Meadville, PA. She remained in her Back Mountain charge until 1956. She became pastor of the Brick Methodist Church, Duryea, in 1962. She died in June 1977 after 28 years in the ministry.

When Rev. Fred M. Eister became pastor of the four Methodist churches once held by Rev. Ruth Underwood, it prompted the following letter to the editor of the Wilkes-Barre Record on November 5, 1965:

Editor of the Record:

I enclose an item by an anonymous writer which I think, truly reflects the activities of Rev. Fred M. Eister, a minister who has not one, but four charges - Alderson Methodist Church, Noxen Methodist, Ruggles Methodist ad Kunkle Methodist.

He is to be commended.

CWB

Enclosure:

What Does A Pastor Do?

The pastor teaches, though he must solicit his own classes. He heals, though without pills or knife. He is sometimes a lawyer, often a social worker, something of an editor, a bit of a philosopher and entertainer, a salesman, a decorative piece for public functions, and he is supposed to be a scholar. He visits the sick, marries people, buries the dead, labors to console those who sorrow and to admonish those who sin, and tries to stay sweet when chided for not doing his duty. He plans programs, appoints committees when he can get them; spends considerable time in keeping people out of each other's hair; between times he prepares a sermon and preaches it on Sunday to those who don't happen to have any other engagement. Then on Monday he smiles when some jovial chap roars, what a job - one day a week!

ANONYMOUS

The Alderson church established its annual "fisherman breakfast" for the spring opening of trust fishing as early as April 1955.

The Alderson United Methodist Church was formally chartered by the local court and the Pennsylvania Bureau of Corporations as the Alderson Methodist Church of Harvey's Lake. In 1969, the national Methodist Conference, with its predominate northern-state and British heritage, merged with the Evangelical United Brethren Church, which is southern-state oriented with a German influence. The result is a United Methodist Church, and local churches, as with Alderson, became United Methodist in name too.

The current pastor of the Alderson United Methodist Church is Rev. Dave Walker, who recently succeeded Rev. Ken Brown who became pastor in 2005. He in turn succeeded Rev. Dolly Tarreto who had been pastor since June 2003.

 

C. Our Lady of Victory Church

The earliest reported Catholic Mass at the Lake was on Sunday, August 24, 1901, at the cottage of James M. Boland. Rev. R.A. McAndrew, pastor of St. Mary's, Wilkes-Barre, officiated. It was open to all cottagers and visitors.

A mass by Rev. McAndrew was also reported on Sunday, July 24, 1904, at the magnificent Oneonta Hotel (1898-1919), at Sunset, in the hotel's reception hall. Occasionally, excursion groups on a Sunday at the Lake also arranged a Mass; for example, the Catholic Total Abstinence Union (C.T.A.U.) held a Lake convention with a Sunday Mass in July 1904. But the Oneonta Hotel, despite several changes in management over the years, was the primary location for Catholic services. By 1913, regular weekly Sunday Mass was offered in the summer season at the Oneonta by the Very Rev. P.J. McManus of St. Mary's or other of its curates, with confession preceding mass.

In 1915 the sisters of Mercy established themselves in Dallas (a precursor to the creation of College Misericordia in August 1924). In June 1915, Sunday Catholic services were offered to Dallas and Lake residents at the "Sisters' Home" at Dallas, with the option of trolley services to Wilkes-Barre churches.

The Sisters' services in Dallas were offered at Sunset Hall, which was originally the 1889 Dallas Broom Factory. When the factory closed, the 10-room building was converted into a summer rental site. After its acquisition by the Sisters, Rev. J.J. Featherson provided services from its porch, with worshippers sitting on the lawn. Sunset Hall on Lake Street later became the college's Rosary Hall, now called the Ramussen House.

Mass continued to be held at the Oneonta in 1916, at 10:00 A.M. on Sundays, with Rev. J.J. Featherson, but at some point in 1917 the Oneonta was no longer available and mass was moved to the Traction Company Pavilion at Sunset, at least through 1920. The Hotel Oneonta burned to the ground on Sunday, February 2, 1919.

In 1920 Lake Mass was now supervised by Rev. Michel E. Lynott of St. Ignatius Church, Kingston. In October 1920, Rev. Father Lynott sent a circular letter to Catholic families throughout the Wyoming Valley for donations to erect a 500-seat chapel at the Lake.

