The first meeting to establish a cemetery was held March 22, 1855. There are thirty-two acres in the ground. It is a portion of sixty acres which was bought as a farm at fifty dollars per acre. For the first trustees the association had Thomas McCULLOUGH, J. D. RINGWOOD, James SMILEY, G. W. KEELY, Elias KUMLER, Peter SUTTON, Robert RATLIFF. The first clerk was H. A. SMITH. Some of the prime movers in the matter were: G. W. KEELY, P. D. MATSON; W. A. IRWIN, J. W. COOPER, S. R. MOLLYNEAUX, Alexander PORTER, Samuel GATH, Sen., J. E. NEWTON, G. G. WHITE, Joseph HILLS, R. R. McCLUNG. Mrs. Elizabeth COLLINS, who was born in 1779, and who died August 1, 1855, was the first person buried in the ground; Mrs. Eliza McVEIGH was the second; and Mrs. Phebe RUSSELL, the third. Dr. G. W. KEELY planted the first evergreens in the yard on the grave of Mrs. COLLINS, wife of Captain Joel COLLINS.

Many of these inscriptions will convey to the reader the briefest sketch of many of the leading citizens of Oxford and the township:

Catharine McGREGOR, wife of John FERGUSON, born in Campbelltown, Scotland, 1812; died 1869. Orlando FINCH, born May 13, 1804; died August 9, 1873. Eliza, wife of Orlando FINCH, born August 6, 1818. George MERRIDITH, born March 5, 1805; died May 3, 1867. Robert RATLIFF, died January 30, 1881; aged 66. Lucinda LEE, wife of Robert RATLIFF, died January 9, 1879; aged 61. Michael SHAFER, born August 15, 1804; died March 5, 1846. Mary, wife of Michael SHAFER, born February 18, 1812; died November 20, 1848. Eliza, wife of Daniel SHAFER, born March 6, 1838; died February 20, 1863. John DUKE, died February 7, 1872; aged 82. Samuel LINTNER, died September 18, 1869; aged 64. Mary, wife of the Rev. D. K. FLICKINGER, died September 30, 1851; aged 25. John LINTNER, died September 11, 1862; aged 28. William LINTNER, member of the 4th O. V. C., died at Nashville, Tenn., April 10, 1862; aged 22. Peter LINTNER, died January 31, 1836; aged 75. Mary, wife of Peter LINTNER, died December 13, 1831; aged 69. Joel COLLINS, born September 16, 1772; died November 15, 1860. Henry NOLAND, died October 3, 1879; aged 73. The MARTINDELL and DOUGLASS family vault was built in 1856. It is faced with white marble and has several receptacles for the dead. James GAGE, Sen., a native of Colerain Ireland, died November 7, 1847; aged 82. Mary, wife of James GAGE, Sen., died March 26, 1840; aged 60. In memory of Samuel MOLLYNEAUX, who departed this life August 7, 1823; aged 64. Sarah, his wife, died August 5, 1823; aged 54. Abraham KNOWLTON, died October 23, 1843; aged 59. Lucy, his wife, died December 3, 1857; aged 73. Sarah SADLER, born April 5, 1806; died August 7, 1872. Theda WHITE, died March 25, 1871; aged 73. Isaac H. HARMON, died March 25, 1855; aged 51. William K. SADLER, surgeon of the Nineteenth Kentucky Volunteers, killed at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, December 3, 1864; aged 31. From General Order, No. 27, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, December 3, 1864: "Surgeon SADLER was untiring in his profession, thorough and accurate as a staff officer, an accomplished gentleman, a noble and generous man. Few officers of this command were as generally known -- none more universally loved. Without an enemy in the world, he fell a victim to the blind revenge intended for another." Alexander WALLACE, born June 19, 1800; died April 28, 1865. Mary, wife of William GRAY, died March 6, 1863; aged 76. Rindelt Maria GLASZEN, wife of J. B. JELLIES, born April 5, 1801; died December 22, 1869. Rev Seth HOWELL, born in Wales June 4, 1804; died at Oxford, Ohio, February 18, 1858. Thomas COULTER, died May 5, 1872; aged 86. Isabella, wife of Thomas COULTER, died April 16, 1865; aged 79. Ellen, wife of James C. MOFFAT, of the Miami University, died July 15, 1849; in the 28th year of her age. Caroline A. NEAL, assistant principal in the Oxford Female Institute, died June 16, 1853. Her father, John A. NEAL, was born at Bristol, England, October 25, 1774; died