USA > Connecticut > Windham County > History of Windham County, Connecticut > Part 48
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As soon as practicable the Canterbury people established re- ligious services and employed a minister, and began to arrange for the erection of a meeting house. In 1705 Robert Green made over to the town for thirty shillings three and a half acres on a hill hear his house, for public purposes. This plot has ever since been so held and is still known as Canterbury Green.
Disputes concerning boundary lines gave Canterbury much
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annoyance. The line between this town and Windham was a matter of protracted controversy. A gore piece lying between two early surveys of Windham territory on the side joining Can- terbury was claimed by both towns. The first Canterbury settlers in that part of the town, which received the name Apaquag, were Stephen Cook, Richard and Benoni Woodward, and Joseph Hide, who purchased land on Little river in 1708. Jonathan Hide and Stephen Frost settled in this section soon after. George Lilly purchased land between Nipmuck path and Little river in 1710. In 1709 the town contained thirty-five male inhabitants, and the taxable estates amounted to £1,619}.
The building of the first meeting house was perhaps the most absorbing enterprise with the early settlers of these towns, after they had provided some sort of comfortable habitations for their individual needs. Canterbury plead such weakness that the as- sembly remitted the usual "country rate " in 1708, on condition that it be used in the construction of the meeting house. This public edifice and a house for the minister were provided by 1711, and in that year the town received from the assembly per- mission "to gather a church and call a minister to office amongst them, according to the rules of the gospel and the order of dis- cipline established by this government." The church was or- ganized under this privilege, June 13th, 1711, and at the same time Reverend Samuel Estabrook, who had for several years 'been preaching here, was installed as their pastor. The constit- uent members of the church were Samuel Estabrook, Eleazer Brown, Elisha Paine, Samuel Cleveland, John Woodward, Rich- ard Woodward and Stephen Frost. Others who joined the church during the next two years were Timothy Backus, James Hyde, Josiah Cleveland, Richard Adams, Jr., Samuel Butts, Thomas Brown and their wives, and Mrs. Samuel Adams and one or two others, bringing the membership of the church up to twenty- five.
After repeated outbreaks of the controversy with Windham concerning the dividing line an adjustment was made by a com- mittee from the general assembly in 1713, and the result was a confirmation of the claim of Canterbury. Another long disput- ed claim was settled by the assembly in favor of Canterbury, by which the town secured possession of the land east of the Quin- ebaug in the southeast corner of the town, which Plainfield had tried to hold. This final decision was reached in October, 1714.
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Thus Canterbury gained all that she claimed on both eastern and western borders. Nor did the enlargement of her territory stop here. She was also enlarged by the annexation of land on the north, by an act of the assembly in the same year. Richard Adams, John Woodward, Edward Spalding and Daniel Cady, already residents of this tract, were thus added to the inhabi- tants of Canterbury, The settlement of the bounds was fol- lowed by an influx of population. Edward Raynesford, of Cam- bridge, purchased land of Jeremiah Plympton, and removed to Canterbury in 1714. James Bradford, of Norwich, and John Dyer, brother of Thomas, of Windham, settled in Canterbury in . 1715.
The first town meeting of which any record is still preserved was that of December 10th, 1717, more than fourteen years after the organization of the town. At that meeting John Woodward was chosen moderator; Samuel Adams, constable; Joseph Adams, town clerk and first selectman; Edward Spalding, Elisha Paine, Samuel Butts and Henry Smith, other selectmen; John Wood- ward and Solomon Tracy, grand jurors; Samuel Spalding and John Ensworth, fence viewers; John Dyer and Edward Rayns- ford, listers; Paul Davenport, surveyor; Deliverance Brown, col- lector; Robert Green, pound keeper; Richard Pellett, tavern keeper; and William Baker was made responsible for the "de- cency of meeting house." It was then voted "That the act made for the killing of rattlesnakes, April 24, 1716, should stand in force the present year."
