USA > Washington DC > The chronicles of Georgetown, D.C., from 1751-1878 > Part 11
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President of the United States; Henry D. Cooke, Governor of the District of Columbia ; S. H. Howe, pastor ; George W. Beall, B. R. Mayfield, C. F. Peck, A. Young, W. H. Dougal, J. Ramsburg, S. II. Howell, elders; J. S. Blackford, Joseph Williamson, C. S. Ramsburg, deacons ; W. H. Dougal, F. L. Moore, W. W. Winship, M. V. Buckey, W. W. Curtis, R. Brace, Thomas Harrison, C. M. McGowan, James Goddard, trustees."
ST. JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCHI.
[A historical account of the church, by Rev. C. M. Butler, rector, October 17, 1843.]
" The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad."- PSALM CXxVi, 3.
"This grateful exclamation of the Psalmist, my brethren, becomes us on this occasion. After more than four months intermission of our services, we are permitted, by the good providence of God, to meet again as a congregation in our enlarged, improved, and beautified edifice.
" Gratitude to God that he has enabled us to bring this good work to completion, should fill our hearts. To the zeal of the vestry, who, feeling the necessity of larger accommodations for the stability and sup- port of the church and for the spiritual wants of the community, suggested the enlargement of the build- ing to the congregation ; to the ready response of the congregation to the appeal of the vestry, with a large, Christian, self-denying liberality worthy of all com- mendation, manifested by a subscription for the object which, taking into consideration the number and
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means of the contributors, is seldom equalled in amount-to the skill of the gentleman * who furnished the plan for the enlargement of the building ; to the liberality and labor of the ladies of the congregation, who procured and prepared the furniture of the pulpit, desk and chancel; to the unwearied and faithful dili- gence of the building committee,t and, I may add, to the successful efforts of the builder # to render the edifice complete and commodious-to these, under God, do we owe it, that we are permitted to meet this morning, none of our number lost by death, in our pleasant and beautified sanctuary, hallowed by many sacred associations, and to realize ' how amiable are thy tabernacles, thou Lord of Hosts!' Brethren, if our love be as large as our mercies, and our lives ex- press in any good degree the gratitude which we owe, we shall be a devoted people.
" A sketch of the history of this church will show that the Lord hath indeed donc great things for us, whereof it becomes us to be glad !
" The records in possession of the church of its past history are very few and imperfect. Such as remain have been collected with great care, and re-written with much labor by a member of the vestry, | to whose zeal and industry I am indebted for fair copies of
* Captain George F. De la Roche, engineer and draughtsman in the Navy Department.
+ Messrs. L. Thomas, A. H. Marbury, and John Waters.
# Matthias Duffey, contractor.
|| Mr. John HI. Offley. Besides the papers here referred to, others, it is believed, are in existence : and it is much to be regret- ted that the efforts made to procure them have failed, as they are supposed to be most interesting.
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every remaining paper having reference to the history of the church which is in its possession. Instead of the connected and minute detail which would be in- teresting if it were in my power to furnish it, I can give but scattered and unconnected notices of the past history of the church, gathered from those incomplete records which remain, and from conversation with the Reverend Mr. Addison, for many years the respected rector of the parish, and with some of the older citi- zens of the place.