at Oxford, Ohio, November 28, 1854. Sylvester LYONS, died February 3, 1820; aged 68. Elizabeth, wife of Sylvester LYONS, died January 13, 1837; aged 66. Major James MONTGOMERY, a native of Cumberland County, Pennsvlvania, died at Oxford, Ohio, August 18, 1844, in the 67th year of his age. Elizabeth, wife of Major James MONTGOMERY, born April 24, 1782; died December 16, 1862. Sarah MORRISON, wife of John HUSTON, died January 18, 1854, in the 77th year of her age. Francis FINKBINE, died September 16, 1865, in the 71st year of his age. Mrs. Ann DAVIS, died November 20, 1856, in the 81st year of her age. Jane MONTGOMERY, wife of Dr. R. C. HUSTON,- born February 20, 1813; died December 23, 1871. Henry ALEXANDER, born June 1, 1809; died June 7, 1875. Michael YEAKLE, died May 22, 1862; aged 59. This gentleman was a prominent citizen of Hanover Township. Patrick SMILEY, died March 28, 1855; aged 78. Mary, his wife, died March 4, 1855; aged 76. Chrisey, wife of S. L. McDONALD, born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, August 17, 1808; died February 14, 1854. Rebecca Amelia DUNN, wife of John G. LANGSTROTH, born at Chestertown, Maryland, February 2, 1783; died October 12, 1860. Anna Mary TUCKER, wife of Rev. L. G. LANGSTROTH, born at Rowley, Massachusetts, March 3, 1813; died January 23, 1873. Samuel STEWART, died July 18, 1866; aged 76. Jane Cathcart NEWMAN, died March 17, 1880; aged 82. Asa NEWTON, born January 6, 1789; died May 27, 1833. Elizabeth, wife of William CATHCART, formerly consort of Asa NEWTON, born October 14, 1795; died October 29, 1859. David W. LEACH, born September 25, 1839. He enlisted in Company F, Sixty-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in September, 1861; was killed in the attack on Mission Ridge, November 25, 1863, while nobly performing his duty as a soldier in the army of his country. John BURRIS, born at Wilmington, Delaware, January 14, 1792; died June 22, 1880. Albina PENTACOAST, wife of John BURRIS, born in Loudon County, Virginia, May 25, 1794; died September 4, 1854. Elijah CHAMBERLAIN, died October 10, 1837; aged 66. William WHITE died April 12, 1821. Ruth GREEN, consort of William WHITE, died September 1, 1838. Harriet, wife of Dr. R. MORRIS, died at the Western Female Seminary, October 9, 1858; aged 37. Mary, wife of Rev. David TENNY, born July 29, 1822; died August 28, 1866. Emmor MOORE, died August 23, 1834; aged 50 years -- a native of Pennsylvania. Sarah W. MOORE, died November 6, 1867; aged 76 years. Willie PEARCE, born April 4, 1861. Lost by the colliding of the steamers United States and America, December 4, 1868. Thomas C. MUNNS, died April 14, 1868; aged 57. Mary A. LOWES, born September 2, 1802; died February 6, 1842. Cynthia C., daughter of the Rev. E. A. WATERMAN; wife of Rev. J. A. I. LOWES, born August 19, 1820; died January 14, 1871. Elizabeth B., wife of Rev. J. A. I. LOWES, born March 13, 1804; died September 4, 1878. John H. DOUGLASS, born June 15, 1867; died January 17, 1878. Margaret K. DOUGLASS, born February 26, 1808; died June 26, 1872. Amos HOAG, a native of Oxford, Ohio, died February 19, 1873; aged 60. Rhoda BRACE, born February 25, 1773; died March 3, 1862. James M. BRACE, born May 6, 1803; died July 16, 1865. Oliver J. STORK, killed at the battle of Gettysburg, July 2, 1863. Hugh GILCHRIST, M. D., born in Kilmarnock, Scotland, February 5, 1816; died August 30, 1878. Elisha S. BURK, born July 2, 1809; died October 8, 1880. Almira S., wife of Elisha S. BURK, born October 24, 1820; died June 7, 1877. John ROLL, born March 22, 1801; died May 26, 1851. Andrew DODDS, died July 31, 1825; aged 70. Margaret, his wife, died August 25, 1826; aged 65. Another private vault in this cemetery is the FREEMAN, which is of modern build and quite handsome. In memory of James R. HUGHES, for fourteen years a ruling elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Oxford, who died August 8, 1839; aged 46. Phebe, wife of Dr. J. R. HUGHES, born March 31, 1801; died December 24, 1833.