The chaotic manner in which the settlement of the town had been made rendered some uniform tenure of land holding desir- able, and to reach some uniform scheme by which the various owners holding under various titles could be placed on a com- mon basis, especially with regard to the common lands still held under the town patent in undivided proprietorship. To settle this, it was agreed at a meeting of proprietary inhabitants, Feb- ruary 26th, 1723, "That those who were settled inhabitance and paid to ye building of ye meeting house and minister's home shall have one share and one half-share in said undivided land ; those who were settled when our patent was given and paid rates in ye town to have one share in said undivided lands, and those who settled since ye patent was given and now live within ye bounds of our patent to have a half-share. It is to be under- stood that none shall accrue any right by this vote but such as
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are now settled within ye bounds of our patent, neither those that have granted these rights to their individual lands to ye town, and also, that there shall be no advantage taken by this vote to hinder us from granting any lands in a general way."
In the distribution of common land made under this arrange- ment, on April 30th, 1723, the following twenty-seven persons received each one and a half shares as being first settlers and planters: Major Fitch, Elisha Paine, John Pike, Thomas Brown, John Adams, Samuel Adams, Sr., Samuel Cleveland, Sr., Sam- uel Cleveland, Jr., Robert Burwell, Richard Pellet, Robert · Green, Joseph and Obadiah Johnson, Richard Woodward,Stephen Frost, David Munrow, William and Timothy Backus, Benjamin Baldwin, Tixhall Ensworth, Samuel and Henry Adams, Jr., Joseph Adams, Solomon Tracy, Samuel Butt, Joseph Smith and Joseph Cleveland. The following twenty-three received one share each as proprietors under the patent: Lieutenant Edward Spalding, John Welch, Edward Cleveland, Jr., Richard Smith, James Bradford, Ephraim Davis, David Raynsford, Nathaniel Bond, Henry Adams, Sr., David Adams, Deliverance Brown, Thomas Adams, Benjamin Fasset, Abraham Paine, Elisha Paine, Jr., Daniel Fitch, James Hyde, John Port, John Dyer, Moses Cleveland, John Ensworth, John Cady and John Carter. The following eighteen persons received one-half share each as later settlers: David Carver, Thomas Davenport, Joseph Adams, Sr., Solomon Paine, Henry Cleveland, Theophilus Fitch, John Bacon, Jonathan Davis, Jacob Johnson, John Baldwin, Isaac Cleveland, Edward Raynsford, Joseph Ensworth, Richard Gale, Jabez Fitch, Nathaniel Robbins, Aaron Cady and Samuel Cook. The whole number of land proprietors in the township was thus sixty-eight, of whom some eight or ten were non-residents. Many of the later proprietors were sons of the first planters. John Bacon, of Norwich, bought land on the west side of Row- land's brook, of Timothy Backus in 1720. Samuel Parish, Sr., bought land and settled in the western part of the town in 1724. By the middle of the century the land of the town was so well taken up that but few new settlers were coming in. The lands and homesteads were mostly occupied by the descendants of the first settlers. Of the three branches of the Adams family which had settled in this town, Joseph Adams, Sr., died in 1748; Henry Adams, Sr., in 1749; the second Samuel Adams in 1742, and the third of that name in 1760. Numerous scions of these three branches were now in active life.
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Having viewed the circumstances under which the settle- ment was begun and carried forward from a civil point of view, let us now look at the progress of the ecclesiastical history of the early town, which is so intimately associated with the other side of its life as to be inseparable from it. We have already noticed the organization of the church and the installation of the first pastor, Mr. Samuel Estabrook, at the same time, June 13th, 1711. Under the influence of a religious revival in 1721 the membership of the church was doubled within a few years. Mr. Estabrook was a man of wisdom and learning, and was much respected throughout the colony. The annual "Election Sermon " was preached by him in 1718. The " Election Ser- mon " was a religious service conducted by the minister on the day of the regular annual election in some towns, and was an introduction to the other public duties of the day. Records in many old towns show that during the last century such a cus- tom prevailed with more or less regularity, but they are not sufficiently clear to give us definite information as to when the custom began or when it was abandoned.
