  There are in Ohio 1,343 townships (see Table I) which are wholly or partly made up of open country or villages of less than 2,500 inhabitants. (This number of inhabitants having been selected by the United States Census as marking the line between urban and rural, we have necessarily followed.) In the strictly rural townships and the rural sections of townships which are partly urban or suburban, there is altogether a population of more than two million persons, and 6,642 churches. These figures give us, on an average, 1,516 persons and five rural churches to a township, and 307 persons to a church. Of townships which border on cities and towns of more than 2,500 persons, there are 173. In townships of this class there are 342,077 persons and 582 churches, while for each township there are 1,977 persons and three churches, or 587 persons to a church. It is presumable that many persons in these suburban townships attend the churches in the neighboring cities or large towns. If we subtract the suburban townships from the 1,343 mentioned above, there remain 1,170 townships which are strictly rural. Unless otherwise stated all deductions have been drawn exclusively from these rural townships. The 1,170 strictly rural townships contain nearly 1,700,000 persons and 6,060 churches. They have, on an average, 1,448 persons and five churches to a township and 280 persons to a church. Although there are 6,060 churches in the 1,170 strictly rural townships, their membership records are so often incomplete that satisfactory figures were found for only 4,941 churches. The membership of 3,351 of these churches, or 68 per cent, is not more than 100; in 2,704, or 55 per TABLE I Population, Average Number of Persons and Churches, and Average Number of Persons to a Church, by Townships
In the suburban rural townships and rural sections of townships containing cities and large towns, 72 per cent of the churches have a membership of not more than 100, 56 per cent of not more than 75, and 34 per cent of not more than 50. Altogether, in rural townships and rural sections of other townships, there are 5,392 churches out of 6,642 for which membership data are available. Of these 3,776, or 68 per cent, have a membership of not more than 100; 2,956, or 55 per cent, a membership of not more than 75; and 1,860, or 36 per cent, have a membership of not more than 50. The number of churches in rural townships whose membership records are not available is 6,060 less 4,941, or 1,119. If we apply to these also the percentages just given for the churches with available membership records, we find that of the total of 6,060 churches in the strictly rural townships, 4,110 have a membership of not more than 100; 3,316 have a membership of not more than 75; while 2,227 have a membership of not more than 50. Since the larger churches as a rule are more careful in keeping their records than the smaller ones, the conclusions drawn from these calculations are well within the limits of truth. By the same method we find that in the suburban rural townships and rural sections of townships containing cities and towns of more than TABLE II Churches Classified According to Number of their Members
In 313, or 27 per cent, of the strictly rural townships, no church has a resident minister (see Table III); in 575, or 39 per cent of the villages, no church has a resident minister; and in 4,007, or 66 per cent, of the churches, there is no resident minister. Only 982 churches, or 16 per cent, have the full time service of a minister; 1,581 churches, or 26 per cent, have one-half the service of a minister; 5,026, or 83 per cent, have one-half time service or less; 3,445, or 57 per cent, have one-third time service or less; 2,320, or 39 per cent, have one-fourth time service or less; while 721, or 12 per cent of the 6,060 churches in the strictly rural townships have no regular service of a minister at all. The percentages do not materially differ in the suburban townships. In the combined total of 1,343 rural townships and suburban townships which contain sections of open country and villages of less than 2,500 inhabitants, we find that 335, or 25 per cent, of the townships have no churches served by a resident minister; that in 634, or 40 per cent, of the villages there is no resident minister; that 4,431, or 67 per cent, of the churches have no resident minister; that only 1,065 churches, or 16 per cent, have the full time service of a minister; that 1,766, or 27 per cent, have one-half the service of a minister; that 5,521, or 84 per cent, have one-half time service or less; that 3,755, or 57 per cent, have one-third TABLE III Amount of Ministerial Service by Townships, Villages and Churches
Of the 6,060 churches in the wholly rural townships, 3,253, or 54 per cent, are in villages whose inhabitants number from 51 to 2,500 persons, while 2,807, or 46 per cent, are in the open country. (See Table IV.) In Of the 6,642 country churches in Ohio, therefore, 3,451, or 52 per cent, are in villages containing from 51 to 2,500 inhabitants, and 3,191, or 48 per cent, in the open country. In the strictly rural districts, 1,207, or 20 per cent, of the churches are in villages or towns of moderate size, having from 501 to 2,500 inhabitants, while 2,046, or 34 per cent, are in small villages of from 51 to 500. No less than 4,853, or 80 per cent, of the churches in the strictly rural districts are either in the open country or in the small villages of 500 inhabitants or less. In addressing ourselves to the rural church problem, therefore, we are almost exclusively concerned with the smaller villages and the open country. TABLE IV Number of Churches in Villages and in the Open Country