Following are inscriptions from the old burying-ground, which was given for this purpose by the trustees of the Miami University:

Mariette Sophia, wife of the Rev. Thomas GOODWIN, died April 25, 1843; aged 25. Mary A., wife of the Rev. John A. WATERMAN, died December 14, 1837; aged 45. Rev. John A. WATERMAN, born in Concord, New Hampshire; died August 6, 1837; aged 47. Sacred to the memory of Susan, wife of Dr. J. A. WATERMAN, and daughter of Luther and Grace DUNN. She died at Oxford, Ohio, November 9, 1839, in the 35th year of her age. Rachel MCDONALD, wife of Martin MCDONALD, died May 13, 1844; aged 77. Samuel BROWN, born in the County of Londonderry, Ireland, died January 25, 1835; aged 75. Sarah, wife of Samuel BROWN, born in Londonderry, Ireland; died July 29, 1844; aged 22. Thomas MARR, a native of Ireland, died September 11, 1848; aged 27. John MARTIN, a native of Ireland, died August 7, 1847; aged 23. David RATTHAY, born in Paisley, Scotland, November 18, 1792; died March 3, 1851. Silas OSGOOD, died May 16, 1840, in the 78th year of his age. Sarah Ann, consort of Rev. John W. CLARK, died February 14, 1833. in the 24th year of her age. West BONNEY departed this life on the 26th of September, 1843, in the 72nd year of his age. Catharine, wife of Seth WEBB, died August 29, 1848; aged 100 years, 9 months, and 23 days. Henry WEBB died October 6, 1857; aged 72. Townsend D. PEYTON, died August 25, 1852; aged 77. Sarah, his wife, died August 11, 1864; aged 77. Dr. Freeman PERRY, of Fair Haven, Massachusetts, died in Franklin County, Indiana, after a few days' illness with typhus fever, aged 62. He was born July 27, 1825. Rev. J. J. TIFFANY graduated in the Miami University, and was ordained a deacon in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Died December 29, 1857; aged 31. Nancy, wife of Joseph TIFFANY, afterward wife of Samuel POLLARD, died August 26, 1853; aged 78. Sacred to the memory of Ebenezer HOWE, a native of Boston, Massachusetts; born on the 13th of July, 1763, and died at Oxford, Ohio, July 10, 1830. Died on the morning of the 16th of October, 1834, at his residence in Oxford, Ohio, Colonel Isaiah LEIGH, aged 51. Colonel LEIGH was the first Mayor of Oxford. Anthony BUTLER, a native of Massachusetts, died March 13, 1847, in the 80th year of his age. Rachel SMITH, born in Boston, Massachusetts, died June 13, 1834; aged 66. Isaac HARKER, died April 25, 1849, in the 56th year of his age. In memory of Ashel MURDOCK, a Revolutioner of '76, who died January 23, 1837, in the 82nd year of his age. Elizabeth, wife of Ashel MURDOCK, died May 25, 1834, in the 74th year of her age. Abraham BOOTH, a native of the West Riding, Yorkshire, died June 21, 1852, in the 56th year of his age. Isaiah HALL, born November 26, 1761; died June 29, 1831. Phebe Dutton HALL, born March 12, 1768; died October 21, 1827.

