Fremont New York History page 18

Last of the Stone Men

John Kenney maintained his interest in blue stone to the end. Probably because he loved it. He never lost interest in the personal welfare of the men who had worked for him. When one of these came to him - and there were many - with a hard luck story, John Kenney would put him to work in the quarry, even though he saw no market for the stone. Mrs. Wm. H. Lawrence of Jeffersonville lived near Mr. And Mrs. Kenney one winter in Florida. This practice of Mr. Kenney had been discussed. He admitted it was not good business practice but it made him feel better here as he struck himself over his heart with his big right hand. That statement expresses better than so many words John Kenney’s attitude toward the men who had worked with him for so many years.
I want to interpose here a story of pioneer days that had been written up and which I once was privileged to read. It was entitled The Female Hunter and was the story of a girl who hunted in Rock Valley and nearby Fremont. It covered a period of many years of the woman’s life and told of the hardship she suffered. Some one who knows more about it may follow through with more of the story.

Early Fremont Churches

Quinlan makes mention of the fact that Fremont had only two churches - the Methodist Church at Fremont Center and the Catholic Church at Obernburg. The Methodist Church was English speaking. The Catholic Church was German. The Methodist Church never had a resident pastor and was always supplied by the church at Callicoon. In 1892 the Franciscan religious order of Catholic priests came to Obernburg. The priests’ residence had extra rooms added to it to provide a school for boys who aspired to study for the Catholic priesthood. The magnificent institution of St. Joseph’s Seraphic Seminary had its beginning at Obernburg.
Mileses next built a church under the leadership of a German minister who lived between Mileses and Hortonville, (I can’t recall his name). Rev. Sammuel Muery served it for years to be followed by Rev. John E. Straub, a Dutch Reformed minister of Callicoon Center. It then affiliated with the Lutheran Church and is now supplied by the Lutheran Church at Jeffersonville. The Catholics at Long Eddy interested the Franciscan Fathers at Callicoon in a church there and St. Patrick’s was built. A Methodist Church was built, too, and for many years there was an Episcopal Chapel there. This was followed by another Catholic Church at Hankins, St. Francis, and a Methodist Church followed.