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Christ Church Parish Springfield, Massachusett 1817 - 1927
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01291 5523
GENEALOGY 974.402 SP8CH
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Christ Church, 1927
Christ Church Parish Springfield, Massachusetts 1817-1927
FOREWORD
The members of Christ Church Guild who as a Committee have had the great honor and privilege to collect and to work over the facts used in this history of Christ Church Parish feel that whatever success we may have had in our work has been due in great measure to those in the parish and in the community who have helped by their sympathy and kindly attitude toward the project. They have answered innumer- able questions, both verbal and written, delved into bundles of treasured letters, scrap-books, and newspaper clippings. Many photographs have been loaned. Special thanks are due to the Springfield Republican and the City Library staff for their untiring assistance in going over old records.
We are especially grateful to the Rt. Rev. Charles L. Slat- tery, D. D., the Rev. Donald N. Alexander and the Rev. John M. McGann for words of encouragement and valuable help; to Colonel Thales L. Ames for permission to consult papers of historic interest at the United States Armory; to Mr. Henry H. Skinner, custodian of Christ Church's priceless collection of letters, records, and old documents; and to Colonel Stanhope E. Blunt for indispensable aid in compiling statistics. We also tender sincere thanks for information received by letters from the Rev. George Burgess, the Rev. John B. Whiteman, the Rev. Alfred E. Johnson, Mrs. Caroline Lee Lewis, Mrs. Lewis Child, the Misses Kate Mcknight, Mary Burgess, Bella C. Saxon, Alice Crocker and Josephine Brooks. It is a very dif- ficult matter to decide what items to omit and what to retain in the limited space allotted. It has been our endeavor to choose those which would be of interest to the greatest number
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of people. The Committee will gladly receive any corrections or important additional items which will be filed for future use.
Sarah Hollister Fuller Mary Woodman Kingston Lena Moxon
December, 1922.
SECOND EDITION
In the Foreword to the first edition appears this acknow- ledgment: "We are especially grateful to and Colo- nel Stanhope E. Blunt for his indispensable aid in compiling the statistics."
This second edition is published in accordance with the sug- gestions of Colonel Blunt who wished to more firmly estab- lish the connection between the Armory and Christ Church and to have recorded the important events which have taken place in the Parish in the last five years. It should be said that the interest and generous support of Colonel Blunt and his family have made possible the publication.
May, 1927.
INTRODUCTION
Christ Church, Springfield, Massachusetts is a branch of that great body, the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Her conception and growth, therefore, can best be appreciated by reviewing the early life of the Church as a whole and by noting the sources from which Christ Church received nourishment during her first tender years.
In colonial days, when adventurous spirits like Drake and Frobisher sailed the high seas, the services of the Book of Com- mon Prayer were read on all the English sailing vessels. A cross at the entrance to Golden Gate, San Francisco, (1578) and one at the mouth of the Kennebec River, Maine, (1607) mark the sites where services were first read on each coast of our great continent. In the settlement of the southern states, continuous church life was a vital factor. However, in this narrative it is fitting to stress only the outstanding events of the Church's slower progress in the northern states, recalling first that the Puritans who settled Massachusetts were Church of England people. Their clergymen had received Episcopal ordination; their Bishop had blessed them when they sailed away. But soon in a new land, their rebellion against ritualism became so sweeping that they turned an unrelenting face against anyone who practiced it.
Such an attitude prevailed to a greater or less degree until, in 1722, the Church received a wonderful impetus. The President of Yale College (then numbering thirty-five stu- dents), the faculty, and fifty near-by clergymen became com- municants of the Church of England. "The eminent converts had read their way into the Church." From that day Epis- copalianism grew in material and spiritual power in New
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England until, at the close of the Revolutionary War, we find here her greatest strength.
For nearly two centuries the Church in the New World had consisted of scattered groups loosely held together by allegiance to the Bishop of London, all efforts to secure a resident bishop having failed. In 1783, when political independence became a fact, with renewed hope Dr. Samuel Seabury of Connecticut was sent to London to be consecrated; but the English Bishops refused the rite, partly because the candidate must first swear allegiance to the crown. At the end of sixteen months fruitless pleading he turned to Scotland, and was consecreted Bishop at Aberdeen, November 14, 1784.
