USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > New Britain > Memorial. Genealogy, and ecclesiastical history [of First Church, New Britain, Conn.] To which is added an appendix, with explanatory notes, and a full index > Part 11
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Voted, to adjourn this meeting until next Tuesday at four o'clock P. M.
Attest, Thomas Lee, Clerk.
At an adjourned meeting of the church held the 14th day of April, 1829, at the Conference Hall, the following communication from Rev. J. Cogswell was received and read.
To the Congregational Church of Christ in New Britain Society, Berlin: Fathers and brethren, your votes of the 7th inst. have been communi- cated to me by your committee, and have been seriously and prayerfully considered. The unusual harmony and unexpected unanimity which ap- pear to prevail among you, connected with other circumstances which seem clearly to indicate the mind of God, fully convinces me that I ought to accept your invitation to settle among you in the ministry. The work before me appears to be great, but my dependence is on Him in whom is infinite fulness. Your assistance and prayers I most earnestly request. Looking to the great Head of the Church for all needed grace, your high- est happiness will be the chief object of my daily pursuit. Wishing you grace, mercy and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus 7
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Christ, permit me to subscribe myself yours in the fellowship of the gospel. 1
Dated at Berlin, April 13th, 1829. Jonathan Cogswell. To Messrs. David Whittlesey, Thomas Lee and Seth J. North, commit- tee of the Church :
- Voted, that Messrs. David Whittlesey, Thomas Lee, Seth J. North and Elijah Francis, be a committee to transact all business respecting the in- stallment of Rev. J. Cogswell.
At an Ecclesiastical Council convened in New Britain, the second Con- gregational Society in Berlin, by letters missive from the Church and Society in that place, April 28th, 1829, for the purpose of installing Rev. Jonathan Cogswell as Pastor of the Church and people in New Britain. Present, Rev. Nathan Perkins, Pastor of the Church in West Hartford, Deacon Moses Goodwin, delegate; Rev. Samuel Goodrich, Pastor of the Church in Worthington, Deacon Samuel Galpin, delegate; Rev. Noah Porter, Pastor of the Church in Farmington, Rev. Joab Brace, Pastor of the Church in Newington, Deacon Levi Deming, delegate ; Rev. Charles A. Goodrich, Mr. Jason Atwater, licentiate; Deacon Ebenezer Stillman, delegate from Wethersfield; Brother Israel Williams, delegate of the Church in Rocky Hill. Dr. Perkins was chosen Moderator, and Mr. Brace, Scribe.
The Council was opened with prayer by the Moderator. Papers were laid before the Council by the Committee of the Church and Society, and by Mr. Cogswell, from which it appeared that the Church and people of New Britain had, in a regular way, given him a call to be their Pastor, and that he had accepted their invitation; that Mr. Cogswell had been regu- larly dismissed from his former charge in Saco, in the State of Maine, and been highly recommended by that council, as a good and beloved minister of Jesus Christ. Whereupon,
Voted, that the way is prepared for the examination of Mr. Cogswell, with a view to his installation. The council having examined the pastor elect in the doctrines of natural and revealed religion, in his personal ac- quaintance with Christ, and his views of the pastoral office, and having obtained satisfaction of his qualifications for the ministry,
Voted, unanimously, to install him as the pastor and teacher of this church and people, the services to commence at half an hour after ten o'clock to-morrow morning, the parts of the solemnity to be performed as follows, viz : Rev. Charles A. Goodrich to make the introductory prayer ; Rev. Caleb J. Tenney to preach the sermon, and Rev. J. Brace, his sub- stitute; Dr. Perkins to offer the installing prayer, and Rev. Samuel Good- rich to deliver the charge; Rev. Royal Robbins to give the right hand of fellowship; Dr. Porter to make the concluding prayer. The council ad- journed to meet at nine o'clock to-morrow morning.
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Wednesday morning met according to adjournment; Rev. C. J. Ten- ney, pastor of the church in Wethersfield, and Rev. Royal Robbins, pastor of the church in Kensington, and Deacon Simeon Hart, delegate of the church in Farmington, appeared and took their seats in the council. The council engaged in a season of prayer, imploring the presence and direc- tion of God in the transactions of the day, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the people, and upon the whole church of God. The installa- tion was performed according to the above arrangement.
Attest, Joab Brace, Scribe.