After the death of Deacon Eleazer Brown in 1720, Timothy Backus and Thomas Brown were appointed deacons. Mr. Esta- brook died June 23d, 1727, in the fifty-third year of his age. He left lands and buildings valued at £1,000, and a library of over two hundred volumes. An attempt was made to settle Mr. Samuel Jenison as pastor, but though he accepted the call, and agreed to the sentiments of the church, which were decid- edly in favor of the Cambridge rather than the Saybrook code of church discipline, yet for some unexplained reason he was not inducted into the pastoral office. The next pastor was Mr. John. Wadsworth, of Milton, a graduate of Harvard in 1723, who was ordained here September 3d, 1729, his call offering him a settle- ment sum of one hundred and fifty pounds, and a salary of one hundred pounds a year. The building of a new meeting house now excited considerable agitation, which was increased by other questions, of location, the formation of a new society on the northern border, and the division of the town into two socie- ties. The new meeting house was built on the site of the old one during the summer of 1735. The size of it was about 50x45 feet on the ground and 22 feet high " between joynts." The church gained somewhat during the early part of Mr. Wadsworth's ministry, but was weakened by later events. The location of
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the new meeting house was a vexing question, quite a number strongly contending for a new location more convenient for those living in the western part of the town. Then, again, a few of its members in the northern part were dismissed to help form the Second church of Pomfret. Elisha Paine, Sr., and Samuel Cleveland died in 1736; Deacon Thomas Brown in 1738; Deacon John Bacon in 1741. In 1741 the church suffered by a scandal, involving the minister, which resulted in his removal from his pastoral charge without making any attempt to deny the criminal charge which was brought against him by a female resident. In this weakened condition, while yet without a pas- tor, the great revival which swept over the country about 1740 found the church. This church, indeed, was one of the first to be awakened by it. At this time Elisha and Solomon Paine, two prominent citizens, were aroused and brought into new relig- ious light, and engaged earnestly in religious work, devoting their energies to the promulgation of the new religious light which they had received. This religious awakening appears to have wonderfully pervaded the whole community, even the children in the schools being so filled or affected with it that they could hardly attend to their studies. This revival aroused a class of men to practical exercise of what they believed to be the teachings of the Spirit prompting them to exercise gifts of exhortation and public prayer, and the conduct of religious meetings and, indeed, religious teachings, without authority from any constituted human organization or system. Thisidea was not in accord with the ecclesiastical ideas of the people or the government of Connecticut, hence it aroused their attempts to oppose it. The more decided the attempts made to subdue this new inclination of the converts, the more determined and demonstrative became their action. The people of Canterbury church were largely given to this new idea. They listened to itinerants, held their accustomed meetings and continued to pray and exhort in defiance of the enactments of the general assembly declaring such conduct of meetings by others than the regularly ordained ministers of the standing churches an unlaw- ful thing, and the action of associations and consociations against them. A few supported the government and protested against these unlawful meetings. A picture of the state of affairs is given in the following extract published in the Boston Gasette, on the authority of " A gentleman of veracity."
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" Dec. 16, 1742. Canterbury is in worse confusion than ever. Their minister has left them, and they grow more noisy and boisterous, so that they can get no minister to preach to them yet. Colonel Dyer exerted his authority among them on the Lord's Day, endeavoring to still them when many were exhort- ing and making a great hubbub, and ordered the constable to do his office, but they replied, "Get thee behind me, Satan!" and the noise and tumult increased to such a degree, for above an hour, that the exhorter could not begin his exercise. Law- yer Paine has set up for a preacher, * and makes it his business to go from house to house and town to town to gain proselytes to this new religion. Consequences are much feared."
Two parties grew up, one in which the revival element pre- vailed, and this included a majority of the church; and another, favorable to the maintenance of the civil authority over the spiritual, and this was dominant in the society. Hence there was discord between the church and the society, and as the con- currence of both was necessary to call a minister, the church was a long time without a pastor while this conflict of sentiment was in progress. In the early part of 1744 the troubled waters had become so far quieted that a call was extended to Reverend James Cogswell to become pastor, the church and society agree- ing in the call. He accepted the call, and all parties were pleased with his personal accomplishments, and listened to him for a brief period with apparent satisfaction. But the preaching and views of Mr. Cogswell did not prove agreeable to the revival- ists, and after a few months' trial they abandoned the meeting house and the stated Sabbath worship, and held separate meet- ings in private houses under the leadership of itinerants and exhorters. Then followed another period of decided hostility between the two factions. Finally, on the 7th of August, 1744, the church formally withdrew from the society and adopted the house of Samuel Wadsworth as their place of meeting for relig- ious worship. Here services were conducted by Solomon Paine or some other lay member. In the controversy which followed, Mr. Elisha Paine and Mr. Benajah Douglas were arrested and imprisoned for short terms in the Windham jail for the decided and aggressive part they took in the defense of their views. The few members of the church who remained in accord with the society now called themselves the church and joined with
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the society in extending a call to Mr. Cogswell, and the council called for the purpose, concurring in that view of the matter, proceeded to ordain him as pastor of the Canterbury church and society. This was done December 28th, 1744.
