[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 135 (Friday, August 12, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E843]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      CELEBRATING 250 YEARS OF THE LAUREL HILL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

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                         HON. GUY RESCHENTHALER

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, August 12, 2022

  Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Laurel Hill 
Presbyterian Church and congratulate its congregation for 250 years of 
service to God and their community in southwestern Pennsylvania.
  The Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church was built in 1772 by Scotch-Irish 
immigrants, and the original log structure was the first Presbyterian 
Church west of the Allegheny Mountains. The church was rebuilt in 1782, 
1852, and 1898 as the congregation grew. Where the church once featured 
beeswax-coated windows, its sanctuary is now home to 110-year-old 
English stained-glass windows and an ornate chimney.
  In 2012, Pittsburgh's Heinz History Center featured the Laurel Hill 
Presbyterian Church for its profound influence on southwestern 
Pennsylvania. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the church funded the 
Laurel Hill Academy. William A. Clark attended this private school and 
later became a United States Senator from Montana.
  The church's cemetery serves as a testament to the history of the 
region and our Nation. The 7-acre burial ground is the final resting 
place for veterans of the French and Indian War, with several graves 
belonging to Native Americans. Other headstones mark the resting places 
of those who joined the fight for independence during the American 
Revolution. The Laurel Hill Cemetery is also home to Americans who 
fought to preserve our Union during the Civil War. The headstones of 
these veterans serve as a reminder of the struggles that strengthened 
our great Nation.
  Madam Speaker, the story of the Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church is 
uniquely American. The church has stood as a testament to its faith for 
250 years, and I look forward to what the next chapter has in store for 
its congregation and community.

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