Ray Bell Groveville History 7
29/December/2024
GROWING UP IN GROVEVILLE
Good morning, I was asked if I would tell a few stories growing up in Groveville when I was young.
Before I start about Groveville, I would like to tell you two things about Yardville. Did you know we had two very famous people that stayed in the Yardville Hotel on the corner of Route 156 and the Yardville Allentown Road? They were Buffalo Bill Cody and Annie Oakley, who were visiting at the same time. Buffalo Bill was an Indian fighter in the west and Annie Oakley was a sharp shooter. The second one is a Golf Course in Yardville off of South Broad Street. At that time, it was the biggest and most beautiful golf course in New Jersey. Sunny Brae and Dover Park now stand in its place.
Now Back to Groveville. I was born and raised here since 1936. On Sunday mornings our church would have 50 to 70 members attending our church services. When a. David Seeland was our pastor. We had two services, one at 8:30 and another at 11 o’clock.
I will now talk First about Groveville Fire Company and then in closing about our youth group in the late 60s and early 70s. Two days before Christmas Eve the fireman would meet at the firehouse to fill over 400 stockings with a candy cane, apple, orange and an 8 ounce box of hard candy. On Christmas Eve, the children from Groveville and Yardville area came to the firehouse around 5:30 and waited for Santa Claus who arrived at 6:30 to meet each one and hand out the stockings. To me that was the start of Christmas for the children.
The other story goes back to 1969 – 1971, when we had a youth group with more than 25 teenagers from the area. This group was the MYF. A couple months before Christmas. They decided to put on a play about the journey and the birth of Jesus. I knew a farmer in Chesterfield who had donkeys. I stopped to see if our youth group could use one of his donkeys. He said yes and would deliver it that night. The youth group set everything up. The manger was set up on the side of the pastor’s house. They had a man on the roof of the Educational Building with a spotlight as the Star of Bethlehem navigated the story of the birth of Jesus. They had three wisemen, lots of shepherds, Joseph and Mary, with Mary sitting on the donkey. They came up the driveway across the lawn to the manger. What a site to see that night. We had people standing on both sidewalks and in the street watching these teenagers putting on their play that night.
I would not trade those times living here in Groveville for all of the Tea in China. I’m very proud that I was born and raised here and still have all of you as my Church friends.
In closing, I Thank You and Reverend Clifton today. God bless you, this church and the United States of America. This year if you see a Veteran just say “Thank You for your service”. May peace be with you.