" It is a pleasing circumstance with which to com- mence our reminiscences, that the first movement towards establishing an Episcopal Church in this place was made by the Reverend Mr. Addison, with the concurrence and assistance of the Reverend Dr. Balch, a Presbyterian clergyman, whose memory is still warmly cherished in this community. The Reverend Mr. Addison was at that time settled in the parish of Broad Creek, Prince George's County, opposite Alex- andria. Hearing that there were some Episcopal families in this place, he paid it a visit ; was invited by Dr. Balch to hold an Episcopal service in his church, and encouraged by him to endeavor to organ- ize an Episcopal congregation. This incident is in perfect accordance with the character which this ven- erated man left behind him for Christian kindness and liberality. Mr. Addison continued to visit the place and to hold services occasionally during the years 1794 and 1795. In the summer of 1796, the first effort, of which any record remains, was made to or- ganize a congregation and build a church. Whether 22
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a board of trustees or a vestry was organized or not, does not appear. The only record we possess of this effort is a list of subscribers, whose contributions were to be applied 'to building the walls and covering in a Protestant Episcopal Church in Georgetown.' This paper is dated August, 1796, and contains one hundred and twelve names, whose contributions, varying from one dollar to one hundred dollars, amount, collectively, to fifteen hundred dollars. A lot for the church (the one now occupied) was given by Colonel William Deakins. The subscription list is preceded by the promise to pay the amount subscribed, 'for the pur- pose of building a Protestant Episcopal Church in the lot in Beatty and Hawkins' addition to Georgetown.' From this expression it appears that this location was at that time beyond the limits of the town proper. The memory of one of our oldest citizens refers the chief agency in this movement to Mr. William Dor- sey and Mr. Plater. From causes which do not ap- pear, but which may be conjectured to have been the difficulty of raising a sufficient amount of money, the building which was commenced at that time was car- ried up only to the first range of windows, and re- mained in this situation until the year 1803. During this period the Reverend Mr. Addison held occasional services in this place, though with little encourage- ment to his hopes of completing the building.
" The next record of which we are in possession is of a meeting of the citizens of Georgetown, in Janu- ary, 1803, to take measures for renewing the effort to build an Episcopal Church. The minutes of this meet-
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ing commence as follows : ' At a meeting of a number of the inhabitants of Georgetown, at Mr. Semmes' tavern, on Friday evening, 28th January, pursuant to a notice in the Washington Federalist, for the purpose of adopting regulations for building a Protestant Epis- copal Church, Walter S. Chandler, Charles Worthing- ton, and Walter Smith, were appointed a committee to inquire into the situation of the building com- menced for that purpose, and to examine into the state of the accounts relative thereto, and to judge of the propriety of completing the same, or to purchase ground in any other part of the town, in their opinion most appropriate; to solicit subscriptions therefor, and to make all such contracts and agreements as may be requisite for carrying into effect the object proposed.' The committee were instructed by resolution to ap- point a treasurer, and to proceed to build a church as soon as sufficient funds for the object could be ob- tained. There are recorded the names of one hund- red and fifty-four subscribers, whose subscriptions amount to twenty-five hundred dollars. Among the subscribers is found the name of Thomas Jefferson. The name of the Reverend Dr. Balch also appears as a subscriber. Another record states the whole amount of the subscriptions to have been four thousand two hundred and forty-five dollars. Consequently, aid from other sources and contributors than those which appear on the remaining list must have been received. That difficulties occurred in obtaining the amount required is manifest from a letter addressed by the Rev. Mr. Rattoone, associate rector of St. Paul's Church, Balti-
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more, on behalf of the trustees of this church, to the vestry of Trinity Church, New York. The letter gives us an idea of the difficulties they had to en- counter, and the importance of the enterprise, not only in reference to the spiritual interests of George- town, but of Washington also.
" At that period there was no other church at Wash- ington than Christ Church at the Navy Yard. A part of the letter is here given :
"' To the rector and vestry of Trinity Church, N. Y.
"' GENTLEMEN : Having perused a memorial from the trustees of the church at Georgetown, at their re- quest I am induced to certify that the statement they have given is perfectly correct. The exertions they have made, the difficulties they have encountered, and the great importance of the Episcopal Church tak- ing a primary and superior lead, where at the seat of Government they are so divided, are considerations which I have no doubt will have their due weight when you shall take into view the facts they have stated. I should regret that from the very small num- ber of Episcopalians residing in this place, and from the great sacrifices they have made to accommodate the poorer classes of the same society, they should not be able to complete the church, and form the most respectable establishment.
"' As Trinity parish gave so liberally to the church established at Albany, under the idea of that place being made the seat of the State government, I am induced to hope, as no evil can result from the prece- dent, that they will extend their liberality likewise to
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the permanent seat of the General Government. It may tend greatly to restore order, to diffuse the prin- ciples of equal and just liberty, and to establish, with honor and distinction, a house of public worship, where the doctrines, discipline, and worship of the Protestant Episcopal Church may be taught in purity, and from this center of the Union be widely diffused throughout the United States.'
