USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Branford > A history of the First church and society of Branford, Connecticut, 1644-1919 > Part 9
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We must not think, however, that, with the aboli- tion of the rule requiring its detailed confession, scandal had died out of the Branford church. On the contrary, these next thirty years were dark ones
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from the standpoint of morality. In the same year that the vote to do away with public confession was passed, the following vote was engrossed upon the church records: "January 4, 1810. Voted to choose a committee of inspection and information, who upon hearing anything of any of the members which is apprehended to be matter of public scandal and church censure are to consider themselves as under obligations to make enquiry, examine evi- dence and proceed with such offenders according to the law of Christ's kingdom."
Under this vote the committee set to work and began a series of church trials which fill many weary pages of the records. No pause, for any- thing except the minutes of these trials and such purely routine affairs as the entry of names of dele- gates to councils and other meetings, occurs until 1826, and then it is only that this record may be inserted, "Voted, that the state of this church is such as imperiously to require discipline," and to add the names of a new, and larger, committee. Then, for ten more years, follow the charges and actions thereon whereby the church sought to purge herself of sin, only to end up with another vote that a standing committee, of four, should "summon erring members for trial."
It is a disheartening story, this long conflict against hidden, inner iniquity, and the offences are not trivial ones but include such wrongs as "drunkeness," "theft," "lasciviousness" and "adul- tery." But the story is not entirely a dark one.
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Anyone who cares to spend a dreary hour or two in wading thru these pages cannot but be impressed with the patience and the forbearance which the church exercised towards these offenders. Every chance which could be offered them to confess and to repent was freely extended. The passing of the final judgment was postponed, again and again, until, in one case, the offender died of old age, still unsentenced ; and only rarely was the extreme judgment of excommunication rendered.
Not one vote, do we feel, was passed in anger, and often the erring member was brought to repentance and good standing was restored. The immorality and scandal we deplore, but, after all, they were only what was to be expected from the Half Way Covenant, under whose loose conception of membership most of these guilty ones had been received; but we cannot help possessing a certain great pride that the purgative process was every- where characterized by the patient kindliness of the law of Christ.
Surely the wise counsel and firm hand of "Father" Gillett is clearly revealed by these records. Blessed is the church which, in the days of stress and cleansing, has the gift of such a pastor. Many another congregation was forever divided with hatred and schism in these same hard years, and we gladly ascribe to this shepherd's sanity and calm, forbearing judgment the praise for preserving his people in unity and concord.
As "Father" Gillett served his church with true
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statesmanship, so did he serve his town. We have already seen that the school system which he found in Branford was lamentably inadequate. The new minister strove to remedy this misfortune in every way he might. From the days of the second war with Britain, he taught a "select school" in his own house-the equivalent of the grammar school of our day. In the year 1820, he gathered a num- ber of the leading townsfolk together, and the result was the organization of an Academy. The next step was the erection of a building and, almost entirely by his efforts and largely by his own money, the little white building which has stood ever since upon the Green (tho its location has been changed slightly) was built. There he con- tinued to teach for nearly twenty years, charging the nominal fee of two dollars a term, per pupil, for his services, and providing the firewood himself.
Early in this pastorate two interesting innova- tions were introduced into the Branford church. In the spring of 1817, the question arose, at a special meeting of the Society which had been called to act upon the matter of whitewashing the inside of the Meeting House, as to whether the Society would allow a stove to be purchased for the Meeting House. The matter was felt to be far too important for immediate action, so the meeting was adjourned to the following Monday, at which time there was an unusually large attendance and the pro- posal to install the stove was "Voted in the nega- tive. Every person present was in the vote." This
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strange reluctance to making their place of worship comfortable endured for several years but, in 1824, the opposition fell away to a minority, and the stove was purchased.
The other innovation created far less stir but was rather more important. Some time in this general period, we do not know when, a Sabbath School was organized in the Old Society. "Father" Gillett may have sponsored it as a part of his edu- cational program. At any rate he taught a weekly Bible Class, and read carefully, himself, each one of the little volumes which was added to the library that soon became an adjunct to the school, before he would allow it to be placed upon the shelves. Aside from these meagre facts, we have no knowl- edge of our Sunday School and its beginnings, nor any further reference to it for many years.
