Rev. Solomon Eby^{[1, 2, 3]}

1834 - 1931  (96 years)

• Name	Solomon Eby
  Prefix	Rev.
  Born	15 May 1834	Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
  Gender	Male
  FindAGrave	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/44339112
  Interesting	story, religion
  Residence	1851	Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [7]
  	Mennonist
  Occupation	1852	Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [6]
  	labourer for Moses Springer
  Residence	1852	Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [6]
  Occupation	1874	Bloomingdale Mennonite Church, Bloomingdale, Waterloo, Ontario
  	minister
  	The majority of the congregation joined the Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites, a group organized by Solomon Eby on May 15, 1874, and from 1875-1879 the meeting house was used almost exclusively by them. It was here that the conference was held on March 23, 1875 in which the New Mennonites and the Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites joined together as the United Mennonites. However, because the original deed to the church property had been lost or perhaps never duly executed, a new deed was drawn up on January 15, 1879, giving ownership of building and property to the group of more conservative Mennonites in the congregation.. 1a 1aAmbrose, Rosemary. Waterloo County Churches A Research Guide to Churches Established Before 1900. Kitchener, Ontario, Canada: Waterloo-Wellington Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society, 1993. [used the kind permission of Rosemary Ambrose 2011]
  Occupation	1886	Breslau Missionary Church, Breslau, Ontario
  	minister
  Residence	1911	Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [8]
  	New Mennonite
  Retired	1911	Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [8]
  Residence	1921	Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [9]
  	Penticostal
  Retired	1921	Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [9]
  Residence	1931	54 Edward St., Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Eby ID Number	00031-2715
  Died	10 Feb 1931	Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [10, 11]
  Buried	First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [10, 11]
  Person ID	I21857	Generations
  Last Modified	6 Apr 2024

  
  

  Father	Martin Eby,   b. 4 Aug 1807, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 13 Jun 1891, Port Elgin, Saugeen Twp., Bruce Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 83 years)
  Mother	Catherine Weber,   b. 28 Apr 1812, Earl Twp., Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania ,   d. 2 Dec 1890, Port Elgin, Saugeen Twp., Bruce Co., Ontario, Canada  (Age 78 years)
  Married	3 Mar 1832  [2, 12]
  Family ID	F4616	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Catharine "Catherine" Shantz,   b. 17 May 1836, Freeport (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 28 Feb 1917  (Age 80 years)
  Married	17 Jun 1855	, Ontario, Canada   [13]
  Children	1. Lovina Eby,   b. , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Bef 1896   2. Priscilla Eby,   b. , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Bef 1896   3. Franklin Eby,   b. , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Bef 1896   4. Lydia Eby,   b. Nov 1857, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 18 Apr 1940  (Age ~ 82 years)   5. Hannah Eby,   b. 1859, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Bef 1896  (Age < 36 years)   6. Josiah Eby,   b. 1864, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 1946  (Age 82 years)   7. Jeremiah S. Eby,   b. 1864, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 1951  (Age 87 years)   8. Magdelena Eby,   b. 19 Jan 1867, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 19 Jun 1888, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 21 years)   9. J?o Eby,   b. 1868/1869 (?), , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Yes, date unknown   10. Fannie Eby,   b. 1869, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. Bef 1896  (Age < 26 years)   11. Sarah Ann Eby,   b. 6 Dec 1872, , Ontario, Canada ,   d. 8 Oct 1902  (Age 29 years)   12. Nellie Eby,   b. 18 Mar 1877, Port Elgin, Saugeen Twp., Bruce Co., Ontario, Canada ,   d. 3 Feb 1925, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 47 years)   13. Ida May Eby,   b. 18 May 1879, Saugeen Twp., Bruce Co., Ontario, Canada ,   d. 9 May 1956  (Age 76 years)
  Last Modified	7 Apr 2024
  Family ID	F5019	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Photos

  Eby, Solomon - 1834-1931.jpg https://www.gameo.org/index.asp?content=https://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/E293ME.html