We have assumed 50 persons as the line which separates a small village from the open country, just as the United States Census has assumed 2,500 persons as the lower limit of the town. In rural Ohio there are 1,477 villages whose inhabitants number 51 to 2,500 persons. (See Table V.) Of these, 673, or 46 per cent, have from 51 to 200 inhabitants; Of the smallest villages, or those of 51 to 200 persons, 234, or 35 per cent, have one or more ministers living near the church he serves and 270 ministers in all; while 440, or 65 per cent, have no resident ministers whatever. In the 487 country villages whose inhabitants number from 201 to 500 persons, 360, or 74 per cent, have one or more ministers and 527 ministers in all, while there are 127, or 26 per cent, without resident ministers. Of the 317 villages whose inhabitants number more than 500 persons, 308, or 97 per cent, have one or more resident pastors and altogether 896 ministers—(which is 53 per cent of the whole number of ministers living in villages), while only 9, or 3 per cent, are without any ministers at all. Of the 1,477 country villages of all sizes, 901, or 61 per cent, have one or more resident ministers and in all 1,693 ministers, while 576, or 39 per cent, of the villages have no minister living in them. These 1,477 villages have only 3,253, or 54 per cent, of the churches, but they have 1,693, or 82 per cent, of the ministers; while the open country, with 2,807, or 46 per cent, of the churches, has only 360, or 18 per cent, of the resident ministers. More than 87 per cent of the open country churches, or 2,447 of them, are without a resident minister. In addition to the ministers here included, there are about 350 who do not live near any one of their churches, but for the most part in the cities and towns. This number includes many student preachers. On Map 26, page 117, the distribution of the villages is represented graphically. Map 26 TABLE V Resident Ministers in Strictly Rural Townships, in the Open Country, and in Villages
In the Methodist Episcopal Church in Ohio there were, at the time of the Annual Conference in the autumn of 1917, 664 pastors of country churches (see Table VI); 490, or 74 per cent of them, were about to begin their first or second year’s service in their charges; only 174, or 26 per cent, had had two years’ acquaintance with their parishes; 318, or 48 per cent, were beginning their first year of service in their charges; 172, or 26 per cent, were beginning their second year; 110, or 16 per cent, were beginning their third year; while there were only 64, or less than 10 per cent, who had been as long as three years in the parishes they were serving. Only 8, or a little more than 1 per cent, had served as long as five years in their parishes, while only one man had served more than seven years. TABLE VI Terms of Service of Methodist Episcopal Country Ministers, 1917
In Table VII it appears that in 2 of the 1,170 strictly rural townships there is a church for each 99 persons or less; that in 227 townships there are from 100 to 199 persons to a church; that in 446 there are from 200 to 299 persons; that in 270 townships there are from 300 to 399; that in 122 townships there are from 400 to 499; that in 53 townships there are from 500 to 599; and that in 45 townships there are 600 persons or more to a church. In other words, in 675, or 58 per cent, of the townships, there are less than 300 persons, men, women, and children, to a church; in 945, or 81 per cent, of the townships, there are less than 400; in 1,067, or 91 per cent, there are less than 500; while in 103, or only 9 per cent, there are more than 500 persons to a church. TABLE VII Average Number of Persons to a Church in 1,170 Rural Townships
In Table VIII a comparison is made between city and country. According to the United States Census of 1910 the population of Ohio numbered 4,767,121, the churches 9,890, or 482 persons to a church. According to the data gathered in this survey in the 1,170 strictly rural townships the churches number 6,060. In 1910 the population in these townships numbered 1,693,894. Assuming that there has been no change in the population since 1910, there is now one church for each 280 persons. But from 1900 to 1910 there was a decline of more than 3 per cent in the population of these townships. If we assume that this decline has continued since 1910 there are to-day on the average less than 280 men, women, and children, church people and non-church people, to give and do all that must be given and done for each country church in Ohio. In such a state of facts, poverty and weakness are inevitable. Upon the same assumption of no change in population or number of churches since 1910, there are in the 173 suburban townships 342,077 persons and 582 churches, or 587 persons to a church, while in the large towns and cities there are 2,731,150 persons and only 3,248 churches, or 841 persons to a church. TABLE VIII Average Number of Persons to a Church
Complete data for ministers’ salaries are not available, but the amount of the minister’s pay is indicated by the figures in the official records of the two denominations which have the largest number of rural churches. There were in 1917, 688 pastors of rural churches of the Methodist Episcopal Church. (See Table IX.) These received, on an average, $993 per year, or $857 and free use of parsonage. Six hundred and sixty-two ministers, or 96 per cent, received less than $1,500 per year; 513, or 75 per cent, received less than $1,200 per year; while 303, or 44 per cent, received less than $1,000. In the United Brethren Church, according to the records of its Conferences, in 1917 there were 188 pastors of rural churches. (See Table X.) Their average salary was $787, or $680 and free use of parsonage; not one received as much as $1,500 salary; 171, or all but 17, received less than $1,200; while 135, or 72 per cent, received less than $1,000. Not only are ministers given inadequate pay, but the rate of its increase in relation to the increase in the cost of living gives no promise of its becoming adequate. In the Ohio Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church the average salary of the country minister in 1905 was $733, including the estimated rental value of parsonage, while in 1915 it was $915, making an increase of It is probable, on the other hand, that the farmers have a constantly increasing ability to pay, for in the ten-year period from 1900 to 1910 there was, according to the United States Census reports, an increase in the total value of farm property in the State of nearly 60 per cent. TABLE IX Salaries of Methodist Episcopal Country Ministers, 1917
TABLE X Salaries of Country Ministers, United Brethren in Christ, 1917
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