Mention should next be made of several improve- ments in the church building. In 1831, people found it necessary to purchase a new bell and the old one was again sold, the remainder of the money being raised by subscription. In 1834, a number of the pews in the gallery were replaced with slips, and two years later subscriptions were being raised for an organ. It is doubtful if the organ was ever purchased, for we have no knowledge of there ever having been one in the old church.
Up to this date, the affairs of religion in the township had been divided between the Congrega- tionalists and the Episcopalians. This was no longer to be true. In 1836, a Methodist minister,
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by the name of Chesboro, endeavored to hold meet- ings in the Academy, but had little success and soon went away. This abortive attempt was soon followed by a more successful one. A Baptist minister, at the suggestion of a lady in Walling- ford, began holding small meetings here, in 1836. Early in the following spring the work was taken up by Rev. Mr. Watrous. Much interest was shown, also much opposition, the missioner being often very badly treated. In December of 1837, Rev. Davis Shailer began holding regular services in the Academy and soon gathered a good sized group about him. But in the spring the Acad- emy was rented as a dancing school, so the Baptists began meeting in a private house. Soon a num- ber of people were baptized, at the Indian Neck Bridge, much to the interest of the townsfolk, and a church was organized on December 19, 1838. Two years later the present Baptist church was erected on Whipping-post Hill, which had been leveled for that purpose, and was dedicated on July II, 1840.
This new building of the Baptists may well have made the Congregational people dissatisfied with their own edifice. At any rate, when Mr. Gillett appeared before the Society (September II, 1840) and recommended that a new Meeting House be erected, there was little opposition. After some discussion, it was decided "to appoint an agent to go through the Society, with a subscription paper in two forms Viz. One-to solicit for to build in
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the name of the Society, and to be owned by the Society &-the other, to solicit in behalf of & to be owned by Stock-holders." The plan was; first, to obtain as much money as possible in unconditional gifts and, second, to secure pledges for shares of Stock-the par value being twenty-five dollars- which shares should be paid for in three payments. These shares would entitle the holder to be credited with pew rental, as being paid, up to the amount of their value. The subscriptions came in slowly and so the Share-holders voluntarily converted their shares into straight gifts.
It was decided to have a brick house, with a porch and large fluted pillars in front, a steeple in the center, and with two aisles in the audience room. The work went steadily, tho not rapidly, forward. The old Meeting House was in the way of the builders, so it was torn down and services were held, for a time, in the Academy. In Janu- ary of 1844 the slips, which had been placed in the new building instead of the old square pews, were appraised and rented. It was also decided to have an organ in the church. The basement was not finished until January 1, 1845, for it had been necessary to sell part of the Indian Neck timber to obtain sufficient funds.
On January 19, 1845, the new Meeting House was finally dedicated, the sermon being preached by "Father" Gillett from the 8th and 9th verses of the 96th Psalm. The building had cost about nine thousand dollars, nearly eight of which had been raised by subscription.
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While these things had been going on in Bran- ford, Mr. Gillett had also been achieving a position of considerable influence among the ministers of the state. He was too conservative a man, too closely bound to the bygone years, to be a leader in the progress of denominational affairs, but these same qualities made him respected and added a certain weight to his seldom given counsels. When, in June 1838, the General Association of Connect- icut, meeting at Norwalk, decided to publish a digest of Congregational principles and customs, Mr. Gillett, with David D. Field and Leonard Bacon, were the committee to whom was given the task. To the little volume, which the committee later prepared, Timothy Gillett contributed 279 of its 351 pages, preparing an account of the degree in which the ecclesiastical usages of that day con- formed to the principles of the Saybrook Platform. The little book has been preserved (a copy will be found in the Branford Library) and is entitled, "The Ancient Platforms of the Congregational Churches of New England." It was printed at Hartford, 1842-45. "Father" Gillett was also one of the group of Connecticut ministers who founded the theological college at East Windsor which later became Hartford Seminary. Thus, for a second time, did a Branford pastor become one of the sponsors for "a college in this Colony."