  
  

• Notes

  Rev. Solomon Eby, "the eldest in the family, was born May 15th, 1834. When a young man he joined the Old Mennonite Church, of which body, some years thereafter, he was ordained minister. Some twenty years ago, on account of some difference of opinion between him and the authorities of the church, he was separated from that body, and afterwards became one of the instruments in the organization of what is at present known as the church of the Mennonite Brethren in Christ, usually called New Mennonites, of which body he was the first Presiding Elder. He was re-elected as Presiding Elder for quite a number of years in succession, but at present he is stationed on the Bethel, Ontario, field of labor where he is doing a grand work for the Lord. As a minister he has few superiors, speaks in both languages, and his sermons are full of life and spirit, refreshing to souls craving for spiritual manna. Many have been brought from darkness unto light through his labors. May he prove faithful unto the end, and when done here receive that crown of glory promised to all who do the Lord's will. He is married to Catharine Shantz and has had a family of twelve children, of whom six are dead. Their names are as follows: Lydia, Hannah (dead), Lovina (dead), Priscilla (dead), Jeremiah, Josiah, Magdalena (dead), Fannie (dead), Sarah Ann, Franklin (dead), Nellie, and Ida." Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.]. ____________________ Eby, Solomon (1834-1931) Solomon Eby (15 May 1834-1931) was one of the founders of the Mennonite Brethren in Christ Church (now Evangelical Missionary Church), the son of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Cressman) Eby. He was born May 15, 1834 in Waterloo Co., ON, was raised on the farm, and attended public school. On June 17, 1855 he married Catharine Shantz, and they had 12 children. He moved to Port Elgin, ON. In 1858 he was ordained to the ministry in the Mennonite Church, and served in that capacity for 14 years. According to his testimony, he was not converted until eleven years after his ordination (1869, Port Elgin, ON). Following his conversion he became a zealous advocate for a definite religious experience. Eventually he was expelled from the Mennonite Church, and in 1874 he and Daniel Brenneman of Indiana organized the Reformed Mennonites, a group that later became a part of the Mennonite Brethren in Christ Church (now the Evangelical Missionary Church). For various terms totaling 18 years Eby was presiding elder in the Ontario Conference, and for 14 years he served as pastor, holding pastorates at Breslau, Elmwood, New Dundee, Markham, and Kitchener circuits. He was a member of the first six general conferences, and was chairman of the first one (Zionsville, PA, 1885). Eby retired from active work in 1906. A few years later he became interested in the Pentecostal movement, and in 1912 he transferred his membership to that organization. He died in 1931. Eby, Solomon (1834-1931) - GAMEO. (2018). Gameo.org. Retrieved 26 September 2018, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Eby,_Solomon_(1834-1931) ___________________________________ Wanner Mennonite Church Begun: 1829 A small wooden meeting house was built in 1829 on a corner of the farm belonging to Samuel Bechtel which was located in the vicinity of the present-day regional headquarters of the Ministry of Natural Resources near the intersection of Highways 24 and 401. The site for this community meeting house, as well as a school and a burial ground, had been chosen on August 8, 1829. The land was donated by Samuel Bechtel and his wife Barbara (Baumann) on March 15, 1830. A new meeting house, of white brick, was built in 1837 on the east side of Henry Wanner's farm, somewhat north of the first meeting house. Meetings at first were held every eight weeks. The deed of land for the meeting house known as Wanner's was dated October 15, 1837. Early preachers were David Sherk, who had been ordained by Benjamin Eby in July 1837, Jacob Bretz, Jr., and Joseph Hagey. Joseph Hagey was ordained bishop in 1851. During his time divisions occurred in the church by a surge of enthusiasm for a Methodist form of revivalism. Solomon Eby of Port Elgin, who announced his own conversion in December 1869, was leader of a group which believed that members could be converted through participation in revival meetings. John Baer of Wanner's became associated with Solomon Eby, and was compelled to leave the church in the spring of 1874, as were Eby and his other followers. The new church movement resulted in organization conferences which culminated in the conference on March 23, 1875 at Bloomingdale where New Mennonites and Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites joined together as United Mennonites. The United Mennonites favored revival meetings, Sunday Schools and prayer meetings, and were opposed to the use of alcohol and tobacco. The date of construction of the meeting house which replaced the one built in 1837 is somewhat in doubt. It is possible that a new building was erected in the early 1870s; it is also possible that the 1837 building only underwent extensive renovations at that time. There is no doubt, however, that a new brown brick church was built in 1938. An education wing was added in 1969. The earliest Mennonite Sunday School in North America was begun in 1842 and was held jointly by the Wanner and Hagey Meeting Houses. It was discontinued after a short time because of a division of opinion within the congregations. An attempt was made later, in the mid-1860s, to begin another Sunday School, but this, too, did not last long. Many years later, on June 10, 1896, a meeting was held to organize a Sunday School. Anson Groh was