Mr. Cogswell was born in the town of Rowley, Mass., September 3d, 1782, to Dr. Nathaniel Cogswell and his wife, Lois (Searle.) He gradu- ated 1806, at Harvard. He settled first in Saco, Maine, October 24th, 1810, and was dismissed October 16th, 1828. He passed a few months in the city of New York, when he was called as above to New Britain. He married for his first wife, Elizabeth, (daughter of Joel Abbot and his wife, Lydia,) born about 1790, in Westford, Mass. She was early left an orphan, when her uncle, Samuel Abbot, Esq., (the original founder of Andover Theological Seminary, and of the Abbot Professorship there,) adopted her into his own family. (For some brief history, of her and their children see No. (714.) Mr. Cogswell having been appointed on the 21st day of January, 1834, by the Directors of the Theological Institute of Connecticut, to the office of Professor of Ecclesiastical History in that Institution, was, at the expiration of his five years' pastorate in New Brit- ain, dismissed by a mutual council called for that purpose, April 29th, 1834. He had occupied the house of Professor E. A. Andrews, during his stay in this place, from which he removed to East Windsor Hill. His wife, Elizabeth, died there April 30th, 1837, a lady of high literary and Christian attainments. In December, 1837, Professor Cogswell, for his second wife, married Miss Jane G., daughter of Chief Justice Andrew Kirkpatrick, of New Jersey, by whom he had one son and one daughter. In 1840, the Union Theological Seminary, of New York city, conferred on him the title of D. D. Drawing towards the wane of life he resigned his office at East Windsor, 1844, and retired to New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he died August 1st, 1864, in his eighty-second year. He was a man of much general knowledge and observation, very social and cheerful, and possessed a charitable and liberal disposition. He was above the medium size, large and portly, went about with an open hand, an open purse, and a warm heart. During his ministry in this place of five years, fifty-five were added to the church, twenty-nine by profession, and twenty- six by letter. He wrote his sermons rapidly and profusely, and some- times without due regard to connection or unity ; but they were full of in- struction, variety and interest.
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Call and settlement of Mr. Seward.
At a meeting of the church held December 7th, 1835, voted unani- mously that we give Mr. Dwight M. Seward a call to settle with us in the gospel ministry.
Voted, that the Deacons inform the Ecclesiastical Society of our vote, and ask their concurrence.
Voted, that Seth J. North, E. H. Burritt, Alfred Andrews and Samuel Booth, be a joint committee with those of the Society, to present this call to Mr. Seward and ask his. acceptance.
Signed, E. H. Burritt, Moderator, William B. North, Clerk.
At a meeting of New Britain Ecclesiastical Society, held December 7th, 1835, E. H. Burritt, Moderator, and Norman Hart, Secretary pro tem., voted unanimously to unite with the church in giving Mr. Seward a call.
Voted, that this Society pay Mr. Seward annually, on the first day of February, a salary of seven hundred and fifty dollars, so long as he con- tinues to be our minister.
Voted, that Curtiss Whaples, Norman Hart, William B. North, and F. T. Stanley, be a committee to unite with that of the church to communi- cate the call and votes to Mr. Seward, and ask his acceptance.
A true copy, attest, J. R. Lee, Clerk of Ecclesiastical Society.
Mr. Seward's reply dated December 24th, 1835, at Durham, Conn.
Brethren and friends, the question presented by your recent vote, I have made the subject of deep, prayerful reflection. The result is a de- termination to accept of the call you have given me, to settle among you in the ministry. To this decision I have not come without anguish of feeling and deep solicitude for the future, the objection arising from my own conscious weakness, I could not easily dispose of; but the ardor of youth bids me to try ; the love of souls prompted a wish to try. Friends who had long prayed for my usefulness said you may try, and a voice from Heaven seemed to add, "I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward." And with the hope of such support I am willing to make the desired effort. I have a motive for thus speaking to you of my fears. Methinks a people should know the state of feeling with which their ser- vant enters into his new relation. I wish you not to expect too much. I desire you to remember that you will receive an untried and earthen ves- sel. I can adopt prospectively the sentiment of Paul, "I shall be with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling." And now permit me to say, in conclusion, that I shall claim your sympathies, your prayers, and your assistance. With these the office is one of fearful responsibility,- without them, an angel might shrink from the work.
Yours affectionately, Dwight M. Seward.
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At an Ecclesiastical Council convened in New Britain, February 2d, 1836, by letters from the Church and Society in that place, for the pur- pose of ordaining Mr. Dwight M. Seward as Pastor and Minister of the Church and people, in the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
Present, Noah Porter, D. D., and Deacon Edward Hooker, from the church in Farmington.