Yet, Bishop Seabury was a Tory. His consecration was not recognized by the Church of England. So, fearful of the at- titude of attending laymen and clergy, when the first General Convention met in Philadelphia in 1784 New England sent no delegate. But the War of 1812 helped heal all differences Patriots and resident Tories, regardless of Church affiliations, united against a common enemy, and the lasting peace that followed established, for the most part, a lasting tolerance.
A report at the General Convention, held in 1820, speaks of the condition of the Church in Massachusetts at about the time that Christ Church was founded. It tells of a large, elegant Church building nearly completed in Boston, vital pro- gress in smaller cities, and concrete proof of missionary ac- tivities, for "-a few small congregations have been collected in other towns." The Rt. Rev. Alexander T. Griswold, D. D. was bishop of all New England except Connecticut. Christ Church, one of those "few, small congregations," is not like a plant that flourished in a waste place. Her life and growth were, in great measure, dependent upon the life and the growth of the fine city of Springfield. So in writing the history of Christ Church Parish grateful tribute has been paid to its environment. With this thought in mind, it is interesting to record that certain definite contributions she has made to the community were noted at the 250th anniversary of the found-
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ing of Springfield, held in May, 1886, when Railroad Commis- sioner Kinsler in a public address said: " . Consider for a moment that the Episcopal church, which was founded here by Rev. Henry Lee, has sent out three bishops,-Bishop Lee of Iowa, Bishop Littlejohn of Long Island, and Bishop Burgess. That in itself is glory enough for Springfield . " Since that day Christ Church has added two more names to this Honor Roll-Bishop Perry of Rhode Island and Bishop Slat- tery of Massachusetts, and in the early days, following the organization of the Parish (1822), two young men officiated at the services in the Armory Chapel who later became prelates of the Church, Bishop Chase of New Hampshire and Bishop Doane of New Jersey.
In weaving into the following simple, truthful story many widely scattered facts, the writers have made no effort to produce a treatise of great historical or literary value. If this little book only helps keep active the gratitude due those who loved and worked for the existence of Christ Church, the fruits of whose steadfast, often disheartening, labors the present generation is enjoying, it has not been written in vain.
-S. H. F.
THE CHAPEL ON ARMORY HILL
The vigorous, scholarly Puritan, William Pynchon, was once a warden of All Saints' Church, Springfield, Essexshire Hamlet, England. "Hoary and tree-embowered, the old church stands as the embodiment of the faith of the ages," serving as a model in this century for All Saints' Church on Oakland Street, whose cornerstone was laid in 1908. "The warden of that little church of Springfield was a true Englishman; he loved his church, the Prayer Book, and its' Services," but finding ritualism under Bishop Laud "like an iron collar clasped upon the neck of the church," he sought improved conditions in the New World.
He lived for a while at Roxbury, Massachusetts, but becoming dissatisfied, in the early part of May, 1636, he, and a brave band of followers, pushed their way through the wilderness and for "18 fathoms of wampum, 18 Coates, 18 howes, 18 hatchets, 18 knives" purchased from the friendly Indians a tract of land twenty-five miles square on the banks of the beautiful "Quin- etticut" River, where deep water yielded a seemingly inexhaus- tible supply of fish, fertile lands brought forth abundant har- vests, while on every hand roamed a wealth of fur-bearing animals. Here they founded a settlement later called Spring- field in honor of William Pynchon's English home.
This settlement's first leader in all matters pertaining to re- ligion was the Rev. George Moxon. Very little is known about this good man's early life save that he had received Episcopal ordination in England. At the dawn of their history came now and then indomitable Methodist circuit riders, but aside from their visits, Old First Church which Mr. Moxon established here filled all the town's religious needs for nearly two hundred years. From that church, whose active existence enriches and
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makes vital her glorious and stimulating traditions, this fair city of ours is still deriving inestimable benefits.