There is little to record of the decade which fol- lowed the dedication of the new church. The new organ was not installed until December, 1849, at which time a Mrs. Lyon was engaged to play upon
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it, for the magnificent sum of fifty dollars per year, "to aid the choir of singers in performing their part of divine worship." In 1851, the outside of the new building was painted. But, for the most part, little beyond the routine events of placid parish life happened. The church was blest with progress but without significant events.
When June of 1858 arrived, it was planned to celebrate the close of fifty years of "Father" Gillett's service by a suitable meeting of commem- oration, to be held on the anniversary of his ordina- tion. But illness of the aged pastor caused the plan to be changed, and the Semi-Centennial Ser- vice was held on July 7. Upon that date friends and former parishioners gathered from far and near and "Father" Gillett reviewed the history of his pastorate, and of the church itself, in a dis- course which has become a Branford classic. So highly was this discourse esteemed, at the time, that upon July 20th, the Society, after passing a set of resolutions expressing their admiration and esteem for the author, ordered one thousand copies printed, each with a steel engraving of Mr. Gillett, which were to be distributed, one to each member of the church and to each family in the parish. That this was never done will be always a matter of regret. The address was later printed, thru the generosity of two gentlemen of the parish, tho on a smaller scale.
Upon the same day that the above vote was taken, the Society received the following communi- cation from Mr. Gillett :
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"To the Congregational Chruch & Society in Branford;
Having recently completed the 50th year of my ministry among you, & understanding that you have a Societys meeting on Tuesday the 20th instant, I take this oppor- tunity to submit to the Church & Society at the time of said meeting the question-whether I shall relinquish wholly or in part, the active duties of the Pastoral office among you. And I hereby request an expression of your wishes on the subject.
(Signed) T. P. Gillett."
The Society, by a nearly unanimous vote, expressed a desire that he should relinquish the active pas- torate.
But now followed a lamentable quarrel about the terms of the relinquishment. The Society wished it to be total, and claimed to be under no financial obligation for the further continuance of a salary. Mr. Gillett wished to be free to perform such pastoral offices as he might please, and to fill the pulpit from time to time. He also claimed that he should, rightly, be allowed half, at least, of his pre- vious salary. Into the details of that disagreement and of the sharp and lengthy correspondence which grew out of it, we shall not enter. Suffice it to say that the spirit on both sides was soon an embit- tered one, and that the final settlement brought no real satisfaction to either party. It was agreed (July 23, 1859) that Mr. Gillett should receive his regular salary of $500 for the year ending June 15, 1860, and that he should have the privilege of cutting wood on the Society lands and the free use of his slip in the church so long as he remained a citizen of Branford. In return he was to free the
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Society from all further claim for financial reim- bursement, and was to cease his active pastoral service on August 1, 1859. So the matter ended, but it will always remain as an unhappy page in the history of our church that so fair and long a pastoral relation should have come to so inglorious a close.
The spring of 1859 had seen two actions of import on the part of the church. In March it was voted to print five hundred copies of a new Church Manual, which was prepared by Mr. Gillett. On April 29th it was voted to have a church clerk and also a church treasurer. Hitherto what church records had been kept had been kept by the pastor. William Linsley was chosen for the former, and Charles Rogers for the latter office.
"Father" Gillett continued to reside in Branford and to serve his people, in their homes, helpfully if informally. Time softened the rancor of the past difficulty and, on March 2, 1860, the vote of July 29, 1858, in which Mr. Gillett had been requested to relinquish wholly the pastoral office, was rescinded. A new vote was passed, "that we request our aged Pastor Rev. T. P. Gillett to occupy the pulpit with the associate Pastor, Rev. Jacob G. Miller, and that he take such part in the public services of the Sanctuary as shall be mutu- ally agreeable to both pastors .- That we should be pleased to have our aged Pastor, the Rev. T. P. Gillett, visit our families and to perform such reli- gious services for us as we may desire." Thus
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"Father" Gillett became Pastor Emeritus, and continued so until his death.