appointed superintendent.. Waterloo County Churches A Research Guide To Churches Established Before 1900 By Rosemary Ambrose __________________________________________ Bloomingdale (Schneider or Snyder) Mennonite Church Services began in 1824, and in 1826 a first meeting house, known as Schneider's or Snyder's, was built northwest of Bloomingdale, and east of the Grand River, on land (part Lot 7) donated by Jacob Schneider. Henry Weber was the first minister to this congregation, from 1824 until 1854. He was followed by Moses Erb who was ordained minister to the congregation on April 14, 1854. The church building was primarily used as a school in the beginning; the first teacher was John Bauman from Pennsylvania. Church services were held in homes. Dorothy Sauder, in her 1972 history of the church, states that "Prior to 1860, Schneider's was the only [Mennonite] place of worship on the Grand River and, until the 1889 Martin schism, it was one with the Martin congregation with ministers serving both groups" (Sauder 1972: 8). Services were held on a two-week schedule, at one meeting house and then at the other. Snyder's was affected by division in the church in the early 1870s. The majority of the congregation joined the Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites, a group organized by Solomon Eby on May 15, 1874, and from 1875-1879 the meeting house was used almost exclusively by them. It was here that the conference was held on March 23, 1875 in which the New Mennonites and the Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites joined together as the United Mennonites. However, because the original deed to the church property had been lost or perhaps never duly executed, a new deed was drawn up on January 15, 1879, giving ownership of building and property to the group of more conservative Mennonites in the congregation. The present church was built in 1878 on approximately the same site as the first meeting house. Renovations to the church building were carried out in 1951. One main entrance, to replace the two separate entrances, was part of the changes made. Further improvements were made in 1985. The name of the church is now Bloomingdale Mennonite Church. Waterloo County Churches A Research Guide To Churches Established Before 1900 By Rosemary Ambrose _______________________ Breslau Missionary Church Meetings are reported to have been held in 1872 in a building at the corner of Woolwich Street and Mader Lane by a group who were followers of Solomon Eby. Conferences to consider reorganization of the church were held in 1874 and 1875, the most important of which was considered to have been the meeting at the Bloomingdale Mennonite Church on May 23, 1875. Members of the New Mennonites and the Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites joined together at that meeting as the United Mennonites. At a meeting in Blair in 1879 a union, called the Evangelical United Mennonites, was formed from the United Mennonites and the Evangelical Mennonites. Four years later, in 1883, the Ohio Brethren in Christ (Tunker) joined with the Evangelical United Mennonites to form the Mennonite Brethren in Christ. Dedication services were held on Christmas Day, 1882, for the new Breslau Mennonite Church which had been built during the year. Henry Goudie was minister to the congregation from 1881-1884. He was followed by Peter Geiger (1884-1885) and Frank Moyer (1885-1886). Solomon Eby, a member of the congregation who was minister from 1886-1889, had been one of the organizers on May 15, 1874 of the Reforming Mennonites. On May 6, 1959 a decision was made to construct an 1800 square foot addition to the church. The sanctuary was enlarged and new pews were installed in 1978; dedication was in September of that year. Rev. Leonard DeWitt, president of the Missionary Church was guest speaker on Sunday, November 21, 1982, when the church's 100th Anniversary service was held. Of interest: the sign eteched in the glass above the doors on the northwest side of the back section reads "United Missionary Church." Waterloo County Churches A Research Guide To Churches Established Before 1900 By Rosemary Ambrose ____________________________ Pioneer Minister Dies At Kitchener Another link with the pioneer history of Waterloo County was severed when Rev. Solomon Eby, one of the founders of the Mennonite Brethren in Christ Church, and Kitchener's oldest minister died in his 97th year. Death occurred after a comparatively short illness. Until a year ago deceased was able to read the finest print without glasses. Rev. Mr. Eby was born in 1834, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Martin Eby, who settled in Waterloo County in 1804, coming here from Pennsylvania. He was ordained a minister in 1858 at the age of 24. He continued as a preacher in the Old Mennonite church until 1872, when he was excommunicated because of the radically different doctrines which he was promulgating at that time. When this occurred he gathered others who were of the same belief and formed the Mennonite Brethren in Christ Church. He was a leader in this church for years, serving 18 years as presiding elder of the Ontario Conference and filling pastorates at Breslau, Elmwood, Bethel, Markham and Kitchener. In 1912 he withdrew from this denomination, having embraced the doctrines of the Pentecostal Assembly, of which he was a member at the time of his death. He was an ordained minister for 78 years, but was not an active preacher for the past 15 years, although he frequently delivered short sermons and exhortations up to a year ago. He is survived by four children, Josiah and Jeremiah, two sons; Miss Lydia and Mrs. John Kimmel, all of Kitchener. New Hamburg Independent, February 6, 1931

