The History of Cayuga County 1789-1879 page 308
Town of Montezuma / Town of Mentz

had a resident pastor.  They number about thirty-seven families, and are now negotiating for a lot, on which they purpose erecting a new edifice.  Father James O'Connor was a very acceptable pastor of this Church, but in what year we could not determine.

The Free Methodist Church, of Montezuma village, was formed about 1869, in which year the church edifice was built by Bolivar Beach, in whom the title is vested.  The building cost about $1,500, and will seat about 300 persons.  Among the first members were Bolivar Beach and wife, Ellen, John Stahlnecker and wife, Catharine, and daughter Catharine, Wm. Reed, Roswell R. Jacobs, Mrs. Almeda Freeland, Thos. Allen and Mrs. Benjamin Helmer.  The present number of members is twelve.  Meetings were held some two years previous to the building of the church, in the Baptist Church and the school-house.  The first pastor was John Glen, who remained one year. He was succeeded by John T. James, a Mr. McDougall, John Osborn, and Moses M. Downing, each of whom remained one year.  Rev. Mr. Olney of Port Byron is the present pastor.  They have not been continuous in their service, and the chuch is in a feeble condition.

Chapter XXXVII

Town of Mentz

Mentz is an interior town, situated north of the center of the County and is bounded on the north by Seneca River, which separates it from the town of Conquest, on the east by Brutus, on the south by Throop, and on the west by Montezuma. 

The surface is moderately hilly, the highest elevations being in the southern part. The north part partakes more of the character of the marshy tract which borders the river. The hills are susceptible of cultivation to their summits. The streams are the Owasco Outlet, which flows north through the central part, and Spring Brook, which crosses the south east part, both emptying into the Seneca River, the former in this town, the latter in Brutus. 

The underlying rocks are the red shale, gypsum and limestones of the Onondaga salt group, which rests upon the Niagara group. The gypsum does not appear in layers or beds; on the contrary it occurs in insulated masses, as though the particles of each mass had been attracted by a common center, but greatly modified by disturbing causes, so that the forms which it assumed were irregular and not globular masses. In many localities there appears to be two ranges of these masses, or plaster beds, as they are termed, generally separated by the vermicular rock, the hopper shaped cavities, and other less characteristic masses. The hopper cavities were noticed at the hill and roadside to the south of Port Byron, below the gypsum. In no part of the range is there a vertical section, of any great height, of the gypseous masses exposed; and, therefore, there is no absolute certainty of their being in ranges, or of the number of ranges, though certain localities prove both. The disposition of the whole third, or gypseous, deposit to a stratiform arrangement favors a like state for the gypsum, but does not define the number of ranges. 

The plaster hills range from east to west through the County. They are more or less rounded and short, rendering some portions of their plaster very accessible, the layers in which the masses exist having but a slight inclination. 

The vermicular lime-rock is essentially calcareous, and was first made know by Prof. Eaton. It is a porous or cellular rock, strongly resembling porous or cellular lava. Its name is due to there having been observed in it several holes, lines with a kind of tubular calcareous shell or crust, in some measure resembling the tubular covering of the Serpula, which is so often seen perforating coral rocks. In color it is a dark-gray or blue rock, perforated everywhere with curvilinear holes; but very compact between the holes. The holes or cells vary from microscopic to half an inch in diameter. The cells generally are very irregular, and communicate in most instances with one another. Some are spherical, and contain spherical crusts. The resemblance of no small part of the rock to a porous lava is perfect; but if the cells in lava are caused by gaseous matter, as is commonly supposed, then these had a different origin. In Bull’s plaster quarry in the town of Lenox, the structure of

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