Mr. Gillett had been subject to severe attacks of illness for many years. On Wednesday, the last day of October, 1866, he was prostrated by an unusually threatening one. For several days he lingered on, either unconscious or else racked by intense agony. On Saturday evening he had a turn for the better, and led those about him in family devotions, but soon relapsed into a lethargy which developed into stupor. He continued uncon- scious until Monday, November fifth, when his spirit left its earthly tabernacle. So ended a pas- torate of this church never likely to again be equaled in its length of ministry, the last one of lifelong service.
The funeral was held on November 7th, and Rev. W. T. Eustis, Jr., pastor of the Chapel Street Church of New Haven, preached the sermon. The bearers were students from the Theological School at East Windsor, and the interment was in Ever- green Cemetery, New Haven, the body being removed to Branford later, at the request of Mrs. Gillett. Dr. Leonard Bacon spoke, briefly, at the grave. The funeral discourse by Mr. Eustis was printed and is replete with interesting information.
We cannot better characterize the personality and later ministry of "Father" Gillett than by quoting a few of the very apt sentences from this discourse. "He emphatically belonged to a gen- eration which has departed, and of whom he was
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almost a solitary, as he was a fitting representative. Father Gillett was not merely associated with the past by his venerable age, but he was a living witness of former days, through his keen observation and accurate statements, while he was himself a goodly specimen of the manners and virtues of the preceding generation." He was "conservative in his whole moral and intellectual framework," a Calvinist of the Calvinists, yet he often allowed men of markedly liberal views in his pulpit. "His sermons were distinguished for their clear statements, their evangelistic spirit, and by their earnest desire for the religious welfare of his hearers. They were delivered with slight ges- tures yet with a quiet force which attracted and impressed."
As a man, "he was modest, kind, self controlled and true. He seldom gave utterance to his deepest feelings, was calm under trial, and returned enmity, when it assailed him, with words of quietness." He was "reticent, but far from morose," "A gentle humor lighted his features and played in his words, when he felt perfectly at home. He often smiled, but seldom laughed." "His face was the index of his character; placid, yet resolute; kind, but restrained; a gentle eye and a firm lip; thoughtful and self controlled, denoting a man of courtesy, who never suffered himself to be shaken by passion. He was more than he seemed." "He was scrupulously exact in attending to every ser- vice which was appointed, either in public or
REV. TIMOTHY PHELPS GILLETT Pastor 1808-1866
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private, and never failed in fulfilling the task assigned."
When we add to this estimate the fact that he was frugal, without being penurious, and that, on a salary of five hundred dollars a year and the proceeds of his teaching, he accumulated, without speculation, an estate of nearly eighty thousand dollars, we have a rather accurate portrait of the man.
The ministry of "Father" Gillett was not spec- tacular, and will not measure up in dramatic inci- dents to that of his predecessors. But, as a quiet, unobtrusive, yet cumulatively fruitful record of service, it incomparably surpasses theirs, nor is it likely to be equaled. His theology and tempera- ment alike made him an autocrat and, during his pastorate, the Branford church knew often the hand of a master; but his was a paternal, even if a stern, despotism, and it was upheld by a sterling character and capable intellect rather than by mere external tradition.
He was the last of those old New England pas- tors whose word was a law in the community and whose voice bore the authority of God. Never again will a Branford minister have such preroga- tives, but we have no regret that they belonged to "Father" Gillett. His pastorate was an epoch in the annals of Branford church and the fruit of his great ministry still abounds.
JACOB G. MILLER-AN INTERLUDE
After the relinquishment of the active pastorate, by "Father" Gillett, the church and Society united in calling Rev. Jacob G. Miller, as Associate Pastor. Mr. Miller accepted the invitation, and his salary was fixed at one thousand dollars, just double the amount received by Mr. Gillett. His pastorate is an uneventful one, and but two matters need require our attention. On December 4, 1860, the time of the Communion Service was changed from the close of morning worship to a separate hour in the after- noon. On the same date it was voted, for the first time, to observe the "Week of Prayer" (during the second week in January), in company with other churches.