The earliest appearance of a Methodist itinerant near Oxford was early in the Spring of 1805. A portly, dignified man, of intellectual appearance , was seen astride of a large, black horse, at the crossing of Four-Mile Creek, near Mr. De WITT's farm. He quietly inquired the nearest route to a certain Indian village, located in the vicinity of Connersville, Indiana. Having gained the information desired, he pushed his course rapidly through the wild, trackless woods skirting the stream, and was soon lost to view. This traveler gave his name as Moses CRUME, and the object of his visitation to the wild country was as a missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church, sent out by the authorities of that society to the Indians. Mr. CRUME died April 1, 1839, aged seventy-three years. In 1787 he became a Christian, and began to preach in 1791. His remains, marked by a plain monument, lie in the old burial-ground in Oxford. Anna, wife of the Rev. Moses CRUME (the second wife), died June 5, 1853, aged sixty-seven years and some days. She joined the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1810, and the following year embraced religion. She was married in 1829 to Mr. CRUME. Sarah, Mr. CRUME's first wife, died May 10, 1829, aged fifty-seven years, four months, and twenty-four days. Mr. CRUME lived in Oxford with his family many years.

Soon after the settlement of the township Mr. CRUME made his appearance in Oxford, and left an appointment for preaching. The place of worship was in a log schoolhouse directly opposite and north of the present school building. This house was used by all religious sects for worship, and by the public generally for holding meetings for many years. These appointments were continued irregularly by the Methodists until 1818 or 1819. Mr. CRUME, with great faithfulness, continued to minister to the infant Church, planted by his own hand, for a number of years. His appointments were for every sixth Sabbath. This band continued to prosper until the little log-house became too small for their accommodation. In 1813 Mr. CRUME was appointed to the Oxford Circuit. He was succeeded in 1814 by the eloquent John STRANGE.

In 1818 the society selected a site for the new house. Father WESTON says that, "at this time, this land was covered with the primeval forest, where, in his youth, he had often hunted squirrels and chopped cord-wood at twenty-five cents a cord." In the Fall of 1818, material was collected for the building. The leading spirit in this work was John KEELY, father of the Rev. John W. KEELY, of Indianapolis, and Dr. G. W. KEELY, of Oxford. The house was begun in the Spring of 1819, its dimensions being thirty by forty-two feet. The building had progressed favorably, when, in the latter part of June, a fearful hurricane blew down the east wall. A large maple-tree was also thrown across the building, so as to crush in one of the side walls. This disaster caused a delay for one year. By the continued effort of Mr. KEELY the house was completed in the Fall of 1820, but he came out of the enterprise financially a ruined man. Even his house was given up, and at last his cow and garden-patch were surrendered to liquidate the debt.

In addition to John KEELY and his wife Ann, the members of the Church were Laban HOLLAND, Elias WILSON, Sen., Peter SAMPSON, Thomas DOLLAHAN, Skillman ALGER, Charles ROBINSON, who was an exhorter; John STRICKLAND, Daniel DICKINSON, Samuel Bush, John GRIFFITH, James RATLIFF, John DEMOSS, the Rev. Mr. CROMWELL, who was a local preacher; the Rev. Mr. CROCKWELL, a local preacher. George HOWARD, Mr. WILCOX, William HENRY, Benjamin SUTTON, Joseph KITCHEN, the Rev. Elisha STOUT, local preacher, and William CRUME, were all early members. G. G. WHITE, familiarly known as "Deacon WHITE," came into Oxford as a citizen a year or two after the formal opening of the Church. Many of these brethren had families, and their wives and some of their children were members.

The house stood unplastered for a number of years, as the society was too poor and depressed in spirit to finish it.