On March 27, 1922, ground was broken at Warden Place for a Catholic Chapel as described in the Wilkes-Barre Record the following day:

Yesterday morning at 11 o'clock, ground was broken for the new Catholic chapel at Harvey's Lake. There was little ceremony, the stakes having been driven last week by James A. Boyle, the architect. Only a few persons were present. After definitely agreeing on the exact situation, Rev. M.E. Lynott, past of St. Ignatius congregation, Kingston, who is in charge of the Catholic services at Harvey's Lake, put the shovel into the ground and turned the first sod. As he did so, raising his hat, he said: "For the honor and glory of god, in the name of Our Lady of Victory, to the memory of the soldiers and sailors of Wyoming Valley, I break this ground." Father Lynott handed the shovel to James A. Boyle, who turned the second sod; then Somers Newman, Mr. Boyle's assistant, and Mr. Williams of Westmoor, the builder, Joseph Evans, Ashley, and John McGinnis, Kingston, employees of Mr. Boyle, and ex-navy men, participated in the event.

The new chapel will be of Spanish mission architecture, finished in stucco with red asbestos shingles. It will have a seating capacity of 500- persons. It is intended to celebrate the first mass on the last Sunday in May preceding Memorial Day, although the chapel will not be completed.

The chapel site is a few hundred yards immediately east of Warden Inn, at the corner of the public road and the lake avenue, at Warden Place.

On Sunday, June 25, 1922, the Our Lady of Victory Memorial Chapel at Warden Place was dedicated. Subsequent Sunday Masses at 9:15 A.M. were filled to capacity. But the church itself still had to be built which the congregation authorized after Sunday Mass on June 3, 1923.

On Labor Day 1923, the completed Our Lady of Victory Church was dedicated as noted in the Evening News on Tuesday, September 4, 1923.

Labor Day 1923 will be a red- letter day in the history of the most beautiful summer rest in the State, Harvey's Lake. Beginning at 10 o'clock, a brilliant ceremonial was carried out at the Memorial Chapel at Warden Place. Elevated on a plateau above tow terraces, well set back from the lake road, and facing the Outlet, the new edifice presented itself to view from all sides of the eastern end of the lake in striking attractiveness like a bride arrayed for the glory of her wedding day. Automobiles were parked everywhere below the terraces in the foreground, and crowds of people were on the esplanade on which the church is built. Soldiers and sailors in uniform lent a tinge of military suggestion to the scene.

The brightness of the weather and general air of cheerfulness gave an added joyousness to the day.

The tall form of Bishop Michael J. Hoban, robed in cope and mitre, bearing his pastoral staff in hand, accompanied by deacon and sub-deacon and thirty priests in cassock and surplice, appeared on the arched portico in front. Headed by cross-bearers and acolytes, the procession descended the steps, the Bishop proceeded to the south-east corner or Epistle side of the chapel where the bishop blessed and laid the cornerstone. The bishop and clergy marched around the building, the celebrant sprinkled the walls with holy water, while the priests chanted psalms of praise. Entering at the front door the procession continued the circuit of the interior, the bishop sprinkling the walls with holy water and the clergy chanting psalms. The bishop near the door sang the prayers of dedication and the offering of the noble work of the Catholic summer colony was made to God, under the title of Our Lady of Victory, a memorial to all the soldiers and sailors of Wyoming Valley.

A pleasing incident was the presentation to Bishop Hoban of a miniature trowel with cross and crosier and souvenir inscription engraved on its face in the name of the soldiers and sailors who were represented by twenty-five uniformed men. Rev. Charles Goeckel, of St. Nicholas Church, Wilkes-Barre, and Rev. Dr. Winters, of St. John's, Pittston, were chaplains to Bishop Hoban.

A solemn high mass was then celebrated, the celebrant being Rev. M.E. Lynett, of Kingston, the acting pastor of the Harvey's Lake congregation. Rev. John E. Lynott, of St. Patrick's, Wilkes-Barre, was the deacon: Rev. George Forve, of Sacred Heart, Luzerne, sub-deacon.

Rev. John J. O'Leary, of St. Mary's, Wilkes-Barre, famous war chaplain, was master of ceremonies at the laying of cornerstone and dedication. Rev. Francis McHugh, of Holy Savior church, East End, also a war chaplain, was master of ceremonies of the mass. The cross-bearer was Rev. Francis Connors, of Kingston, a seminarian, with the order of sub-deacon. The senser-bearer was Mr. James Cahalan, also of Kingston, a seminarian at Seton Hall College, South Orange, N.J. The alcolytes were Gerald O'Donnell, Thomas McGovern, Joseph O'Neill and Arthur Flower.

The mass was sung by the boy choir of St. Ignatius church, Kingston, and splendidly rendered under the direction of the organist and teacher of St. Ignatius congregation, Miss Elizabeth Lavis. Thomas Fogarty was soloist and sang an Ava Maria admirably at the offertory.