" Whether this appeal to Trinity Church was suc- cessful, does not appear. The building was con- menced, covered in, and sufficiently finished for the celebration of public worship.
"Early in 1804, the trustees* advertised their want of a rector. In March they were visited by the Rev. Mr. Sayrs, of Port Tobacco parish. A meeting of the pew holders was held in April, at which he was elected rector, and the trustees directed to inform him of his election. He appears at once to have entered upon his labors. In May, 1806, there was a call upon the pew holders for one year's rent, or a sum equal there- to, to finish the church. It is this call which leads me to infer, that at the first occupancy of the church, it was not completed, but only made sufficiently com- fortable to be occupied in 1804 and 1805. The church appears to have been in a prosperous state until the death of the rector in 1809. Few are now living here who have distinct recollections of this excellent man, but those few unite in paying a sincere tribute to his
*It appears, from one of the papers, that the following gentlemen composed a board of trustees, viz: William H. Dorsey, Charles Worthington, Thomas Corcoran. Walter S. Chandler, and Walter Smith. Thomas Corcoran and Walter Smith acted as treasurers.
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memory. A scholar, a pleasing speaker, a pious and humble minister, he was well qualified for usefulness in the then important position which he occupied. The character given of him in conversation by that lamented and distinguished man, Francis S. Key, Esq., by whom Mr. Sayrs' epitaph was written, impressed my mind with a deep respect for his memory.
" The marble which commemorates his fidelity, re- stored by the pious care of the vestry of the church to a position which enables him being dead yet to speak, serves to remind us alike of the good example of him whose ashes sleep beneath, and of him, his par- ishioner and friend, whose affectionate and devoted spirit yet lives in the epitaph, whose words fall on the ear and on the heart with so sweet and solemn ca- dence ! That marble also serves to preach to the preacher, as he stands in this place, an earnest exhor- tation, which seems to issue from the tomb, 'What- soever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest !' Oh! may all who speak in this place, reminded by that silent monitor, speak as in view of the hour of death, and of the day of judgment. 'Storied urn and animated bust' may bear flattering memorials of the worth, and fame, and honor of the children of the world; but when truth guides the hand that writes the epitaph, no higher eulogy can be traced over the resting-place of man than this, that
'He lived and died an humble minister
Of God's benignant purposes to man.'
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"*In January, 1809, the Rev. Walter Addison was called to and accepted the rectorship of this church. At that time the church was as largely attended fron Washington as from Georgetown, there being still no other church at Washington but Christ Church at the Navy Yard.
" The memories of some of our older citizens recall the crowded attendance upon the services of this church at that period. No other records are possessed than those of the names of the vestry, and of the ordinary business transactions of that body, until the year 1811. That the church was in a most prosperous condition at that period, at least in reference to its external af- fairs, appears from a resolution of the vestry dated January 11, 1811.+
" On motion, Resolved, 'That it is expedient to en- large the church, and that a committee be appointed to solicit subscriptions ; and that Mr. Gozler be re- quested to furnish a plan for the said addition to be built, together with his estimate of the probable cost thereof.' The plan failed, as we have been informed, from the double difficulty of raising the means, and of making the pew holders satisfied with holding the same pews, relatively more distant from the pulpit than before, at the same valuation. The incident shows how, even in a Christian congregation, little and selfish considerations sometimes oppose themselves to,
*Vestry in 1807-Charles Worthington, W. Bowie, T. Corcoran, J. Mason, T. Plater, B. Mackall, P. B. Key, and William Stewart.