Among the most eloquent and logical of the early preachers were Russel BIGELOW, Samuel BROWN, Allen WILEY, B. F. CRANCH, Samuel BAKER, Wm. H. RAPER, and Levi WHITE. During a part of this time the venerable Deacon WHITE used the house during intervals of worship as a cabinet-maker's salesroom, and some declare as his workshop also. Deacon WHITE was an excellent singer, and much of his time was given to worshipping God in this manner.

The Church pressed forward with varying success until December, 1837, when a committee was appointed to take into consideration the propriety of selling the old house and building an new one. In February, 1838, the committee made a verbal report, and recommended a new house fifty by sixty feet, with basement, for $2,000. The quarterly conference decided to build if $1,500 could be raised in addition to the assessed value of the old house and lot. Some time afterwards the old house was improved by additions, which made it double its original length. The building thus enlarged was completed in the Fall of 1839. In the east wall of the addition Deacon WHITE had inclosed a jug filled with various documents and other articles of value and interest, but upon tearing down the wall for the improvements they were found to have mouldered into dust. Two or three pieces of metal only were found, which were afterwards deposited in the box of the corner-stone.

By this last improvement the house was made a very neat and commodious building. A heavy debt was incurred, which in time was paid off. A great many have joined the Church since 1839. Among the pastors have been D. D. DAVISON, John A. BAUGHMAN, Robert O. SPENCER, John C. BROOKS, Elijah H. FIELDS, John STEWART, James W. FINLEY, Charles W. SWAIN, John A WATERMAN, B. WESTLAKE, A. W. MUSGRAVE, Granville MOODY, M. DUSTIN, Clinton W. SEARS, J. F. CONREY, and J. F. MARLAY.

On the 30th of March, 1872, it was decided to build a new house of worship, but not until the old house had become too small to accommodate the rapidly increasing congregation. The following persons were appointed a canvassing committee: P. D. MATSON, D. M. MAGIE, John SHERA, George C. MUNNS, and James SHERA. The name of John J. GOFF was afterward substituted for James SHERA. The canvassing committee was also made the building committee. P. D. MATSON was made chairman. Joel STOVER was architect for the new building; Walter JONES superintendent of stone and brick work, and John and William CRAIG superintendents of the carpenter work.

The old house was torn down the first week in May, 1872. Excavations were begun on the 13th of the same month for the foundations. The corner-stone was laid, with appropriate ceremonies, in the presence of a large concourse of people, with the Rev. W. C. ROGERS, of Oxford, Ohio. Reading of Scripture by the Rev. James W. McGREGOR, of Minneapolis, Minn., and the reading of a historical sketch of the rise and progress of Methodism in Oxford, by the pastor. The Rev. Granville MOODY, D. D., preached the sermon. A collection was taken which amounted to over $500, and the corner-stone was laid by Mr. MOODY. During the interval between April, 1872, and January, 1873, the society met at the New School Presbyterian Church. The first meeting of a religious nature held in the new house was on the first Sabbath in January, 1873.

On the 6th of July, 1873, the first story or Sunday-school rooms were completed. The dedication sermon was preached by the Rev. S. F. GILLETT, D. D., of Greensburg, Indiana. At the close of the services $2,300 was the amount of the indebtedness found to be existing. The pastor then asked for $7,000 to complete the auditorium, which was raised, with an excess of $200. More than one-half of the money was obtained by subscriptions of fifty dollars and under.

The auditorium was dedicated on the 28th of November, 1875. Bishop R. S. FOSTER conducted the services, assisted by T. J. HARRIS, J. W. McGEE, Dr. J. M. WALDEN, Dr. R. D. MORRIS, J. F. BLACK, and Jacob NORRIS. On the day of dedication there yet existed a debt of four thousand dollars, but by the excellent way in which Bishop FOSTER conducted subscription taking, four thousand five hundred dollars was pledged in forty-five minutes and thus the church was dedicated without a dollar's indebtedness.