After the withdrawal of the revivalists and the ordination of Mr. Cogswell, the standing church (as it was called) increased in numbers and enjoyed a fair degree of prosperity for many years. Mr. Cogswell, though so obnoxious to the Separatists, was very acceptable to that part of the church and society which had put themselves under his care, and was greatly respected abroad for prudence, piety and learning. In 1746 Stephen Frost was made deacon in place of Timothy Backus, who had gone out with the Separatists. A partial recognition of each other was affected between the two bodies, by which the Separatists kept the records of the original church, and the communion service was divided between the two bodies. Fur- ther particulars in regard to the course of the Separatist church will be given in another paragraph. Let us now notice the course of the body which succeeded to the name of the Church of Canterbury.
The aged parents of Mr. Cogswell removed to Canterbury after his settlement here, and died in a few years. Reverend James Cogswell married Alice, daughter of Doctor Jabez Fitch. Like many ministers of his day, he was accustomed to receive pupils into his family, fitting young men for college and the ministry. Naphthali Daggett, afterward president of Yale College, enjoyed for half a year " the faithful grammar instruc- tion of Mr. Cogswell." A later pupil was one Benedict Arnold, of Norwich, then a bright little fellow, full of play and pranks, the recipient of many letters of counsel and warning from his excellent mother. While Mr. Cogswell continued in charge of· this church the celebrated preacher, George Whitefield, came through the country. Mr. Coggswell said of him that he "rode in his chariot with a gentleman, had a waiter to attend on him, and Sampson Occum, ye Indian preacher, who rode on one of the horses, there being three to ye chariot." Mr. Cogswell, after much hesitation about the propriety of such a step, decided to ask him to preach, but Mr. Whitefield declined doing so. The visit of Whitefield, which occurred in 1764, was an event which excited great attention from the people.
The First society of Canterbury was again weakened by the
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withdrawal of members to form the Westminster church and society. Under a charter granted by the assembly in October, 1769, the society soon organized, and a church was organized about a year later. A considerable of bad feeling was stirred up in the course of settling the different matters in which the two societies were involved, such as the custody of previous records and settling the minister's salary for the current year In the midst of other discouragements the salary of Mr. Cogs- well was found to be falling in arrears, and the church was obliged to consent "to his quiet and peaceable dismission." After this the Canterbury church remained for many years without a settled pastor. Nathaniel Niles, of Norwich, preached for a season, but declined a call to settlement. Samuel Spring, Job Swift and Ephraim Judson also served as supplies during this unsettled period. Eliashib Adams succeeded to the dea- con's office on the removal of Deacon Huntington in 1769. Jabez Fitch, Jr., was elected deacon in 1771. Though destitute of a settled pastor, public worship was maintained with con- siderable regularity. In 1773 the resources of the society were somewhat enlarged by the annexation of Black hill, the lands in possession of Timothy Backus, Isaac Allerton, William Un- derwood, Joab Johnson, Curtis and Ezekiel Spalding, Jabez Fitch, Jr., William Bingham, John Hough, Elkanah Cobb and Obadiah Johnson being by act of assembly "with the First Society of Canterbury for society and ecclesiastic privileges, but not for schooling, military and other purposes."
In this condition President Dwight found the church, when in his " Travels," he reported it as suffering much from lack of clergymen, want of harmony and declension of morals. In 1784 a fruitless attempt was made to unite both First church and Sep- arate church in worship under the ministrations of Reverend Solomon Morgan. He was then installed, September 30th, 1784, as pastor of the First church. The deacons of the church at this time were Eliashib Adams and Daniel Frost; Joseph Moore was added to the number at a later date. The efforts of Mr. Morgan to conciliate and unite the churches were so far successful that in 1788 about thirty of the more prominent Separatists returned to the First society. The spirit of discord, however, had so fully taken possession of the people that it was difficult to hold the First church and society together. The orthodox principles and staid, conservative practices of their fathers were a burden to
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the younger members, who wanted a wide latitude of freedom in the church, a new meeting house, new minister, and improve- ments in church music with the use of musical instruments. The action of the society being in some measure unfavorable, a move- ment was set on foot to organize an "Independent Catholic Christian Society," similar to one that had just been formed in Pomfret. Fifty of the leading men of Canterbury gave their names to support this new organization, but before they had proceeded beyond recall the First church made concessions and induced them to return to their former connection.