Rev. John J. Featherstone, native of Wilkes-Barre and professor at St. Thomas College preached an able sermon to a large congregation of the Catholic church, as seen in her work, adorn all the counties of Christianity with civilizing, uplifting and saving humanity. The Bishop made a brief address in which he complemented Father Lynott, the priest in charge for his work and praised warmly the good people for their whole hearted cooperation, as evidenced by their generous contributions and the gifts of windows, altars, statues, vestments and other equipment necessary for the church. Father Lynott thanked the Bishop, clergy and people.

The memorial church is exquisitely beautiful exteriorly in stucco with red asbestos shingles, interiorly with its artistic altar in pure white and gold seraglio, its rich artistic win -

The architect was James A. Boyle; the builder was Mark Williams, both of Kingston, who won warm praise from Bishop Hoban, clergy and laity.

On August 1, 1926, Father John J. O'Leary was formally installed as pastor of Our Lady of Victory, creating the first Catholic parish in the Back Mountain. The Lake Church helped spur a movement for an additional Catholic parish for the wider Back Mountain area. In November 1926 Father O'Leary was transferred to Hillside at Shavertown where a mass was held at Gabriel's Hall early in that month. Services apparently continued at the hall until St Therese's Church was built. St. Therese's Church first service was on December 23, 1928, and Our Lady of Victory became a mission of St. Therese's Church. Lake residents used Our Lady of Victory during the summer season but a bus service was available for services at St. Therese's in the colder months.

On Thursday, August 26, 1926, Our Lady of Victory Church held a card party and dance at the Traction Company Pavilion, also known as the Oneonta Pavilion. This annual party was a fund-raising event which relocated to Sandy Beach in 1930, and ran throughout the decade until August 1940.

Our Lady of Victory also began summer masses at Sandy Beach in its pavilion in 1933, which drew 1,400 one August Sunday in that year. By 1933 Rev. J.J. O'Leary recognized that steamboat and bus service was now absent for Lake residents who wished to attend church services. Sandy Beach was a convenient site for Sunday services in the Laketon-Alderson area, and a 9:00 A.M. Mass at Sandy Beach would continue during the summer season in addition to a 7:30 A.M., 9:30 A.M., and 10:45 A.M. Mass at the Our Lady of Victory chapel. Rev. John J. O'Leary continued the Sandy Beach masses through WWII. The last reported masses at Sandy Beach were in August 1963.

In 1940 a heating plant was installed at Our Lady of Victory which finally permitted services year-around.

Father J. J. O'Leary served as pastor of St. Therese's and Our Lady of Victory, but he also envisioned a new parish and religious elementary school which became Gate of Heaven, Dallas, under the supervision of Father Francis Kane, which was dedicated in mid-November 1951.

In early September 1969, the Scranton Diocese created a separate parish for Our Lady of Victory, separating it from Gate of Heaven. The parish was now under Pastor Patrick D. Healey, who was born in Avoca. The Lake area parish now included Noxen, Stull, and Ruggles in Noxen Township and Loyalville in Lake Township. Sandy Beach summer Masses were now considered a Mission of Our Lady of Victory called Queen of Peace after a road near there. The road once housed Balla Bawn, the summer home of local Judge Andrew Hourigan, who gifted it to the Catholic Church. Balla Bawn was supposedly a Celtic name for "the house on the hill." It had been the rectory of the combined Our Lady-Gate of Heaven parish. The parish later sold it and in 1997, as the Country Manor personal care home, it was destroyed in a fire in May 1997 with lives lost.

A tradition of Our Lady of Victory is the Blessing of the Boats each summer at the Warden Place dock. It seems to have started on July 25, 1961, as the Blessing of Automobiles and Boats by Rev. Robert O'Leary of the Redemptorist Order. It was a feature of St. Ann's Novena and not unique to Harvey's Lake. An annual Blessing of Automobiles, for example, began in 1932 at the Our Lady of the Mount Carmel Church in honor of St. Christopher, the patron saint of travelers. A decade or more later it was more simply the Blessing of the Boats and it continues to this time. Videos and photos of the Blessing of the Boats may be found on YouTube and Google Images.

In July 2009 Our Lady of Victory and Gate of Heaven, Dallas, were consolidated into a single parish by the Scranton Diocese. Our Lady of Victory pastor Rev. E. Francis Kelly left to become chaplain at Holy Family Residence in Scranton. Rev. Daniel Toomey became the joint pastor of Gate of Heaven and Our Lady of Victory. The current pastor (2023) is Rev. Andrew S. Hvozdovic with John Jorda as Deacon.

WebNote: This article was aided in part by a Golden Jubilee historical account issued by Our Lady of Victory in August 1973.