P. D. MATSON has been Sunday-school superintendent for over thirty-five years, and now holds this office.

Oxford Circuit was organized in 1813 or 1814. The following list of pastors is taken from the General Minutes: 1813, Moses CRUME; 1814, John STRANGE; 1815, John SOMERVILLE; 1816, Benjamin LAWRENCE; 1817, William HUNT; 1818, Russel BIGELOW and Samuel BROWN; 1819, Russel BIGELOW; 1820, Allen WILLEY and Benjamin T. CROUCH; 1821, Samuel BAKER and William H. RAPER; 1822, Moses CRUME and Richard BRANDRIFF; 1823, James JONES and Levi WHITE; 1824, Feter STEPHENS and James JONES; 1825, Daniel D. DAVISON and John A. BAUGHMAN; 1826, Daniel D. DAVISON and Robert O. SPENCER; 1827 John C. BROOK and Isaac C. HUNTER; 1828, John P. TAYLOR and Benjamin LAWRENCE; 1829, Elijah H. FIELDS and Robert O. SPENCER; 1830, Robert O. SPENCER and Elijah H. FIELDS; 1831, John STEWART and A. D. BEASLEY; 1832, John STEWART and James F. DAVISON; 1833, J. W. CLARK and J. W. FINLEY; 1834, Charles W. SWAIN and John A. WATERMAN; 1835, Burroughs WESTLAKE and Lucien W. BERRY, J. A. WATERMAN, superannuated; 1836, Burroughs WESTLAKE and Daniel FOE; 1837, Stephen HOLLAND, for three months, A. W. MUSGROVE, for nine months; 1838 and 1839, A. W. MUSGROVE; 1840 to 1842, Granville MOODY; 1842 to 1844, Mighill DUSTIN; 1844 to 1845, Clinton W. SEARS, with Arthur W. ELLIOTT as resident superannuated; 1845 and 1846, J. A. WATERMAN, who shortly after went with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and whose place was supplied by Jonathan F. CONREY; 1846 and 1847, Jonathan F. CONREY; 1847 to 1849, Charles R. LOWELL; 1849 to 1851, James C. BONTECOU; 1851 to 1853, James F. CHALFANT; 1853 to 1855, John F. MARLEY; 1855 and 1856, Thomas D. CROW; 1858, Robert O. SPENCER; 1858 to 1860, George W. HARRIS; 1861, James M. LEAVITT; 1861 to 1863, William H. HYPES; 1863, William G. W. LEWIS; 1864 to 1866, William H. MOLER; 1866, Asbury LOWREY; 1867, William H. LAWDER; 1868, James L. GROVE, eight months, and J. W. McGREGOR, four months; 1869, James W. McGREGOR; 1870 to 1873, Thomas J. HARRIS; 1873 to 1876, David C. VANCE; 1876 to 1879, James MURRAY; 1879, A. N. SPAHR; 1880, B. F. DIMMICK, who is also the present pastor.

In the early history of Oxford a Baptist congregation was formed, the Church purchasing in-lot No. 126, on which they erected a neat frame building as a place of worship. The land where the house stood is now owned by P. D. MATSON. The Rev. Mr. SPENCER was pastor of this society in 1824. He was a man of many fine qualities, and in all his intercourse with the people won their affectionate regard. There were but a few members, Mr. FARR and wife being among the number. In consequence of death and removals the society ceased to exist practically after 1826.

One peculiarity of the house was that in the middle of it there was a large brick floor on which the fire was built. The smoke escaped through holes in the roof made for that purpose. The house was thirty by forty feet -- two stories.

Soon after the Miami University began to assume importance, it seemed as though all the other Churches but the Presbyterian were to have a precarious existence. This was especially true with the Baptist, and since that time the society has never been re-established.