In the year 1815, Colonel Roswell Lee, a staunch Episcopalian, assumed command at the United States Armory, usually called "The Public Land" of Springfield. Before his time most of the laborers employed at these shops were gleaned from floating groups of men who were enlisted, rationed, and paid like com- mon soldiers; a condition undesirable alike for the workmen and the community. Colonel Lee took immediate steps to remedy this evil. He encouraged the men to buy land with their spare earnings, to build homes, and to develop other traits of good citizenship. Knowing well that contentment and the physical and social well-being of his charges could be made permanent only by congenial religious ties, we find him writing to the Ordnance Department on July 29, 1816: "There are two old stores at this place ... On behalf of myself and others, I request per- mission to occupy a part of one for the purpose of holding public worship Let it be recollected that we have no right in the Parish; no persons living on the public land are seated in the church (myself excepted.)"
This wise request and many similar ones received no im- mediate answer, but the following year, with the consent of the National Government, an upper room was reserved for holding religious services in the newly completed Administration Build- ing. This carried out a suggestion which Colonel Lee voiced in another letter, Sept. 16, 1816: " . . The second story is to be devoted to the purposes of a chapel, on which is to be a cupola and bell, the latter to answer the purpose of giving the signal .... for worship." This building, greatly enlarged and improved, facing Federal Street, is still (1927) standing and this room, known for many years as "The Chapel on Armory Hill," is now one of the offices of the Commandant.
We of today, accustomed as we are to reading column after column of details of local happenings, find it a little difficult to understand the opposite policy of the local papers of the early part of the 19th century. This difference can be shown
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by quoting part of an editorial from "The Federalist," May 24th, 1820 " .... It is a settled principle with us never to suffer subjects of local interest to occupy a place in our paper." So we may safely conclude that the first Episcopal Service held in Springfield created considerable stir, for it is given unusual space in "The Federalist," May 15th, 1817. The article reads, "Dedication :- A spacious chapel in the building lately erected on the Public Ground in this town was dedicated to the solemn worship of the Almighty God on Tuesday last. The Rev. Titus Strong, Rector of St. James' Church, Greenfield, delivered an impressive and highly appropriate discourse on the occasion from Matt. 18, 20, 'For where two or three are gathered to- gether in my name, there am I in the midst of them.' "
Old letters, diaries, and other historic papers bring this pic- ture before us. We see an unadorned room fitted with simple seats, a plain desk, and a small organ. We see the beloved Dr. Strong, "a tall man of stately bearing, with a smooth shaven, kindly face," wearing a simple black gown, reading the service with his splendid voice to the small congregation of workmen and their families, augmented by three or four Episcopal fam- ilies from the village. Curiosity, no doubt, drew other rural folk, for that human weakness seemed to have drawn even stern Puritans to hear the Episcopal service first read in Bos- ton as early as 1638. There were very few Prayer Books in Springfield in 1817. Possibly the responses were read by the clerk only, from a cherished copy of the Prayer Book, for such was the custom of that day. We see the tall, dignified, gentle- mannered Colonel Lee, his heart full of joy and gratitude, as he worshipped for the first time in this "spacious" Chapel whose walls and simple furnishings owed their existence to his conscientious, resourceful efforts. Dr. Samuel Osgood, the vil- lage parson, may have been present, for at the Dedication of St. James' Church, Greenfield (1814), "Several of the Dissent- ing Clergymen in the neighborhood were present to witness the solemnities of the day." We know, too, that Dr. Strong and Dr. Osgood were on friendly terms, for they officiated at the
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Institution of Hampden Lodge of Masons at the "Meeting House." (May 29, 1817.)
Let us complete our word-picture of the first Church service by describing briefly the environs of "The Chapel on Armory Hill." Springfield had just become the shire city of the newly formed Hampden County. It had within its borders, about 3,000 persons who knew not a railroad, an apartment house, a telephone, a telegraph, an electric or gas light, a macadam road, a motor vehicle, or other commonplace convenience of the pres- ent day. The business centers of the town were at the corner of State and Main Streets and the corner of State and Walnut Streets. The present State Street was called in documents of that day "Bay Road" or "The Road." One street, only, branch- ing from this was called "The Road to Charles Brewers," later named Maple Street. On "Bay Road" were several large farm houses, candle lighted and fire-place heated, wood piles and well sweeps being comely, necessary dooryard adornments. For the most part houses in those days were unpainted but when color was used red was the favorite. The village boasted one white house. A watering trough stood at the junction of State and Main Streets; Jonathan Dwight's store stood at the northwest corner and an old school house back of that. Further up the street near the present Central High School building, was the jail.