+Vestry alluded to were T. Corcoran, treasurer ; J. Abbot. see- retary ; T. Peter, J. Gozler, L. H. Johns. R. Beverly, T. Hyde, F. S. Key, C. Smith, and J. Kennedy, wardens,
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and prevent great and permanent measures of im- provement. We cannot but contrast that unsuccess- ful effort for enlargement with the one in whose suc- cess we rejoice to-day, using the language of David, to express our joyful gratitude,
' The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.' At that time the church was thronged to an overflow with all who were most elevated in station and in wealth from the capital ; the pews in the gallery were rented at high rates, and to persons of great respecta- bility; the street before the door of the church was filled with glittering vehicles, and liveried servants ; and yet, because means could not be raised for the en- largement, and a miserable selfishness could not be made to relinquish anything for the sake of extending the privileges of God's house, the enterprise was aban- doned. Now, with a much smaller and humbler con- gregation, on whom heavy burdens have rested ever since the re-opening of the church, not largely blessed, or shall we say cursed, with this world's wealth, but, as their deeds have shown, rich in faith, with but little aid from without the congregation, the means for the enlargement of the church have been raised, and the work has not been prevented by the obtrusion of self- ish and secondary considerations, and to-day we re- joice in its completion. The contrast strikingly teaches us to whom we are, and are not, to look for the extension of Christ's kingdom, and the honor of his name. I should do violence to my feelings if I did not here express my sense of the noble and Christian liberality of the little flock among whom it is my hap-
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piness to minister. Looking above the human instru- ments to Him who put it in their hearts to do honor to his name, to Him alone would I give the glory, and say, in the grateful language of the Psalmist-
' The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.'
" From this period until the year* 1817, the church continued in operation with but a moderate measure of temporal or spiritual prosperity. It appears, from a resolution of the vestry, that the Rev. Mr. Addison tendered his resignation of the parish, and that this resignation was accepted and acted upon by the vestry.
" The resolution was in these words : Resolved, 'That a rector of St. John's Church be appointed on Wed- nesday, 30th of April, 1817, to supply the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of the Rev. Walter Ad- dison.' Mr. Addison's resignation, however, did not take effect, and the vestry furnished him with an as- sistant. At a meeting of the vestry May, 13th, 1817, we find this resolution : Resolved, ' That the Reverend Ruel Keith be appointed the assistant minister of this church for one year.' On the 26th of April, 1818, there is again a record, 'That the Rev. Mr. Addison was unanimously appointed rector of this church.' At this time, the congregation of Christ Church was organized, and the Rev. Mr. Keith chosen rector of the church. From this period St. John's Church con- tinned in a feeble and declining condition. In 1821,
*Vestry in 1817-F. S. Key, T. Hyde, L. H. Johns, W. Bowie, C. Worthington, C. Smith, T. Corcoran, and J. Abbot ; J. Howe and T. G. Waters, wardens. At a meeting of the vestry, Messrs. Bowie, Corcoran, and Abbot were appointed a committee . to adopt such measures as they may deem proper to enlarge the church.'
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the Rev. Mr. Addison resigned the rectorship of the church, under the conviction that his usefulness had been much diminished, and that the parish might pros- per better in other hands. He then took charge of Rock Creek Church and Addison Chapel, near Bla- densburg, and was succeeded in the rectorship of St. John's by the Rev. Stephen S. Tyng. Mr. Tyng re- mained in the parish from April, 1821, to April, 1823. There were but eleven families connected with the church when he assumed the charge of it, and when he left, the number had increased to thirty-three. Mr. Tyng resigned the parish in 1823, and removed to Queen's Parish, Anne Arundel County, Maryland. Mr. Addison was recalled in 1823, and continued the settled minister of the parish till 1827. During this period he was much afflicted with weakness of the eyes, which in the end became perfect blindness. Unable, under this affliction, to continue his services effectively, he resigned the charge again in 1827. He was succeeded by the Rev. Mr. James, who had charge of the church, it is believed, between one and two years. Mr. James was succeeded by the Rev. Sutherland Douglass, who had charge of the parish about the same length of time. After the church had ceased to have a settled rector, the Rev. Mr. Addison, though perfectly blind, continued to hold an occasional service in the church till 1831, when it was finally abandoned .* Abandoned, did I say? If this had been all, it would have been
* Vestry at this time: Dr. Charles Worthington, Gen. John Ma- son, Messrs. G. B. Magruder, Thomas Peter. John Gozler, Clem- out Cox, Charles G. Wilcox, William Stewart, William Good, and Richard Davis, wardens; F. Lowndes, register.
