Aaron S. Biehn b. 3 Apr 1855 Ontario d. 8 Nov 1935

1855 - 1935 (80 years)

Personal Information | Notes | Event Map | All | PDF

Name	Aaron S. Biehn
Born	3 Apr 1855	Ontario
Gender	Male
Census	1911	Guernsey, Saskatchewan
Died	8 Nov 1935
Buried	Sharon Mennonite Cemetery, Guernsey, Saskatchewan
Person ID	I02867	All
Last Modified	1 Apr 2012

Father	Aaron Biehn, b. 16 Mar 1814, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. 15 Apr 1897, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario (Age 83 years)
Mother	Hannah Schneider \| Snyder, b. 8 Mar 1815, d. 12 Sep 1884 (Age 69 years)
Family ID	F0644	Group Sheet \| Family Chart

Family Mary U. Bowman, b. 25 Aug 1861, Wilmot Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. 25 Sep 1924 (Age 63 years)

Married 24 Oct 1882 Residence of bride's father, Waterloo County, Ontario

Notes

By 1911, the family of Aaron Biehn and Mary Bowman had relocated from Waterloo County, Ontario to Guernsey Village, Township 33 in range 23 west of the 2nd M, Humboldt, Saskatchewan.

Married:

http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~maryc/water82.htm

011722-82 (Waterloo Co) Aaron L. BIEHN, 27, farmer, Waterloo Twp, Waterloo Twp, s/o Aaron & Hannah married Mary U. BOWMAN, 21, Wilmot Twp, Waterloo Twp, d/o Joseph & Lea, witn: Joseph BOWMAN of New Dundee & Aaron BIEHN of Strasburg, 24 October 1882 at the Residence of the Bride's Father.

Children

+	1. Sylvester Biehn, b. 26 Mar 1884, Ontario , d. 4 Jan 1934, Nipawin, Saskatchewan (Age 49 years)
+	2. Clayton Biehn, b. 23 May 1886, Strasburg, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. 24 Mar 1967, St. Elizabeth Hospital, Humboldt, Saskatchewan (Age 80 years)
	3. Freeman Biehn, b. 17 May 1890, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. Date Unknown
	4. Leander Biehn, b. 6 Jun 1892, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. Date Unknown
	5. Samantha Biehn, b. 3 May 1895, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. Date Unknown
	6. Aaron Bauman Biehn, b. 14 Jan 1898, Strasburg, Waterloo Township, Waterloo County, Ontario , d. 4 Dec 1987, Lanigan Union Hospital, Lanigan, Saskatchewan (Age 89 years)

Last Modified 5 Feb 2008

Family ID F0652 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Event Map

	Born - 3 Apr 1855 - Ontario
	Census - 1911 - Guernsey, Saskatchewan
	Buried - - Sharon Mennonite Cemetery, Guernsey, Saskatchewan

= Link to Google Earth

Pin Legend : Address : Location : City/Town : County/Shire : State/Province : Country : Not Set

Notes

Snider, Doreen and Sam Steiner. "Sharon Mennonite Church (Guernsey, Saskatchewan, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. September 2005. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 2 January 2007 www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/s5368me.html

Sharon Mennonite Church (Guernsey, Saskatchewan, Canada)

The Mennonite community at Guernsey, SK had its origin in the winter of 1903-1904 when a committee from Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario inspected the Saskatchewan Mennonite Reserve at the encouragement of Peter and John Jansen of Nebraska, who were land agents for the Saskatchewan Valley and Manitoba Land Company. A delegation of five men travelled west in May 1904, but they were not impressed with the many sloughs full of spring run-off. In June of that year, a second group made the trip and they reserved a sizable block of newly surveyed unbroken territory in what was known as the Quill Lake Mennonite Reserve. Homesteads of 160 acres could be acquired for an entry fee of $10 and a commitment to reside on the homestead for six months in each of the following three years.

In 1905 the first settlers left from Ontario, followed in 1906 by another group. On a Sunday morning in May 1905, about 30 Mennonites, newly arrived from Berlin, Ontario, gathered in a tent for their first worship service. The tent was erected on the homestead of their deacon, Aaron Biehn. They worshipped God, thanking him for safe travel and asking for his blessing on their endeavour to establish a new community in a new land. The first sermon in the community was preached by Eli S. Hallman. That day, Hallman was affirmed as their minister. A short time later, a Sunday school was organized under the leadership of Israel Cressman.

The congregation met each Sunday at the Biehn home. In July 1907, the Waterloo school was built on the southwest corner of the deacon’s property. The next year, the Sharon congregation hosted the Alberta Mennonite summer conference in the Waterloo schoolhouse and became a member of the Alberta-Saskatchewan Mennonite Conference. The dream of a church building was realized in 1911, when a 30 ft. by 40 ft. building was erected at the crossroads, on land donated by the minister. Using volunteer labour, the cost of the building was $2,300.

Over the years the people faced many hardships, including raging prairie fires, early frosts, hailstorms, tornadoes, drought and blowing sand, swamp fever and other ailments. In spite of these difficulties, they established beautiful farms and the Sharon church community thrived.

Eventually, attendance at the church diminished. A potash company bought up several farms, forcing some families to relocate. When young people found employment elsewhere and when grain elevators, stores and schools closed, the congregation also suffered.

In 2003, the difficult decision was made to close the doors of Sharon Mennonite. The final service was held 27 June 2004. Some of the remaining members transferred to the North Star Mennonite Church at nearby Drake, SK.

Ministers prior to 1960 included Eli S. Hallman, Moses H. Schmitt, Isaiah S. Rosenberger, Burton Weber, Daniel Schlabach, Stanley Shantz, Aaron S. Biehn and Edwin Bowman. The last minister was John Dueck.

In 1925 there were 100 members; in 1955, 136; in 1965, 156; in 1975, 112; in 1985, 78; in 1995, 112; in 2000, 112. The congregation was affiliated with the Northwest Mennonite Conference (1906-2004) and the Mennonite Church (1906-1999). The language of worship was English.