Church and society now began a work of general renova- tion. Mr. Morgan was dismissed from his charge; five chor- isters were appointed and a committee "to promote psalmody; " a bell was procured by voluntary subscription, and its ringing regulated by the society committee. The agreement between factions, which was the signal for these new departures, was effected December 26th, 1797. In 1799 it was voted to build a meeting house with a steeple, but the subscriptions did not sustain the vote, so the project was delayed awhile. The lib- erty granted by the assembly, of raising fifteen hundred dol- lars by a lottery, encouraged the society to continue its efforts. Other sums were procured by private subscriptions, and in 1805 a new meeting house was completed to the satisfaction of all parties. Daniel C. Banks and Thaddeus Fairbanks had supplied the pulpit during this interim. The pastoral vacancy was finally filled to the satisfaction of a unanimous people by the call of Reverend George Leonard, of Middleborough, Mass., who was ordained here February 3d, 1808. Owing to feeble health and an inclination to Arminianism, he remained but a little more than two years, when he sought and obtained dismission. His successor was Reverend Asa Meech, who was installed Oc- tober 28th, 1812. He enjoyed the favor of the people for a while, but his earnest religious spirit was not able to look with complacence upon the loose and immoral practices of many of the people, and as a consequence he fell into disfavor with the party who were absorbed in sensual and vicious amusements. He was succeeded in 1822 by Reverend Thomas J. Murdock, who is spoken of as " a model of a man, a scholar, a Christian, and a minister." His pastorate was terminated by his death in 1826, to the great grief of both church and society. Reverend James R. Wheelock was installed in 1827, but only remained in
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charge two years. Reverend Dennis Platt was settled here March 31st, 1830, and continued to January 1st, 1833. He was somewhat noted as a revivalist, and during his stay received many into the church. The pastorate of Reverend Otis C. Whiton followed, extending from June 20th, 1833, to January 17th, 1837. Reverend Charles J. Warren served this church as pastor from September 13th, 1837, to April 1st, 1840. Reverend Walter Clarke became pastor May 18th, 1842, and continued un- til May 23d, 1845. He was followed by Reverend Robert C. Learned, who came December 22d, 1847, and remained until No- vember, 1858. Reverend Charles P. Grosvenor was settled here March 9th, 1859, and remained to July 5th, 1871. He was the last regularly settled pastor the church has had. It has been supplied part of the time by students from Hartford Seminary, and other temporary supplies for short periods. Since the fall of 1888 it has been supplied by Reverend Mr. Hanks, of the Protestant Methodist church at Canterbury Plains. During the interval of supplies the more conspicuous ones were: John R. Freeman, about three years; Andrew J. Hetrick, two years; Reverend Parmlee, two and a half years; John Koph, two and a half years; and Hezekiah Reid, six months in 1888. The fol- lowing deacons have served this church, the date given with each being that of his election: Eleazer Brown, 1711; Timothy Backus, 1719; Thomas Brown, 1720; Deliverance Brown, 1737; John Ba- con, 1737; Stephen Frost, 1746; Samuel Huntington, 1753; Eli- ashib Adams, 1769; Jabez Fitch, Jr., 1771; Daniel Frost, --; Joseph Moore, 1792; Joseph Simms, 1821; Lucius Bacon, 1821; John Francis, 1824; William Kinne, 1824; John M. Francis, 1844; Thomas G. Clark, 1847; George Sanger, 1867; Charles L. Ray, 1886. The society owns a parsonage. The membership of the church is about fifty at the present time.
Methodists have had some hold upon Canterbury for many years. This was a preaching station visited more or less fre quently before any organization or building existed. They have, however, never gained any great strength. A building at Can- terbury Green was erected by Job Angell, many years ago, for the use of the Universalists, who were then coming into notice for a short time. This building was used for purposes of trade and business after the Universalists subsided. It finally fell into the hands of Hiram Waldo, who sold it April 1st, 1859, to a board of trustees, to be used for a Methodist church. The Methodist
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