On September 3, 1864, Mr. Miller resigned his charge in order to accept a call to the Presbyterian church of Montrose, Pa., and his resignation was accepted. From Montrose he went to Alden, Iowa, and thence to Manchester, in the same state. He then retired from the ministry and resided for a number of years in Cedar Falls, later removing to New York state where he died, a few years ago, at the home of his daughter, at the advanced age of ninety years.
Mr. Miller was a man of large frame, with a dark complexion and a Hebraic countenance, the nose being more than usually prominent. He was a voracious reader and possessed a retentive mem-
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ory. His speech was exceedingly rapid. Fond of horses, he did much of his parish work on horse- back and was a familiar figure upon the highways of the town. He was not a spiritually minded man and must have been a marked contrast to "Father" Gillett. Inordinately fond of food, he was heard, in later years, to remark that he had always a tender recollection of Branford, "espe- cially of its clams and oysters." His ministry was a useful one, but it was far from being conspic- uous, and we may leave it without further words.
A VARIETY OF LEADERS
I. ELIJAH C. BALDWIN
The next in succession to the Branford pulpit was Rev. Elijah C. Baldwin, who was called to the pastorate of this church on January 9, 1865, the salary offered being twelve hundred dollars.
Mr. Baldwin was a native of Connecticut, having been born in Milford, December 4, 1832, his parents being Elijah and Catherine (Gunn) Bald- win. He was educated in the Milford schools and at Union Theological Seminary, from which he graduated in 1860. His first pastorate was at Bethel, Connecticut, where he was also ordained, September 5, 1860. On May Ist, 1856, he had married Juliet Childs, of East Hartford, who bore him one child, and who died February 23, 1857. Before his call to Branford he married again, the second wife being Frances Marsh Hutchinson, of Cromwell, Connecticut. By her he had four chil- dren. She also survived him.
Mr. Baldwin was installed, by a council which met on April 5th, 1865, "Father" Gillett making the installation prayer and Rev. W. T. Eustis preaching the sermon. The young minister took up his residence in the North Main Street house, which the Society soon purchased for a parsonage. This house is on the right hand side of the street, half way down the hill.
It was towards the close of the second year of
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Mr. Baldwin's pastorate that the Society gave the famous ninety-nine year lease of its Indian Neck lands to John A. Leggat and others. Under the terms of the lease the Society was to receive nine hundred dollars a year, as rent, payable the first day of every March. In case of non-payment, unusually liberal provision was made for the protection of the leasing party. Provision was inserted that no intoxicating liquors should ever be sold upon the premises. It was agreed also that those taking the lease should have the privilege of subleasing and improvement.
Like most long term leases this one has been a source of some regret to the later generation. The rental price was probably a fair one, at the time of the drawing up of the terms, but the Indian Neck lands have grown greatly in value, since that day, and are now such desirable shore property that there is no question but what the terms have become exceedingly unfavorable for the church and Society.
Elijah C. Baldwin proved to be a popular preacher in these first years of his pastorate. He was a well read man and his sermons, which he always read, were of a "literary" character and were marked by frequent quotations.
Contrary to what one might expect from these facts, Mr. Baldwin aspired to be a reformer. He saw much evil about him and he felt called upon to correct it. Especially did he set his face against the saloons, and not without need, for there were
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only forty-two places in town, at that time, where liquor was sold. The parsonage was directly across from one of these "rum holes" and it needed no super-intellect to discern the terrible fruits of its influence upon the community, especially upon the young men.
So the minister's sermons were not over tame, despite their bookish idiom, and people came out in large numbers, and enjoyed his invectives-for a while. The consequence was that the auditorium became too small for the congregation and plans were made for enlarging it.
After some little discussion, and the revision of the plans several times, it was decided to enlarge . the church by removing the original façade and adding to the length of the roof sufficiently to enable the placing of thirty more pews, and replac- ing the old facade with a new one. This was accordingly done, and the result is the edifice in its present form. The addition at the rear of the building, comprising the chancel, was also made at this time and the walls of the auditorium were frescoed.
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