On the 6th of January, 1827, the Legislature of the State of Ohio passed a law authorizing the trustees of the Miami University to lease at nominal rent to the directors of the school district of Oxford, a lot of ground not exceeding one acre, for the location of a school-house. The house, a brick building twenty by forty feet, one-story, was accordingly erected on lot No. 33. This, after it became too small for school purposes, was sold with the lot to the trustees of the Catholic Church, and used by them until 1867, when the present house was erected. Among those who were active in the organization and establishment of this society were Michael TAYLOR with his brothers, Michael FOLEY, Byron KELLY, Nicholas HESTER, and Charles FYE. The succession of pastors since 1852 have been: Rev. Messrs. O'CONNER, DARCO, who led the people in the erection of the present building, which cost $8,000; DALY, who remained nine years, and D. V. CROWLEY, who came in 1880, from Cumminsville, Ohio. This denomination has about eight hundred and fifty members, many of whom reside at a distance of six or eight miles from their place of worship. A handsome parsonage -- a two-story brick -- and a cemetery of two or three acres are connected with the church edifice.

In 1818 the Presbyterian congregation was formed in Oxford under the direction of the Rev. James HUGHES, of the grammar school. He continued to preach to this people occasionally until his decease in the Spring of 1821, from which time they were only supplied occasionally by traveling preachers, until the year 1825, when the congregation was organized in a more regular manner by Robert H. BISHOP, D. D., who continued to preach to them for several years in the college chapel.

The Rev. James HUGHES, A. M., had charge of a congregation at Buffalo and Short Creek, in the State of Virginia, and preached his farewell sermon to them at West Liberty on the 11th of September, 1814. His text was Rom. xv, 13. The sermon was published at Charlestown, Virginia, in 1814, and has this preface: "The following discourse is presented to the people of the congregation of Short Creek and Lower Buffalo, as a small testimony of the sincere regard of their former pastor -- James HUGHES."

After the organization of the Church it was several years before it had any particular place of meeting. Sometimes the Church met in the college chapel, and sometimes at private residences. On the 22nd of November, 1831, Joseph WOODRUFF purchased lot No. 300, at the price of $136, for the use of the congregation, and in 1833 the present or old meeting-house was erected at a cost of a little over $6,000. The house is fifty by seventy feet, and has a high basement story. The height from the ground to the eaves is about thirty feet. It has seats capable of holding four hundred an eighty persons. By a law of the State, dated the 15th of January, 1833, Benjamin C. SWAN, James MONTGOMERY, Abraham J. CHITTENDEN, John HARDING, James R. HUGHES, C. H. SPINNINGS, Charles BARROWS, Harry LEWIS, and Joseph WOODRUFF, and their associates, were incorporated under the name of the "First Presbyterian Church of Oxford, in the County of Butler."

Dr. BISHOP was succeeded as pastor by the Rev. Henry LITTLE, who continued for two or three years. Then the Rev. George B. BISHOP officiated for about two years; and after him the Rev. William GRAHAM officiated until about 1840, when he joined the New School Presbyterians, and severed his connection with the former Church. The Rev. John W. SCOTT afterward preached to the congregation for a few years, and was succeeded by others. The Rev. Henry MALTBY became the pastor some time in 1850, and remained some two years. In 1857 and the earlier part of 1858, the society was supplied by J. J. BURGETT, W. ROGERS, Dr. SCOTT, and Professors SWING and ELLIOTT. In 1858 the Rev J. B. STEWART was called to the pastorate, and was with them some two years and a half, after which the Rev. Wm. ROGERS, a returned missionary, who had taken up his residence at Oxford, was engaged as stated supply to 1864, and was followed by Rev. Mr. HAIGHT in a two years' pastorate. The Rev. John CROSIER succeeded Mr. HAIGHT, and was pastor until November 23, 1869, at which time the two separate bodies then existing as the First Presbyterian Church of Oxford and the Second Presbyterian Church of Oxford decided to unite in one Church organization, and gave a call, as thus organized, to the Rev. A. H. YOUNG, who held this office for nearly three years thereafter. In November, 1872, the Rev. Charles FULLER was installed, remaining about two years, and was followed by the Rev Jacob NORRIS, who stayed until July 9, 1876, when he resigned to accept the professorship of mathematics in Wabash College, Indiana. On the 13th of the following November the Rev. Francis M. WOOD was chosen pastor, who was succeeded in May, 1880, by the Rev. George G. MITCHELL, the present incumbent. The present membership is about two hundred and fifty.