Rev. Joab Brace, and Brother Roger Wells, from the church in Newington.
Rev. Jonathan Cogswell, Theological Institute, East Windsor.
Rev. John R. Crane, and Brother E. B. Thompkins, first church in Middletown.
Joel Hawes, D. D., and Brother Barzillai Hudson, first church in Hartford.
Rev. David L. Ogden, and Brother Julius Barnes, from church in Southington.
Rev. Charles A. Goodrich, from Worthington.
Rev. Horace Bushnell, and Brother B. B. Barber, Hartford North.
Rev. Zebulon Crocker, and Brother Richard Warner, Upper Middletown.
Rev. James M. McDonald, and Dr. Horatio Gridley, Worthington, and Deacon I. Botsford, Kensington.
The council was organized by the appointment of Noah Porter, D. D., Moderator, and Rev. Joab Brace, Scribe, and was opened with prayer by the Moderator. The Committee of Church and Society exhibited the record of the transactions, showing the regular and unanimous call of Mr. Seward to the work of the Christian ministry among this people, and his acceptance of the call. After a particular examination of the candidate in doctrine, knowledge and experience, the council having obtained full satisfaction,
Voted, unanimously that Mr. Seward be ordained and installed as the pastor and minister of this church and people, according to their request, and that the ordination be attended Wednesday, February 3d, at eleven o'clock, A. M. The following ministers were appointed by the council to perform the public services at the ordination, viz :
Rev. J. R. Crane, introductory prayer.
Rev. Joel Hawes, D. D., sermon.
Rev. J. Brace, ordaining prayer.
Noah Porter, D. D., and J. Hawes, D. D., laying on of hands.
Jonathan_ Cogswell, D. D., charge.
Rev. James M. McDonald, right hand of fellowship.
Rev. D. L. Ogden, concluding prayer.
Adjourned to Wednesday, February 3d, ten o'clock A. M., when the ordination and installation was performed according to the above arrange- ment.
J. Brace, Seribe.
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Mr. Seward was born at Durham, Conn., July 31st, 1811, to Deacon Seth Seward, of that town, and his wife, Rhoda (Picket.) He graduated at Yale College, 1831. He studied theology at the Seminary in New Haven, Conn., and married March 2d, 1836, No. (887,) which see for a brief sketch of Mrs. Seward and their children. On the 4th October, 1836, he joined the South Association of Hartford county, and June 4th, 1839, he was appointed to superintend the interests of the Home Mission- ary Society within the bounds of the Association. The church was blessed with two revivals during his ministry, one in the year 1837, when eighty- one persons were added to their number ; the other in 1841, when they received an accession of thirty-six. The whole number gathered into the church during his ministry was 194, of whom 136 by profession and 58 by letter. He was often interrupted in his labors here from much bodily pain and debility, and yet upon the whole the connection was happy and successful. It was towards the close of his ministry when the subject of dividing the church and society was agitated, and Mr. Seward made up his mind to retire. He accordingly, on the 22d of May, 1842, made the following communication to the church and society :
Brethren and friends, it is with reluctance and pain that I now perform the duty which in the providence of God devolves upon me. The rela- tion between us has existed a little more than six years. During that period we have twice enjoyed the special influences of the Spirit of God. Your continued kindness, confidence and affection, I have abundant occa- sion to acknowledge, and although my labors have been frequently inter- rupted by ill health, I do gratefully record that the harmony of the rela- tion remains undisturbed. Within this period however as you are aware, very trying events have occurred. Contentions, it is true, have prevailed among this people for many years, but the subjects to which they formerly pertained have in a great measure given place to others; while in one spot the wounds have appeared to be rapidly healing, they have violently broken out in another. In order to the adjustment of difficulties, meetings have been held, committees for consultation appointed, and plans of com- promise suggested, but no permanent good result has been achieved. The issue to which events are now rapidly tending, must be perceived by all. You, beloved friends, who have mingled your songs and prayers in the same sanctuary, expect soon to be gathered into different places of worship. The necessity now occurs of having the pastoral relation dis- solved. Though I contemplate the bearing of this state of things upon the interests of piety with trembling solicitude ; though my attachment to- wards you is undiminished ; though I would gladly spend and be spent for you, yet my usefulness, should I longer remain, would be greatly abridged ; not so much from the diminished size of the field as from the peculiar posi- tion which I should occupy. Moreover, my health, as you know, has
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been much impaired by the animosities which have prevailed, and though it has materially improved, yet it is my full conviction that I should be unable to labor with vigor and success in circumstances so trying as those in which I should be placed.
In view of these facts and considerations, I respectfully request you to unite with me in calling a council, to dissolve, if they deem it expedient, the pastoral relation. Your affectionate pastor, D. M. Seward.
The church and society consented to the call of a mutual council, and Mr. Seward was dismissed June 15th, 1842. The principal reason of the dismission, the council say, is "the contemplated division of the church and society ;" "a division owing entirely to other causes than the charac- ter or services of the minister."
The " contentions and animosities" to which Mr. Seward refers above, are probably the conflicting opinions the people entertained, at the time, on the subject of temperance, anti-slavery, and new and old school divinity. From the manner in which these subjects were presented and pressed, (at that time,) on the public mind, they were called agitating subjects. The public were extremely sensitive at that period, and almost every parish and community was more or less agitated by them. The flight of twenty-five years has happily carried with it much that was un- pleasant, and left in return a similarity of views; so that we look back with wonder, that so slight causes should have produced so great a breach. Indeed we are forced to look for other and more potent causes, and on the above as mere occasions for greater causes to operate. About one-half the church and society withdrew and built anew, leaving their interest in the old house to those that remained.
On the 5th July, 1842, one hundred and nineteen of the members of the church withdrew, and were organized by the South Consociation of Hart- ford county as the "South Congregational Church in New Britain." Many disinterested persons thought and said at the time that this division would be disastrous to both societies, but from the active business habits of the people, the result has proved quite otherwise. The population has increased so rapidly that very respectable congregations have been secured in both parishes, notwithstanding the rapid growth of other denominations in the mean time. The yearly contributions to general benevolence may have been somewhat lessened, from the double expense of maintaining two societies in place of one, yet even this does not necessarily follow, for (strange as it may seem,) the ability of a community to give is in the pro- portion they are in the habit of giving. Over-grown churches, like over- stocked bee-hives, with many drones, need sometimes to swarm, for a full development of their working power. Some may say, why not pass these scenes in silence ? Our reply is, we are writing partly for future genera- tions, and should be recreant in duty to them to have said less ; and lest we
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injure the feelings of some one living person, or do injustice to the dead, we refrain from saying more.
Mr. Seward retired to his native home in Durham, but was called to a new field in West Hartford, where he was installed January 14th, 1845, and dismissed December 18th, 1850.
He was called to the oversight of a church in Yonkers, New York, 1851, where he is now, 1867, zealously engaged in the work of the ministry. The Union Theological Seminary of New York conferred the title of D. D. upon him 1862.
We find the following upon the records of the church upon the subject of the division.
At a meeting of the church held on Tuesday, June 14th, 1842, Deacon Chauncey Cornwall was chosen Moderator. The following petition, signed by Elijah Francis and others, was presented to the meeting :
Reverend and beloved : whereas we the subscribers, being desirous of forming a new church in this place, and having nearly completed a suitable edifice for our accommodation, request you to permit us peaceably to with- draw ourselves from our particular connection with you, and to give us an equal share in the property of the church, and Sabbath school library.
Signed, Elijah Francis and others.
Voted, to appoint a committee to report upon the petition, one week from this day, and David Whittlesey, Matthew Clark, Amon Stanley, Samuel Booth, Ira Stanley, Eli Smith, William Ellis, Ira Stanley, jun., William A. Churchill, Dan Clark, Alfred Andrews, Timothy W. Stanley, John Stanley, Horace Wells, Adna Hart, and Noah W. Stanley, were chosen that committee, when the meeting adjourned one week.
At the adjourned meeting of the church June 21st, 1842, the following report and resolution was presented :
To the Congregational Church in New Britain : Dear brethren, your committee to whom was referred the petition of Deacon Elijah Francis and others, praying for liberty to withdraw themselves from this church, and share equally in the property of the Church and Sabbath school books, having taken the important subject into serious consideration, beg leave respectfully to report.
Your committee are very sensible that as a church and society we have come to a crisis which is perplexing in the extreme; just on the point of taking a step which will be deeply deplored in all future time ; making a breach which neither we, our children, nor our children's chil- dren will be able to heal. We would meet it with all brotherly kindness ยท and affection. We are among those who believe in the right of petition, and although it is our fixed opinion that we ought not to separate families and beloved brethren and friends, your petitioners have the same right to
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think and say, " we can enjoy ourselves better apart, and we wish you to let us go in peace." We would call on our dear brethren and sisters in the petition, to pause and inquire, are there any good and substantial rea- sons why a division should be made in this church? Many of us have walked together in the fellowship of the gospel, and in brotherly love for years ; some almost to the end of our pilgrimage, and not a jar in our affections has disturbed our peace. Your committee can not discover any just cause for granting the request of the petitioners at this time, and especially in its present form, but would exhort all of our beloved sisters and brethren in the Lord, to stand still and hope unto the end. We remember the difficulties and trouble in former years, and would also call on our souls and all within us to bless and praise the Lord for His good- ness, and for His wonderful works, in pouring out upon us His Holy Spirit, especially in the year 1821, and in subsequent years, thus reviving us when we were "minished and brought low," and delivering us from all our distresses. Now, dear brethren, viewing with anxious solicitude our present condition, and contemplating our future prospects, which so deeply affect us all, we are united in our opinion, and do recommend the passage of the following resolution, viz :
Resolved, that the petitioners have leave to withdraw their petition, or if they prefer, we consent that the whole case, all matters and things, with all its load of consequences, be referred to the decision of the consociation, provided our friends, the petitioners, will relinquish all claim to the prop- erty of the church, and pay their share of the debts contracted for their benefit as well as ours.
David Whittlesey, Chairman of Committee.
Dated at New Britain, this 21st day of June, 1842.
The report was accepted, and the resolution passed, and the meeting adjourned without day. William H. Smith, Clerk.
At a meeting of the church held the 28th day of June, 1842, Dr. Samuel Hart was appointed Moderator; after the doings of the last meeting were read, the following vote was passed :
Voted, that this church unite in calling a meeting of the Hartford South Consociation, to assemble in this village on Tuesday, the 5th day of July next, at nine o'clock A. M. in reference to forming and organizing a new Congregational church in this parish, provided they deem it expedient.
Voted, to appoint a committee to carry the above vote into effect, and the following persons were appointed : Seth J. North, Elnathan Peck, Augustus Stanley, and William A. Churchill.
Voted to adjourn without day. William H Smith, Clerk.
According to the vote of the church, on Tuesday, June 28th, 1842, the Consociation assembled July 5th, 1842, at nine o'clock A. M. Prayer by the Moderator, Dr. Chapin.
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The petitioners and remonstrants were heard by counsel and otherwise, and after due deliberation the Consociation announced their readiness to form a new church, and the following persons were organized into a new church, to be known by the name of the "South Congregational Church of New Britain."
Elijah Francis,
Harriet S. Smith,
Chauncey Cornwell,
Elizabeth A. Smith,
Seth J. North,
Theodore A. Belknap,
Alvin North,
Samuel W. Hart,
Samuel Hart,
Salmon Hart,
Norman Woodruff,
Horace Butler,
Henry North,
Joshua Carpenter,
Ozias Hart,
Robert G. Williams,
Dennis Sweet,
James Judd,
Andrew P. Potter,
Eliza A. Marshall,
Josiah Dewey,
Ezekiel Andrews, jun.,
Elijah Hart,
Elnathan Peck,
John Judd,
Henry Stanley,
Abijah Flagg,
Catharine A. Stanley,
Alonzo Stanley,
Curtiss Whaples,
Aaron C. Andrews,
Esther L. Lee,
George Hart,
Abigail Seymour,
William Bassett,
Mary Ann Seymour,
William H. Smith,
Dorothy Francis,
Chester Hart,
Edmund Warner,
George L. Tibbals,
Elizabeth W. Warner,
Edmund Steele,
Francis Hart,
Sarah North,
William B. Stanley,
Ann W. Burritt,
Charles M. Lewis,
Mary G. Cornwell,
Betsey Judd,
Sarah G. Cornwell,
Betsey Carpenter,
Maria Seymour,
Alma Woodruff,
Julia A. North,
Honor Flagg, Melvina C. Stanley,
Esther Dewey,
Chloe A. Stanley,
Mary Cordelia North,
Abigail L. Stanley,
Sarah E. North,
Maria N. Erwin,
Abigail Woodruff,
Electa Andrews, Harriet A. Stanley,
/ Lois E. Bassett,
Elizabeth F. Hart, Marilla Callender,
Mary S. Bassett,
Lucretia M. Smith,
Hannah Root,
Sarah M. Loomis,
Selina Churchill,
Mary Peck,
Louisa Hart,
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Elvey W. Hart,
Lucinda H. Smith,
Lucy N. Steele,
Lydia S. Dewy,
Matilda C. Warner,
Clarissa B. North,
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