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Old rugged cross: Valley landmark stands tall after 50 years
The Old Rugged Cross is representation of the hymn and stands as tribute to the Youngstown-born composer.
Thousands of motorists and pedestrians pass by a bit of history every day as they travel along a city street.
It’s the Old Rugged Cross in Lake Park Cemetery, 1459 E. Midlothian Blvd. When the cross was dedicated April 5, 1959, it was a major event in the city.
“There was a 100-car caravan, many with signs from churches, that traveled to the cemetery,” said Ted Conner, the sole surviving member of the six-man committee that spearheaded the cross project.
“We were expected 500 people and the estimate was 3,000 but other reports were closer to 5,000. It was a miracle so many people showed up.”
Fifty years have passed since the nearly 22-foot cross was erected. The project was the goal of a committee that wished to recognize the composer of the popular hymn, the Rev. George Bennard, who was born Feb. 4, 1873, on Powers Hill in Youngstown. The committee decided a cross, bearing the name of the hymn, would be a fitting tribute.
Conner, now 83, was in his early 30s at the time of the project and served as chairman. Committee members were Dr. Paul W. Gauss, executive secretary, Youngstown Council of Churches; Atty. Jess H. Leighninger, religious leader; Capt. Ralph H. Leidy, Salvation Army; Glenn Hartman, religion editor at The Vindicator; and William “Hap” Williams, columnist with Aut Mori Grotto Informer and editor of the dedication booklet.
Conner said he didn’t want the anniversary of this landmark to go by without notice. No formal observance is planned at the cemetery but a service last month at Boardman United Methodist Church, 6809 Market St., paid tribute to Bennard.
The Rev. Ash Welch, co-pastor at Boardman UMC, 6809 Market St., said the church remembered the composer and his popular hymn in a service Feb. 1, scheduled near Bennard’s birthday. Boardman UMC was the site of a reception after the cross was dedicated.
The Rev. Mr. Welch said his wife, the Rev. Peg Welch, preached the service that day that included the playing of the hymn sung by Bennard himself. “He wrote the hymn at a time of personal struggle,” Mr. Welch said. “People came up after the service and said it was a good reminder of the history.”
Mr. Welch assisted Conner, a member of Boardman UMC, by recording a tape version of Bennard singing the hymn and putting it on CD. “It will be preserved this way,” Mr. Welch said.
How Conner acquired the recording of Bennard singing is another remarkable story of luck and good fortune that’s one for Youngstown lore.
“Hap Williams stopped by to see me at WFMJ,” said Conner, who hosted a radio program called “Hymn Time.” “I had many requests for ‘The Old Rugged Cross,’” he said. Conner, who worked at WFMJ from 1945-62, was in public relations for WKBN from 1967-76, and other areas of broadcasting until his retirement in 1989.
Conner explained that Williams was trying to organize a group to recognize the Youngstown-born composer.
“We were going on vacation and decided to pass by Reed City, Mich., where Bennard live,” Conner explained of the trip in August of 1958. “We found a white farmhouse with clothes drying outside on the line,” he recalled of the trip with his wife, Wanda. “He welcomed us.”
Conner said Bennard was reluctant to be interviewed and taped, but finally agreed.
“Nothing was rehearsed,” Conner said. “But once he got going ... he talked about how he was inspired to write the hymn and then sang it.”
Vindicator clippings of news stories about the project, carefully preserved by Conner, note that Bennard said he was inspired by his work in the Salvation Army to write the hymn.
In the interview, Bennard told Conner that he wrote the hymn over a two- to three-month period and it “helped me know a deeper meaning of the cross.” The hymn focuses on Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross and what that means to Christians. Of the more than 350 hymns that Bennard wrote, “The Old Rugged Cross,” penned in 1913, probably is the most beloved.
Once Conner returned to Youngstown with the recording, the committee “got fired up.” Clippings from the then-Youngstown Vindicator note that a letter from the Old Rugged Cross Committee, in cooperation with Youngstown Council of Churches and Organization of Protestant Men, was sent to churches, service clubs, veterans organizations, labor unions and businesses to solicit funds and support for the project,
Before his death at 85 on Oct. 10, 1958, Bennard had told the committee he was looking forward to the dedication. His wife, who had co-authored some hymns, represented her husband at ceremony and reception in 1959.
Conner said weather has knocked down the cross a couple of times, and there is wind damage. That’s caused it to be “trimmed” down from its original measurement of nearly 22 feet tall.
Gladys Gray, office manager at Lake Park Cemetery, said the cross stands about 18 feet. “Many folks come in to see it and out-of-towners always ask about it,” she said. “It’s one of the landmarks in town. I think people take comfort from it.”
The cemetery, which is responsible for its upkeep, has replaced timbers on the cross. At Christmas, a wreath is placed on it.
Leland Clegg, a cemetery board member, said, “In the spring, an American flag in flowers is planted there.” The cemetery gets many calls about the cross; it’s a symbol of the sacrifice that Jesus made and of future hope.”
linonis@vindy.com