Cober, Peter (1853-1941)
Peter Cober was the son of Nicholas and Nancy (Holm) Cober. He was born on 7 May 1853 in Puslinch Township, Wellington County, Ontario. On 28 September 1875 he married Martha Steinacher, and together they had eight children, two of whom died in infancy.
Cober was converted at the age of 21 and the following year he united with the Mennonite Brethren in Christ Church (now the Evangelical Missionary Church). A few years later Cober moved to Michigan, and in 1881 he began preaching at Brown City as the first pastor of the church there. He also served for a few years in the Indiana-Ohio Conference (at Bethel), being ordained by that conference in 1884. Soon after this ordination he returned to Ontario, where he spent most of his 42 years in the active ministry, serving pastorates at Markham, Kitchener, Kilsyth, New Dundee, Shrigley, Breslau, Maryboro, and Hespeler.
Cober was presiding elder of the Ontario conference for 10 years, 1895-1901 and 1903-1907, and chairperson of six conferences, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1905, and 1906. He also served at various times as conference evangelist and as a member of the several boards of the Ontario conference. He was a delegate to general conferences and chairperson of one (Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, 1896).
In a few respects Peter Cober's record was unique. He was the first subscriber to the Gospel Banner, opened the first city mission of the Ontario Conference (Collingwood, 17 September 1897), and attended 60 consecutive annual conferences (1881 to 1940 inclusive).
In 1923 he retired from pastoral work, residing at Kitchener, Ontario, from then until his death 23 March 1941. Interment was made in Woodlawn cemetery.
| Author(s) | Everek R Storms |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1953 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Storms, Everek R. "Cober, Peter (1853-1941)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1953. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Cober,_Peter_(1853-1941)&oldid=86856.
APA style
Storms, Everek R. (1953). Cober, Peter (1853-1941). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Cober,_Peter_(1853-1941)&oldid=86856.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, pp. 631-632. All rights reserved.
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