  
  

• Sources

  [S3] Book - Vol I A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 583. [S3] Book - Vol I A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 602. [S10] Book - Vol II A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 438. [S271] Census - ON, Bruce - 1881, Saugeen, Bruce North, Ontario Film 1375911 District 177 Sub-district C Division 2 Page Number 14 Household Number 51+. [S47] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Kitchener - First Mennonite CC#4507 Internet link First Mennonite Cemetery online. The Lord is / my shepherd / Eby / Rev. Solomon Eby / 1834-1931 / husband of / Catherine Shantz / 1836-1917 / their daughter / Lydia Eby / 1940 / Burial Card: Solomon, Feb.10, 1931; Lydia, Apr.18, 1940) [S131] Census - ON, Waterloo, Waterloo Twp. - 1851, Div 4 Pg 18. [S141] Census - ON, Waterloo, Woolwich - 1851, Div. 4, Pg. 93. [S340] Census - ON, Waterloo, Berlin - 1911, Div. 26 Pg 9. [S2088] Census - ON, Waterloo, Waterloo North - 1921, Sub District 5 Page 19. [S3231] Find A Grave, E, R., Cemetery, F., America, N., Municipality, W., & Cemetery, F. (1834). Rev Solomon E. Eby (1834-1931) - Find A Grave... Retrieved 13 May 2020, from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/44339112/solomon-e_-eby. [S47] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Kitchener - First Mennonite CC#4507 Internet link First Mennonite Cemetery online. [S10] Book - Vol II A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 571. [S3] Book - Vol I A Biographical History of Waterloo Township and other townships of the county : being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin..., 603.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 15 May 1834 - Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - Mennonist - 1851 - Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Occupation - labourer for Moses Springer - 1852 - Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - 1852 - Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Married - 17 Jun 1855 - , Ontario, Canada Occupation - minister - 1874 - Bloomingdale Mennonite Church, Bloomingdale, Waterloo, Ontario Occupation - minister - 1886 - Breslau Missionary Church, Breslau, Ontario Residence - New Mennonite - 1911 - Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Retired - 1911 - Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - Penticostal - 1921 - Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Retired - 1921 - Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - 10 Feb 1931 - Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Buried - - First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth