USA > Connecticut > Litchfield County > Warren > The Congregational church, Warren, Connecticut, l750-1956 > Part 4
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Money was, as always, difficult to obtain, and it proved necessary to secure a loan from the Litchfield bank. Never- theless, no cheap material or shoddy workmanship was toler- ated. White pine was brought from Albany by ox teams. Hand wrought nails were used, driven into holes bored with gimlets. No material was to be wasted, however, as was shown by the instruction that "The Old Timber, the Oak Boards, & the Old Nails from the Old Meeting house - to be used as needed in building the new one - also for sheds on the green".
The blocks used for the underpinning, some of them ten feet in length, were cut from local granite quarries, as were the great stones at the entrance and in the "horseblock"-the latter an indispensable aid to church-goers as they alighted from their high wagons.
Even those of us who are not students of architecture can have some appreciation of the handsome front, with its four reeded pilasters, beautifully proportioned; the great five- paneled doors, with their enormous handwrought iron hinges and massive key; the semi-circular fanlight over each door, filled with leaded glass, and the triple-arched window above,
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which is of unique design. The ten windows on each side con- tain twenty panes of glass in each sash, or, by a bit of simple arithmetic, eight hundred seven-by-nine panes, some of the original glass still remaining.
The steeple, though unfortunately not restored to its original proportions after the disastrous lightning stroke of 1891, is still imposing. It consists of four sections. The square tower at the base has a simulated window on the north and another on the south side, and is surmounted by a simple but effective balustrade. The clock face on the east side was added when the steeple was rebuilt, its hands set at 2:20, the hour of the destructive bolt. Above the square tower is the open belfry, octagonal in form, with gracefully carved col- umns, and circled also by a balustrade. Still higher is another octagonal tower, of smaller diameter, now lacking its original balustrade; and from this rises the tall, shingled spire.
The bell was hung in 1819, but it apparently cracked and was recast or replaced by a new one four years later. In 1876 it was again recast.
The weathervane, which unfortunately was so severely damaged by lightning that it could not be reset but which is still preserved, was selected for detailed description in an article entitled "Three Early Connecticut Weathervanes" *. Made of hand-forged iron and sheet copper, it was mounted on a tapering iron shaft. "The copper sheets are ornamented with rows of pierced holes and raised ribs formed in the metal. On the pointing side of the shaft, two crossed straps of iron terminate in leaf-like forms of sheet copper .... very likely it [the tip] was made of copper, and then poured full of molten lead, the weight of which helped to counter-balance that of the opposite end . .. Its suavity of line, beauty of proportion and form contrast markedly with the two earlier examples al-
*Old Time New England. Bulletin of The Society for the Preservation of N. E. Antiquities, April, 1941, Vol. XXXI, No. 4, Serial No. 104.
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ready discussed [North Guilford and Stonington] and show the advancement in design that had been achieved over the more primitive though none the less interesting work of ear- lier craftsmen."
Such details of architecture and craftsmanship, selected as worthy of note by writers of authority in their respective fields, are convincing proof of the care and skill which went into the erection of the Warren meeting house.
All the town turned out for the "raising" in the spring of 1819, a task which took three days. The men worked on the building, while the women prepared the dinners, which were doubtless noteworthy exhibitions of the culinary art. At least a barrel of rum was consumed. The building was completed in 1820 and dedicated on June first of that year. Immeasur- able is the debt that we owe to those who dreamed and labored that this stately meeting house might become a reality. For nearly a hundred and forty years it has stood, mute witness to the skill and integrity of its builders and to the fidelity and devotion of those who worked and sacrificed for its completion.
Within, one is impressed by the tall, massive pillars that rise unbroken from the floor to the vaulted ceiling, and by the gallery fronts with their finely proportioned panels between the pillars and the delicately carved borders of dentils and graceful festoons. At the western end is the impressive Pal- ladian window. Underneath stands the spacious semi-circular pulpit of exquisitely grained butternut wood, supported by four fluted columns and entered by a gracefully curving stair- way on each side. The design in the balcony carving is deftly repeated in the carving on the pulpit and the frame of the Palladian window.
The interior carving was done by Frederick Starr, grand- nephew of the reverend Peter. "He done the work of finishing off the interior of the church, including the High Pulpit & all the molding and was greatly interested in the fine appearance of the building" - a mild tribute indeed to the taste and skill of the young craftsman !
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Well might Frederick have been interested, for he had grown up in a family that had strong ties with the church. His father, Platt, who for thirty years was keeper of the "tavern" which stood across the road from the parsonage- now a convalescent home known as "Tranquil House"-had been left an orphan at the age of nine and had been brought up by his uncle Peter and, in his own words, "had sat under his preaching for fifty years". Frederick's mother was Lucinda Finney, whose ancestors had taken a prominent part in the early days of the church. Frederick would have been untrue to his heritage had he not given of his best when his own op- portunity came. Shortly after the completion of the church he moved to Rochester, New York, and he and his sons after him nobly upheld the best traditions of the Starr family.
One small item of equipment was reserved for the ladies. When in the remodeling that occurred a generation later the pulpit was removed, inside the pulpit cushion was found a paper with the following inscription : "In the year of our Lord 1820, under the Presidency of Monroe and the Governorship of Oliver Wolcott, who was the first toleration Governor of Connecticut, and the 48th year of the ministry of Peter Starr, was built a new church in Warren and this cushion made and placed in it on the first day of June, the day of dedication. When this cushion shall have turned to rags, then shall this paper be discovered, which is designed to excite in the hearts of the grandchildren and greatgrandchildren of those who, to their laud be it spoken, unitedly subscribed $30, and purchased therewith this cushion and branches for the pulpit. Then too will it be known that this cushion was made by the hands of three young virgins, whose names will be had in tender re- membrance : P. and F. Talmage, and S. Saunders."
Even the new building contained no provision for heat- ing. Though some radical parishioners argued for greater comfort, the idea still persisted that personal comfort was somehow inconsistent with worship in the House of God. It was not until 1833 that the "Stove-Party" triumphed over the
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"Anti-Stove Party" and two large stoves were installed in the rear, with long pipes under the galleries, reaching the length of the building. Some of the women are said to have provided themselves with fans as protection against the high tempera- ture. Perhaps apochryphal is the tale of the good lady who was carried from the church, overcome by the heat, and was somewhat chagrined to discover afterwards that there had been no fire in the stoves that day; but, apocryphal or not, the story has its significance.
On March 8, 1822, Mr. Starr celebrated the completion of half a century of service in the Warren church. It must have been with deep emotion that he walked slowly down the aisle, mounted the curving stairs, entered the pulpit, and closed the little gate, a man of seventy-eight who had devoted his entire ministry to his people. There was gratitude in his heart for many things, but there was sadness also. Of the fifty-two church members at the beginning of his ministry, not one re- mained, and of those who had been heads of families in the town, only five were left. "I have lived", he said "to bury all my first church and most of my congregation."
In solemn tones he announced his text: "Give ear, O my people, to the law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth - Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from our children, showing to the generations to come the praises of the Lord and His strength and His wonderful works that He hath done." It was an earnest admonition to his people to recognize the Hand that had led them in the past and to implant in their descen- dants the faith that had kept them steadfast through all the vicissitudes of their lives.
Mr. Starr continued as pastor for seven years longer, preaching occasionally, but relinquishing the larger part of his duties to the young man who was his assistant and was to become his successor. He died in 1829, at the age of eighty- five, and is buried in the Warren cemetery, his grave marked by a large "table" stone.
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A later minister, Mr. Lobdell, wrote of him: "The oldest men had grown up under his moulding influence and he was re- garded with almost filial love by all the people. He had ad- ministered the ordinance of baptism to nearly all; he had united in marriage the numerous parents; had ministered at the bedside of the sick and performed the last sad rites of burial for some from almost every household. Hence the bond of affection was strong. He had linked the present with the past, and when he died, the people mourned."
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CHAPTER IV.
A DECADE OF DEVELOPMENT
REV. HART TALCOTT, 1825 - 1836
N EARLY seventy years had passed since the gathering of the church on the hilltop, a period spanned by the ministry of two pastors. Well might the congregation take pride in their accomplishments, especially in their beau- tiful new meeting house; well might they look forward, with the coming of a younger minister, to a period of prosperity and growth. And, though the years ahead were not without their problems and difficulties, such an encouraging outlook was, in large measure, justified.
At the close of his half-century sermon Mr. Starr had given his parishioners some practical advice, based obviously on his own experience. "You may safely hope and calculate to obtain a better minister than your old one", he said with be- coming modesty, "but you must not expect to obtain so cheap a one." And he continued: "Be not so anxious to obtain a cheap one as a good one; one who has a good head and a good heart-one who is not a novice-and when such a minister is obtained, be not slack to support him; and while he communi- cates to you spiritual things, withhold not from him your temporal things; lest, while you starve your Minister, you starve your own souls and the souls of your children." He urged the church also to make every effort to increase the permanent fund, which he had striven so hard to establish and which he hoped would be the guarantee of security for the future.
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Two years after the preaching of this sermon and four years before Mr. Starr's death, the Rev. Hart Talcott was called "to be a colleague with the aged pastor of the church". Mr. Talcott was a native of Vernon, Connecticut, (born 1787) and a graduate of Dartmouth in the class of 1812. He came to Warren from Clinton, preaching for the first time as a candi- date on December 9, 1824, "the day of public Thanksgiving". A widower with two children, he married for his second wife Clarinda Warner, granddaughter of Governor Griswold, and they had four children, all born in Warren.
The installation must have been a memorable occasion, with Mr. Starr giving the charge to the new pastor and six other ministers participating in the service.
Mr. Starr's parting advice had not gone unheeded, for the church had chosen a man of ability at the fairly respectable salary for those days of $500. A later minister wrote of Mr. Talcott, "He was a man of sound learning and earnest faith. His preaching was pungent and powerful". Though not of robust health, and suffering from lameness, the result of a "fever sore", he gained a reputation for ambition and energy. During his ministry one hundred twenty-two persons were added to the church, making a total enrollment of two hundred twelve, the largest number in the history of the church.
An outstanding characteristic of Mr. Talcott's ministry was his leadership in the temperance movement. This was a period in which, both at home and abroad, there was an in- creasing awareness of the evils of intemperance and a growing determination to do something about the problem. In earlier days the use of liquor in moderation had never been ques- tioned. In Mr. Starr's account book we find, along with such items as "for dressing my wig four pence" such other items as, "one quart of rum 8d" or "10d" or even "1s 2d"; and, as he traveled about on horseback, "for oats and flip 5d". The house which he built contained a cupboard for the keeping of liquors, which he doubtless dispensed to his guests with gen- erous hospitality. Liquor was served at every entertainment
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and no ordination was complete without it. Indeed, Dr. Lyman Beecher of Litchfield had been so incensed by the drinking and unseemly behavior at one ordination that he had vowed never to attend another. The series of sermons that he preached on temperance did much to arouse the conscience of the coun- try, and Dr. Beecher was no stranger to the Warren pulpit.
Everywhere the prevalence of drink and the evils of in- toxication were all too evident, and thinking men began seri- ously to consider their own responsibility. "It's a marcy", one father said gravely, "that all my sons didn't grow up to be drunkards." On the other hand, the claim of "personal liber- ty" and "individual rights", not unknown in our own day, was loudly asserted. Excitement rose high. Mr. Talcott threw himself with all his energy into the cause, and his older col- league, though in retirement, couldn't keep silent. None of his hearers ever forgot the day when Mr. Starr once again, slowly and with difficulty, mounted the high pulpit stairs and hurled out the ringing challenge, "Who is on the Lord's side ?" It was the old pastor's last effort. That afternoon he was taken violently ill and within a few weeks he died, at the age of eighty-five.
Across the road from the church stood the home of Deacon Joseph Tanner, a man greatly beloved and honored in the community. Deacon Tanner kept a tavern and, like all other tavern keepers, he had always served liquor to his guests; but now his conscience was aroused, and, being a man who did not trifle with his conscience, he announced that liquor would no longer be served in his tavern. This announcement, though greeted with approval by the sober-minded citizens of the town, was met with a storm of protest and derision from others, the slogan of "personal liberty" being applied, as usual, only in one direction. In a childish display of malicious mis- chief the rowdies tore down his sign, declaring that no man who refused to sell liquor should keep a tavern. One night they hoisted his wagon into a tree. Near the house was an orchard of thrifty young apple trees. The writer of this
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sketch remembers, as a little girl, riding wih her father past the site of the old tavern and listening entranced as he pointed his whip toward a few gnarled old trees that still remained and told how in the night a band of hoodlums had entered the orchard and girdled every tree. She remembers the very sound of his voice as he said, almost reverently, "It was the spring of the year, the sap was running freely, and not a tree died " Again, the ruffians sought to hamstring a valuable young horse that had been turned out to pasture; but what was their chagrin the next morning to discover that the horse they had ruined belonged to a member of their own gang !
The fight thus begun was a long, bitter fight. There has recently been discovered in a Warren attic a book which con- tains the minutes of "The Warren Temperance Society", later renamed "The Warren Christian Temperance Union". When the society was first organized is unknown, but it was "reor- ganized" in 1842 and met regularly at least until 1879, the date of the last entry.
At first the members appear to have been entirely men, at least all of the officers were men until the year 1878 when, among the twenty-one members of the Executive Committee, the names of five women appear. That year the society had one hundred eighty-eight members, one hundred fourteen men and seventy-four women. Their activities included the distri- bution of temperance literature and the arranging of open meetings addressed by popular speakers. In particular they were determined that "the vile business of rumselling should be stopped in this town", and to this end they voted "to take all such measures moral or legal as may be necessary to put an absolute stop to that wicked traffic."
The condition of membership was the signing of the pledge: "We whose names are hereunto annexed do hereby agree that we will not use as a beverage traffic in nor furnish to our friends or persons in our employ except as a medicine any Intoxicating Drinks". Oh, as rewritten, with emphasis upon the positive rather than the negative: "With malice to-
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ward none, with charity for all, I the undersigned do pledge my word of honor, God helping me, to abstain from all in- toxicating liquors, as a beverage, and that I will, by all hon- orable means encourage others to abstain."
The scribe evidently had a sly sense of humor when he wrote on one occasion : "Meeting called to order by Rev. W. S. Colton, the president being absent on his wedding tour. Meet- ing very interesting, the minister having made a barrel of cider a few weeks ago either the effects of that or the great solicitude he feels in regard to the welfare of the members of the temperance society caused him to speak with great feeling in favor of temperance". As a matter of fact, the minister's cider was doubtless designed for vinegar.
Another vital problem was, as Mr. Starr had clearly fore- seen, the matter of church support. In early days church and state had been virtually one, and a church tax was levied on all citizens. As long as the Congregational churches were the only churches, few had questioned this policy; but as other denominations gained strength, opposition naturally increased. An important step toward religious freedom was taken when the General Court decreed that an individual might designate his tax for some church other than Congregational, and in 1818 the tax was repealed altogether, thus ending forever in Connecticut the control of the church by the state. This action was not taken, however, without bitter opposition : such stalwart defenders of the faith as Timothy Dwight of Yale and Lyman Beecher predicted dire consequences, Dr. Beecher, for example, asserting that the withdrawal of state support "would open the floodgate of ruin on the state."
Taxes continued, however, to be levied by the Society upon its own members. One year a tax of three cents on every dollar of assessment was declared; another year it was six cents, and still another year, eight cents. Unless a rebate was made in individual cases, collection was vigorously pressed.
Another source of income was pew rent. The old custom of "seating the meeting house" had been abolished and pews
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were now sold at annual auction, the price of the pew being deducted from the owner's assessed tax. The highest bidders had first choice of pews. It is recorded in one year (1825) that bids ranged from one dollar to twenty, the total amount- ing to $360. A free pew was always reserved for the minis- ter's family, and certain seats were set aside for the "poor". The system of pew rent continued in this church as in others well into the twentieth century.
Other provision was made for "the poor", a group whose welfare Mr. Talcott had very sincerely at heart. The deacons were instructed "to assist them when needful from the funds of the church; to furnish them, so far as practicable, with the religious publications of the day; in short to do what could consistently be done to enable them to attend the administra- tion of gospel ordinances and to promote their piety and use- fulness."
Correct moral behavior has, of course, always been the concern of the church, but the methods by which this respon- sibility has been carried out have changed with the years. The minutes of the Society for the decade 1825-1835 record a number of charges against individual members for such offences as undue use of "ardent spirits", "unbecoming con- duct", "labouring on the Sabbath", "forfeiting his engage- ment" (namely, being false to his covenant), or being absent "without reasonable excuse from public worship and the ordi- nance of the Lord's Supper".
In all such cases certain members of the Society, usually the deacons, were appointed to approach the offending persons and "labor with them". If the individual acknowledged his guilt, signed a written confession and asked forgiveness, such confession being publicly read on the Sabbath, he was "Re- stored to Christian charity"; if he refused, he was considered "a contumacious brother" and excommunication was the final penalty, the sentence reading, "that our watch and fellowship be and hereby are withdrawn from him."
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At one meeting the Society was called upon to consider the conduct of a certain young lady. "Do the church think it compatible with the Christian profession to attend balls ? Will they tolerate its practice in respect to members?" To these questions each brother responded with an emphatic "No!" (Needless to say, the "sisters" were not officially con- sulted.) Upon being informed of the action, the young lady humbly confessed her guilt, stating that she had been visiting friends in the adjoining town of New Preston, had gone with them to the place where the ball was being held, and, while the other guests were at supper, had danced two or three times, not realizing that she was thereby violating her church cove- nant. Her apology was accepted.
Sometimes the Society was able to settle in true Biblical fashion a dispute that might otherwise have resulted in bitter litigation. One brother committed a trespass "by hoisting the gates of the reserve mill dam, so called, and thereby wasting its waters". A committee was appointed to labor with both parties, stressing the folly of appealing to the law, and the matter was apparently amicably settled.
One confession records an experience by no means con- fined to past generations: "I acknowledge that I have not walked agreeably to my Christian profession; particularly in that I have, without reasonable excuse, absented myself from the ordinance of the Lord's Supper; also by rude conduct and vain conversation and by an unguarded intimacy with a per- son whose character has proved bad, and thereby given ground to my brethren to fear that I was accessory to his crime-all which I sincerely regret and ask the forgiveness of God and of my brethren and sisters in the church."
Such a public acknowledgment was indeed, humiliating, but it may have meant much in the life of that young man thus clearly to have recognized his error before it was too late. Undoubtedly such public rebukes resulted in the wounding of many a sensitive spirit; sometimes they must have kindled
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bitter resentments. Conceivably, they might have developed a self-righteous attitude on the part of those who were the official judges. Certainly, infinite patience, tact, and humility of spirit were indispensable qualifications for the men who thus became the keepers of their brothers' consciences. But at least it was made unmistakably clear that the obligations of church membership were not to be carelessly assumed or its privileges lightly regarded.
During the early years of the nineteenth century the Methodist movement was gaining headway in Litchfield County. In the late eighteenth century Jesse Lee, Bishop Asbury, and other less well known circuit riders had visited Cornwall and a church was established there, the influence of which, quite naturally, reached over the line into Warren. One of the first to leave the Congregational church and join the Methodists was "Squire" Carter, he of the stentorian voice who, it is said, would stand on the "flat rock", the rock on which the farmers of early days had threshed their grain, and summon his son Ward, a quarter of a mile or more away, to return the plow or harrow that he had borrowed.
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