The Town Brook bounded the easterly side of Main Street from Worthington Street to York Street. Tree lined Main Street, with a flower-dotted grass plot marking its center, was a country road on which were seen cows, ox-carts, and horse- drawn winged chaises. It had a few roomy houses and other buildings on its west side and fewer on the east side. Major John Pynchon's brick fort stood at the corner of Fort and Main Streets, and the pillory and whipping-post were still on what is now Court Square. The exciting events of each day were the arrival of the stage-coaches, one from Massachusetts Bay, one from Hartford, and one from Albany.
- President Monroe toured New England in the summer of
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1817. He came to Springfield on June twenty-four of that year. He and "his suite went on horseback .to view the public works of the United States."-These works consisted of several buildings, on 640 unfenced acres, lately purchased by the National Government. Is it too great a flight of fancy to think that President Monroe may have entered the Armory Chapel? He probably inspected the Administration Building. The brave little chapel within its walls was very new and very dear to Colonel Lee. Might it not have aroused a bit of sympathetic interest in the heart of this Virginian, one time student of William and Mary College, to find the church of his native state resting peacefully on a little hilltop in rural, Puritan Massachusetts ?
The chapel could boast of other interesting guests, at any rate, for in July 1821 the West Point Cadets visited Spring- field. The Republican thus describes their stay: "They reached Westfield on Saturday, the 28th, and camped there for the night. They were up early Sunday morning and marched into Spring- field just as the people were going to church, the brave mili- tary sight gravely distracting the residents so that the pastors talked to a good many empty benches. The corps marched to the armory grounds and camped there, but the cadets were taken at once to the Episcopal chapel for service." They made their second visit on May 28th, 1922.
Picking up again the main thread of our story, we should like to record that the little Chapel, so happily planted in this prosperous village, became firmly rooted and grew in strength and usefulness year by year. But alas! the story of the first twenty years of the Episcopal Church in Springfield is, for the most part, an account of a consecrated, undaunted group of Churchmen making valiant efforts to keep glowing one vital spark in an almost lifeless body.
Following the first service, Colonel Lee took immediate steps to procure a resident Chaplain. How plainly the earnest, thorough methods of the man are revealed in this letter to his good friend Dr. Strong! "This Chaplain", he wrote, "
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must be a man of talent, a classical scholar, a regular bred divine, and of first rate respectability and I could wish of the denomination called Episcopalian. .
. The pay allowed to Chaplains by the Government with what sums may be obtain- ed by subscriptions would give a gentleman of above description a very handsome support, say from $700 to $1000 per annum."
This ambition failed of complete fulfillment although help and encouragement came from another direction. In answer to a letter from Shubael Bell, Esq., of Boston, Colonel Lee wrote:
"Springfield, July 6th, 1818. "Dear Sir: I have no doubt the worthy gentleman you have recommended will answer our most sanguine expectations, but we shall not be fully prepared for him until about the first of September next, as we have a minister engaged half time until then. Some alteration is to be made in our room, and other arrangements are necessary. We shall want a number of prayer books about which I will write you hereafter. R. L."
And again, "I have had permission to apply the house rents for the support of a Chaplain and schoolmaster as they do at Harper's Ferry, and hope ultimately to succeed in carrying it into complete effect.
R. L."
The Government, however, never fulfilled this promise.
On April 5, 1840, the Rev. Henry W. Lee, son of Colonel Lee, preached an historical sermon in Christ Church, which was published in the Christian Witness of that year. A file of this periodical was found (1927) in the Boston Public Library, and a copy of the sermon was procured, through the courtesy of that Institution. Excerpts from it illumine dimmed corners of the long ago. Mr. Lee said: "In 1820, a proposition was made to the friends of the church in Ware-House Point, Conn.