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comparatively well. Had it remained only open and deserted, so as not inappropriately to have borne the title of ' The Swallow Barn,'* by which name I hear it was often called, even in such a deserted and neg- lected state, it would not have been altogether di- vested of sacred associations. As the pious member of the church passed by the desolated house of God, where himself or his fathers worshipped, he might then have applied to it, with something of mournful- ness, the plaintive language of the Psalmist : The sparrow hath found her an house, and the swallow a nest, where she may lay her young, even thy altars and thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God!' But, a feeling of holy indignation, or of conscious shame, must, I think, have filled his heart, when he saw it given up as a workshop of a sculp- ture ! Yes, in this Christian community, a Christian temple was allowed to undergo the most shameful des- ecration, and they who had worshipped under its roof, and gathered about its sacred board, or in it been dedi- cated to God by baptism, passed it by, and saw the statues of heathen gods and goddesses as a sign at its portico, and heard the chiselings of the workmen, where the voice of prayer and praise was wont for years to rise,t and they suffered it to be so! I know not on whose heads the censure falls, but I should be
* The church occupied at present long remained in an unfinished condition. Birds used to build their nests in it. and the Reverend Thomas B. Balch, when a boy, and his companions used to clamber up its walls. This was about the year 1800.
t The building was, at this time, occupied as a studio by Mr. Pet- trich, the sculptor.
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unfaithful to my duty as an annalist, and a minister of Christ, if I did not designate such gross indiffer- ence to God's house as inexcusable and disgraceful. If, which God in his mercy avert, these walls should ever again be deserted and left without worshipers, may there be, at least, such a decree of godly jealousy for the honor of God's house left among you, brethren who may linger last about its forsaken altar, as will lead you to level the edifice to the dust, rather than that it should again be subjected to such wanton desecration !
" In the rapid sketch of the history of this church, up to the period of its abandonment in 1831, names have been mentioned as identified with its fortunes which, no doubt, have called up many associations in the minds of some of those who hear me. Of the laity who were active in its organization, few remain among us. Of the clergymen who have been con- nected with this church, some remain to this present, but others are fallen asleep. We have already spoken of him whose ashes sleep beneath this edifice. The name of the lamented Dr. Keith will call up fresher recollections. The impression stamped by that ear- nest and gifted man on this community will not soon be effaced. Alas! that the light which was so bright in its dawning and meridian, should have been so clouded at its setting. But let us remember that the sun, whose parting rays are so obstructed that they do not meet the eye, is, in itself, no less radiant, and de- parts in darkness from one horizon, to shine with more than its morning and meridian brightness in other climes. The Rev. Mr. Tyng is occupying a position of great responsibility, and exercising a ministry of
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eminent usefulness, in the city of Philadelphia. The Rev. Mr. James was successively an assistant of Bishop White, in Christ Church, and his successor in the rec- torship. He died soon after Bishop White, deeply re- gretted, not only by his congregation, but by the church at large. The Reverend Sutherland Douglass breathed forth his ardent and zealous spirit in a for- eign land, where he had gone with the hope of restor- ation to health, ' by strangers honored, and by strang- ers mourned.' The venerable Mr. Addison is still liv- ing. Afflicted for many years with blindness, this truly humble and pious man has exhibited a meek and patient spirit, which gives evidence that the eye of his soul is open, and is fixed on Christ. 'Patient waiting for Christ,' are words which well describe his condi- tion. Looking upon the venerable man, with his hoary head and placid countenance, which bears the marks of chastening, but not of tumult or discontent, his pres- ence seemed to breathe forth the eloquent but unre- pining complaint of the blind bard of Paradise:
'Not to me returns Day, nor the sweet reproach of even or morn, Or sight of vernal bloom or sminmer rose, Or flocks, or herds, or human face divine ;- But clouds instead, and ever during dark
Surround me, from the cheerful rays of men
Cut off, and for the book of knowledge fair,
Presented with an universal blank Of nature's works, to me expunged and razed, And wisdom at one entrance quite shut ont.'
" Ah! brethren, these churches, thus bearing on their silent walls the associations of the past, preach- ing to us the changes and chances of this mortal life.
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