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to have a clergyman officiate there and here alternately; but such an arrangement was found impracticable. So strong was the desire of Episcopalians here to enjoy the services of the church, that it was not uncommon for some of them to go to the place just named, a distance of twelve or thirteen miles, that they might gratify the pious wishes of their hearts."
From 1818 to 1822 Colonel Lee repeatedly asked aid from Congress, from the Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun (who visited the Armory in 1820) and from the local congressman, stating conditions and pleading for government funds for the support of the Chapel. Yet in 1822 he wrote: " we have employed a Chaplain, at various periods, and constantly during the past year but we have always paid them by sub- scription, and with such aid as we have obtained from other sources than the public funds." He never received tangible encouragement or financial support from the government except the use of the room. However, unsought aid appeared on the Church's horizon in 1821, although later this too proved a for- lorn hope.
At this period of our Church's history, it so happened that a wave of Unitarianism swept over Congregational New England. The First Church of Springfield was not directly influenced by it but about 117 of its members became dissatis- fied with the doctrine preached there and began to attend the services at the Armory Hill Chapel. This was an unexpected and encouraging development and the churchmen felt justified in calling, as resident rector, (Feb. 1821) the Rev. Edward Rutledge, a young clergyman, in deacon's orders. He buoyantly wrote of his first Service: "The Chapel on this and many succeeding Sundays was very full. The number of families who took seats was about one hundred, but it is impossible to say how many are Episcopalians." He organized the Parish, and the first wardens and vestrymen were duly chosen (May 24, 1821). Their names appear in the lists of those who held positions of trust at the Armory. Mr. Lee said of this period: "I do not find the name of the church in the manuscript left
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by Mr. Rutledge; but it is understood that it was by his suggestion called by its present name, 'Christ Church.' This name appears in the journals of the State conventions of that day."
Dr. Strong administered communion on June 17th, 1821, for the first time to 27 persons, there being Presbyterians and Methodists among them. Then the following month (July 7) the great, good Bishop Griswold came and confirmed five per- sons. This must have been a banner day! A definite, cheering reward of four years' untiring, laborious effort. It is also recorded that the Bishop then baptized one child, Henry W. Lee. The Baptismal Service had been read on previous occasions, once by a clergyman from Northampton and once by Dr. Strong.
It is interesting to record that Christmas celebrations began to creep in about this time. They were new and unusual enough to receive comment from the Press. "The Federalist" defends them, and there is no available record that, in Spring- field, services had to be held secretly, or that they were attended by rowdyism, as at Greenfield. One item reads (Dec. 27, 1820) "Public religious services were performed in several churches besides those of the Episcopal order." The fol- lowing year we find a similar article which throws a bit of light on the character of Mr. Rutledge; "The public Relig- ious services at the United States Chapel, yesterday, in commem- oration of the Messiah's ADVENT, were conducted by the Rev. Edward Rutledge, and were unusually impressive and inter- esting." This attitude contrasts pleasantly with a law of the Puritans that "Any found in the observance of Christmas should be fined five shillings."
The Unitarians of Springfield did not clearly define their creed until after the coming of the Rev. Dr. Wm. B. O. Pea- body. In "A Sketch of the History of the First Half Century of the Third Congregational Society of Springfield" (as this group was called) he tells us of the beginning of that Church's life, and we can see why the Episcopalians, evidently, believed a church might be built under their auspices. Dr. Peabody wrote :
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"Some had services in their own homes, but most worshipped with the armorers in their Chapel on the United States grounds. Rev. Mr. Marshall, an Episcopal clergyman, who was supplying at the United States Chapel, opened with prayer at the first regular meeting of this society, March 4, 1819". And again. "On the 3rd of June 1819, the frame of the house was raised, prayers being previously offered by the Rev. Mr. Chase".
Then too, the corner stone of the old Church of the Unity was laid (May 20, 1819) in the name of the Trinity, by Dr. Titus Strong. The Hampden Patriot of that year reads: "On this interesting occasion a very appropriate and excellent prayer was made by the Rev. Mr. Chase, preacher at the United States Chapel in this town." This church stood at the corner of State and Willow Streets, until destroyed by fire, Oct. 12, 1873.
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